Night Nav, three Dodds and Britain's lowest Marilyn!

25-27.9.13

Walking with; Nathan

One of the most intimidating aspects of the ML training is the night navigation, it is also one that in order to practice effectively it's good to have more than one of you. However I have found it tricky to find volunteers to clamber up onto a hillside in the dark and spent four hours bashing through wet bracken in the pursuit of ever smaller and more obscure features. Luckily Nathan is also a ML trainee and one who conveniently lives at the foot of High Rigg, a low, but suitably bumpy fell just outside Keswick. After an hour or two padding a canoe around Derwentwater with excellent views of Catbells and a stop on Herbert's Island named for a 7th Century Christian hermit, we donned headtorches and headed out onto the hill. Night nav requires a set of different skills with bearings, timing and pacing being the key and we spent four productive hours refining our techniques with varying degrees of success!
  The next morning with Nathan heading off to work I made my way over to St John's in the Vale and set off along the traverse of Wanthwaite Bank that led me under Threkeld Knotts and out onto the moorland below Clough Head. Apart from a farmer and sheepdog on a Quadbike, it was pretty quiet and I made my way to Calfhow Pike for beautiful views over Thirlmere and stretching across the Western Fells. High Rigg sat below me in the sunshine, looking a very different proposition in daylight! I climbed up to Great Dodd and then continued along the ridge to Watson's Dodd and Stybarrow Dodd with the sky blue above me and the sun on my face. The descent of Sticks Pass is a tough one on the knees but eventually aching and creaking I hit the valley floor and picked up the track that runs through the woodlands that skirt High Rigg before eventually I arrived at the church of St John's itself before making my way back to my car at Hill Top Farm.
  I spent the night at the YHA at Arnside, a magnificent old, rambling building that the YHA has sadly put up for sale. There was a beer festival at The Albion Inn in town and beautiful views across the deadly sands of the Estuary which were peppered with Herons, Curlews, Gulls and other waders. The next day a gentle dander along the promenade towards the woods of Arnside Knott provided more ornithological diversions and the woods themselves served up a couple of Nuthatches and some magnificent fungi. I eventually made it to the top of the Knott for fantastic vistas of the Lakeland peaks and the estuary, truly, truly stunning views! A small sign at the foot of the climb informed that the Knott is Britain's smallest Marilyn at 159m, a tick for a rather obscure box but an enjoyable way to complete a couple of days of varying walking!

Nostalgic wanderings in 1066 country

23/24.8.13
Walking with; Nobody

A trip down South to the place that I will always think of as home, the village of Crowhurst where I was bought up, went to school, where my Mum is buried and my Dad still lives, a place where I will always feel happy. Crowhurst is situated in the heart of 1066 country and the magnificent ancient Yew in the churchyard of St George's is rumoured to have been mentioned in the chronicles of Norman as part of a gruesome tale of retribution when the Reeve of the village was hung for not revealing the whereabouts of local treasure. The village is also home to Forewood, an RSPB nature reserve and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). The woods are noted for their sandstone ghylls, the profusion of Bluebells in early Spring and their ancient bell pits used in a primitive form of mining.
Woodland walking is very different from walking in the hills. It has a spooky enclosedness about it, it can be dark and a little eerie, but it still has, in a very different way, a real sense of being in the wild. There are birds in amongst the canopy, mysterious rustlings in the fallen leaves and undergrowth and brambles snatching at you as you negotiate the muddy ditches where the coppicers tractors have passed. I followed the trail from the top entrance of the wood leading down towards the pond where my Mum's memorial bench is. Wrens hopped in and out of the scrub and a Jay shrieked noisily as I passed. The pond, flanked by Flag Irises seemed much smaller than I remembered and, sadly, there was no wildlife to be seen. Leaving the woods I crossed the fields, the rolling Sussex countryside that defines this part of England and, in fact, so much of the rural landscape of the Home Counties. I made my way through the drizzle to St George's Church, passing the ruined manor house built by Walter de Scotney in 1250. The original church was built in 1412 and the tower remains in place til today. I sheltered from the rain in the porch before making my way through the village lanes and back towards my family home. This was not an adventure, an expedition or a challenge, more a nostalgic, gentle ramble down memory lane.
I'd been waiting to post this until I had taken the photos off my memory card, but I've just checked it and it is utterly empty......tech fail.....so there you go!

