The limestone dales of the central Peak District seemed the best bet for a dry walk today, with low cloud and showers more likely in the west and north. I devised a route starting in Great Longstone and taking in a few nearby hills and valleys.

A little drizzle fell on my initial ascent to Longstone Moor, but not enough to need a jacket. It had petered out by the time I reached the high ground, and I enjoyed the views towards Chatsworth, the Wye Valley and Monsal Head as I made my way west along the Edge,

It was pretty breezy on the summit, so I dropped down straight away to head for Wardlow Hay Cop via the lane into Hay Dale and then the helpful permissive path. The summit was another good viewpoint but too windy for much of a pause. I descended by the main path to the northwest to enjoy the excellent views up Cressbrook Dale.

It had been almost deserted this far, but I passed a few other groups as I made my way north up the valley. I don’t think I’ve ever clambered up to the top of Peter’s Stone before, so I took that short detour today, happily having it to myself. Then I dropped back down into the dale and up the other side to follow the permissive path around the rim above Tansley Dale, with more excellent views back towards Wardlow Hay Cop.

A short walk through grassy fields brought me to Litton village, followed by a mile or so along the lane to Tideswell – poorly timed as a vintage car rally had chosen that single-track route at the same time! I had a quick look around the impressive church, which is known as the ‘Cathedral of the Peak’, then carried on down Tideswell Dale on well-made and popular footpaths – a route I’d only taken once before.

Crossing the river at Litton Mill, I headed steeply back up the other side of Miller’s Dale to reach the high pastures again and followed High Dale down to the farm and cottages at Brushfield. From there, the bridleway along the rim of Monsal Dale gave excellent views of the river below and Fin Cop the other side, on my way to the Monsal Head viaduct. That just left a short walk along the cycle path and lane back to Great Longstone.

Mostly a grey and blustery day, but there were quite a few short sunny spells too, and the forecast afternoon rain didn’t arrive until after I’d got back home. Good to get out and stretch the legs amongst lovely limestone scenery. A map of my route can be viewed here, and more photos here.

The one downside of trips to the Highlands is that they make my local hills seem uninspiring for a while after I return! So despite a dry forecast and an empty diary, I wasn’t feeling very motivated to get out this morning. I procrastinated for a while before finally getting out of the house around 10:15, heading for some of the grassy hills between the Dove and Manifold valleys.

Once I’d parked up in Hartington village, I set off south along lanes and bridleways to reach Wolfscote Hill, duly climbed by its western slopes. Sadly this is the only way with public access – if there were a good traversing path I’m sure I would have visited more than once before today! After a dry start to the walk, some light drizzle blew in from the west and persisted for the next hour or so.

I dropped down into Wolfscote Dale then headed up the bridleway to Narrowdale farm. From there, it was a similar out-and-back ascent to Gratton Hill, also only my second visit. Next came a short, steep descent and re-ascent to neighbouring Narrowdale Hill, where I paused for lunch as the drizzle eased by the time I’d reached the western end of the ridge.

I continued west to Wetton Hill, then followed various muddy footpaths back to Hartington, via Back of Ecton and Upper Hurst. Not the most memorable outing thanks to the grey conditions and unexpected drizzle, but still good to get a few hours of fresh air.

A map of my route is available here, and more photos here.

I took a trip to one of the furthest-away parts of the Peak District, aiming to tick off three of my four unbagged Ethels and explore the unfamiliar area east of Black Hill. It’s an off-putting 70 miles from home, but actually mostly on the A38 and M1 so only about 80 minutes’ drive. I parked near the sailing club at Winscar Reservoir, where the forecast of sunny spells first thing happily proved to be correct!

The moorland to the west is pretty much pathless on the OS map but I had used the Strava Global Heatmap to identify the most popular routes on the ground and this did give me paths most of the way, even if they were sometimes indistinct or boggy. I followed small trods beside the stream up Dearden Clough, then picked up the fence-line along Upper Dead Edge. There hadn’t been much of a view from the broad ridge, with Bleaklow in the cloud to the south, but on reaching the trig point (and Ethel summit) I was suddenly able to see down towards Woodhead and Crowden.

More interesting views over the steeper slopes of Withens Moor made the traverse to Britland Edge Hill (the next Ethel) more enjoyable. The wire fence was also unusually festooned with strands of wind-blown grass, fluttering in the strong westerly breeze.

