DGH and JRH Walks- 2022

 No apologies for doing a walk we did on February 27th. The day was clear, dry and reasonably sunny. We set off fuelled by a (rather over-extracted) Dark Woods Coffee from Arcade in Marsden, leaving the station and following the towpath to the entrance of the Standedge Tunnel. Height was gained on the steep footpath west of Hey Green. This once had a railing beside it- presumably wooden- and only the stone fenceposts remain now. It's then along the moderately level path up to the Marsh Haigh Reservoir which is always a great sight. March Haigh Reservoir, with March Hill in the background After the relatively easy ground, it's a steep pull up March Hill but not as hard a climb as it used to be, and the views are great. It was another easy, though sometimes boggy, walk to join the Pennine Way and it was amazing to think that we were so near the Roman Road which is now the home of the A640. We stopped for lunch early on Standedge Edge and posed for photos at the trig point. Jacint...

 We arranged to meet up with Ann and Julian (partly to admire their newly turfed lawn!) on Easter Sunday. Ann and Julian's newly turfed lawn. It's in a far better state than our grass patch. We all felt like a gentle stroll so we went off to the relatively local Croker Lane- which seemed to be a public road but felt like a private one! The Croker Lane sign- in need of a little TLC from the council Along the lane there's a sequence of quarries and stones- it's hard to tell if they are ancient monoliths or spoil from a quarry. Monoliths or spoil? Rather than visit the rather stark BT radio tower, we strolled on to the romantically named Hill of Rossenclowes on The Gritstone Trail. As we were having a relatively lazy day, this seemed a great spot to relax, take in the view and share a few Giant Skittles. Enjoying the Hill of Rossenclowes on a lovely Easter Sunday Going back the same way, the bluebells were starting to emerge- a sure sign of spring. Spring Bluebells A very ...

 We made it out two days running. As it was a Bank Holiday (Good Friday), we decided not to go to any of the crowded places in The Peak District. Instead, we parked at Chinley. Fortified by a coffee at Tea on the Green (who were using some of our donated green Denby) we made the steep ascent to Cracken Edge and walked along the edge below Chinley Churn. David below Chinley Churn We passed Whiterakes which is in an idyllic but completely impractical location with a panoramic view of the western edge of the Kinder plateau. Whiterakes with the Kinder Plateau in the background Thence down to Peep-o-Day and crossing the Hayfield Road to join the Pennine Bridleway. David went up Mount Famine, the name being somewhat over-egged but enjoyable nonetheless. We met again at the summit of South Head for lunch, with great views. Our lunchtime entertainment was provided by a runner who had passed David on his ascent of Mount Famine, then run up and down South Head, back up Mount Famine and to th...

 We had originally been aiming for a longer walk, but on-going issues with the porcelain tiles for our new patio at PLG rather scuppered our plans. Instead, we got going at about 12:00 and went up to the Cat and Fiddle. We bought a drink and were able to eat our lunch there in their pleasant outdoor area, complete with blankets provided by The Cat. We then walked down to Derbyshire Bridge and then up the track from the car park to open moorland. Starting the descent into the Goyt Valley We took a nice path down, past the beginning of the Goyt and then up through the Stake Side forrest to meet the familiar route up to Shining Tor. All things considered, a welcome salvage of a day which, at one point, seemed to be disappearing into a mess of tiles and missed deadlines! 5.1 miles and 370m ascent.

 We each plotted a section of our route and then set off from the Pure Outdoor centre. We had a pleasant amble up past Thornhill and then on the bridle way past Parkin Clough and into the woods of the Woodland Valley then up to the summit of Win Hill. My bit was to navigate from Win Hill down to Edge Farm and east to a farm on the edge of Thornhill country park.We finished the day with short bursts of navigation to take us back to the centre. My leg included a church- grid ref. 198835, which turned out not to be a place of worship any more, but a framing workshop. A good two days which certainly provided me with a better understanding of the basics of navigation. Sometime chapple and now a picture framing workshop

 Jacinta was on a Navigation Course at  Pure Outdoor , based between Hope and Bamford. The course started with a session in a classroom, then out into the countryside around the Pure Outdoor centre. The first exercise was to walk to Abney Moor with guidance on how to calculate distance, speed of walking and other basic navigation skills. Then on to Offerton Moor, where David and I haven't been before- following the clues on the ground and trying to relate them to the symbols on the map. We went down to Offerton Hall and along the bridle way, eventually leading back to the centre. There were six of us on Day 1 and we were each given the opportunity to do a bit of leading/planning/identification of collecting features etc. The wind was cold, but it remained dry and I think that if I had only done a one-day course I wouldn't have made a huge amount of progress, so I was glad to be going back for Day 2 on Sunday. I featured on Pure Outdoor's Instagram feed!

Jacinta was on a navigation course with  Pure Outdoor  so I dropped her off at their centre just outside Hope and went back to Edale to go on a walk on his own. Having originally intended to go round the southern edge of the Kinder Plateau via The Woolpacks and Kinder Low to Jacob's Ladder and on to Brown Knoll. However, he changed his mind and instead crossed over to The Great Ridge at Hollins Cross. It was a lovely day (so far, anyway!) and there was a great view back to Edale and the Kinder Plateau.  Edale and The Kinder Plateau. Grindslow Knoll to the left The path along The Great Ridge has been patched and flags laid along stretches, but it shows lots of wear because of its popularity. I followed it eastwards towards Back Tor and Lose Hill. Win Hill seemed a very long way in the distance! Back Tor (a dark crag with woods to its south), Lose Hill and Win Hill in the distance Just off the summit of Lose Hill seemed a good place to have a drink and a snack, and to plot ...