Hill Skills On Kinder

22.8.13
Walking with; Nobody

Another chance to get out onto the Peak District's finest hill to work on my rope and navigation skills. Kinder is undoubtedly my favourite hill in the area, dramatic, historic and accessible and I decided to access it on this occasion from the lay by at the foot of Chapel Gate. This particular track has been the scene of much controversy over the past 18 months with banning orders for trail bikes and 4x4 and then orders being rescinded. However, early on a Thursday morning it was pretty tranquil and as I struck off towards Brown Knoll, with only a couple of other walkers in sight! The walk to Brown Knoll afforded great views to the Edale valley and the Great Ridge and in the distance were the various rock formations running along the flank of Kinder, Noe's Stool, Pym's Chair and the Crowden Towers.
On reaching the Swine's Back I found a few likely looking crags and spent a productive hour abseiling myself and lowering and retrieving my rucksack up and down the slope, rope work has definitely improved over the last couple of months. Nathan and Manchester Climbing Centre have undoubtedly aided in this, but my poor long suffering wife, Ruthy, has been a willing volunteer to be belayed up and down the stairs in our flat! After a bite of lunch I left Swine's Back and navigated my way through the groughs and peat hags towards the actual peak of Kinder Scout, marked on the map at 636m and a fair distance away from the trig point on Kinder Low. I came up slightly to one side but decided that the cairn to my left was likely to be the spot. Resting at the cairn I watched a couple of Curlew and then, even better, a Golden Plover. I picked my way back to Pym's Chair pausing to eat a couple of bilberries before heading back to Edale Rocks and from there following the path that led me to South Head.
South Head looked tempting, the short, very steep haul up to the summit was an option, but I was in a rush at this stage, needing to pick Ruthy up from Stockport station and time had ticked on. I followed the Bridleway back to my car, being passed only by one mountain biker and finishing in the sunshine feeling pleased to have had a great day further refining my skills! It's a slow process, but my accuracy and ability are definitely improving and my confidence is following with it!

