Bickerton Hill
Encyclopedia
Bickerton Hill refers to two low red sandstone
hills that form the southern end of the Mid Cheshire Ridge
in Cheshire
, north-west England. The high point, Raw Head, lies on the northerly hill and has an elevation of 227 metres. Parts of the southerly hill are also known as Larkton Hill.
There is evidence of settlement on the hills dating from the neolithic
or Bronze Age
. The earthworks of an Iron Age
hill fort
, Maiden Castle
, are located on the summit of the southerly hill; they are a Scheduled Monument. The hills have been quarried and mined for copper since the 17th century, and a grade-II-listed engine house chimney remains as a remnant of the mining industry. Several caves occur in the sandstone, some of which have a history of habitation. The Sandstone Trail
, a long-distance footpath, runs along the ridge, and the area is popular with walkers.
A large area of the southerly hill is protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest
(SSSI) for its biological importance; much of this hill is owned by the National Trust
. Its summit plateau has an extensive area of lowland heath
, a rare habitat in Cheshire, and one that is particularly important for reptiles. A substantial population of Lobed Maidenhair Spleenwort
, a fern that is rare in Britain, is found here. Nationally scarce species observed in the area include the bleached pug
and alder kitten
moths, and the Malthius frontalis species of soldier beetle
. The western escarpment
of the northerly hill has also been designated an SSSI for its exposed Triassic
sandstones.
" type, consisting of a circular enclosure with a narrow enclosed entrance. Two flint artefacts have been found on the southern hill: a leaf-shaped flint of unknown date and a Bronze Age arrowhead. A Bronze Age burial mound of the bowl barrow
type is located on top of an unnamed knoll immediately to the east of the southerly Bickerton Hill .
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walling; the inner rampart also has timber strapping. The fort was destroyed by fire in around 400 BC, although the area was probably used as a settlement until the Roman invasion of Britain in the 1st century AD.
The site is well preserved despite quarrying of the area during the 17th to early 20th centuries, as well as military training exercises during the 20th century. The remaining earthworks have been designated a Scheduled Monument, and the site is owned by the National Trust. Since 2009, the trust has been removing trees, scrub and bracken from the site, as the roots damage the earthworks. Animal burrows are another threat, and footpath erosion from visitors is also a problem, as the Sandstone Trail cuts across the earthworks.
There is another Maiden Castle which is an Iron Age hill fort 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) south west of Dorchester, in the English county of Dorset.
, which was found "waste", or devastated, at the time of the survey, in common with many nearby townships. This is usually considered to be a consequence of William I's suppression in 1069–70
of uprisings in north-west Mercia
. The township included half a league (about ¾ mile) of woodland, perhaps located on the hills.
Quarrying also took place at various sites on the hills, including Maiden Castle from the 17th century. Sandstone was extracted for building, and sand for use as a scouring agent. An iron rock-splitting wedge dating from the 17th century was found during excavations of Maiden Castle.
Mad Allen's Hole, a cave on the southerly Bickerton Hill, is believed by some to be the location of "Allenscomb's Cave" in which John Harris, "the English Hermit", lived for 46 years in the 18th century. According to a pamphlet of 1809, Harris was a man of property from Handley
, who embraced a hermit's life when his parents refused him permission to marry the woman of his choice. He first inhabited a cave in nearby Carden Park, moving to Allenscomb's Cave in the 1760s. Recent research has, however, cast doubt on the identification of Mad Allen's Hole with Allenscomb's Cave. Unlike the cave in Carden Park, no material dating to the 18th century has been discovered at Bickerton, and the name "Mad Allen's Hole" originated in the late 19th century, when the cave was occupied by an eccentric known as Mad Allen. In the early 19th century, the Bloody Bones caves on the northerly hill were occupied by brigands, who terrorised the surrounding countryside, stealing cheese from local farms and plundering graves, as well as selling sand for cleaning. Seven were captured and executed in around 1834.
The Droppingstone Well, immediately north of the Raw Head summit, bears a plaque dated 1861. A photograph of 1910 shows the well in use by locals.
. The heathland of the southerly hill went unmanaged from the 1940s until 1983, when 66 hectares (163.1 acre) of land were acquired by the National Trust; the trust's holding was extended by 51 hectares (126 acre) in 1991. Much of the southerly hill and the western escarpment of the northerly hill were notified as two separate Sites of Special Scientific Interest in 1979.
The Sandstone Trail long-distance footpath opened in 1974; it then started in Duckington
, immediately south of the southerly hill. The Sandstone Trail Race was launched three years later. A 2008 proposal to construct a 60 metre wind-monitoring mast adjacent to Bickerton Hill met with local protest, and was rejected by Crewe and Nantwich
Borough Council.
. They form the southern end and high point of the Mid Cheshire Ridge, which runs broadly north–south through Cheshire from Beacon Hill near Frodsham
. The southern part of the ridge, including both Bickerton Hills, has been designated an Area of Special County Value. The ridge line continues north–south over the northerly Bickerton Hill, turning approximately 30° to the west over the southerly hill. The two hills are separated by a valley through which the A534 runs. The nearest settlements are (anti-clockwise from the south) Duckington, Brown Knowl, Fuller's Moor, Harthill
, Bulkeley
, Gallantry Bank and Bickerton
.
The summit of the northerly hill, Raw Head , has an elevation of 227 metres and is the highest point on the Mid Cheshire Ridge. Raw Head was believed to be a Marilyn
but was demoted in 2009 following a re-survey; the re-estimate of Raw Head's prominence
is 148.5 metres. The high point bears a trig point
. The summit plateau of the southerly hill has two high points, at Maiden Castle (212 metres) and the Kitty Stone (193 metres). The southern (Maiden Castle) high point is sometimes referred to as Larkton Hill; this name is also sometimes used to refer to the southeast of the hill, which partly falls within the Larkton
civil parish.
