Day 63 - Chester to Caldy

First expedition of 2015. No delay on Beardie's early morning train from Euston means that, with John joining Ben and Gary at New Street, we make a connection at Crewe which gets us to Chester around 9:45. Courtesy of Colin, we're at our starting point just after 10:00, but there is some uncertainty as to whether this was our precise finishing point last November. However, without establishing a laxity precedent, we agree that any discrepancy is de minimis and not such as to merit an adjustment to, or qualification of, the log. A dry cloudy day with a noticeable breeze from the west. Ben is braving the February elements in shorts but, apart from this, thermals, gloves, hats and jackets are the order of (and required for most of) the day. The route out of Chester is a series of flat cycle paths, pavements and well defined field tracks, so progress is extremely good - around 3 mph. After passing through Puddington and Burton, we almost renew acquaintance with the coast - marshland being the only thing between us and the Dee Estuary and our path being, in fact, the line of the old coast. Our plan to meet Ben and Cath's chums, Joyce and Chris near Caldy GC around 5:00 pm was originally regarded as a bit "cuspy" but, with our speed being maintained, we feel more than confident stopping for a drop of lunch in Parkgate. It doesn't take too much of an effort to resist one establishment whose primary advertised selling point is "as many chips as you can eat" (memories of Chipperville(s) in 2011 come flooding back) and we opt instead for ciders and soup/sandwich at The Ship. As a result, our confidence in keeping (more or less) to our pre-lunch speed is not misplaced. By the time we've passed Gayton and Heswall and have reached Thurstaston, Ben is able to phone Joyce and inform her that we'll get to a car park just beyond Caldy by 4:45. We pass the golf course and Joyce appears at the end of the path across the road from the car park to drive us (along with Chris) back to the Jug and Bottle at Heswall. If places can be judged on the basis of first impressions, this is going to be very good. Friendly staff and comfortable armchairs in front of a warming fire constitute an excellent environment in which to ease away the aches of the day with the assistance of pints of cider - or halves of lager for Joyce and Chris who then leave us to our own devices, Joyce having kindly offered to pick us up at 8:15 tomorrow and take us back to Caldy before going to dispense justice to a few scallies at Birkenhead Magistrates' Court. Rather radically, the first of our "devices" is a bottle of red before freshening up for supper. Then three further bottles of red with a very good meal, and wearily retiring to our rooms before 9 o'clock.