A Fun-Filled Day Out at the Cheshire Steam Fair
Established over 30 years ago, the Cheshire Steam Fair is one of the biggest steam events in the north west of England. Held on a large site in the village of Daresbury, near Warrington in North Cheshire, the fair pulls an audience from far and wide.
Living in Warrington, you see signs go up well in advance, so I finally visited a few years ago to see what it was all about. I’m not sure quite what I expected, but I was pleasantly surprised by what I found and I’d now place the Cheshire Steam Fair firmly on my list of things to see and do in Cheshire.
2023 Cheshire Steam Fair Dates: 8th & 9th July
It wasn’t just a serious array of steam vehicles as I thought it might be; there was so much more to see. As I wandered up and down all the lines of parked vehicles that greeted me on entry, I discovered all sorts of classic cars, Land Rovers and motorcycles, vintage tractors and a plethora of old-skool commercial vehicles, far more variety than I expected.
I even spotted a line of army trucks as well as an American school bus of all things.
Dotted amongst these vehicles were unusual working engines, many of them in action such as the Bamfords Grinding Mill. This was originally a hand powered corn grinder but converted to be driven by a stationary engine. As with many of the exhibits, this mill had a descriptive panel which gave you all the pertinent details; very handy if you don’t immediately know what you’re looking at.
Also being demonstrated was the log cutter, an early forerunner of the chain saw.
The Fullwood Milking Parlour which just had water running though it was fascinating to watch, with myriad tubes springing off in all directions.
Equally mesmerising was watching the water pump out of the 1876 Shand Mason single cylinder fire engine, originally owned by the London Fire Brigade but now in the care of the Cheshire County Fire Service. It was renovated in the 1990’s and is thought to be the oldest Shand Mason model in full working condition anywhere in the world.
As I made my way through the lines of vehicles towards the central arena stage, the sound from a traditional fairground organ became more prevalent and I’ll warn you now, it’ll be a sound that you’ll probably be irritated with within the hour, if not before. It’s also incredibly loud close to, so you won’t see people standing too near it for long.
There’s non-stop entertainment in the main arena and this year will see the ‘On The Wall’ Motorcycle stunt show take to the stage performing breath-taking stunts demonstrating unbelievable control of their bikes.
My favourite act the year I attended were the quad bike stunts, wheeling the full length of the arena on 2 wheels and performing superb high jumps over a huge gap which tantalisingly was made bigger for each jump and eventually a traction engine parked in the gap to add an extra wow factor to the spectacle.
With an excellent compère accompanying the stunt shows, it is incredibly compelling to watch.
Ken Fox and his team will be in attendance again at the 2022 Cheshire Steam Fair with their incredible ‘Wall of Death’, a completely bonkers death defying motorbike stunt show that at the same time is totally watchable!
All the exhibiting vehicles also take part in a parade, fully filling the arena which sounded like a logistical nightmare to me especially with all the people milling around, but clearly was well organised as it seemed to run incredibly smoothly.
The highlight of the main arena activities for me though was the terrier and lurcher show. With highly amusing commentary, once the show dogs had done their thing, the guys invited other dogs in the audience to take part in the chase course, the ensuing hilarity quickly becoming one of the most amusing things I’d seen in a while.
Surrounding the arena is where you’ll find various catering trucks, a licensed bar and my personal favourite: ‘The Sweet Express’ – definitely what every fair needs!
Then next to these, the modern children’s fun fair rides were interspersed between the golden oldies, including a beautiful carousel and a Ferris wheel.
Also to entertain the kids was a mini quad bike track and a soft play zone with inflatable slides.
Beyond the arena was the pièce de résistance – a line of gleaming traction engines, polished to perfection for their day in the sun! I have to say, I marvelled at these glorious feats of engineering.
Running around in the foreground were some fabulous miniature steam engines – how cute are these?
The last remaining area of the showground featured a auto boot sale and a number of trade stands with an auto theme running through the wares.
As I came to leave, I caught sight of a miniature railway with a difference encircling an attractive pond and thought: ‘what a fun addition to the site!’
All in all, the Cheshire Steam Fair is a fun-filled day out for all the family with plenty to keep youngsters engaged all day long, but also offering lots for the steam or auto enthusiast. I fall into neither of those categories but I had a great time, so it really goes to show that you should always try something that you perhaps wouldn’t normally go for every once in a while as it may just surprise you.
The 2023 Cheshire Steam Fair is held on the 8th and 9th July from 10am – 5pm in Daresbury, Warrington and is in easy reach from junction 9 of the M56 motorway. Access is via a small back road so be aware there will be queues to get in at peak entry times in the morning.
I hope you have a fabulous day out! Let me know if you plan on going to the Cheshire Steam Fair or have been before in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you.
If you’re interested in more things to see and do in Cheshire, you might like to read about the Cheshire Ice Cream Farm, The Hollies Farm Shop, the town of Tarporley, Little Moreton Hall and my Highlights of East Cheshire.
Check out some of my Cheshire walks at Wigg Island and Risley Moss Nature Reserve.
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