Friday June 3rd

 Howden Moors and The Crow Stones

A fine day, so to Fairholmes- with all the ducks. The walk starts gently with a section along the Derwent Reservoir before leaving it to climb a stoney track heading for the grassy moorland.

The Derwent Dam above Fairholmes
The path wasn't always distinct but follows a climb up to the ridge to High Stones where a small cairn marks the summit.
The grassy way along Howden edge
There were great views from here to Mam Tor, the Great Ridge and Bleaklow. Ahead was Margery Hill with a trig point and a new view the plain of West Yorkshire. The route was a little indistinct around here but we didn't go far off track. From Margery Hill we continued along Howden Edge, Crossing the Cut Gate path and encountering one or two very boggy crossings!

We also passed a rather sad sight- that of the remains of a plane crash in 1942, the pilot being only 22 years old.

Very sad, and limited, remains of an Airspeed Oxford plane
A detailed account can be found at the Aviation Safety Network website.

Continuing on, we reached Outer Edge with its rather neglected-looking trig point- it could do with a coat of paint. We had lunch there and headed down to the Crow Stones.

The Crow Stones
We kept high from the Crow Stones and passed another crash site- there are far more than one would imagine in The Peak District. This was of an Airspeed AS.65 Consul operated by Icelandic Airlines in 1951. Contouring around, we eventually picked up the old shooters' track in Broadhead Clough. This descends to the original 17th Century bridge that spanned the river at Derwent village before its flooding for the Ladybower Reservoir . It was removed and reconstructed here, at Slippery Stones. Beyond Slippery Stones we took the path that eventually led to Howden Reservoir and, further on, Howden Dam.

Although it was a lovely evening, the 4 miles walk along the reservoirs felt like a bit of a slog, but  there isn't really an alternative, sadly.

A grand day out: 14.2 miles, 557m ascent.


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