The ridge is formed from a sandstone outcrop of the Sherwood Sandstone Group, dating from the Early Triassic
period around 250 million years ago. The sandstones are exposed forming extensive crags on the west flank of the northerly hill, as well as in smaller areas of the southerly hill. There are several natural caves. The two-storey cave known as Mad Allen's Hole (on the southerly hill at ) has an entrance partially blocked by boulders and is accessible via a circular hole at the rear. The Queen's Parlour, a large triple-chambered cave directly under the Raw Head trig point, might be partially quarried.
The steeply sloping west flank of the northerly hill is clothed with conifer plantation and mixed woodland, which is managed for pheasant shooting. The summit plateau and gently sloping east flank have a mixture of pasture, arable land and plantation. The soils of the southerly hill are acidic and predominantly nutrient poor, with brown sands on the ridge, and leached
podzolic
soils as well as brown earth
s at lower elevations. It supports a mixture of heath and largely deciduous woodland, with some pasture fields.
Like much of the Mid Cheshire Ridge, the Bickerton Hills are rather cooler than the surrounding Cheshire Plain
, with an accumulated temperature of 1375–1649 day °C compared with 1650–1924 day °C. The soil is slightly moist, with a similar moisture level to that of the surrounding area.
woods and heathland of the southerly hill has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). With the exception of several areas of farmland and former quarries, the SSSI covers the northmost (Kitty Stone) high point and the Maiden Castle area of the southern high point, together with the intervening col. It also extends over Cuckoo Rock, a lower area to the west of the southern high point, which lies to the south of the hamlet of Brown Knowl. It excludes the southwest of the hill, including part of Hether Wood as well as an area of farmland. A total of 117 hectares (289.1 acre) of the southerly hill, covering 90% of the SSSI, are owned and managed by the National Trust.
The lowland heath habitat (heathland below 300 metres elevation) of Bickerton Hill is considered particularly valuable. Lowland heath is an internationally scarce habitat that is rare within Cheshire; a survey in 1995 found only 60 Ha in the administrative county. Bickerton Hill is the largest of the four lowland heath SSSIs in the county. A semi-natural habitat, heathland requires active management, such as grazing, to avoid succession to scrub
and woodland.
(wavy hair grass) (H9) and heather–Ulex gallii (western gorse) (H8). Bilberry
(Vaccinium myrtillus) is also widespread, with some patches of bracken
(Pteridium aquilinum), and less frequently bell heather
(Erica cinerea), cross leaved heath
(Erica tetralix) and broom
(Cytisus scoparius).
The woodland is dominated by silver birch, with aspen
, holly, rowan
, sessile oak and wild cherry also present. The undergrowth includes heather and bilberry, with patches of broad buckler-fern
(Dryopteris dilatata). Over two hundred plants of the nationally rare fern, Lobed Maidenhair Spleenwort
(Asplenium trichomanes subsp pachyrachis), were discovered in 1997, growing on calcareous sandstone at two different locations; this is possibly the largest population of the subspecies in Britain. A few plants have since been recorded at Raw Head.
(Eupithecia expallidata) and alder kitten
(Furcula bicuspis) moths, as well as the soldier beetle species Malthius frontalis. Locally scarce insects include the green hairstreak
butterfly (Callophrys rubi) and the common glow-worm
(Lampyris noctiluca). The site provides a habitat for butterflies, with common species including the comma
, gatekeeper
, red admiral, speckled wood
and tortoiseshell
.
There is a breeding population of pied flycatcher
. Other birds commonly observed here include the jay
, long-tailed tit
, magpie
, nuthatch
, raven
, treecreeper
, and the great spotted
and green woodpeckers. The buzzard
, kestrel
and sparrowhawk are common raptors
, while merlin
and peregrine falcon
have been observed more rarely.
The reptile populations at Bickerton Hill are of particular significance. It is one of five sites in the county where the adder
has been recorded since 1995. Other reptiles here include slow-worm and common lizard
.
as in an unfavourable but recovering condition in 2005. Management of the area by the National Trust has aimed, since 1992, to promote heathland regeneration by preventing encroachment by birches, scrub and bracken. Strategies used include bracken rolling, clearing birch scrub and removing some older trees from heathland areas. Grazing with cattle is employed in summer. Tree clearance, has, however, resulted in conflict between the trust and a local residents group, Friends of Bickerton Hill, which organised a protest on the hill in October 2008 against tree felling, especially in the picturesque Cuckoo Rock Valley.
Woodland areas are managed to encourage the development of trees of a wide range of ages by halo thinning around older trees, thinning in denser woodland and planting new trees. Dead wood forms an important habitat and is retained.
Other threats to the site include the high volume of walkers, which has led to footpath erosion, and the inappropriate disposal of dog faeces. Bickerton Hill is included in the Cheshire Biodiversity Action Plan
.
period. The SSSI is centred on , and encompasses the hill's western escarpment, stretching from immediately west of Droppingstone Well, through Raw Head and Musket's Hole, and into Tower Wood. The land is owned by the Bolesworth Estate, and is managed for pheasant shooting, with conifer plantation and mixed woodland.
Wilmslow, Bulkeley Hill and Helsby Sandstone formations of the Sherwood Sandstone Group are present within the site, dating from the Early Triassic
period around 250 million years ago. The fine-grained red sandstones which predominate in the lower rock levels represent sedimentation
from sandy braided river
s, while the conglomerate
beds of Delamere Pebbly Sandstone (a type of Helsby Sandstone formation) which occur in the upper levels represent the deposition of larger particles from coarse-grained braided rivers.
