13/3/25
Recumbent Ride
Finding the Salterswall Wayside Cross -then some Mundane Shopping on the Linear.
Since coming across the Long Stone in Longstone Lane near Little Budworth at the end of last year I’ve developed an interest in finding other ancient roadside markers that have fallen into disrepair or have disappeared into the undergrowth over the years. The maps which I’ve looked at have been rather vague so despite having the map reference some of the sites haven’t been at the exact spot that I’d expected. So it was with the remains of the Salterswall wayside Cross.
I set off through my back gate with the Linear, crossed the road and got on ready to set off in the direction of Swanlow Lane and the uphill traffic lights. I couldn’t help thinking how pleasant it was to be on the Linear after riding my upright bike last time. I came to the uphill lights and they were green for a ridiculously long time in my direction. I was prepared to stop, but no, they remained green until I’d crossed over the junction. I carried on down Swanlow Lane with a rather cold wind in my face until I reached the A54 roundabout. I had to stop here on red as punishment for my easy transit of the previous lights, but soon got going again, straight on down Delamere St.
Delamere St. became Chester Road and eventually it curved to the left. Whitegate Road branched off to the right halfway round, and on the left where I expected to see some sign there was a block of something. It didn’t look quite right but I continued down the road and doubled back along the pavement. It was a big lump of oblong concrete, taller than it was wide, with a panel on the back with “FP” on it. Not what I was looking for.
I scanned around, wondering if with recent housing developments it might have been absorbed into someone’s garden. Across the road there were a couple of small “T” shaped concrete panels sticking up out of the grass signifying a water main. Just in front there was a dark shape made indistinct by the grass growing around it. I wheeled the bike across the road to have a look.
I pushed the grass away with my foot to get a better look. It was a square, or maybe oblong, block of reddish sandstone no bigger than about 2’ across with a depression in the middle but otherwise flat and level on top. It was mostly sunk into the ground. More stones might have sat on top of it once, each stone having a square cut out in them so that together they could support a stone cross. It seems likely from its location that this could have been part of the base of the Salterswall Roadside Cross.
This would most likely have dated from between 1066 to 1539 when such artefacts became less useful as markers to pilgrimage sites such as Vale Royal Abbey, which was a couple of miles away to the North West. Vale Royal Abbey was closed in 1539 under Henry VIII’s authority as part of his reformation of the monasteries.
After all this excitement came the mundane stuff. I set off back down Chester Road then Delamere St. with a following wind.
I had high hopes once I got to the A54 roundabout and turned downhill of some good speed. However, the wind was in my face and even though I was able to keep going through the town centre lights the max speed was disappointing. As I turned into the filter lane to turn right at the next lights a couple of workmen were walking down the kerb on the wrong side of the pedestrian barrier. One of them said, “that looks like fun!” I gave him a thumbs up and as his workmate turned to see who he was talking to, tripped over his boots and had to cling to the pedestrian barrier to avoid falling over.
They both went on their way while I waited for the lights, which seemed to take a long time.
I went right, right at the next roundabout then right again into a supermarket car park, up to my usual barrier, and locked up.
I went in, picked up my bits of shopping, and came out again. I loaded up the panniers, unlocked the lock, and set off across the car park.
Left at the exit roundabout, right at the next one into Dingle lane, over the humps and across the pavement at the end on to Queensway. The usual way home via some estate roads with some climbing to come out on Gladstone St. and Townfields Road. I’d picked up a tailwind here and the climbing was easy. Over the top. A stop at the lights, then straight on through the lanes and after some winding about, arrived at my back gate.
Distance 6.18 miles. Max speed 22.3 mph. Average 7.6 mph. According to Garmin.
Ascent 121 ft. According to Bikehike.