The next couple of kilometres to the road at Holme Moss were particularly boggy, so I was glad to reach the firmer ground beyond. I had only seen a pair of fellrunners up to this point, so I was surprised to find quite a few other walkers on the path up to Black Hill. Perhaps I should not have been surprised, as it’s the shortest and easiest route, even if not as well surfaced as the Pennine Way! Although the path was reasonably obvious, in the mist I was glad of the reassurance of a compass bearing after I’d passed the last real landmark at Heyden Head. With a cold breeze and no view at the summit, I didn’t hang around long before setting off north along the stone-pitched path beside Issue Clough. Once I’d descended a few metres, however, I was back in the clear, with sunlit views northeast towards Holmfirth, and my route down to the ‘Issues Road’ track became obvious.

The track gave easy walking down to the hamlet of Holme, beyond which I picked up some popular footpaths beside Brownhill Reservoir – an attractive spot with steep, mixed woodlands all around. Once I’d crossed the dam of Ramsden Reservoir, I reascended towards Ramsden Edge and traversed above the woods into Ramsden Clough. There I paused for a late lunch on a very comfortable rock in the sunshine, with an excellent view over the reservoirs and up Ramsden Clough!

After lunch, I continued up Ramsden and Ruddle Cloughs to gain the moorland plateau again, then followed a line of grouse butts up onto Snailsden Pike. From the western top, marked as higher on the map, I felt sure that the trig point further east was in fact higher, but looking back from the trig it was not so clear! Best to visit both to be sure of bagging the Ethel properly. A good path led down to Harden Reservoir dam, from where it was an easy walk on large tracks around the east side of Winscar Reservoir and back to the car.

The Ethel summits themselves weren’t especially inspiring today, but my route back from Black Hill via Holme and Marsden Clough was very attractive, and this area would definitely be worth exploring more thoroughly. My remaining Ethel is Ashway Moss, near the Trinnacle, so that should give a good walk from Dovestone Reservoir later in the year.

More photos can be seen here, and a map of my route here.

I haven’t been for a walk with Amina since 2020, so I was pleasantly surprised when she said recently that she’d be up for a day out in the Peak District. No parkrun for me, in order to be fresh for a longer race the following morning, so it was the ideal Saturday for a walk and the forecast of dry, overcast weather was alright too.

We met at my house soon after 9 o’clock and I drove us up to Hayfield – Amina was keen to see my new car – to start walking soon after 10:30. I had wondered whether the cloud would be on the tops to start off. That proved not to be the case so we walked clockwise to get to the highest ground sooner, heading past Kinder Reservoir and then up William Clough. The visibility was pretty good with clear views around the skyline, and towards Manchester and Bleaklow once we reached the ridge.

We continued east along the edge of Sandy Heys, pausing for a brief first-lunch in the shelter of a gully and to take a few photos around Kinder Downfall.

Another half hour or so brought us to the high point of the day, the trig point on Kinder Low. By this point, the cloud had started to drop a bit and Sandy Heys was in the mist although Kinder Low itself remained just about clear.

We dropped down to Edale Cross for lunch in the most sheltered spot we could find, then continued along the path – well-pitched at first, then boggy – over the shoulder of Brown Knoll and down the ridge to South Head and Mount Famine. A bit of drizzle blew through in the wind and made us a little damp for quarter of an hour or so but petered out before we’d got around to putting on our waterproof jackets. All that remained was the easy descent down the bridleway to Coldwell Clough and the car.

A good day out on the hill and it was great to catch up with Amina as we walked and talked. Hopefully it won’t be another 2.5 years until the next time! You can find more photos here and a map of our route here.

Looks like I missed the best weather of the weekend, having seen photos of a cracking day of inversions and sunshine in the Peaks yesterday, but nevertheless I headed up to Hathersage today for my first local walk of the year. It was a cold start, with temperatures on the drive ranging from -7.5°C to -5°C, but with light winds didn’t actually feel too chilly at any point on the walk.

I started by ascending to Carhead Rocks, somewhere I had not been before, which gave good views down to the Derwent Valley and up to Stanage Edge.

I then continued up to Stanage and followed the edge north all the way to Moscar Lodge. There were quite a few people around initially, but it got much quieter further north. There was a little snow wherever the sun had not shone, but nothing was very slippery, and progress was easy, particularly with the peat all well frozen.