Honister, Great Langdale and points in between

6-8/8/13
Walking with; Nobody/Nathan 

Not being in possession of either children or gainful employment I'd kind of forgotten how the Summer holidays affect the Lake District. There are hills best avoided under these conditions and yet I'd already planned a roughish selection of wanderings to occupy me over three days and I was loathe to stray too far from my prescribed ideas. Whilst it was considerably busier than usual I was fortunate that a little judicious route selection and some reasonably timed starts minimised the amount of contact I was required to have with the many hundreds thronging the fells!
Day one started at the prohibitively priced NT car park in Seatoller. I'd been a member once and when they tried to strong arm us into renewing the subscription they wanted £92 for a couple, the exorbitant fees are clearly the latest example of strong arming people into membership...Heading off up Thorneythwaite Fell (try saying that after a pint or three of Snecklifter) I was soon being treated to views of Derwentwater and the crags above Comb Gill. I was heading for Glaramara, a previous attempt had had to be aborted due to the depth of snow http://www.comewalkwithmeuk.co.uk/2012/12/borrowdaleand-snow.html, so I was keen to get it under my belt. The final gentle scramble onto the summit proved very rewarding, two hours in to my Lakeland August odyssey and still not a soul to be seen! I was experimenting with a 1:50000 scale OS in order to sharpen my identification of contours but my brain hadn't quite computed the full repercussions so the wander over to Allen Crags took me twice as long as I had convinced myself it would. Arriving at the Crags and with Great End and Esk Hause in clear view I discovered where all the Summer visitors had been, it was akin to Oxford Street in December, people (and dogs) here, there and everywhere! The path most being trodden appeared to be the one towards Scafell Pike but I dropped off it and headed over to Great End for magnificent views and some close inspection by a rescue chopper which circled the summit for some time. Leaving the tops I followed Ruddy Gill down to Seathwaite and then tramped along The Allerdale Ramble back to Seatoller from where I headed up to the YHA at Honister. Whilst it may be that the hostel could do with a lick of paint and a wee bit of TLC, the staff were friendly, the beer cold and the views spectacular all for the price of a good bottle of wine!
The next morning started with the steep haul up Grey Knotts where I snapped a sure fire winner for the "Trail magazine-Face of Fatigue". The top was reached and the vistas opened out in all directions, Borrowdale, Buttermere, Ennerdale, the heart of the Lakes. The walking over Brandreth and upto Green Gable was gentle and I slipped and slid my way down the Aaron Slack for a bite to eat at Styhead Tarn. Last time I'd been here the snow was knee deep and I'd had the place pretty much to myself, but by lunchtime on a Thursday in August there were already two tents pitched and a plethora of walkers milling about. I headed on up and before too long was escaping the bulk of the crowds once more and slowly ascending Esk Pike for more views back towards England's highest peak. I had one more peak in mind for the day, Bowfell, which I duly meandered up before the descent to the Three Tarns and then down the knee crunching The Band to arrive in Great Langdale with the sun shining and the lure of a good pint foremost in my mind. Tent pitched and chilli cooked it was time to head off to "The Old Dungeon Ghyll" and then "The Stickleback" to refresh myself with a couple of pints of Esthwaite Ale and Loweswater Gold!
Nathan had come across to join me for the Thursday. We headed off into Mickleden and began the brutal climb up Rossett Pike, this was made slightly less arduous for us by the sight of eight gents hefting their mountain bikes up and over the summit, respect due. We carried on to Angle Tarn and gradually ascended to Esk Hause where perched upon one of the shelter walls I found the Guinness cap that I had inadvertently left there the afternoon before! Honest bunch walkers? Or perhaps the sweat stained soiled and grubby cap hadn't proved enough of a prize for anyone to covet, who knows? We'd decided to do a traverse around Great Gable and stopped opposite Lingmell for a bit of rope work practice, still one of my bete noirs! The traverse was spectacular, crossing the screes with stunning views down Wasdale and we eventually ended up at Beck Head from where we made our way back towards Honister with some truly awesome views back down Ennerdale and towards Buttermere and Crummock Water.
Even in the height of Summer there are still plenty of spots where it's possible to find a little Lakeland solitude and the sunshine and the views made this three of my favourite days out so far this year! All that being said, roll on September and the hills to myself once more!