The site was assessed as in a favourable condition by Natural England
in 2008. The rock was generally well exposed, despite local vegetation cover. No damage to the rocks was apparent from tree growth, and carved graffiti adjacent to the Raw Head summit was localised and superficial.
and Whitchurch
, runs over the top of the two hills, and there are several other public footpaths and a network of waymarked permissive paths. A total of 8500 walkers on the Sandstone Trail were recorded by the National Trust between January and March 2006, and the trust has estimated that 8000 dog walks occur annually within the Bickerton Hill SSSI. The longer of the two Sandstone Trail Races, organised by Deeside Orienteering Club in early October, goes over the two hills, starting from Duckington and following part of the Sandstone Trail.
Limited access by public road is available to the northerly hill: Coppermine Lane climbs from the A534 to the east of the summit plateau, and New Lane runs from Harthill
under the Raw Head ridge to Droppingstone Farm. Goldford Lane, Old Coach Road, Hall Lane, Brown Knowl Lane and Reading Room Lane run around the southerly hill; Sandy Lane runs from Brown Knowl to the edge of the Cuckoo Rock area. Two free car parks, at (Pool Lane, off Goldford Lane, near Bickerton) and (off Old Coach Road, near Duckington), are open during daylight hours. A small additional parking area for the disabled is located off Goldford Lane ; it requires advance permission. An easy-access footpath suitable for people of limited mobility runs from this parking area to Maiden Castle. The majority of paths have wicket gate
s or kissing gate
s, but there are some stile
s.
There is no access off the marked paths. There are no bridleways
; cycling is prohibited and horse riding requires a permit on the land owned by the National Trust. Camping and overnight parking are prohibited. Interpretation includes National Trust information boards in the two car parks, Sandstone Trail information boards at multiple points along the trail, and several interpretative signs.
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
hills that form the southern end of the Mid Cheshire Ridge
Mid Cheshire Ridge
The Mid Cheshire Ridge is a range of low sandstone hills which stretch north to south through Cheshire in North West England. The ridge is discontinuous, with the hills forming two main blocks, north and south of the "Beeston Gap"...
in Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, north-west England. The high point, Raw Head, lies on the northerly hill and has an elevation of 227 metres. Parts of the southerly hill are also known as Larkton Hill.
There is evidence of settlement on the hills dating from the neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
or Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
. The earthworks of an Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
hill fort
Hill fort
A hill fort is a type of earthworks used as a fortified refuge or defended settlement, located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typically European and of the Bronze and Iron Ages. Some were used in the post-Roman period...
, Maiden Castle
Maiden Castle, Cheshire
Maiden Castle is an Iron Age hill fort, one of many fortified hill-top settlements constructed across Britain during the Iron Age, but one of only seven in the county of Cheshire in northern England. The hill fort was probably occupied from its construction in 600 BC until the Roman conquest...
, are located on the summit of the southerly hill; they are a Scheduled Monument. The hills have been quarried and mined for copper since the 17th century, and a grade-II-listed engine house chimney remains as a remnant of the mining industry. Several caves occur in the sandstone, some of which have a history of habitation. The Sandstone Trail
Sandstone Trail
The Sandstone Trail is a long-distance walkers' path, following sandstone ridges running north–south from Frodsham in central Cheshire to Whitchurch just over the Shropshire border. The path was created in 1974 and extended in the 1990s...
, a long-distance footpath, runs along the ridge, and the area is popular with walkers.
A large area of the southerly hill is protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
(SSSI) for its biological importance; much of this hill is owned by the National Trust
National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty
The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, usually known as the National Trust, is a conservation organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland...
. Its summit plateau has an extensive area of lowland heath
Heath (habitat)
A heath or heathland is a dwarf-shrub habitat found on mainly low quality acidic soils, characterised by open, low growing woody vegetation, often dominated by plants of the Ericaceae. There are some clear differences between heath and moorland...
, a rare habitat in Cheshire, and one that is particularly important for reptiles. A substantial population of Lobed Maidenhair Spleenwort
Asplenium trichomanes
Asplenium trichomanes is a small fern in the spleenwort genus Asplenium. It is a widespread and common species, occurring almost worldwide in a variety of rocky habitats. It is a variable fern with several subspecies.-Description:It grows in tufts from a short rhizome...
, a fern that is rare in Britain, is found here. Nationally scarce species observed in the area include the bleached pug
Eupithecia
Eupithecia is a large genus of moths of the family Geometridae. There are hundreds of described species, found in all parts of the world , and new species are discovered on a regular basis....
and alder kitten
Furcula bicuspis
The Alder Kitten is a moth of the Notodontidae family. It is found in most of the Palearctic ecozone.The wingspan is 30–35 mm. The moths are on wing from May to July depending on the location....
moths, and the Malthius frontalis species of soldier beetle
Soldier beetle
The soldier beetles, Cantharidae, are relatively soft-bodied, straight-sided beetles, related to the Lampyridae or firefly family, but being unable to produce light. They are cosmopolitan in distribution. One common British species is bright red, reminding people of the red coats of soldiers, hence...
. The western escarpment
Escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that occurs from erosion or faulting and separates two relatively level areas of differing elevations.-Description and variants:...
of the northerly hill has also been designated an SSSI for its exposed Triassic
Triassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
sandstones.
Neolithic and Bronze Age
Cropmarks near Rawhead Farm suggest a possible neolithic or Bronze Age settlement on the northern hill, which is of the "banjo enclosureBanjo enclosure
In archaeology, Banjo enclosure is the name given to a type of archaeological feature of the British middle Iron Age. They are so named because in plan they consist of a small round area with a long entrance track leading inwards from one direction. This gives them the appearance in plan of frying...
" type, consisting of a circular enclosure with a narrow enclosed entrance. Two flint artefacts have been found on the southern hill: a leaf-shaped flint of unknown date and a Bronze Age arrowhead. A Bronze Age burial mound of the bowl barrow
Bowl barrow
Bowl Barrow is the name for a type of burial mound or tumulus. A barrow is a mound of earth used to cover a tomb. The bowl barrow gets its name from the fact that it looks like an upturned bowl...
type is located on top of an unnamed knoll immediately to the east of the southerly Bickerton Hill .
