Collected Musings of a Hill Wanderer

There was one event in my life over the last year that very firmly punctuated the year in outdoors terms: a change of job. Whether it was the cause of putting my hill-going off track or not, there clearly were less outings in the second half of the year and those that were enjoyed weren't so extensive. The strange thing though is that a Christmas spent with the folks in Ireland seems to have recharged things for me. After all, there already has been a proper day out among the waterlogged hill country around Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) in Wales very early in this year with a mad dash up to Fort William and Glenfinnan together with a crossing to Ireland to savour the delights of Howth near Dublin following it. In previous years, it often has fallen to the last weekend of January before I managed to get out at all. There are other schemes in mind but more armchair exploring could be needed before anything comes of them.

The first few months of last year had me standing on hilltops more often than is usual for me and January and February fitted into this pattern with walks over Place Fell in Cumbria and Diffwys near Dyffryn Ardudwy, respectively. The weather was very amenable in both cases with a touch of spring being felt on the second excursion to contrast with the sights reminding onlookers of winter during the previous one. The other major outing in February was a cycle that took in Gawsworth, Astbury, Little Moreton Hall, Holmes Chapel, Goostrey, Over Peover and Chelford. Though I was tired after that jaunt, it sowed the seeds for a cycle to Chester later in the year.

March saw me move things up a gear again by heading to Scotland to see some Scottish snow-covered hillsides around Glen More among the Cairngorms. Braving some showers was the price that I had to pay for this but the rewards from the short sampling session more than compensated. In fact, it may have set the scene for a busy April that featured an Easter Sunday trot from Baslow to Bamford while shadowing the River Derwent. That wasn't as low level as it might sound but I headed to greater heights in the form of Carnedd Moel Siabod and Y Llethr in Wales too. Revisiting the trip reports for these makes me realise that I was more active than I now remember myself to be.

My recollections of May are stronger and it started with a Mayday bank holiday weekend visit to the Isle of Man where I savoured some of the ups and downs of the coastal path, Raad ny Foillan. That was a good introduction to Manx walking and I hope to follow up the outing some time. A trot from Selkirk to Melrose had it share of ascent and descent too as it brought back to a part of the world where I hadn't been for a few years. Later, I discovered that the Kerry mountains around Killarney can get some hot sunny weather. In fact, it could have been the most sun that I have had on a visit to the alluring area.

As it happened, May ended with the commencement of the distraction that was to occupy my mind for much of the next few months: a change of job. It was amazing to see how this really punctuated my outdoors year. The weather remained balmy as I pondered what I was doing with visits to the National Trust managed woods around Alderley Edge for some unwinding on lengthening evenings. That spell of good weather came to an end later in June but not before I snatched the chance to head north to the Isle of Arran and Kintyre for what became my only real longer summer break in Scotland. That didn't prove to be the end of my feeling hot sunshine for the year because a business trip took me to Sweden where long hot evenings allowed me to savour the delights both of Sodertalje and Stockholm.

From July on, the rest of the year gained a much quieter feel when it came to enjoying the outdoors. Nevertheless, I did manage to base myself in Aberdeen for the English August Bank Holiday weekend. Having not been there after a first visit more than a decade before, it was time to revisit places encountered before and exploring those that were new to me. The latter point brings to a first visit to Braemar that took me up to the top Morrone/Morvern with heavy showers making rainbows in the sunshine before things dried up later on an otherwise chilly day. The outing had a real end of year feel with that coolness though Edinburgh felt warm in the sun when I sneaked in a trot about its heart between trains. Maybe I should have based myself there instead, like I did for the same weekend in 2009.

For some reason, the rest of the year felt as if the stuffing had been knocked out of it for me and my outings appeared to reflect that. Nevertheless, I did get to cycling all of the way from Macclesfield to Chester, a brainwave that came to me earlier in the year. It also proved that Cheshire is far from flat though I knew that anyway. Ironically, my end of British Summer Time hike along the High Peak Trail and the Tissington Trail from Pomeroy to Ashbourne on a day when cloud overcame sun as I went further south. Following old railway alignments meant that ups and downs were kept to a minimum on that October afternoon but the distance covered was felt for a while afterwards, ironically for longer than the effects of my exertions in crossing Cheshire if my memory is not failing me again.

Breaking away for a hill country outing seemed to have become difficult for me but November saw me on top of Caer Caradoc in Shropshire due the perceived accessibility of the hill. Shrewsbury remains another idea for urban pottering as does Oswestry so it wasn't about standing atop a hill. In fact, the very next issue of Country Walking featured low hills with good views and put into my head the idea of collating a list of a few of these for times when inspiration was hard to locate.

