The Vale of Ewyas

Saturday 17th October 2020

After the fabulous weather late summer, autumn kicked in at the end of September with a lot of rain so that it wasn’t until the middle of October that a window in the rain enabled me to get away for another walk, but I had other priorities as well. I was running out of books to read so a return visit to Hay-on-Wye, the original Town of Books, was called for, but after just a couple of hours there I had already spent too much so I headed off into the hills to the Black Mountains. This is a range of hills that I have a lot of affection for having been the scene of some of my earliest hill walking experiences and I have returned every five years for a memorial walk ever since. However, those walks, including the most recent in 2019, have all failed to visit the south eastern corner of the Black Mountains around Llanthony Priory and its stunning surroundings in the Vale of Ewyas. I have had to go back to 2005 to find the last time I visited this amazing place and that is far too long ago. But first I had to get there from Hay-on-Wye and that involves a long drive over the Gospel Pass, the highest road pass in Wales, along narrow single-track, badly eroded roads into the Vale of Ewyas. After one point having to park up to let a herd of cows pass I eventually reached Llanthony Priory whose car park seemed to be full until someone pulled out of their spot and fortunately for me provided me with a space to park.

Ignoring the ruins of Llanthony Priory for now I crossed the valley and headed up into Cwm Bwchel following an excellent, well-signposted path as I reflected on the difficulty I had twenty years ago when the paths were not so clear. The terrain is now fabulous with many trees growing in the steep valley making for a tremendous climb in relatively warm weather as the sun tried to break through the clouds over the ridge on the far side of the valley. Generally the Black Mountains were holding onto a thick layer of clouds, but these were well above the tops to provide me with clear views all day. I was soon stripping layers as I climbed thinking I had not anticipated such warm weather, helped by a lack of winds, having expected a cold, autumn wind. The excellent, rocky footpath led me to the top of the ridge, near Bâl Bach, where I turned right to climb up to Bâl Mawr and tried to remember previous visits along this ridge. Apart from the previously mentioned walk in 2005 I can’t remember any other time I had been in this part of the Black Mountains, but back then I had thick cloud so no view along this glorious ridge that was now laid out before me for the first time, which is astonishing when you consider how much walking I have done in the Black Mountains since 1999.

After passing the trig point on Bâl Mawr the ridge narrows uncharacteristically for the Black Mountains undulating delightfully before climbing to the top of Chwarel y Fan. To my left was the Mynydd Du Forest with the Grwyne Fawr Reservoir further up the valley while to my right was the fabulous, much-loved, Vale of Ewyas. When I reached the top of Chwarel y Fan I realised that this would be the highest point that I would climb this year when I have been unable to go to the Lake District or to Scotland, so I was really thankful that I had been able to make this trip. When I reached the Blacksmith’s Anvil stone that marks the crossing of a path over the ridge I turned right passing many helicopter bags that are evidence of the continual maintenance of the paths in this area so the paths are now a lot better than they were twenty years ago. Gradually I descended into the Vale of Ewyas before the terrain steepens dramatically on a rough, stony path that is a delight to walk upon as it zigzags down the steep hillside.

I climbed up this way last year in hot weather having already walked a long way so was really tired at this point and unable to appreciate the excellent path as much as I did now. When the terrain eased I had a moment of indecision about the correct route to take until I eventually found the right route down past the Grange onto the road into Capel-y-ffin. The Youth Hostel that I used to stay in while visiting this area was not far from here, but is now luxury holiday cottages. I do miss that Youth Hostel. Passing the hamlet of Capel-y-ffin and its two churches I took a path that I have taken many times in the past, though last time, in 2019, I had diverted off the path while in descent and now I found it a little confusing. The first couple of times I took this path, back in 1999 and 2000, I also went wrong so it is clearly still not a clear path, but I soon managed to find the right route that took me almost to the Vision Farm where a path leads steeply up through bracken. This path has left such a lasting impression on me since I first climbed it in 1999 that I have returned every five years to climb it again, but now I was climbing that path unusually outside of those memorial walks.