Maiden Castle
The remains of an Iron Age promontory hill fort, Maiden Castle, are located on the southernmost summit of the southerly hill at an elevation of 212 metres. Maiden Castle dates from around 600 BC and is the most southerly of the seven hill forts in Cheshire. The double line of earth ramparts are still visible, forming a semicircle that encloses an area of 1.3 acres (5,260.9 m²) adjacent to the cliff edge. The enclosure has a single entrance at the east side with inturned defensive banks. Archaeological investigations have shown that both ramparts are strengthened by dry stoneDry stone
Dry stone is a building method by which structures are constructed from stones without any mortar to bind them together. Dry stone structures are stable because of their unique construction method, which is characterized by the presence of a load-bearing facade of carefully selected interlocking...
walling; the inner rampart also has timber strapping. The fort was destroyed by fire in around 400 BC, although the area was probably used as a settlement until the Roman invasion of Britain in the 1st century AD.
The site is well preserved despite quarrying of the area during the 17th to early 20th centuries, as well as military training exercises during the 20th century. The remaining earthworks have been designated a Scheduled Monument, and the site is owned by the National Trust. Since 2009, the trust has been removing trees, scrub and bracken from the site, as the roots damage the earthworks. Animal burrows are another threat, and footpath erosion from visitors is also a problem, as the Sandstone Trail cuts across the earthworks.
There is another Maiden Castle which is an Iron Age hill fort 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) south west of Dorchester, in the English county of Dorset.
Anglo-Saxon and Norman
The name "Bickerton" is Anglo-Saxon in origin, and relates to bees. A township was recorded in the Domesday surveyDomesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
, which was found "waste", or devastated, at the time of the survey, in common with many nearby townships. This is usually considered to be a consequence of William I's suppression in 1069–70
Harrying of the North
The Harrying of the North was a series of campaigns waged by William the Conqueror in the winter of 1069–1070 to subjugate Northern England, and is part of the Norman conquest of England...
of uprisings in north-west Mercia
Mercia
Mercia was one of the kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon Heptarchy. It was centred on the valley of the River Trent and its tributaries in the region now known as the English Midlands...
. The township included half a league (about ¾ mile) of woodland, perhaps located on the hills.
17th–19th century
Copper mining at Bickerton was first recorded in 1696. The mine was owned by the Egerton family of Oulton, with eight miners being employed between 1696 and 1698. There were six shafts, one of which was deepened to 156 feet (47.5 m) in 1807. The mines were worked intermittently until 1906. A rare remnant of this local industry is a disused mine engine house chimney in red sandstone, which stands by the A534 at the foot of the northerly hill near Gallantry Bank. The flue of a pumping engine that was used to drain the mine, it dates from the early 19th century and is a grade-II-listed building. The remains of adjacent mining buildings were still standing in around 1920. The Copper Mine public house at nearby Broxton displays mining equipment and pictures.Quarrying also took place at various sites on the hills, including Maiden Castle from the 17th century. Sandstone was extracted for building, and sand for use as a scouring agent. An iron rock-splitting wedge dating from the 17th century was found during excavations of Maiden Castle.
Mad Allen's Hole, a cave on the southerly Bickerton Hill, is believed by some to be the location of "Allenscomb's Cave" in which John Harris, "the English Hermit", lived for 46 years in the 18th century. According to a pamphlet of 1809, Harris was a man of property from Handley
Handley, Cheshire
Handley is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England.All Saints Church, Handley is a Grade II* listed building.Milton Green is a hamlet in the parish.-External links:...
, who embraced a hermit's life when his parents refused him permission to marry the woman of his choice. He first inhabited a cave in nearby Carden Park, moving to Allenscomb's Cave in the 1760s. Recent research has, however, cast doubt on the identification of Mad Allen's Hole with Allenscomb's Cave. Unlike the cave in Carden Park, no material dating to the 18th century has been discovered at Bickerton, and the name "Mad Allen's Hole" originated in the late 19th century, when the cave was occupied by an eccentric known as Mad Allen. In the early 19th century, the Bloody Bones caves on the northerly hill were occupied by brigands, who terrorised the surrounding countryside, stealing cheese from local farms and plundering graves, as well as selling sand for cleaning. Seven were captured and executed in around 1834.
20th–21st century
The area around Maiden Castle was used for military training exercises during the 20th century, which included digging numerous two-man slit trenchesDefensive fighting position
A defensive fighting position is a type of earthwork constructed in a military context, generally large enough to accommodate at least one person.- Terminology :...
. The heathland of the southerly hill went unmanaged from the 1940s until 1983, when 66 hectares (163.1 acre) of land were acquired by the National Trust; the trust's holding was extended by 51 hectares (126 acre) in 1991. Much of the southerly hill and the western escarpment of the northerly hill were notified as two separate Sites of Special Scientific Interest in 1979.
The Sandstone Trail long-distance footpath opened in 1974; it then started in Duckington
Duckington
Duckington is a small village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England.-External links:...
, immediately south of the southerly hill. The Sandstone Trail Race was launched three years later. A 2008 proposal to construct a 60 metre wind-monitoring mast adjacent to Bickerton Hill met with local protest, and was rejected by Crewe and Nantwich
Crewe and Nantwich
Crewe and Nantwich was, from 1974 to 2009, a local government district with borough status in Cheshire, England. It had a population of 111,007...
Borough Council.
Geography, geology and climate
The two Bickerton Hills lie south-west of the Peckforton HillsPeckforton Hills
The Peckforton Hills are a sandstone ridge running broadly northeast–southwest in the west of the English county of Cheshire. They form a significant part of the longer Mid Cheshire Ridge which extends southwards from Frodsham towards Malpas....