 It had been quite a while since we'd visited one of our old favourites, Lantern Pike, let alone done a longer version of the walk, so it was off to Hayfield. The initial path is the bridleway that follows the old railway track from the large car park in Hayfield. We stopped, as ever, for a coffee at the  Sett Valley Cafe , which is always good, and then climbed up to Lantern Pike, which is topped by a view indicator. We continued northwards, past Bullshaw Farm and up to the A624. Crossing the road took us onto Middle Moor, where we met a sheep who associates humans with food. A sheep on the scrounge Not wanting to disappoint, David fed her a few skittles, which she crunched with relish. We headed for the white shooting cabin for lunch. It really is a great location, and a first-class lunch spot. Sitting on the doorstep, you really feel that you're lord or lady of all you survey. The Shooting Cabin on Middle Moor- the perfect lunch spot After lunch we followed the stony Snake ...

 Today, it snowed off and on all morning- thick snow and then 15 minutes later, bright sunshine. We decided to explore the undulating ridge opposite Howegrain Lodge, which we had been looking at for the past three days- Winter Crag and Howstead Brow. Looking down Howstead Brow and Winter Crag. Our rental is almost  visible! We walked on to Beda Fell, taking a quick break just before Beda Head in a stone-built shelter. Descending to the stone-built shelter near Beda Head Beda Fell afforded us some classic, spectacular Lake District views. Panorama from Beda Fell We worked our way down, often through snow or hail (which then lifted to give bright sunlight) with multi-layered vistas to enjoy. The Nab, peeping through the cloud inversion We came down to Dalehead (the very end of the road), passing the farmer driving his quadbike loaded with freshly deceased deer. It must take something to make a living out here- it certainly feels cut off from the rest of the world. The end of the...

 Snow today- on the tops of Martindale and eventually lower down. We started from St. Martin's Church- less than ½ mile from Howegrain Lodge and ascended the hillside to Brownthwaite Crag and skirting Gowk Hill. Ascent to Brownthwaite Crag. Howstead Brow and Place Fell in the background There were plenty of the hardy herdies to admire on the way. The hardy Herdwick sheep, native to The Lakes As we turned northwards towards Wether Hill, it started to snow but we were well kitted-out and remained nice and warm. The snow starts... The summit of Wether Hill was more or less entirely elusive, with the Harvey and Ordnance Survey maps giving different locations for it. David insisted in visiting both possibilities but, as the entire area was more or less level, wet and boggy, it was good for the soul and little more. Having found a small pile of stones beside the path (hardly a summit cairn), we stopped for a snack and, for Jacinta, some hot Heinz Cream of Tomato from her flask. Jacinta ...

 Today we went up Hallin Fell straight from Howegrain Lodge. Ascent of Hallin Fell Although it was a very short walk, the views were superb. Ullswater looking north from the summit of Hallin Fell We were able to relax in the sun and managed to talk to both girls- given that we had no signal from the rental. Steel Knotts from the summit of Hallin Fell Ullswater panorama from Halling Fell, with summit Obelisk (and crowds!) The rest of the day was spent relaxing, reading and then a wander around Keswick and a pizza to round off the day. DK exchanged on a flat in South London today- we were so pleased. A modest, but very enjoyable 3km.

 A trip to The Lakes, staying in The Howegrain Lodge, Martindale. We drove up from Stockport and managed to fit in a walk before 5pm, when we had access to the rental. We parked at St Peter's Church (at the top of the spectacularly steep Hause). It was a simple (but downhill) amble down the the bridleway to the bridge over Fusedale Beck. There was a steep grassy path up, and then another steepish ascent to Swarth Fell. Ascent of Swarth Fell with Hallin Fell in the background Things eased a bit and we followed the escarpment northwards to Bonscale Pike. As ever in The Lakes, it was highly atmospheric, enhanced by the weather. An atmospheric amble up to Bonscale Pike We crossed Swarth Beck near an old sheep fold without losing too much height and made our way up to Arthur's Pike, which gave us great views of Ullswater and the surrounding hills. Ullswater (looking south from Arthur's Pike) with Hallin Fell in the foreground We took a slightly less steep way down to the crossin...

 Another sunny day- so a quick trip to Shining Tor (for the second time this year). We had a quick snack at the top and took in the view of Shutlingsloe. Handy Benches At The Top Of Shining Tor Shutlingsloe From Shining Tor For the first time in a while, we went down to Thursbitch- always a good walk. Thursbitch is the name/subject of a book by Alan Garner- one of his more obscurely written ones. The Ruins Of Thursbitch We made our way back to the Pym Chair car park through fields of expectant sheep. Expectant Sheep Ruminating On How Life Will Change Despite the final ascent being on the road, this is always a satisfying jaunit and so worth the (quite modest) effort. Just under five miles.