Once past Moscar, I headed northwest over Strines Edge – another new route for me – and across the heather moor to reach Derwent Edge near Dovestone Tor. Turning south, I followed the edge as far as Whinstone Lee Tor, enjoying the views over Ladybower and the various rock formations, then took the bridleway east to Cutthroat Bridge, where I paused for lunch in the warmth of the woods.

A short climb back up via Jarvis Clough brought me onto Bamford Moor, and soon to the busy viewpoint of Bamford Edge. I escaped the crowds as I descended south, and returned to Hathersage via Gatehouse and Birley Farm.

No real sunshine and fairly hazy views today, but it was good to get out in the Peaks in wintery conditions before the thaw comes later in the week.

There’s a map of my route here, and more photos here.

I have lots of Christmas carolling with the brass band over the coming weekends, so was keen to take advantage of an empty diary today and get out in the Peaks, despite the rather grey and murky conditions. Inspired by some Instagram photos I’d seen quite recently of Combs Edge, a place I’d only visited once, I got an early start and headed back to Buxton to start my walk around 8:30am. My first destination was Corbar Hill, which lies just north of the town, which is an Ethel I hadn’t visited before. A short ascent through the woods brought me to the summit crags, trig point and Alpine-style cross!

Well-trodden but fairly boggy paths led from there up onto Combs Moss – I had chosen poorly by wearing my lightest boots and soon had wet feet. I continued north along the zigzagging Edge, pausing to photograph the rocks here and there and to enjoy the views of Burbage Edge to the south and Combs Reservoir below.

After I’d reached the lane at the northern end of the moor, I followed fairly muddy footpaths via Sittinglow and Barmoor Farms to Sparrowpit – nothing very remarkable although there were some hazy views of Chinley Churn and South Head to enjoy. Next, the path traversing south of Gautries Hill gave more interest, following a wooded rake with lots of pits and gullies, evidence of mining.

Once I’d crossed Perry Dale, I was pleased to spot a brand new concession path signposted as a route onto Eldon Hill from the west. Just what I needed, as I had thought I would have to follow the lane all the way around the north side of the quarry to double back from the northeast. Soon I was on the top, with a glimpse of Mam Tor in the view. Eldon Hill was another new Ethel for me, and also re-completed my Derbyshire Tumps (it had been identified as a Tump since I last completed that still-evolving list).

The new signposts had also noted the 55-metre-deep pothole of Eldon Hole, a few hundred metres to the south, so I took a look at that on my way down to Peak Forest. It was difficult to photograph but definitely an impressive sight, reminiscent of the Yorkshire Dales! It doesn’t seem like many people pass that way.

My route then headed down Dam Dale, where I paused for a late lunch, and Hay Dale, then climbed back up very muddy footpaths to Hargatewall and Tunstead. That just left the final approach to Buxton, a fairly straight footpath on the map but apparently crossing the huge Tunstead Quarry so I was dubious! However, sure enough the path was well marked and fairly well used, using a long footbridge to get over the quarry access railway and roads, then skirting the northern edge of the pit to reach the undisturbed ground on the far side.

I got back to the car around 3:30pm, seven hours after I’d started and comfortably before dark. A good long day out including gritstone moorland, muddy farmland, and classic limestone hills and dales. I now only have four Ethels left to bag, all in the far north of the National Park, so quite far from home. An easy goal for next year though!

A map of my route can be seen here, and more photos here.

Jeff and Helen joined me for a walk in the Peak District, starting in Grindleford. We met at my house and I drove us up to the car park at the railway station to start the walk around 10am. Having driven through drizzle between Ashbourne and Monyash, I was glad it was dry and fairly bright further northeast.

We set off steeply uphill through oak and then silver birch woodlands into the old Bolehill Quarry – always one of my favourite spots – and continued from there below Millstone Edge and up onto Over Owler Tor, giving excellent views both ways over the Derwent Valley.

From there, it was easier walking along the ridge to Higger Tor and Upper Burbage Bridge, where we paused for a snack in the shelter of some boulders. We continued up to the southern trig point of Stanage Edge, and along the Edge for a few kilometres, watching a few rock climbers below and a few pairs of trail runners taking part in a relay race circumnavigating Sheffield. The clouds gradually broke up to give more sunny spells, and lifted off the top of Kinder Scout in the distance.