. They form the southern end and high point of the Mid Cheshire Ridge, which runs broadly north–south through Cheshire from Beacon Hill near Frodsham
Frodsham
Frodsham is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. Its population is 8,982. It is approximately south of Runcorn, 16 miles south of Liverpool, and approximately south-west of Manchester...
. The southern part of the ridge, including both Bickerton Hills, has been designated an Area of Special County Value. The ridge line continues north–south over the northerly Bickerton Hill, turning approximately 30° to the west over the southerly hill. The two hills are separated by a valley through which the A534 runs. The nearest settlements are (anti-clockwise from the south) Duckington, Brown Knowl, Fuller's Moor, Harthill
Harthill, Cheshire
Harthill is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England.All Saints Church, Harthill is a Grade II* listed building.-External links:...
, Bulkeley
Bulkeley
Bulkeley is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The village is situated at on the A534 about 9 miles west of Nantwich. The civil parish also includes the small settlement of Bulkelehay at , with a total population...
, Gallantry Bank and Bickerton
Bickerton, Cheshire
Bickerton is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, about eight miles north of Whitchurch in Shropshire. The parish also includes the small settlement of Gallantry Bank, with a total population of over 200...
.
The summit of the northerly hill, Raw Head , has an elevation of 227 metres and is the highest point on the Mid Cheshire Ridge. Raw Head was believed to be a Marilyn
Marilyn (hill)
A Marilyn is a mountain or hill in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland or Isle of Man with a relative height of at least 150 metres , regardless of absolute height or other merit...
but was demoted in 2009 following a re-survey; the re-estimate of Raw Head's prominence
Topographic prominence
In topography, prominence, also known as autonomous height, relative height, shoulder drop , or prime factor , categorizes the height of the mountain's or hill's summit by the elevation between it and the lowest contour line encircling it and no higher summit...
is 148.5 metres. The high point bears a trig point
Triangulation station
A triangulation station, also known as a triangulation pillar, trigonometrical station, trigonometrical point, trig station, trig beacon or trig point, and sometimes informally as a trig, is a fixed surveying station, used in geodetic surveying and other surveying projects in its vicinity...
. The summit plateau of the southerly hill has two high points, at Maiden Castle (212 metres) and the Kitty Stone (193 metres). The southern (Maiden Castle) high point is sometimes referred to as Larkton Hill; this name is also sometimes used to refer to the southeast of the hill, which partly falls within the Larkton
Larkton
Larkton is a civil parish in the Borough of Cheshire West and Chester and ceremonial county of Cheshire in England. It has a population of 28.-External links:...
civil parish.
The ridge is formed from a sandstone outcrop of the Sherwood Sandstone Group, dating from the Early Triassic
Early Triassic
The Early Triassic is the first of three epochs of the Triassic period of the geologic timescale. It spans the time between 251 ± 0.4 Ma and 245 ± 1.5 Ma . Rocks from this epoch are collectively known as the Lower Triassic, which is a unit in chronostratigraphy...
period around 250 million years ago. The sandstones are exposed forming extensive crags on the west flank of the northerly hill, as well as in smaller areas of the southerly hill. There are several natural caves. The two-storey cave known as Mad Allen's Hole (on the southerly hill at ) has an entrance partially blocked by boulders and is accessible via a circular hole at the rear. The Queen's Parlour, a large triple-chambered cave directly under the Raw Head trig point, might be partially quarried.
The steeply sloping west flank of the northerly hill is clothed with conifer plantation and mixed woodland, which is managed for pheasant shooting. The summit plateau and gently sloping east flank have a mixture of pasture, arable land and plantation. The soils of the southerly hill are acidic and predominantly nutrient poor, with brown sands on the ridge, and leached
Leaching (pedology)
In pedology, leaching is the loss of mineral and organic solutes due to percolation. It is a mechanism of soil formation. It is distinct from the soil forming process of eluviation, which is the loss of mineral and organic colloids. Leached and elluviated materials tend to be lost from topsoil and...
podzolic
Podsol
In soil science, podzols are the typical soils of coniferous, or boreal forests. They are also the typical soils of eucalypt forests and heathlands in southern Australia...
soils as well as brown earth
Brown earth
Brown earth is a type of soil. Brown earths are mostly located between 35° and 55° north of the Equator. The largest expanses cover western and central Europe, large areas of western and trans-Uralian Russia, the east coast of America and eastern Asia. Here, areas of brown earth soil types are...
s at lower elevations. It supports a mixture of heath and largely deciduous woodland, with some pasture fields.
Like much of the Mid Cheshire Ridge, the Bickerton Hills are rather cooler than the surrounding Cheshire Plain
Cheshire Plain
The Cheshire Plain is a relatively flat expanse of lowland situated almost entirely within the county of Cheshire in northwest England. It is bounded by the hills of North Wales to the west, and the Peak District of Derbyshire and North Staffordshire to the east and southeast...
, with an accumulated temperature of 1375–1649 day °C compared with 1650–1924 day °C. The soil is slightly moist, with a similar moisture level to that of the surrounding area.
Sites of Special Scientific Interest
Bickerton Hill
An area of 91 hectares (224.9 acre) of the birchBirch
Birch is a tree or shrub of the genus Betula , in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. The Betula genus contains 30–60 known taxa...
woods and heathland of the southerly hill has been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). With the exception of several areas of farmland and former quarries, the SSSI covers the northmost (Kitty Stone) high point and the Maiden Castle area of the southern high point, together with the intervening col. It also extends over Cuckoo Rock, a lower area to the west of the southern high point, which lies to the south of the hamlet of Brown Knowl. It excludes the southwest of the hill, including part of Hether Wood as well as an area of farmland. A total of 117 hectares (289.1 acre) of the southerly hill, covering 90% of the SSSI, are owned and managed by the National Trust.