A Snowdon wild camping trip

8/9/10.7.13
Walking with; Nathan and Tim

What better to way to break another illness enforced lay off than a three day/two night wild camping expedition in the heart of Snowdonia. The scorching forecast proved to be accurate and there was plenty of blood, sweat and tears, but, more importantly, some stunning views, fewer than expected people for the majority of the walk, a couple of lovely campsites,some very necessary swimming and the odd bit of gorgeous wildlife.
Nathan and Tim were heading down from the Lakes and I was coming up from Manchester to rendezvous in Rhyd Ddu, the inevitable traffic delays meant we didn't get going til noon, but you know what they say about mad dogs and Englishmen.......It's been a long time since I did a full pack walk and setting off up the steep, slippery slopes of Y Garn with temperatures in the high 20s reminded me that it can be substantially more challenging than a short dander with a lightly loaded daypack. The views back towards the Snowdon range were outstanding, there was not a cloud in the sky and by the time we hit the top for lunch we were already feeling it in our legs. The coastal views and the flapjacks provided by Tim's Mum revived us though and soon we were scrambling up the Nantlle Ridge and watching the landscape open up below us. Ravens soared on the thermals, Swifts and Swallows displayed their aerobatic skills and in the distance Moel Hebog sat imperious waiting for us on Day 2. I'd walked the ridge once before (http://www.comewalkwithmeuk.co.uk/2012/01/nantlle-ridge.html) in very different conditions and had sat next to the Obelisk on Tal-Y-Mignedd with my hands freezing to my cup of soup, this time we were battling to squeeze into the shade cask by this enigmatic landmark. It was seriously hot and so after watching the Rescue chopper hovering above Drws-Y-Coed we decided to descend into Cwm Pennant where we'd identified a tempting looking reservoir (no longer used) in the shadow of Moel Lefn. We descended the steep slope, through the remains of an abandoned mining village and found a superb pitch on the marshy flats below the mine buildings and above the reservoir. A waterfall tumbled down the rocks behind us, we swam in the "bracing" waters of the pool, watched a couple of climbers on Bwlch Sais, got examined by a very inquisitive Buzzard and cooked up a storm on our gas stoves, "What bliss it was to be alive......."
We'd decided on an early start to try an get some mileage and height under our belts before the worst of the sun and after breaking camp we followed the climber's path up onto the scrubby lower slopes of Moel Lefn. It was rough walking for a while, rocky underfoot and we plodded up the steep, heathery ground acquiring a collection of nicks and scratches for good measure. We followed the edge of the Beddgelert forest around Moel Lefn, trying to hug the shady margins and enjoying the occasional patches of cool air found in the mouths of the multiple caves and mine entrances that dotted the hillside. After another hour or so we struck up the slopes onto the breezy ridge and followed into up onto the summit of Moel Yr Ogof where a fruitless search for the cave of Owain Glyndwr, last of the great Welsh warrior princes, detained us....as did the views, the cool breeze and the thought of the slog up Hebog still to come! We stopped at a beautiful pool between the two mountains, Cotton grass dotted the valley and we watched Newts swimming in the peaty waters of the pool, but Hebog awaited us still. I'd been up it only a few weeks before from the other side (http://www.comewalkwithmeuk.co.uk/2013/06/a-snowdonian-overnighter.html) but, even so, the views from the top were still breathtaking and worth every ounce of effort it took us to get to the top. After a day and a half of near solitude our descent into Beddgelert was littered with sweating, red faced walkers struggling their way to the top! Eventually we reached the village where we took advantage of refrigerated drinks and killed another superheated hour swimming in the River Glaslyn. Our plan for the night was to camp in the lumpy, bumpy area above the village and after the odd navigational blip and some interesting industrial heritage rusting in the wilds we eventually located the small lake we'd planned to camp at. Unfortunately the swathes of Cotton grass and Spagnum Moss told us that the whole valley bowl was saturated. Exhausted, heather scratched and sweaty this was not good news.....Nathan scrambled up a steep slope however and found a gem of a site on a saddle with some protection from the wind (what little there was) and stunning views in all directions! Eventually the nesting Ravens on a neighbouring crag took the hint and stopped "Cronking" and after eating a Chicken curry with views all the way to the coast and a couple of hands of cards we retreated from the midges into our tents.
Day 3 dawned and although we were on the move by shortly after 8am, it was already seriously warm! The path marked on the map didn't seem to be marked on the ground so we tramped, slithered and slid through marsh, bracken and heather before emerging on the tiny lane that led us towards Nantgwynan and the foot of The Watkin Path up Snowdon. Road walking is rarely my favourite activity but as we passed the odd farmhouse and a few fields of cows and sheep it was nice to get some easy miles underfoot. Eventually we hit civilisation once more and after wandering up the first section of The Watkin Path past the National Trust work on their new Hydro-Electric programme we angled off towards the pass back towards Rhyd Ddu. It was our final ascent and the cloud (for the first time in three days) did us the favour of gently drifting across the sun. We reached the pass and began the gentle descent through substantial slate workings back down to Rhyd Ddu where a  much needed ice cream from the tiny tea room provided a fitting end to a thoroughly excellent trip!
It was a truly exhilarating three days of proper adventure and shows just how wonderful and wild Snowdonia can be as soon as you take even one or two steps off the most beaten tracks.....It was also the first outing from my new Wild Country Hoolie tent and I am pleased to report initial impressions are very positive. It's spacious and easy to put together although it didn't really have to deal with any challenging conditions, still, so far so good!

