To get to Lud's Church parking take the A53 from Leek and take the left turn for Upper Hulme just after the Three Horse Shoes Inn. At the fork in the road take the left lane and continue underneath the Roaches and parking spaces and follow this road all the way round until you come across a five bar gate across the road at the cattle grid, with Roach End on your right and a style to your left a gap through the wall. Park here by the road side to start this walk. For a bigger walk you could park at the Roaches and walk over the top to Roach End and then do this walk.
Start the walk by making your way through the gap in the wall and turning immediately right and over the style walking down the path towards the woods. At the bottom enter the woods and cross over the river( Black Brook). Just after the river is a sign post to the left for Lud's Church follow this path to your left and walk along for 25 minutes through the woods until you come to another sign post at a fork in the path marked Lud's Church, take the left hand fork and cross over the concessionery path to the edge.
This is the edge you will be walking back along. Continue along the path for another 15 minutes until you come to a small single fence and path to the right and left. This is the back end of the chasm, follow the path on the left end side and in a short while you will come along steps to descend down and in to the chasm which is at the bottom 50 foot deep. Walk through the chasm and leave ascending the steps on the entrance side.
Take the path to your left and follow until you come across a rock formation called Castle Cliff Rock. This is a great area for children to climb as the rocks are challanging with little dangers and provide good views across the valley from the top of the rocks. Again continue along the path and at the fork in the path bear to your left towards Swythamley. After about 30 minutes you will come to junction of paths, right to Danebridge and the Hanging Stone, left to go back to Roach End over the ridge. Follow the path up and over the ridge. At the first peak of the ridge you look straight ahead you can see the path down from the Roaches to Roach End and were the car is parked about 50 minutes walk away. As you walk along the path you shortley descend through a gate and cross the concessionery path from Lud's Church that you passed in the woods and the walk could be made shorter by back tracking from Lud's Church to the concessionery path and walking up to the edge and continue this walk turning to your left along the edge back to Roach End. Continue through the gate and back onto the ridge and follow this path all the way back to Roach End. In this area is wolfs Edge and Boar Moor both the last known areas of these animals before extinction. At Roach end find your car. The walk through the walk can be a little tricky as the sign post aren't always there as they've been broken or fell down but the path is well walked.