It is a very steep and exhausting climb, but whenever I stopped to catch my breath I was able to look at the tremendous view down the glaciated valley of the Vale of Ewyas that has captivated me for over twenty years. Once the gradient eases there is a turning into a boggy section where the path is not clear and was missed by me on my first couple of climbs, but now I knew to look for it as I kept going to the pile of stones that marks the crossing of the ridge-top path that also carries the Offa’s Dyke Path and the border between England and Wales. Turning right I headed along the ridge in now much colder weather than when I had started the walk so the clothes that had come off then were quickly put back on. I passed over an unnamed hill and a trig point until I reached a junction onto a path that descends all the way down to Llanthony Priory where I had stopped for a moment to take in these entrancing ruins in its fabulous location. This was a fabulous walk and absolutely thrilling to be back in the Black Mountains walking along paths that I hadn’t walked along for many years and was thoroughly worth the effort to get there. Covid restrictions and bad weather have since prevented my travelling anywhere so I am really thankful that I was able to do this walk in October in an area that holds many memories for me going back more than twenty years.

The North Chiltern Trail

Saturday 19th September 2020

With good weather continuing in September I wanted to go for another walk, but not in the Peak District where I have walked many times this year and away from the crowds, so I decided to head south to an area that I first visited in 2017 and have returned many times since, to the Chiltern Hills. I’d noticed that there is an area of the Chilterns AONB that is disjointed from the rest, on the far side of Luton, not far from the M1 motorway, which would make access convenient for me. I’d never been there before so I thought I’d explore the north Chilterns making use of an extension to the Chiltern Way called the North Chiltern Trail that passes through the area. The total length of the North Chiltern Trail is forty-two miles, which is too much for one day, however, it splits easily into two halves with the northern half staying inside the Chilterns. Driving down the M1 I parked at the car park for Sharpenhoe Clappers setting off through the woods and soon had extensive views to the north from the top of the chalk escarpment before climbing to the remains of an Iron Age hillfort amongst an impressive beech wood where a war memorial dedicates the area to the National Trust. Plunging steeply down the escarpment I came into the small village of Sharpenhoe following signs for the North Chiltern Trail under clear blue skies though with a brisk wind. This was great weather to be walking in so I happily set off along the trail briefly leaving the Chilterns AONB to head across farmland and the A6 to reach the large village of Barton-le-Clay.

After a short walk through the village I was back in the Chilterns climbing the steep escarpment of the Barton Hills National Nature Reserve. There were stunning views to the north as I climbed the fabulous chalk slopes beside gorgeous wild flowers in what is simply a great place to walk and reminded me of why I love the Chilterns. The ground was rock-hard, which made walking very easy as I slowly climbed to the top of the hill and followed the edge of the escarpment looking out to the extensive views until, all-too-soon, I turned south and headed through relatively dull terrain past many fields until I reached the Icknield Way. This is an ancient trackway that runs from Norfolk to Wiltshire and further south is called the Ridgeway, which I walked on my first visits to the Chilterns. I was already by this point becoming concerned about the length of the walk having already taken several hours and only being about a quarter of the way round so I considered turning right, but this would have shortened the walk far too drastically, so I turned left and headed east along the Icknield Way.

Eventually I came off at the Pegsdon Hills Nature Reserve where more chalk downs with the same extensive views north grabbed my attention as I slowly descended once more past meadows ablaze with wild flowers even though it’s not the best time of year. At the bottom I didn’t have to wait long before I was climbing the escarpment again, this time to reach Knocking Hoe National Nature Reserve after which I finally said goodbye to the extensive, northern views and turned south. The walking now deteriorated as nothing could compare with the northern escarpment though there were many wild flowers to see, but not as many as if I’d been walking earlier in the year with the impending autumn season acting against me. A field of sunflowers attempted to lighten my mood as I kept following the North Chiltern Trail and despite my earlier misgivings I seemed to be making good progress. Passing beside many, many fields I slowly made my way along the trail past Wellbury House until I came to the point where the North Chiltern Trail turns left towards Great Offley and I maintained a straight course soon returning to the North Chiltern Way after it has made its more than twenty mile diversion south.