The lowland heath habitat (heathland below 300 metres elevation) of Bickerton Hill is considered particularly valuable. Lowland heath is an internationally scarce habitat that is rare within Cheshire; a survey in 1995 found only 60 Ha in the administrative county. Bickerton Hill is the largest of the four lowland heath SSSIs in the county. A semi-natural habitat, heathland requires active management, such as grazing, to avoid succession to scrub
Shrubland
Shrubland, scrubland, scrub or brush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity...
and woodland.
Flora
Within the heathland areas, the predominant community types are Calluna vulgaris (common heather)–Deschampsia flexuosaDeschampsia flexuosa
-Introduction:Deschampsia flexuosa Trin. or Wavy Hair-grass is a species of bunchgrass in the Poaceae family with a Holarctic distribution.-Habitat and distribution:...
(wavy hair grass) (H9) and heather–Ulex gallii (western gorse) (H8). Bilberry
Vaccinium myrtillus
Vaccinium myrtillus is an almost Holarctic species of shrub with edible fruit, usually simply referred to as "bilberry" or "whortleberry". It is more precidely called Common Bilberry or Blue Whortleberry, to distinguish it from its Vaccinium relatives...
(Vaccinium myrtillus) is also widespread, with some patches of bracken
Pteridium aquilinum
Pteridium aquilinum is a species of fern occurring in temperate and subtropical regions throughout much of the northern hemisphere....
(Pteridium aquilinum), and less frequently bell heather
Erica cinerea
Erica cinerea is a species of heather, native to western and central Europe. It is a low shrub growing to tall, with fine needle-like leaves long arranged in whorls of three...
(Erica cinerea), cross leaved heath
Erica tetralix
Erica tetralix is a species of heather found in Atlantic areas of Europe, from southern Portugal to central Norway, as well as a number of boggy regions further from the coast in Central Europe. In bogs, wet heaths and damp coniferous woodland, Erica tetralix can become a dominant part of the flora...
(Erica tetralix) and broom
Cytisus scoparius
Cytisus scoparius, the Common Broom and Scotch Broom, syn. Sarothamnus scoparius, is a perennial leguminous shrub native to western and central Europe,....
(Cytisus scoparius).
The woodland is dominated by silver birch, with aspen
Populus tremula
Populus tremula, commonly called aspen, common aspen, Eurasian aspen, European aspen, trembling poplar, or quaking aspen, is a species of poplar native to cool temperate regions of Europe and Asia, from the British Isles east to Kamchatka, north to inside the Arctic Circle in Scandinavia and...
, holly, rowan
Sorbus aucuparia
Sorbus aucuparia , is a species of the genus Sorbus, native to most of Europe except for the far south, and northern Asia...
, sessile oak and wild cherry also present. The undergrowth includes heather and bilberry, with patches of broad buckler-fern
Dryopteris
Dryopteris , commonly called wood ferns, male ferns, and buckler ferns, is a genus of about 250 species of ferns with distribution in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, with the highest species diversity in eastern Asia. Many of the species have stout, slowly creeping rootstocks that form a crown,...
(Dryopteris dilatata). Over two hundred plants of the nationally rare fern, Lobed Maidenhair Spleenwort
Asplenium trichomanes
Asplenium trichomanes is a small fern in the spleenwort genus Asplenium. It is a widespread and common species, occurring almost worldwide in a variety of rocky habitats. It is a variable fern with several subspecies.-Description:It grows in tufts from a short rhizome...
(Asplenium trichomanes subsp pachyrachis), were discovered in 1997, growing on calcareous sandstone at two different locations; this is possibly the largest population of the subspecies in Britain. A few plants have since been recorded at Raw Head.
Fauna
The area is rich in wildlife. Insects found here that are scarce in the UK include the bleached pugEupithecia
Eupithecia is a large genus of moths of the family Geometridae. There are hundreds of described species, found in all parts of the world , and new species are discovered on a regular basis....
(Eupithecia expallidata) and alder kitten
Furcula bicuspis
The Alder Kitten is a moth of the Notodontidae family. It is found in most of the Palearctic ecozone.The wingspan is 30–35 mm. The moths are on wing from May to July depending on the location....
(Furcula bicuspis) moths, as well as the soldier beetle species Malthius frontalis. Locally scarce insects include the green hairstreak
Green Hairstreak
The Green Hairstreak, Callophrys rubi, is a butterfly in the family Lycaenidae.Callophrys rubi is found in Europe, North Africa, Russia, Asia Minor, Siberia, Amurland , Baluchistan and Chitral....
butterfly (Callophrys rubi) and the common glow-worm
Lampyris noctiluca
Lampyris noctiluca, the common glow-worm of Europe , is a firefly species of the genus Lampyris. These are beetles, as evidenced by the hard cases which close over the wings when they are not in use....
(Lampyris noctiluca). The site provides a habitat for butterflies, with common species including the comma
Comma (butterfly)
The Comma is a species of butterfly that ranges across Europe and temperate Asia to Japan and south to Morocco. Similar species are found in the United States and Canada.-Subspecies:...
, gatekeeper
Gatekeeper Butterfly
The Gatekeeper sometimes called the Hedge Brown is a common butterfly in the United Kingdom. It is a member of the subfamily Satyrinae in the family Nymphalidae. A similar species is the Meadow Brown; the two species can be difficult to distinguish with closed wings since underwing markings are...
, red admiral, speckled wood
Speckled Wood
The Speckled Wood is a butterfly found in and on the borders of woodland throughout much of the Palearctic ecozone.In North Europe, Central Europe , Asia Minor, Syria, Russia and Central Asia where subspecies P. a. tircis occurs it is brown with pale yellow or cream spots and darker upperwing...
and tortoiseshell
Small Tortoiseshell
The Small Tortoiseshell is a well-known colourful butterfly.-Range:It is found in temperate Europe, Asia Minor, Central Asia, Siberia, China, Mongolia, Korea and Japan. There are a few records from New York City which, however, are believed to have arrived human-assisted.-Subspecies:*A. u. urticae...