We descended by the ‘Long Causeway’ byway to have lunch by Dennis Knoll, looking back up to the Edge, then continued down to Hathersage for cream tea / coffee and cake in the attractive outdoor dining area at Cintra’s Tearoom. That just left an easy final few kilometres beside the River Derwent to return to Grindleford Station, where we had a quick look around the restored chapel of Padley Hall, and the ruins of the Hall behind (little more than foundations), before returning to the car.

There are more photos on Google here, and a map of our route is available here.

My parents visited me for the weekend, on their way back from a few days with Ruth. As usual, we went out for day-walks in the Peak District, making the most of the good weather.

On the Saturday, we chose a walk on the eastern gritstone Edges, starting on the Longshaw Estate. This gave a good opportunity for a spot of local-ish parkrun tourism on the way up: three laps of the lake at Poolsbrook, near Chesterfield. Mum and Dad walked one lap in the other direction as I ran, so were able to cheer me on at several points!

Afterwards, our walking route started by heading south along White Edge, with great views over the Derwent Valley to the Dark Peak moors.

We then descended slightly to Curbar Gap to return north via Curbar Edge and Froggatt Edge, looking really pretty with the wind-carved rocks, spring colours and sunny spells.

For Sunday’s walk, we stayed a little closer to home, starting in Monyash. The route started across the pastures to Magpie Mine, then dropped down into Lathkill Dale for the return leg.

Maps of our routes can be seen here:
White Edge and Curbar Edge: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1914632
Magpie Mine and Lathkill Dale: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1914637
My full photo album is available here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/9uJM4dcjpcJNE5Ax7

It was great to see my parents for the first time since Christmas and to get out on a couple of scenic walks together. Looking forward to visiting them in Somerset in July!

A few of us from the RR Band running group started the day visiting Ashbourne Recreation Ground parkrun, only in its second week. Not as tedious as might be expected for a three-lapper, thanks to the mixed terrain: around some playing fields, along the back of a pond, and back through some more formal gardens.

Afterwards, I continued a little further into the Peak District for a few hours’ walk from Chelmorton. I started by heading east over Sough Top, an Ethel that I realised I had not quite been to the summit of, as the footpath misses it by a short distance. Then I dropped down into Taddington, and continued northeast over the pastures and through High Dale to reach the Monsal Trail.

I followed the cycle path west for a couple of kilometres, then dropped down into the bottom of Miller’s Dale to pickup the riverside path through the ever-scenic Chee Dale, particularly pretty in today’s sunshine and with the vibrant greens of all the fresh spring foliage.

From there, it was just a short walk up Deep Dale and through more pastures back to Chelmorton.

A map of my route can be seen here: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1906695
My full photo album is available here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/RmrQJyMhcmEaHLxJ7

After a couple of sunny weekends distracted by running and orienteering, I finally managed to keep a day clear for a good walk in the Peak District, a clockwise round of part of the Woodlands Valley. The start of British Summer Time unwelcomely shortened my sleep by an hour, but I needed to be out early to bag a parking place in the popular layby at Ashopton!

After a couple of kilometres around the shore of Ladybower Reservoir and across the dam, I was soon climbing steeply up Parkin Clough onto Win Hill. There were quite a few people about already this sunny morning, fellrunning, mountain biking and walking. A bit of early haze seemed to gradually clear as I continued over Hope Brink and past Hope Cross, up onto the eastern end of Kinder Scout, giving good views up Edale and towards Derwent Edge.

I walked along the northern edge of the plateau, along Blackden Edge, around the head of Blackden Brook, then along Seal Edge. After the busy bridleways over Win Hill, this was a real contrast, almost totally deserted!

I then descended beside Fair Brook, which was dry at the top but had some attractive cascades lower down.

After a short section up the (currently closed) Snake Pass past the (former) Snake Inn, I re-ascended through the forest to pick up the traversing footpath to Hayridge Farm, pausing for a lunch break on Cowms Moor. Soon I was at the foot of Alport Dale, which I ascended to reach Alport Castles, before following the ridge back to the southeast over Rowlee Pastures and Crook Hill, pretty much back to the car.

A lovely day to be out on a long walk in the hills.

