UK Mountains Expedition Report

There are very few actual mountains in the Peak District (by the Nuttalls definition) but there are a good few in the 500m plus category and even a few in the Marilyns category, but peak bagging wasn't the reason for the trip, although quite a few peaks are planned. No, the reason was a weeks walking in good countryside, enjoying being out and bagging a few peaks along the way, but if the day has no peaks, then no problem.

Parking up near the Roaches, which are actually in Staffordshire I made my way along and up to the main rocky ridge, by a fiendish route that involved a decent amount of climbing. The Roaches high point (505m) is at the far Northern end and on any other day would make a lovely place to stop and admire the view. Today, however, Storm Debi was blowing through, making it a positively unpleasant place to be, I tapped the trig point and made my way off quickly.

From there, there was a bit of road work to do before breaking out and heading roughly South West towards the second peak of the day: Gun (385m). It attracted me because it falls into the Marilyns category, a group of mountains that I have now identified as a good set to collect. The walk over was on very little used paths and the final climb up to the summit tested legs and lungs in equal measure. It might be less than 400 metres high, but it is no pushover.

On the summit, it was a similar story to the Roaches, very windy and very cold so I paused lon enough for a quick drink and we were off, retracing our steps for a while, then taking the more direct route back to the car. There was a final good climb up to the road, but it was on a good track so soon completed. It had been a good day out, cold and windy, but no rain which was good.

I parked at the free car park near to a small lake just outside Buxton and headed off cross country on reasonable paths, initially downhill to Wildmoorstone Brook, then up and over another unnamed brook before starting a steep climb and descent pattern until I reached Goytsclough Quarry where a good path took over leading me through the woods and onto the open moorland. It was steadily up on a good path into cloud and rain, causing me to pause in order to put on my waterproofs, then continue, to arrive at Shining Tor, marked by a trig point and benefitted by a couple of benches, placed on the leeward side of the stone wall. It made a good stopping point for a snack and some hot blackcurrant. This was the first peak of the day and, not only was it over 500 metres, but also a Marilyn, so ticks in two boxes!

The ridge is followed all the way to Cats Tor, mostly on flagstones which have presumably been placed to reduce the erosion from a million booted walkers. My original plan was to ascend Black Edge but I confess to a bout of aparthy and tiredness, so rather than try to complete the 15 miles required, I changed my plans and after a short road section just below Cats Tor, headed back into the forest, stopping briefly to remove my waterproofs, then continued, passing a small building, which I later discovered, was the Spanish Shrine. Following the path, I eventually emerged at the South end of Erwood Reservoir. Turning to follow the edge, I decided it was lunchtime, so found a convenient bench and settled down to munch my roll.

Lunch done, I followed the narrow road to the head of the reservoir and crossed, soon to leave it to cross Bunsal Cob and back down towards the water. The path heads all the way to the South end again, then turns uphill for the final walk back to the car. With a few minutes to go, the rain came again, but I toughed it out. Another good day out, this time just over 15km walked.

I parked at Barber Booth lower car park, donning full waterproofs from the start. As I walked up, the rain got steadily worse and within about 30 minutes I could feel my arms getting damp! The lane turns into a track which joins the Pennine Way as it makes its way out to and up Jacobs Ladder. At the top, my path went left to Brown Knoll (569m), a peak I'm pretty sure I've never climbed. The weather was awful, the visibility non-existent, so I continued on. The path is a good one, being on flagstones, so easy to follow. As I approached the Lords Seat (540m) ridge it became more of a track, but still easy to follow. Lords Seat itself seems to have no real summit, rather it has an expanse of land that is about the right height.

The weather remained bad so I pressed on, pausing briefly at the road that passes the base of Mam Tor for a warming drink, but soon left as I was cold. From there, a good path led me down to Edale where the call of the Ramblers Inn was too much to resist. A warming coffee and rest, and I was off for the last two miles following the Pennine Bar to Upper Booth, then retracing my steps down to the car. It had rained all day and had been seriously cold but I'd managed a little over ten miles so was happy with that.

I got back to the car and realised that I hadn't eaten, but both me and the dog were cold and tired so we set off with the car heater on full power to warm up. Eventually back at my cottage, I felt distinctly unwell, so after the basic admin and a shower I decided a snooze would be in order. Two hours later I woke, still feeling less than 100% so we will see what tomorrow brings in terms of how I feel and dictate the plan.

From Cromford car park, where on one side of the wall, it costs £7 per day to park and the other side is £4 per day (I chose £4!) I set off, following the canal to the High Peak Junction, cafe closed! The trail ascents the 1 in 8 climb up to Black Rocks where the second cafe was also closed. Continuing on the next incline, also 1 in 8 bought me to Middleton Top, third cafe closed! I decided to continue out to Harboro Rocks as I had never actually been to the top of them. It is pleasant little climb up to the high point of 379m and I was surprised to be able to see Carsington Water less than two miles away.

It was an out and back walk with the bonus that the return trip was all either flat or downhill. Around 11 miles walked. The weather was dull but no wind and no rain so an improvement on the last few days.

I'd decided a coffee and cake would be in order prior to my walk today and was pleased to find a convenient space in Ilam Village which is just a few minutes walk up the drive to the Youth Hostel and the National Trust cafe. The cafe didn't disappoint, the coffee was excellent and the sponge cake perfect.

Suitably refreshed, I retraced my steps and then onwards to the field gate that led to a path which would take me over to Dovedale itself. The path turned out to be a mud fest and I promised myself I would take the higher path on the way back with the reasonable argument that it may well be muddy, but being higher on a slope, unlikely to be as wet (I was right).

Once in Dovedale itself I elected to cross at the bridge given that the river looked in full flow which probably meant the stepping stones would be underwater (they were). The path is fine, but there is still a little balancing act required near the end where the path also goes underwater. I walked along the dale, enjoying the sunshine and the familiarity until I arrived at the big caves where I decided it was lunchtime.

Suitably fed, I retraced my steps back to the head of the dale and over to Ilam via the high path. On the way I enjoyed watching a group of hang gliders doing their best to gain thermals and fly the ridge. They had limited success, all landing whilst I walked. Today, I would describe as an easy day, no big hills or long walks, but it was perfect for me after the previous long days.

For my final day in the Peak District, I elected to walk a good section of the Monsal Trail from Millers Dale Railway Station to Bakewell. The walking was, of course, easy being flat all the way, but the weather was suitably unkind with frequent heavy showers. Enjoyable nonetheless.

A sneaky Marilyn on the way home. Parking in Timbersbrook, 'The Cloud' was signposted from the car park, clearly this is the car park for climbing the hill. Out of the car park via a set of steps to the road where another sign describes the next section: Up the hill and turn right up the steep steps. It wasn't wrong, the steps were indeed quite steep but short lived and I was soon on a good track. Here the signage ends but it is pretty obviously right and then up. There are choices of path, some are footpaths, others are shared with Mountain Bikes. I chose the footpath and made my way around and up towards the summit.

It wasn't going to be a day for views and there was a certain irony climbing a hill called 'The Cloud' that was completely enveloped in cloud! Once on the summit, there is a trig point and a compass stone showing distances to all the interesting places I might have seen on a good day, plus some I would never have been able to see, for example, John O'Groats was a mere 380 miles away.

I didn't stay long and headed off on my circular walk. An up and down would have been too short. My chosen route was all on good, but very muddy paths, eventually bringing me around to the foot of the hill where I rejoined my initial climb, so retraced my steps back down to the car. Sadly, no views all day, but a final Marilyn ticked so not a waste.