December's snows may have been disruptive and I was to feel the effects of that when I popped over to Ireland for the Christmas but they were restorative when it came to getting me out of doors again. For one thing, there was a quick visit to the hills near Glossop that was more about broadening my experience of winter condition than covering much in the way of distance. Then, there was wandering around local haunts in Wilmslow (Lindow Common became a 2010 discovery for me), Macclesfield, Prestbury and West Limerick. Surroundings may have looked totally different and very pretty on these short strolls but they very much helped me in the restoration of my hill wandering mojo. Now, I need to ensure that it doesn't leave me again. After all, 2011 has started well and I really do need to set down some more trip reports as well as ensuring that my working life doesn't overwhelm everything else on me again.

Those heavy coatings of snow that many of us were to find round about our way before Christmas weren't left go without my going out and sampling the transformed countryside, even if my excursions were mere nibbles compared with what others were doing. On the Monday before Christmas, I got myself into the hills not far from Glossop with Shelf Benches being the limit of my explorations. Tuesday saw me pottering about Lindow Common enthralled by the way clumps of snow were clinging to any vegetation. Wednesday afternoon was too good to leave go so I tried out and circular trot round by Prestbury, starting from my own front doorstep. A Christmas trip to Ireland in spite of snow showers closing Dublin Airport and sending me around the island a bit more than I intended offered its own opportunities too. That meant some wandering along snowy roads and over well coated fields before the thaw came on St. Stephen's Day (Boxing Day to the British). The only sign of snow since was a greasy damp dusting that greeted me on the morning of my first day back at work for 2011.

It was after a chaotic weekend for travel in the U.K. that I finally had the chance of making something of what had visited us on Friday evening and beyond. With the aftermath of the snowfall and the impact of the cold weather in mind, I decided against going too far and stuck with an option that erupted in my mind the day before: sampling the hill country near Glossop again after being absent for a few years. The prospect of popping over to Longdendale was an extension that never came to pass but it was better not to get too carried away during the hours that were available to me. That was just as well because any attempt to approach Shelf Moor and its neighbours would have been stymied but for my having my Kahtoola Microspikes with me; they stuck into the ice superbly to get me further away from civilisation than otherwise might have been the case. Beyond the obstacle, it was over to the cleats of my Scarpa ZG10's to keep me upright and they did that apart from downhill skid on slippery snow that didn't carry me either too far or into any danger; it merely was a warning not to get too carefree. Cloud was advancing from the south but enough sunlight was left to me for making a pleasing record of what surrounded me. It was only after Mossy Lea farm that I had the chance to use the Access Land to leave the more travelled way to have a potter about. In the end, I contented myself with reaching the foot of Shelf Benches after following a landrover track as far as a broken down wall from where I followed animal tracks as far as was sensible.

Strangely, there were more folk around when I made my return to Glossop; there only was one other soul out when I was venturing away from civilisation. Some were struggling over the icy obstruction with instep crampons while others seemed to get around it without any need for specialised kit at all. My incursion into the whitened outdoors may not have carried me far but I did gain a bit of height to gaze over humps and bumps that lay about me so satisfaction was assured.

The next day's sampling of whitened surroundings was a snatched trot about the Black Lake on Lindow Common. Every tree and scrub had clumps of snow stuck to it, which may for dramatic sights when walking though the Common's more wooded parts. These were sights that I rarely get to see so I lingered even though there were other things to be done and there was time-consciousness into the bargain too. The afternoon of the day after was less rushed as I walked from my house to Prestbury. Light was beginning to fade a little and there were sights that reminded me of Lindow as I followed the Bollin. There were thoughts of walking back via Tytherington but an iced up track under a railway put a stop to that; a quick local trot had me leaving the Microspikes behind and they were needed unless I contented myself with wandering through Prestbury village and back home by roadside footways whose gradients were a solid reminder of the depression of a valley through which the Bollin flows. That's what I did to reach the cover of streetlights before daylight finally failed for the day.

Those Irish explorations took place in better light so there was enough for photo of unusual scenes for a usually mild part of the country. Well, seeing clumps of snow stuck to everything and hearing the dropping of snow dust within a hedge or a bush just isn't usual at all. Much of my venturing took the form of careful road walking though I followed farm roadways too. In hindsight, I was glad to have sampled what I did because a rapid thaw after Christmas Day didn't take long to remove all the whiteness from everywhere; that was almost as dramatic as the snow fall and arctic temperatures themselves. It may be January but one cannot be betting on any repeat of what came from the north to us and many would appreciate its staying away for a good while after all of the disruption that was caused. Well, it goes to show that nature's beauty has a price bit it's worthwhile when you gaze upon scenes like those shared here.

After the passing of 2010, my only wish is that 2011 brings you and yours good things. The past year saw me distracted by a change of job in the middle of it and I think that it may have reduced my output on here. However, after catching up with a few issues of TGO in recent days, I have come to thinking that I need to keep reading more from the outdoors media because my perusal certainly popped a few ideas into my head for the coming year. What's needed now is to make something of the few flakes that are littering my brain at the moment.

