The Thaw!

After a week of quite a lot of snow and temperatures around or below freezing, it was time to say “good-bye” to the snow as temperatures rose to several degrees above freezing yesterday evening and we had a bout of heavy rain (and even a couple of flashes of lightning and thunder).

We had got up a bit later than usual for a weekend morning and Karen wanted to spend an hour listing all the birds she saw in our garden for a RSPB survey, we would have a late start.

As we were expecting soggy conditions with the thaw, plus the late start we decided to keep the walk short and relatively local.

So a decision was made on a walk from the village of Hartington vis Biggin Dale and Wolfescote Dale.

We left the car in the centre of the village and made our way uphill on a minor road passing the impressive Youth Hostel of Hartington Hall, then after passing through a field gate and crossing a field to a squeeze style, we passed a second stile to gain the walled track known as Highfield Lane.

This was very wet with deep slush and melt water as well as some snow. It was an easy decision to make the walk very short as it wasn't very pleasant at all.

So, after reaching another minor road leading from Hartington to Biggin, we started down the nearby Biggin Dale as far as a path which drops in from the right near an old ruined building of some sort.

Following this path brought us to another walled lane which was obviously well-used by tractor and as well as the slush and water, we now had a lot of mud to tramp through.

After passing an old stone barn which is gradually falling apart, we reached easier going on Reynards Lane which soon brought us back to Hartington.

I miss walking in the snow as even though it may be hard going sometimes, at least you end up with clean, if maybe damp, boots at the end!

A slushy Highfield Lane

The sheep were probably glad to see the end of the snow

A lovely stone barn falling into ruins

You can see a large pool of water from melted snow and rain

These two had more sense than us tramping in the slush, water and mud!

Stanton Moor Again

After another dump of snow overnight, we had at least 8 inches of new snow lying in the garden. The roads were still fairly snowy although they had been gritted, but unlike last week, it was dry and sunny and with the temperature a degree or two above freezing, it was a much nicer day.

Karen joined me this time as we repeated the walk I did alone last Saturday walking from home over to Stanton Moor and back via Birchover.

As we were walking across farmland towards Stanton Moor we saw a buzzard in flight above the trees ahead of us and what looked like fox footprints and rabbit footprints in the snow.

We also saw a kestrel while we were pausing on the moor to look at the Bronze Age site of Minning Low in the distance. The kestrel was swooping along very low and appeared to be after a small bird perched in a nearby small tree, The kestrel certainly at least knocked the small bird off its perch but it appeared that the small bird had a lucky escape as the kestrel re-appeared and flew away with no sign of its intended lunch.

Main Street, Winster

Winster Church

Winster in the Distance

The Reform Tower, Stanton Moor

Nine Ladies Stone Circle, Stanton Moor

Minning Low on the horizon

Deer footprints

A Snowy Kinder Scout

Yet another trip on Kinder, again while Karen was busy at home sorting out books and Willow the cat spent the day asleep in her child-size sleeping bag.

It was very cold and quite windy with quite a few others walking around on Kinder but the cloudbase was nearly at the same height so it was a long way from a clear and sunny and cold day in which any walk on Kinder would be excellent.

A couple of lads were trying out their drooped pick ice axes and crampons on the small frozen waterfalls which had formed on the rock step in the northern branch of Grinds Brook and were certainly enjoting themselves.

I wore a Trek Mates Merino Wool shirt with a Rab Vapour Rise Guide jacket on top and was warm, dry and comfortable all day. The Vapour Rise Guide jacket is a thicker and heavier version of Rab's Vapour Rise jacket and is an alternative take on the Buffalo Pertex and Pile design.

I repeated the route Karen and I took recently: going up via Grindslow Knoll then around the southern edge of the plateau and then down via Ringing Roger.

Stanton Moor from Home

Yesterday had started with overnight snow and continuing snow showers through the day so I had taken a day off from work and stayed at home. This didn't stop my manager at work from answering my email that I had stayed at home due to the weather and the ongoing forecast for more snow and Met Office Yellow warnings, etc. suggesting that she had made it to work from Leicester and I should also turn up...

Anyway, this morning the roads in the village, at least Main Street anyway, which is part of a bus route, was much improved after several passes if gritting lorries. The sky was very overcast and there were more light snow showers and snow had begin settling on the road.

I decided to walk from home so as to avoid driving. Karen had already made her mind up to stay at home and spend the day cataloguing our various books (I have quite a lot, really).

So I got my boots and jacket on and set off out the front door, across Main Street and followed the Public Footpath in the narrow gap between the two houses opposite. At least I wouldn't take long to get to the start of the walk!

This footpath leads past several gardens and the rears of some other houses before arriving at fields.

There a continuing path which probably was used by the old lead miners many years ago going to and from work in the mines around Winster, which drops down to the the head of the beginnings the valley containing Clough Wood which leads down to Darley Bridge.