To view the full album please click on the link below;
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Pendle Hill from Downham

21.05.12
Walking with; Nobody

Pendle, old Pendle, thou standest alone.
Twixt Burnley and Clitheroe, Whalley and Colne,
Where Hodder and Ribble's fair waters do meet
With Barley and Downham content at thy feet

Pendle Hill truly does stand alone, an imposing monolith towering over the impossibly picturesque village of Downham. For all the associations with witches and the supernatural (http://www.pendlewitches.co.uk/), in the bright and glorious sunshine of an unseasonably warm May morning Pendle Hill sat like a benign giant and off I set. The path from Downham took me across farmland passing wooded glades filled with Bluebells and Wild Garlic. Passing under Worsaw Hill I followed a brook along as far as Worston where there were some beautiful cottages and plenty more Wild Garlic and Cow Parsley. I followed the narrow lane, encountering no traffic and plenty more wildflowers including Forget-me-not and Rose Bay Willowherb, before striking off onto the lower slopes of Pendle Moor and climbing very steeply (and sweatily) to a fine vantage (and resting) point. Pendle Moor acts as a plateau and after following a stream for a while the path climbed steeply again towards a cairn on the edge of the broad, fairly featureless summit. Pendle Hill is well known for difficult navigation in tricky conditions but today with not a cloud in the sky, the whole summit plateau spread out before me, as did spectacular, if slightly hazy, views back into the Ribble Valley. I passed the Scout Cairn and continued on across moorland with not a soul in sight until I reached the stone wind shelter and decided that it offered a modicum of shade and would make a decent spot for lunch accompanied by Skylark, Curlew and Meadow Pippit.
Fuelled by cheese and my Granny's excellent Green Tomato chutney I crossed the boggy plateau and headed to the summit. The summit, on the Barley side, was much busier with a couple of groups enjoying the views over the Black Moss reservoirs, so I didn't stay long but retraced my steps back towards the open land before striking off on a descending track above Downham Moor. It was easy, but warm, walking and as I crossed the moor there were plenty of lambs and sheep but not many people even on such a spectacular day. The path continued down through farmland before following the stream back into Downham passing many more beautiful cottages.
Downham is part of the estate of the Assheton family and is reckoned by many to be the prettiest village in Lancashire with no phone lines, electrical lines or satellite dishes, giving it a olde world charm that the pub and tea rooms trade on (and judging by their business do very well from......). The Assheton family have owned the manor since 1588 and have a small private chapel in St Leonard's Church as well as several stained glass windows dedicated to various of their clan. It's unspoilt nature makes it popular with TV and film crews and "Whistle Down the Wind" was mostly shot in the area, as well as, more recently, the TV series Born and Bred. After a wander round the church and graveyard I refreshed myself with a coffee in the sunshine and basked not only in the sun, but in the reflected glory of conquering Old Pendle!