The recent arctic conditions may have made my Christmas travelling more adventure-filled than I'd intended but it also brought me an afternoon spent pottering around the hills beside Glossop gain. There is the seed of a post arising from that little outing but I also got to seeing how Lindow Common and the Bollin Valley look with clumps of snow stuck to everything around them too. Then, there were trots around rural Limerick in Ireland to savour what are rare conditions for the southwest of Ireland. It might be that one posting would suffice to collect my experiences on those little tasters of a whitened world.

Though I also am playing with the idea of a local wander before returning to work on Monday, there also are designs on a quick sortie by Caledonian Sleeper to see what's left of snowy coverings in the Scottish Highlands. That's something with which I have been playing for a while but it'll be a little look rather than a deep incursion. It remains to be seen if I can make anything of it.

Other brainwaves for the year include a longer sojourn in an area new to me (and perhaps others) that results in a number of posting that I can share on here. Firm ideas are few and far between at the moment but I did concoct a scheme centred on Mallaig that has me going out to the Small Isles. Maybe visiting Islay and Jura might be other propositions. Then, there's always the call of my native Éire for a fuller hill country excursion to follow up my nibble of the Wicklow Mountains nearly two years ago now.

With regard to smaller forays, there are hills around Keswick that I'd like to explore too after a few years of struggling to find a reason to go back there. That has come from the TGO writings of others and I am thankful of them too. Looking through old photos has brought thoughts of trying to better them and that could see me exploring Derbyshire a bit more too.

It's all very well making designs for a whole year when it can surprise you in a way that you cannot expect but not having the ideas at all will lead to torpor like what I felt towards the end of 2010. That is something that I'd like not to see happening again. Let's hope that all of us manage to get in some quality hill time over the coming year, even if life has a habit of getting in the way from time to time.

At the end of October, I managed to drag myself out of doors for a trot in the Derbyshire Dales. The plan was to walk south along the High Peak and Tissington trails, both part of the Pennine Bridleway network. These are former railway lines that have been converted into useful trails for walkers, joggers, cyclists and horse riders. Temptingly, there are places along the way that offer bicycle hire and refreshments that are operated by the Peak District National Park Authority. Typically, these were situated where railway stations once stood and signage usefully told you how far you were from the next one. Those staging posts include Hurdlow, Parsley Hay, Hartington, Alsop en le Dale, Tissington, Thorpe and Ashbourne with each offering car parking for those seeking only to wander part of the way.

That railway past means that ups and downs are curtailed so easy progress is assured, even if it makes them more attractive to those for whom walking in the countryside is not such a regular activity. Nevertheless, anything that gets more sedentary folk moving in the outdoors has to be a good thing. As it happened, that's what brought my attention to them after what has been a reduction in my explorations of the countryside after that change of job during the summer.

As ever, it took the prospect of what for October felt like a rare sunny day to draw me out for one last hurrah before the onset of winter time and its final demolition of any sense of our having some evening light. For about half the walk, there were blue skies and sunshine but cloud grew more plentiful the further south that I went until it completely took over the sky to give a grey end to the day. That's never to say that I was disappointed by this though it would have been nice to have had some pleasing sunshine for any glimpses of Dovedale that I was allowed.

From Pomeroy's pub, it was a matter of picking up a public footpath in order to reach the old railway. Once on it, I played with the idea of an out and back hike to the start of the High Peak Trail. In the event, that was left for another day and any misgivings that I may have had were quenched well before I reached Ashbourne. As I journeyed south, there were other leisure seekers out on the trail with me but that's not to say that there weren't any quieter interludes because there were plenty of those too. Navigation was going to be a real issue though I was checking the map to see how I was going and useful mileposts highlighting the distances between the former train stations.

What grows many of my trip reports are recollections of the route and the impressions that my surroundings made on me. For the first part of my walk along the High Peak and Tissington trails, it is difficult do much like this. The surrounding countryside was pretty rolling pasture without move in the way of indentations so I wasn't rooted to the spot engaged in photography as often as sometimes is the case with me. The fact that it was easy to walk quickly and that a good distance lay ahead of me might have helped me pass from staging post to staging post until I meet the junction of both trails. That speedy progress is a reminder that these are cycling trails too and the landscape allows you to glide through it, perhaps more easily than it ought to do in some respects.

Beyond the junction of the High Peak and Tissington trails, it was straight into a cutting and then onto an alignment that was raised above the surrounding landscape and away from the A515. That feeling of elevation was to remain the case for much of the distance and the old signal box belonging to Hartington station came into view soon enough. Once through there and its surrounding nature reserve with its attendant strollers, it was onto the long stretch to Alsop en le Dale with the trail nearing the A515 again, much like it is around Parsley Hay.