I was now also on the original Chiltern Way as it makes its swing around Luton, but the terrain still didn’t improve until I came near Warden Hill where I had views across the large town of Luton at the top of another chalk escarpment and here I turned north following the edge through an abundance of lush vegetation and stunning views. Passing through the Nature Reserve I made my way to Galley Hill and down to cross the Icknield Way slowly heading to the village of Streatley, which is just a short distance from Sharpenhoe Clappers where I had parked, but I had still one final treat to come. North of the village I came across the northern escarpment again, but frustratingly trees now blocked my view down into, first, Cow Hole, and then the much large and deeper, Watergutter Hole. I had to be content with walking around the top before the view north finally opened out on the far side of Smithcombe Hill before I turned away from the views and over the hill to the car park where I had started. This was a very long walk of over twenty miles, but most of the walking had been on the flat so I had been able to maintain a brisk pace throughout almost the whole walk so it was completed in just seven hours and despite sometimes passing through dreary farmland was enlightened thanks to the extensive views from the Chiltern escarpment in fabulous weather.

Bretton Clough and the Great Ridge

Saturday 12th September 2020

I have done a lot of walking in the Peak District this year as it is the nearest National Park to me where I can easily do a day walk without the problems inherent at the moment with accommodation. There are now not many places left there that I think are worth walking that I’ve not been this year, but while I was pondering on this I remembered the walk that I did a month before up Win Hill where there are views across the valley to Lose Hill and the Great Ridge between Edale and Castleton. This was definitely not a place to miss and to make the walk a bit more interesting I thought I’d also try to explore some of Bretton Clough, which is a secluded valley that I had glimpsed for the first time on that previous walk. Parking on Sir William Hill Road between Grindleford and Bretton I immediately set off across the heather covered Eyam Moor under fabulous blue skies while at this early hour a cold wind was blowing. Before the path starting to descend, and with the views opening out across the Derwent Valley, I came off the main path along a shallow ridge past something that is marked on the map as Rock Basin. The faint path I was on follows the ridge to the trig point that marks the highest point on Sir William Hill, but since that is beside the road I turned off to descend the hillside and was soon veering left again to take another path that was also heading in the wrong direction.

To get to Bretton Clough I needed to take a convoluted route across the hillside that eventually paid off as I descended into the valley through terrain that had steepened with banks covered in lush vegetation and was handsomely rewarded when I reached a side stream within a delightfully dark, wooded ravine. Leaving these tranquil surroundings I followed the fabulous path that skirts the side of Bretton Clough through dense woodland that frustratingly doesn’t descend to the bottom of the valley until I reached the junction between Bretton Brook and Abney Brook at Stoke Ford. There I took a path heads up Abney Clough through awesome, wild woodland scenery sticking closer to the valley bottom than in Bretton Clough until eventually I climbed out of the valley into the village of Abney. Ahead of me was the broad, featureless hill of Abney Moor that I had climbed on the walk a month before and had not enjoyed, so now I took the quickest route over on a road that was decorated with harebells and yarrow before passing over the saddle and descending along Brough Lane. Ahead of me I now had views of Win Hill and Lose Hill, but the sunny weather that had started the day was now gone with a generous amount of cloud cover.

When I reached the village of Brough I followed a path that skirts an active quarry to reach the village of Hope where I set off on the path that heads up Lose Hill and was packed with people, and the crowds would only get worse. This is a very popular route and the path was never in doubt with a blazed trail through the fields all the way up the hill that I don’t think I have ever seen so popular. Slowly I climbed Lose Hill until eventually I reached the top where I sat with views across the valley to Win Hill and had my lunch sheltered from the brisk wind. After eating I set off along the path at the top of the Great Ridge passing so many people on the path so that it was very difficult to maintain social distancing, but this is a fabulous ridge with gorgeous, solid rock under foot and stunning views across Edale towards Kinder Scout and along the ridge to Mam Tor. The sun finally came out again while I was on the ridge so now I had great views back to Lose Hill as I made my way along the path descending steeply from Back Tor and passed Hollins Cross to climb up to the top of Mam Tor.

