Thursday 24 to Monday 28 April 2025 - This and That

After the day's splendid bike ride, it was a pleasure to revisit the Aspire Restaurant with Paul and Jeanette. The usual excellent meal was nearly perfect, the grilled flatiron being a little chewier than it should have been.

Duck salad

Bream

Delicious oxtail pudding

Great desserts

Sadly the next opening times, current dates being fully booked, aren't until September.

Friday's adventure was at the RHS Bridgewater gardens, where an Easter Egg Hunt covering the best part of 5km kept a 4-year old entertained for several hours.

Here are a few 'garden' pictures from a lovely outing.

Yes, she did get an Easter Egg prize for completing the hunt.

Saturday morning was spent at Wythenshawe parkrun #616. Here are some of our team after the run, which took place in the lovely weather that embraces this entire diary entry. Full results for the 424 participants are here.

We invited Robert and Lyn round for a bite to eat (guess the main course), and let them win at cards!

It's all in the preparation

Sunday morning found me marshalling at The Bridge for the 5km Community Run, then Sue and I cheered on some of the Manchester Marathon runners. We missed the leaders. Here are a few images from just outside Timperley Village. It was a lovely day for it, if a bit warm. I was wishing I had entered the race.

Monday was a Jazz Club at Eagley day. They've changed some of the performances to lunchtimes. This meant Sue was unable to attend due to another commitment. So I decided to cycle there.

It's about 15km along the towpath (grey and pied wagtails much in evidence here today) to Monton, where the route to Bolton switches to a loopline that goes all the way. About 3km after joining the loopline a junction is reached. The left turn goes to Leigh and Pennington Flash via a busway, whereas we keep right and proceed to reach Bolton after about 25km cycling from home.

Take the right fork to Bolton

After reaching Bolton, I took minor roads and paths via Queen's Park and the Eagley valley to reach the Conservative Club where the bands play on...

Having left home around 9am, I reached the club at about 11:30, in plenty of time for the New Orleans Joys' excellent performance.

The band comprises Dave Pogson (Clarinet and Alto-sax),  Andy Wallace (Tenor sax and clarinet),  Richard Slater (Trombone),  Malcolm Horne (Banjo and guitar),  Howard Worthington (Bass),  and Brian Woods (Drums).

Whilst the novelty of lunchtime performances initially brought a good attendance, that novelty appears to have worn off. The lure of being able to drive home in daylight has been over-ridden by other commitments on Mondays - such as work, grandparenting, sitting in the garden, etc. The attendance today of an audience of not many more than 40 is unsustainable. I suspect that the programme will need a drastic change back to evening performances, and those unable to drive in the dark (many of whom appear to have elected not to bother driving in daylight) will just have to get lifts or taxis.

My route home stayed as off-road as I could manage to devise, descending first to a footbridge over Eagley Brook. 

Soon afterwards I rose on a steep path to pass the Hall i'th Wood, a Tudor wooden-framed manor house dating from C16. Sadly closed to visitors today.

Beyond this I made my way mainly on footpaths through the Tonge Valley and up to Leverhulme Park, where there's a sparkly new looking athletics track. I parked myself on a bench in the park before a steep descent then ascent to the track. The coffee was much appreciated.

After Leverhulme Park I joined a route that is familiar, heading through Darcy Lever to the paths of Moses Gate Country Park.

The disused Manchester, Bolton and Bury Canal is soon reached. A large pond with goslings was a prelude to an area where the canal used to branch off to Manchester, near what I know as the 'Meccano Bridge', where much work is in progress. To what end, I'm unsure.

Further on, the familiar green sheen of a disused waterway.

After a while my path plunged down a hill to a bridge over the River Irwell, before rising to join Sustrans route number 6, crossing over a very congested M60/62 motorway and using old loopline routes all the way to Salford.

I muddled my way through Salford, crossing the River Irwell firstly on the bridge shown below, then three further times as the river loops its way through Salford. I'll find a better way next time.

 

After mixing it with Manchester's slow moving 'rush' hour traffic, I eventually found myself at the Museum of Science and Industry, from where it's easy to reach Castlefield and the busy towpath that leads in about 11km back to Timperley, reached in over three hours after leaving Eagley.

My route is shown in blue below (click on the image for a more readable one). The morning's ride was 33km, with 280 metres ascent, taking 2:20 plus stops, and the afternoon's route from Eagley was 41km with 240 metres ascent, taking 2:50 plus stops.

What a lovely way to spend a Monday.