3 Shire Heads with the Peak District Walking Festival

Walking with; The Peak District Walking Festival
1.5.12

Having tried to book a spot on The Roaches walk only to be told it was full, the Staffs rangers suggested that this outing would showcase the Staffordshire countryside equally well and they were definitely right. The walk was led by John Mills an experienced walker, caver and fell runner with 30 years of experience leading on the Staffordshire moors and there were eight of us accompanying him. The walk started from the remote hamlet of Gradbach on the banks of the River Dane, it was once famous for the old silk mill which is now the Youth Hostel. We climbed up through farmland towards Turn Edge passing fields of lambs, remote farms and the ruins of many barns and stone walls. It is clear the area has been farmed for many generations and some of the farms were very remote and looked battered by the elements. The path below Turn Edge led to Three Shires Head, the point where Staffordshire, Cheshire and Derbyshire meet at an old packhorse bridge over the river, next to a spot called Pannier's Pool. Apparently it was once a popular site for prizefighting and the whole area has a fairly nefarious past. John regaled us with tales of a murderous family who once lived in the area and preyed on travellers murdering them, stealing their possessions and burning their bodies in their kilns. The border area was popular with local criminals in the days when police jurisdiction was restricted to their county alone and they couldn't pursue miscreants across the boundaries. We continued over moorland putting up a few lapwing and curlew to reach Wolf Edge for a spot of lunch.The cloud had descended at this point and it was pretty chilly so we didn't stop for long and instead headed onto Flash which, sitting at 1500 feet, claims to be the highest village in England. Flash was once famous for the counterfeit money trade and has given it's name to the Flash men as shady characters were once known. Sadly, the village has a pretty run down air to it nowadays and, with the pub closed, we headed through it pretty swiftly and descended towards the beautifully named Flash Bottom.
After ascending Gib Tor for great views over towards The Roaches we skirted the forest plantation and crossed the moorland of Black Brook Nature Reserve towards the Bald Stone. One of the group told us that this area was supposed to have been the inspiration for Arthur Conan Doyle's "Lost World" and it certainly had an ancient feel to it, although I was put more in mind of the "Hound of the Baskervilles" or some Stone Age tribes making sacrifices on a rock altar. There were more fantastic views from there and after drinking them in we descended across yet more boggy moorland towards the Dane Valley. We passed the Scout camp and the YHA as the rain started to pour down before heading back into Gradbach and the sanctuary of my car. I'd never realised just how wild this area of Staffordshire was and will definitely be returning to explore it further!
To view the full album please click on the link below;
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Lantern Pike from Hayfield

28.4.12
Walking with; Nobody

I was due to be heading out on my Silver Navigation course but it was unfortunately cancelled at the last minute leaving me stranded in New Mills with full kit. The sun was, none-the-less, shining and I felt it was too good a chance to miss and not to get out and about in the hills. I parked at the head of the Sett Valley trail and started off down the track which follows the route of the old branch line between Hayfield and New Mills and was lined with bluebells, cow parsley, forget-me-nots and celandines. It is a busy route, probably due to its flatness and relatively short length, and there were plenty of bikes, pedestrians and horses for company.
After about a mile The Pennine Bridleway leaves the trail and heads sharply up the side of the valley towards Lantern Pike. The path starts off quite roughly before it becomes smoother but continues to head steeply up. A short scramble along a dry stone wall bought me onto the very windy summit with spectacular 360 degree views taking in seven counties not to mention the vast brooding bulk of the Kinder Plateau. It was a pretty spectacular spot and I had it to myself as I hunkered down in a sheltered spot amongst the rough heather for a bit of lunch. I followed the track on downhill towards the junction of five paths at Blackshaw Farm. Continuing forward on the Pennine Bridleway I followed the track as far as Matley Moor before setting off across the boggy land putting up a Lapwing en route to the farmland on the other side. My loop then led me back past Knarrs and along a narrow path above the wooded valley of Hey Brows where I saw a beautiful pair of Wheatears sitting on a stone wall. I carried on past a couple of pig sties full of wallowing sows and piglets and then headed back to the Blackshaw Farm junction. I decided to follow the path home via the hamlet of Little Hayfield with its beautiful converted mill sitting on the edge of the Sett before heading along the cinder path into Hayfield itself and a welcome pint of Cumberland Ale at "The Kinder Lodge".
To view full photo album please click on the link below;
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Nantlle Ridge

12.1.12

Walking with; Al

A beautiful, wild, windy day out in Snowdonia without another walker in sight. We parked up at the very picturesque Rhyd Ddu railway station, scenically set with Snowdon (hidden by cloud) as a spectacular backdrop.