From the busy summit I headed steeply down the hill keeping away from the flagstoned path that was packed with people and kept going downhill to a road taking the path opposite to pass Windy Knoll and over a second road along a track that maintained the direction on a similar route to that I had taken in 2017 to reach Mam Tor. My interesting walk was now over, but at least I was leaving the crowds behind as I passed over Bradwell Moor and after several dull miles eventually came out onto a road not far from the point where I had spent the weekend for the walk in 2017. Turning left my long, wearying walk continued that took me all the way back to my car passing through the villages of Little Hucklow and Great Hucklow. Most of it was on a road with the only exceptions being a stony byway that climbs into Great Hucklow and on another byway above Great Hucklow through beautiful woodland below Hucklow Edge. Joining the route that I had taken a month before I passed through Bretton and over the top of Sir William Hill until, after many weary miles since leaving Mam Tor, I finally reached my car.

This was an exhilarating walk, but was very hard on my legs with some really steep ascents that really tested my stamina and strength over almost twenty miles of brisk walking. Despite the crowds, the Great Ridge was really fun and I enjoyed what I saw of Bretton Clough, but I was frustrated at not being able to get deeper into the valley, so I will have to make a return visit to explore deeper into this overgrown delight. Though the long walk back to my car lacked interest the weather was really good in the afternoon with barely a cloud in the sky, which made up for the walk as it was just a pleasure to be stretching my legs walking in the countryside in such weather. I may have been to the Peak District many times since I was a child, but it is still a fabulous place to walk.

Coleridge Way and South West Coast Path

Saturday 5th September 2020

During these few days that I had in the Exmoor National Park I had been walking along the coastal path that is part of the South West Coast Path and had completed about half the Exmoor coastline covering the distance from Combe Martin, in the west, to just after Foreland Point. This was my last day in Exmoor on this holiday and I thought I would go to the eastern end of the Exmoor coastline and walk along the coastal path from Minehead, but eventually I decided I would simply continue my trek along the South West Coast Path starting from my furthest point, just after Foreland Point. Leaving the Caffyns Farm campsite, where I had been staying while in Exmoor, I drove through the tortuous bends and steep roads of Lynmouth and up to the car park near Foreland Point, beside Barna Barrow. Crossing the road I took a bridlepath that gradually descends around Holden Head before plunging into the woodland at the bottom of the East Lyn valley. Three days before I had walked from Watersmeet, a short distance down the river from this point, along the course of the Coleridge Way, a long distance trail that runs from Lynmouth to Coleridge Cottage in the Quantock Hills. Now I resumed my trek along that trail following the East Lyn River upstream.

Initially it was rather overcast as I descended into the valley, but the sun soon came out with the woodland providing me with some speckled sunshine as I headed through the valley. After passing Rockford and Alderford I eventually reached Brendon where the path climbs the northern bank of the valley that had now widened and was no longer wooded. It wasn’t too long before the path started to descend again as I approached a sharp right turn in the valley where the valley narrows delectably through Ashton Cleave. Back down beside the river I was in awe of the surroundings but frustrated at not being able to take a good picture of it due to some cloud cover. The valley soon opened up again near Lorna Doone Farm and Malmsmead where the river splits into Badgeworthy Water and Oare Water. The Coleridge Way soon leaves the Oare Water and heads uphill, but I left the trail to follow a path through Derry Combe. Most of the way it seemed to be a good route, but before reaching the top I crossed a fence and found very boggy ground and no path so it was only by dragging myself through bogs, briar and steep slopes that I was able to reach the top of the combe.