A map of my route can be seen here: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1856370
My full photo album is available here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/pX6DrzL9aUNLgsC78

Ruth visited me in Hilton for a weekend at the end of her half term week. Unfortunately it was a particularly wet weekend in the Midlands. We started Saturday with a trip to Conkers parkrun, just about completed before the rain arrived, followed by coffee at the Farrows’ house. After lunch back home, waiting for the worst of the rain to pass, we headed out to Cannock Chase for an afternoon stroll through the Shugborough Estate and back over the chase.

On Sunday, the best weather window seemed to be late morning, so we had a leisurely start before heading up to Thorpe for a three-hour walk. We dropped down Lin Dale to reach the Dovedale stepping stones – very much underwater with the river in spate – and continued up the valley as far as Milldale. From there, we turned east to pick up the Tissington Trail back to Thorpe. There had been a some of light rain to start and end the walk, but the bulk of it had been in the dry. We had lunch in the car before returning to mine, then Ruth headed home.

Maps of our walks are available here:
Cannock Chase: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1823807
Dovedale: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1823812

A few more photos can be found on Google Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/WDpgWsQ4Am54JsPw6

Somehow it’s more than a month since I last went walking! Despite that, I wasn’t feeling very motivated when I woke, but I forced myself to get up and out promptly anyway to make the most of the sunny day in the Peak District. An hour’s enjoyable driving brought me to Hope village, from where I tackled a clockwise round of the surrounding hills.

First up was Win Hill, the steepest of the bunch. Very clear air made for particularly good views over the Hope Valley, Ladybower Reservoir and Bamford Edge.

I descended towards Thornhill then picked up the Derwent Valley Heritage Way for a bit, along the river meadows. Leaving the riverside, I ascended the track to Offerton Hall, then the bridleway from there to Shatton Moor. The tracks in this area seemed busier than usual, with plenty of walkers, runners and mountain bikers out. Next I descended over Bradwell Edge, steeply down to Bradwell village, watching paragliders overhead.

A gradual re-ascent took me onto Bradwell Moor and from there over the shoulder of Eldon Hill – rather uninspiring and featureless terrain. I paused for a late lunch on the ascent of Mam Tor. That just left the final busy stretch along the Great Ridge to Lose Hill and down to Hope.

Definitely worth getting out today for the great sunny weather and air clarity. A nice little warm-up for my trip to the Highlands in a week’s time.

A map of my route is available here: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1717753
My full photo album is available here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/F1sjm82eKgzcDHpx8

My parents stayed with me for the weekend, a year since their last visit. On the Saturday, Dad and I started the day with a run at Markeaton parkrun, while Mum spectated. After coffee back at home, we went up to the Peak District for a walk starting in the village of Grindon, west of the Manifold valley. The first few kilometres led us due north along the undulating bridleway to Warslow. We had lunch looking over the valley, then dropped down, with a bit of a navigational detour when we lost the path for a bit, to Ecton.

Having crossed the Manifold Trail and the river, we climbed straight back up the other side onto Ecton Hill, passing the remains of the old copper mine. From there, we followed footpaths south, over the ridge of Wetton Hill to Wetton village, then steeply back down to the valley, passing close to Thor’s Cave but not actually visiting it this time. That just left a short ascent over Ladyside back to the car.

Bec joined us for Saturday dinner at my house, and for our Sunday walk starting from the Cat and Fiddle Inn, between Buxton and Macclesfield. We started south over the moor to Danebower Hollow, then dropped into the head of the Dane valley. A couple of kilometres downstream, we reached Three Shire Heads, always a pretty spot. There were quite a few people wild swimming in the river, which I had not encountered there before.

We continued along the byway to Cut-thorn, then took the grassy path over the ridge and down the lane to Wildboarclough. A steep ascent led us directly to the summit of Shutlingsloe, which gave good views of The Roaches to the south, and Shining Tor to the north. We descended into Macclesfield Forest for lunch, then dropped down to Broughsplace, which just left the short climb up the permissive path through Chest Hollow to the car.

Maps of our walking routes are available here:
Manifold Valley: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1674124
Three Shire Heads and Shutlingsloe: https://www.plotaroute.com/route/1674129

My full photo album is available here: https://photos.app.goo.gl/pmsWkHpbAKSocCYi9