Misplaced young backpackers ended up being redirected, by me of all people, around Biggin with skies having turned from blue to grey. The terrain does show some light buckling around there but I am amazed by the more striking indentations that I seem to have missed. A look now at a map causes me to marvel at how well hidden the likes of Long Dale, Biggin Dale and Wolfscote Dale seemed to be from me. They look so close to the line that I was taking and wonder why I never noticed them; was I travelling through cuttings when I might have been savouring their delights? As it happened, it was to take until I was beside Dove Dale before I noted any major impression that had been made into the High Peak plateau. Some good walking trips could be made of exploring these natural cuttings and I'll be keeping those options in mind. They may even yield pleasing photos, too, and that's a ruse that I often use to get me out of doors.

After a crossing under the A515, Alsop was reached earlier than expected and it was from then on that my legs began to feel more leaden. As I drew nearer and nearer to Tissington, I was on the lookout for Parwich but it stayed hidden like so much else earlier in the hike. There must be something about the way that the landscape keeps things hidden around this part of the world and makes you go into its dips before you truly can say that have been. At Tissington, a short refreshment stop was in order though I wasn't drawn into exploring the village itself. After, the day was remaining resolutely grey and I'd rather see pretty places with sunshine falling upon them.

Though I did wonder about catching a bus from there, I set off to reach Ashbourne. A certain feeling of fatigue made me wonder at the wisdom of my decision. Could it also have made me that little bit more impatient too? So long as I had a map to tell me how I was doing, this could be contained but an OS Explorer 24 doesn't extend all of the way to Ashbourne and I didn't have OS Explorer 259 to take over after Thorpe. Knowing that there never was any chance of getting lost staved away any pangs of navigational panic. It simply had to be a matter of putting one foot after another and letting the end of my walk come when it did.

It helped that I took a nibble of the Ashbourne end of the Tissington Trail and there was no problem reaching the town centre through the former railway tunnel. That piece of recce resulted from a trip around by a cold grey Buxton that took me to an Ashbourne blessed by blue skies and bright sunshine, a different place to where I finished my walk in the sense that it now was a grey as Buxton was on that other day. The hike had been a long one after which it took several days for my legs to recover but it was an introduction to a part of the world that I ended up ignoring for so long. The next phase is to go exploring those hidden dips to see what delights lie within them. It looks as if I won't be disappointed.

Travel Arrangements:

Bus service 58 from Macclesfield to Buxton, bus service 42 to Pomeroy, bus service 108 from Ashbourne to Macclesfield.

A reduction in outdoors outings seems to have coincided with a change of job a few months ago so I am wondering about changing that state of affairs. Whether it is the busy working weeks or something else such as unappealing weather that has broken my stride, it now feels as if usual haunts such as Cumbria or North Wales have got that little further away. The result is that I am wondering about destinations not so far away from home such as Shropshire, Staffordshire and Derbyshire.

The mention of Derbyshire brings me to a short run out last weekend. The possibility of some sun was enough to get me wondering about a photographic outing to Buxton. However, the afternoon became very grey and there was a biting cold wind too. The result was that I ended up in Ashbourne for a little while. While there, I did a little exploration and found the Tissington Trail on an improving afternoon. There was only enough time for a short stretch along the well used former railway but it was enough to etch thoughts about further explorations into my mind, especially with the rare experience of walking through an old railway tunnel included. After all, I had passed through the pretty estate village of Tissington while en route to Ashbourne and that deserves a proper visit and not just a glimpse through a bus window.

The result of my brief taste of this area was that I have been perusing Mark Richards' White Peak Walks: The Southern Dales, published by Cicerone, in the name of learning more. Though largely pastoral now, the landscape has had an industrial past that gives us the railway alignments that nowadays find recreational use as the Tissington and High Peak trails, among others. All in all, there seems to be plenty to explore and it all seems to be the sort of walking that would ease someone into the outdoors again after a lay-off. That isn't to say that there isn't something for the cyclist too as I discovered a cycle hire service near the start of the Tissington Trail.

In a way, it's a surprise that I hadn't been around these parts before now. As to why that has been the case is unclear to me but perceived greater ease of access using public transport might have had something to do with it. Even so, there are a good number of bus services doing duty in these parts and there are YHA hostels (Hartington and Youlgreave) too if I fancy staying overnight somewhere and can find a space available. Now, what needs doing is to firmly pencil in some time for plying paths and trails so as to avert any fatigue-inspired foot-dragging.

Travel details:

Bus services 58 from Macclesfield to Buxton, 42 from Buxton to Ashbourne and 108 from Ashbourne to Macclesfield via Leek.