On the far side of this small valley, the path rises to a set of stiles, and I crossed the right-hand one which soon brought me to the tiny Stoop Wood. Now I had the virgin snow with no footprints other than several rabbits and some birds.

Crossing Clough Lane, the route continues along yet more fields and passes through the farmyard of a farm mostly comprising holiday cottages and a campsite.

The footpath has recently been channelled along a newish wire and wooden post fence skirting along the campsite and this brought me to a minor road from the nearby village of Birchover.

After crossing the snowy road and walking a few tens of metres, there is a wooden stile which brings you onto one of the paths across Stanton Moor.

I followed the route of the path with ankle deep snow until I arrived at the Reform or Earl Grey Tower, built by William Pole Thornhill and dedicated to the Reform Act 1832.

After taking a photo, I then made my way to the nearby Bronze Age stone circle known as the Nine Ladies Stone Circle. This is the best known of four such stone circles on the moor and is known for attracting Druids and other New Age types at Summer or Winter Solstice. While they are not exactly Stonehenge, the circle of knee-high sandstone rocks from the nearby area are certainly interesting and shows just how long people have lived in the general area.

After taking more photos of the quiet scene in the snow, I followed a path which eventually led me to the Cork Stone. This is one of several large rocks which have been given names and also include the Duke of York Stone (in which the legend "Y 1826" is carved), the Cat Stone, the Duchess of Sutherland Stone, the Gorse Stone, the Heart Stone and the Andle Stone. The Cork Stone has a set of footholds carved in it and also small iron stemples held into holes in the stone with melted lead to provide handholds to enable people to climb to the top of the 4 or 5 metre high rock. These hold must be ancient as the lower footholds have been worn into long grooves due to the large number of shoes and boots wearing away the rock.

After passing the Cork Stone, I followed a path which leads to another access point onto the moor from the same minor road I had crossed earlier. I walked a bit further along this road passing a working stone quarry and then followed a Public Footpath through a small car park to the village of Birchover by the Druid Inn.

After walking along the road through the village for about half its length, I turned right onto an adjoining road which passes the village recreation ground and arrives at Clough Lane where a junction is reached with a narrow track descending towards the road from Elton to Winster. Here are the village Stocks, which have been restored.

Part way along this narrow lane, there is a small gate and a footpath across several fields which brought me back to Winster and home.

The start of the walk from my front door, through the gap opposite.

Looking back towards Winster

The Nine Ladies Stone Circle

The Reform Tower

The Cork Stone

Path to Birchover

Birchover Stocks

Offerton Moor from Leadmill

This is a walk we have done fairly recently but in drier although very cold weather.

It was therefore a fine day with sunny periods as we left Leadmill near Hathersage and then followed the same route as on 4th November, 2012.

Hathersage Moor from Grindleford Station

It was a cold day with temperatures close to freezing and also with a cold wind as we parked on the approach road to Grindleford train station near the Grindleford Cafe.

From there we followed steps leading up to the adjacent minor road and then crossed the road bringing us to a continuation of the footpath, again with steps leading upwards towards the Longshaw Estate.

We crossed the open woodland of the Estate and had a short break at the National Trust café for tea and scones before leaving the old lodge and walking along the tarmac drive to then cross the road near the Fox House Inn.

There a large wooden gate across the road with a smaller gate next to it and this leads to another path through a wooded section of moorland.

Another road to cross, this time the Sheffield to Hathersage road, and we had a choice of footpaths. We chose the one which leads along the top of the Burbage Edges gritstone crags. From this high vantage point you could see quite a distance and we could easily make out Lose Hill, Mam Tor en even the prominent Minning Low in the far distance.

There were quite a few walkers around now, probably because there is a small car park at Upper Burbage Bridge, which isn't very far away and also several climbers walking long with their large bouldering crash pads attached to their backs like gigantic rucksacks. We never had these crash pads in my days (Groan! Groan!) when we went bouldering!

Anyway, we found a nice spot below Upper Burbage Bridge which was sheltered from the cold wind and still with some of the weak sunshine and we sat there to have our lunch.

Afterwards we followed another footpath leading to the prominent feature in the landscape known as Higger Tor and we crossed the rocky small plateau on its summit after following rough and wide rocky steps.

Dropping back down from Higger Tor on the opposite side there was a continuing path which now led us to more rocky steps and the top of another similar but smaller gritstone feature up which are the remains of the ancient Iron Age Carl Wark Fort.

Again, we followed another path on the far side which eventually brought us back to the Sheffield to Hathersage road near where we had crossed it earlier.

After crossing this road, we followed a path which was quite muddy in places and followed along one side of the small Burbage Brook. Soon we reached to top of Padley Gorge and we followed the path through the old twisted trees in the wood lining the Gorge until we were back at Grindleford café.

Crossing the Longshaw Estate

Higger Tor

An unfinished gritstone trough -did it crack before it was completed?

Burbage Edge

Clump of heather with hoar frost

Part of the wall, Iron Age Fort on Carl Wark

Crossing Carl Wark