.
There is a breeding population of pied flycatcher
European Pied Flycatcher
The Pied Flycatcher, Ficedula hypoleuca, is a small passerine bird in the Old World flycatcher family, one of the four species of Western Palearctic black-and-white flycatchers. It breeds in most of Europe and western Asia. It is migratory, wintering mainly in western Africa. It hybridizes with...
. Other birds commonly observed here include the jay
Eurasian Jay
The Eurasian Jay is a species of bird occurring over a vast region from Western Europe and north-west Africa to the Indian Subcontinent and further to the eastern seaboard of Asia and down into south-east Asia...
, long-tailed tit
Long-tailed Tit
The Long-tailed Tit or Long-tailed Bushtit is a common bird found throughout Europe and Asia. There are several extensive accounts of this species, most notably Cramp and Perrins, 1993; Gaston, 1973; and Harrap and Quinn, 1996...
, magpie
European Magpie
The European Magpie, Eurasian Magpie, or Common Magpie, , is a resident breeding bird throughout Europe, much of Asia and northwest Africa. It is one of several birds in the crow family named as magpies, and belongs to the Holarctic radiation of "monochrome" magpies...
, nuthatch
Nuthatch
The nuthatches are a genus, Sitta, of small passerine birds belonging to the family Sittidae. Characterised by large heads, short tails, and powerful bills and feet, nuthatches advertise their territory using loud, simple songs...
, raven
Common Raven
The Common Raven , also known as the Northern Raven, is a large, all-black passerine bird. Found across the northern hemisphere, it is the most widely distributed of all corvids...
, treecreeper
Treecreeper
The treecreepers are a family, Certhiidae, of small passerine birds, widespread in wooded regions of the Northern Hemisphere and sub-Saharan Africa. The family contains ten species in two genera, Certhia and Salpornis...
, and the great spotted
Great Spotted Woodpecker
The Great Spotted Woodpecker , Dendrocopos major, is a bird species of the woodpecker family . It is distributed throughout Europe and northern Asia, and usually resident year-round except in the colder parts of its range...
and green woodpeckers. The buzzard
Common Buzzard
The Common Buzzard is a medium to large bird of prey, whose range covers most of Europe and extends into Asia. It is usually resident all year, except in the coldest parts of its range, and in the case of one subspecies.-Description:...
, kestrel
Common Kestrel
The Common Kestrel is a bird of prey species belonging to the kestrel group of the falcon family Falconidae. It is also known as the European Kestrel, Eurasian Kestrel, or Old World Kestrel. In Britain, where no other brown falcon occurs, it is generally just called "the kestrel".This species...
and sparrowhawk are common raptors
Bird of prey
Birds of prey are birds that hunt for food primarily on the wing, using their keen senses, especially vision. They are defined as birds that primarily hunt vertebrates, including other birds. Their talons and beaks tend to be relatively large, powerful and adapted for tearing and/or piercing flesh....
, while merlin
Merlin (bird)
The Merlin is a small species of falcon from the Northern Hemisphere. A bird of prey once known colloquially as a pigeon hawk in North America, the Merlin breeds in the northern Holarctic; some migrate to subtropical and northern tropical regions in winter.-European and North American...
and peregrine falcon
Peregrine Falcon
The Peregrine Falcon , also known as the Peregrine, and historically as the Duck Hawk in North America, is a widespread bird of prey in the family Falconidae. A large, crow-sized falcon, it has a blue-gray back, barred white underparts, and a black head and "moustache"...
have been observed more rarely.
The reptile populations at Bickerton Hill are of particular significance. It is one of five sites in the county where the adder
Vipera berus
Vipera berus, the common European adder or common European viper, is a venomous viper species that is extremely widespread and can be found throughout most of Western Europe and all the way to Far East Asia. Known by a host of common names including Common adder and Common viper, adders have been...
has been recorded since 1995. Other reptiles here include slow-worm and common lizard
Viviparous lizard
The viviparous lizard or common lizard is a Eurasian lizard. It lives farther north than any other reptile species, and most populations are viviparous , rather than laying eggs as most other lizards do.-Identification:The length of the body is less than...
.
Current status and management
The site was assessed by English NatureEnglish Nature
English Nature was the United Kingdom government agency that promoted the conservation of wildlife, geology and wild places throughout England between 1990 and 2006...
as in an unfavourable but recovering condition in 2005. Management of the area by the National Trust has aimed, since 1992, to promote heathland regeneration by preventing encroachment by birches, scrub and bracken. Strategies used include bracken rolling, clearing birch scrub and removing some older trees from heathland areas. Grazing with cattle is employed in summer. Tree clearance, has, however, resulted in conflict between the trust and a local residents group, Friends of Bickerton Hill, which organised a protest on the hill in October 2008 against tree felling, especially in the picturesque Cuckoo Rock Valley.
Woodland areas are managed to encourage the development of trees of a wide range of ages by halo thinning around older trees, thinning in denser woodland and planting new trees. Dead wood forms an important habitat and is retained.
Other threats to the site include the high volume of walkers, which has led to footpath erosion, and the inappropriate disposal of dog faeces. Bickerton Hill is included in the Cheshire Biodiversity Action Plan
Biodiversity Action Plan
A Biodiversity Action Plan is an internationally recognized program addressing threatened species and habitats and is designed to protect and restore biological systems. The original impetus for these plans derives from the 1992 Convention on Biological Diversity...
.
Raw Head
A total of 13.51 hectares (33.4 acre) of the northerly Bickerton Hill has been designated a geological SSSI for its exposed sandstones, which provide important insight into the conditions present during the TriassicTriassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...
period. The SSSI is centred on , and encompasses the hill's western escarpment, stretching from immediately west of Droppingstone Well, through Raw Head and Musket's Hole, and into Tower Wood. The land is owned by the Bolesworth Estate, and is managed for pheasant shooting, with conifer plantation and mixed woodland.