We set out across very swampy land, before passing Drwyscoed Uchaf farm and starting the lengthy ascent towards the summit of Y Garn. Slippery conditions underfoot made it hard going, but the "view stops" looking back over the valley towards Snowdon provided welcome respite. The summit was blowy, but the vistas opening up with spectacular views towards the coast and Caernarfon Harbour made the initial ascent worthwhile. Looking West from the hilltop, the ridge lay before us, the clouds were scudding across the pass, but the wind kept them moving and we pressed on.

Following an excellent stone wall along the ridge with an exposed edge on one side, the wind hit us hard and with the rocks slippery from the frost and dew, the scramble up to the second peak of Mynydd Drws Y Coed was hair raising, but just the right side of exciting. The cloud was getting lower now in spite of the wind and after a third short ascent we hit the grassy plateau of Trum Y Ddysgl and assessed our onward/downward options. We'd initially planned to descend along the ridge to Bwlch-Y-ddwy-elor, a pass on the ancient route between Rhyd Ddu and Cwm Pennat, but in the distance the obelisk atop Mynydd-Tal-Y-Mignedd just proved too intruiging. The obelisk was reached via a narrow ridge with drop off views on both sides and a short, steep climb, sheltering in it's lee, we had lunch with magnificent views back to the coast and across the Snowdon range.

With frozen fingers and wind bitten cheeks we headed away from the obelisk and descended a very steep sheep path into the Afon Dwyfor valley (Valley of the Big Holy River) where we made our way through the abandoned, and by know quite ruined, copper mine workings before the steep ascent following sheep tracks up the marshy slopes with only circling ravens and the spectacular, sunlit views down the valley as distractions. Finally reaching the Bwlch-Y-ddwy-elor pass we headed down into the dense pine of the Beddgelert Forest where a sole mountain biker proved we were moving back towards civilisation. The path wound through the forest and spat us out back on the A4085 where we followed the railway line back to our parking spot enjoying magnificent views of the Llyn y Gader lake nestled in the shadows of Y Garn.

To view the full photo album please visit the link below

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Shutlingsloe-Macclesfield Forest-Tegg's Nose-Toot Hill-Clough Hall

10.1.12

Walking with; Nobody

A fantastic walking start to the year in the heart of the Cheshire countryside. I started out from Clough Hall and headed straight up Shutlingsloe, known in this part of the world as "The Cheshire Matterhorn" due to it's distinctive triangular profile. At 506m, it's a little smaller than it's famous namesake but it's a short, sharp shock at the start of a January walk and conditions underfoot were slippery. I made the top without seeing another soul and celebrated with a slice of coconut cake and some fantastic views out towards The Roaches and The Cat and Fiddle.

I continued on across the moors and into Macclesfield Forest, site of one of the ancient Royal forests and hunting reserves, though the majority of the trees are now Sitka Spruce and Japanese Larch farmed for timber by United Utilities. The path wound it's way through the forest although there were a number of trees down across the path after the recent high winds and emerged near the Ranger station before continuing alongside Ridgegate and Bottoms reservoirs. There were a few Goosander and a pair of Tufted Ducks on the latter and a large, restless flock of Black headed Gulls.

It was a slog up to Tegg's Nose, but the views more than compensated and after skirting the abandoned quarry works, I stopped for lunch and watched a Buzzard circle over the valley below, it was a bit early for any lamb carcasses and it eventually ended up alighting in a bare Hawthorn where it sat and watched me for a while, unimpressed with my sandwiches! I'd originally planned to continue via Hardingland, but headed back down the valley, crossing the brook on a set of stepping stones before following the road back to Ridgegate. The "Leather's Smithy" was doing a good trade and the temptation to pop in for one of their really good game dishes was strong, but Toot Hill awaited, and the thought of having to drag an extra Venison Wellington up it's steep slope drove me on towards St Stephen's, a Grade 2 sandstone church, better known as the Forest Chapel and sitting in a beautiful churchyard.

The final descent back towards Wildboarclough took me through fields of pregnant sheep and a flock of pheasants before following the winding lane back towards Clough Hall and the remains of my coffee.

To view full set of photos please click on link below

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