Sunday June 5th

 The Alternative Edale Skyline - David

I'd been intending to do the Edale Skyline for quite some time but it was always a matter of steeling myself to do it. When Caroline, of Pro-Mountain sent a mailshot offering the walk, I didn't hesitate to sign up! I'd done a night navigation course with Caroline and so I knew that, as well as being a great walk, there'd be excellent company as well. Even better, Rob, a friend from university days (he'd been in the room next to mine in halls during the first year at uni) also signed up- I'd met Caroline through Rob. I was a little intimidated as Rob has done some extremely hard outdoor exercises and he'd signed up to be a part of Caroline's safety team for The Spine. We started from the car park in Hope at about 09:00 and my fears were realised... the pace seemed just a little bit hot for me! However, we soon settled into a comfortable gait for all of us.

Caroline, Margaret and me- on the way out of Hope
©Pro-Mountain
As Caroline described our route, it took me a moment or two to realise that we'd be going clockwise- the opposite direction to that which I'd assumed. I'd done fragments of the walk before, but generally anti-clockwise.

The main plod of the day was the initial investment of energy to get up to the "skyline", the gradual ascent of Lose Hill from Hope. It was definitely a day for wet-weather gear- it wasn't pouring but it rained steadily and it was pretty windy from time to time. We didn't stay at the summit of Lose Hill for long. From there, it was an undulation to Back Tor; many people had built stone stacks, frequently either using stones from the nearby drystone walls or even digging them out of the ground. The volume of stacks was quite unsightly.

Stone stacks Between Hollins Cross and Mam Tor
©Pro-Mountain
From Back Tor, we progressed along The Great Ridge, over Barker Bank and past Hollins Cross to work our way up Mam Tor.
Hollins Cross with the ridge up to Mam Tor (in the clouds)
Mam Tor was the only place where we saw any significant numbers of people; it's a great day out for people from both the Manchester and Sheffield conurbations, giving a sense of adventure without having to go too far from the car park.

From Mam Tor, the route took us up to Rushup Edge and the Lord's Seat Tumulus. By now, it was only sheep that we encountered. They're clearly used to walkers.

Sheep on Rushup Edge
©Pro-Mountain
The gradual descent from Rushup Edge took us down to Chapel Gate, where Caroline had taken me with her other Night Navigation course students back in January, and we soon left this to start the long and winding ascent to Brown Knoll. One of the two paths marked on the OS map is now well paved, but previously both paths had been very, very boggy with the risk of going knee-deep in the peat.
The long and winding road path from Chapel Gate to Brown Knoll
©Pro-Mountain
It's always much further between Chapel Gate and Brown Knoll than I anticipate! The original plan had been to drop down from the path to the Cowburn Tunnel air shaft to have our lunch, but it was very wet and windy and it made sense to keep to the path and find a more sheltered spot at the head of Jacob's Ladder. The trig point at the summit of Brown Knoll used to swim in a sea of liquid peat but is now less characterful, having been paved around.
David, Rob and Margaret at the summit of Brown Knoll. Wind speed indicated by David's stance.
©Pro-Mountain
We stopped for lunch sheltered by a wall at the head of Jacob's Ladder; up until then, we'd "had it easy" as the wind (and therefore, the rain) had been on our backs. With little visibility and driving rain into our faces, continuing the walk at the level of Noe Stool, The Wook Packs and the various Tors would have been good for the soul but not for much else. A team decision was made to descend Jacob's Ladder (a worthwhile variant in its own right) and follow the (new- not like it was in my day) Pennine Way to Edale, where we had a welcome coffee and cake stop at The Newfold Farm Cafe (the best piece of Carrot Cake that I've had in a while) (Too many parentheses- stop using them Ed.) and then onward, via Jaggers Clough to Hope Brink towards Win Hill.
Rob and David pretending to show the benefits of leather boots (an excuse to paddle)
©Pro-Mountain

When Caroline mentioned Jaggers Clough I was a bit concerned that we'd need to make an ascent of it up to Crookstone Out Moor but fortunately this wasn't the case. Before the gradual ascent of Hope Brink, Caroline described the significance and history of Hope Cross- a four-way boundary stone.
Caroline, Rob and Margaret at Hope Cross

Just below the cap you may just be able to make out the date: 1737
©Pro-Mountain
We did, at least, have a view back at where we'd been earlier on before we were engulfed in the mist again.
L-R: Lose Hill, Back Tor, Mam Tor, Rushup Edge (in the mist)
Our final summit for the day was Win Hill- usually there are great views, but it was great to arrive there, nevertheless.
David, Margaret, Rob and Caroline at the Win Hill trig point
©Pro-Mountain
From Win Hill, it was a pretty steep but well-defined descent back to Hope and a really nice meal at The Old Hall Hotel, kindly paid for by Margaret.
A grand day out: 31.23km, 1,202m ascent.
Strava screenshot courtesy of Pro-Mountain

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