Wilmslow, Bulkeley Hill and Helsby Sandstone formations of the Sherwood Sandstone Group are present within the site, dating from the Early Triassic
Early Triassic
The Early Triassic is the first of three epochs of the Triassic period of the geologic timescale. It spans the time between 251 ± 0.4 Ma and 245 ± 1.5 Ma . Rocks from this epoch are collectively known as the Lower Triassic, which is a unit in chronostratigraphy...
period around 250 million years ago. The fine-grained red sandstones which predominate in the lower rock levels represent sedimentation
Sedimentation
Sedimentation is the tendency for particles in suspension to settle out of the fluid in which they are entrained, and come to rest against a barrier. This is due to their motion through the fluid in response to the forces acting on them: these forces can be due to gravity, centrifugal acceleration...
from sandy braided river
Braided river
A braided river is one of a number of channel types and has a channel that consists of a network of small channels separated by small and often temporary islands called braid bars or, in British usage, aits or eyots. Braided streams occur in rivers with high slope and/or large sediment load...
s, while the conglomerate
Conglomerate (geology)
A conglomerate is a rock consisting of individual clasts within a finer-grained matrix that have become cemented together. Conglomerates are sedimentary rocks consisting of rounded fragments and are thus differentiated from breccias, which consist of angular clasts...
beds of Delamere Pebbly Sandstone (a type of Helsby Sandstone formation) which occur in the upper levels represent the deposition of larger particles from coarse-grained braided rivers.
The site was assessed as in a favourable condition by Natural England
Natural England
Natural England is the non-departmental public body of the UK government responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, freshwater and marine environments, geology and soils, are protected and improved...
in 2008. The rock was generally well exposed, despite local vegetation cover. No damage to the rocks was apparent from tree growth, and carved graffiti adjacent to the Raw Head summit was localised and superficial.
Recreational use, access and facilities
The area is popular with recreational walkers and dog walkers. The Sandstone Trail, a long-distance footpath between FrodshamFrodsham
Frodsham is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. Its population is 8,982. It is approximately south of Runcorn, 16 miles south of Liverpool, and approximately south-west of Manchester...
and Whitchurch
Whitchurch, Shropshire
Whitchurch is a market town in Shropshire, England on the border between England and Wales. It is the oldest continuously inhabited town in Shropshire. According to the 2001 Census, the population of the town is 8,673, with a more recent estimate putting the population of the town at 8,934...
, runs over the top of the two hills, and there are several other public footpaths and a network of waymarked permissive paths. A total of 8500 walkers on the Sandstone Trail were recorded by the National Trust between January and March 2006, and the trust has estimated that 8000 dog walks occur annually within the Bickerton Hill SSSI. The longer of the two Sandstone Trail Races, organised by Deeside Orienteering Club in early October, goes over the two hills, starting from Duckington and following part of the Sandstone Trail.
Limited access by public road is available to the northerly hill: Coppermine Lane climbs from the A534 to the east of the summit plateau, and New Lane runs from Harthill
Harthill, Cheshire
Harthill is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England.All Saints Church, Harthill is a Grade II* listed building.-External links:...
under the Raw Head ridge to Droppingstone Farm. Goldford Lane, Old Coach Road, Hall Lane, Brown Knowl Lane and Reading Room Lane run around the southerly hill; Sandy Lane runs from Brown Knowl to the edge of the Cuckoo Rock area. Two free car parks, at (Pool Lane, off Goldford Lane, near Bickerton) and (off Old Coach Road, near Duckington), are open during daylight hours. A small additional parking area for the disabled is located off Goldford Lane ; it requires advance permission. An easy-access footpath suitable for people of limited mobility runs from this parking area to Maiden Castle. The majority of paths have wicket gate
Wicket gate
A wicket gate is a small gate or door, particularly one built into a larger one. The cricket term "wicket" comes from this usage. The term wicket gate is also used in English to refer to automatic ticket barriers or older staffed ticket gates on Japan's railway network...
s or kissing gate
Kissing gate
A kissing gate is a type of gate which allows people to pass through, but not livestock.The normal construction is a half-round, rectangular, trapezial or V-shaped enclosure with a hinged gate trapped between its arms. When the gate is parked at either side of the enclosure, there is no gap to pass...
s, but there are some stile
Stile
A stile is a structure which provides people a passage through or over a fence or boundary via steps, ladders, or narrow gaps. Stiles are often built in rural areas or along footpaths to allow access to an adjacent field or area separated by a fence, wall or hedge...
s.
There is no access off the marked paths. There are no bridleways
Bridle path
A bridle path is a thoroughfare originally made for horses, but which these days serves a wide range of interests, including hikers, walkers and cyclists as well as equestrians. The laws relating to permissions vary from country to country...
; cycling is prohibited and horse riding requires a permit on the land owned by the National Trust. Camping and overnight parking are prohibited. Interpretation includes National Trust information boards in the two car parks, Sandstone Trail information boards at multiple points along the trail, and several interpretative signs.
See also
- List of Scheduled Monuments in Cheshire (pre-1066)
- List of Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Cheshire
External links
- Discovercheshire website (Raw Head walk).
- Walking Cheshire's Sandstone Trail | Maps | Information | Photographs
Sources
- Bawn W, Dakin R, Shadbolt C, Bate H (ed). A Local History of Broxton, Duckington & Harthill (Local Heritage Initiative; 2004) (accessed 24 April 2010)
- Husain BMC. Cheshire under the Norman Earls: 1066–1237. A History of Cheshire Vol. 4 (JJ Bagley, ed.) (Cheshire Community Council; 1973)
- Phillips ADM, Phillips CB (eds). A New Historical Atlas of Cheshire (Cheshire County Council & Cheshire Community Council Publications Trust; 2002)