Bunbury was the imaginary invalid in Oscar Wilde's play "The Importance of being Earnest" and going to visit him was the excuse for escaping from town. Yet though the Bunbury in Cheshire is real enough, the village is well worth escaping to, and its fame has spread far. There's even a Bunbury in Australia whose cathedral is dedicated to the same patron saint St Boniface. Cheshire's church however is splendidly 14th century, while the village was Buna's stronghold back in Saxon Times.
LOCATION: Twelve miles south-west of Northwich
START: Bunbury Church layby, Bowesgate Road Grid ref: SJ570581 Postcode: CW6 9PL
DISTANCE: 5.5 miles
GRADE: Easy
TIME: 2.5 hours
MAP: Explorer - Crewe & Nantwich Landranger 117
NOTE: Bunbury Mill open April - October Sunday afternoons
REFRESHMENTS: Dysart Arms & two cafes open in season
EN ROUTE: Shropshire Union Canal, River Gowy, Tiverton, Tilston
This walk was originally published by
The Manchester Evening News