Looking back I realised it would have been better to have climbed the ridge on the Coleridge Way and then branched off to the top of Derry Combe. From there the Coleridge Way heads over the main road and down the hill to the South West Coast Path, which is also what I was doing, but on a different path over Yenworthy Common. Soon I reached a path coming in from the right that is marked as being the South West Coast Path, but is an inland alternative and is not marked on my Harvey map of the route. As the skies cleared of the lingering cloud the path descended increasingly steeply through gorgeous woodland scenery to reach the official coast path. Turning left I proceeded along the wide track all the way back to my car but this was initially very dull with no views out to sea and on a tedious path. A steep climb up this dreary track exhausted and frustrated me as I toiled up the unrelenting slope until eventually the coast path came off the track after leaving me absolutely worn out. Not long after that the coastal path finally left the wide tracks behind to head off along fabulous, narrow paths that cling precipitously high above steep slopes that fall all the way down to the sea far below with stunning views across the Bristol Channel.

Unfortunately my view was often obscured by thick rhododendron groves that despite previous attempts to cut them back had returned as thick as ever. This fabulous path continued through gorgeous woodland above Glenthorne Cliffs until eventually I came out of the woodland beside the service road for Foreland Point lighthouse that I had climbed three days before. Once again, I left the coastal path, climbing up this road all the way to Barna Barrow where I had parked breaking one of the rules of circular walking. You shouldn’t park at the top of a hill because then you have to climb up to your car at the end of a long, tiring walk, but this is a rule that I break annoyingly frequently. This was an enjoyable walk with some lovely moments such as in the wooded valley and along the terraced path above Glenthorne Cliffs, but it was also very exhausting. I had finished the walk early, about two o’clock, because I had a long drive ahead of me, though it was disappointing that the weather was now good after poor weather had blighted most of my time in Exmoor. I had originally planned to spend more time in Exmoor, but that didn’t happen, so after just four days I had left plenty more to come back and see, which hopefully would not be too far in the future.

Holdstone Down and Great Hangman

Friday 4th September 2020

After failing to do my intended walk the day before, because my car wouldn’t start, now thanks to the A.A. I was able to drive to the Heddon valley and the Hunter’s Inn where I parked. I had hoped the rain of the previous day would be gone, but it was still persisting when I headed down the valley and joined the South West Coast Path once again and climbed ridiculously steeply out of the Heddon valley. The coastal path is very tiring with a lot of ups and downs to negotiate so that even though I wasn’t climbing any mountains it felt as if I had. As I toiled up Heddon’s Mouth Cleave the rain stopped and the sun came out making me think that I would be getting some good weather again, but my hopes were soon dashed as it clouded over. Eventually the terrain eased and I was able to enjoy the walk around the headland above Heddon’s Mouth passing Peter Rock before climbing to a fence with farmland on the other side. The path crosses the fence for a brief spell here due to erosion on the path above East Cleave, though it was clear that some people had still tried to walk on the cliff side of the fence, but this is so dangerously close to a very high, steep drop down East Cleave that it felt very scary for me, even from the far side of the fence.

Eventually I left the edge of the farmland and entered Holdstone Down where I found a gorgeous, colourful display of the yellow flowers of gorse and the purple flowers of heather with the green leaves of bracken mixed in amongst them. Unfortunately it started raining at this point so I wasn’t able to fully enjoy the moorland flowers as I skirted around Holdstone Down until the deep valley of Sherrycombe came into view and my heart sank at the prospect of another steep descent and ascent. With my knees complaining I dropped straight down the side of the valley before climbing, stupidly steeply, back up the hillside. This was really exhausting, though fortunately by this time the rain had stopped, so half way up I took off my waterproofs and struggled up the path slowly climbing Girt Down to the large cairn at Great Hangman. For some reason there was a gathering of a dozen men at the top, which made it difficult for me to keep my distance while going around them, but once on the other side I was able to head back down the hill with extensive views ahead of me that led all the way down to Combe Martin Bay.

I was walking along a low ridge above the sea cliffs to my right and farmland to my left that led me towards the prominent peak of Little Hangman. The coastal path doesn’t quite go all the way up to top, merely skirting close by, but I couldn’t resist the short, steep climb up to the top of Little Hangman where I had good views across the bay and back along the coast. Returning to the coastal path I followed it down very narrow paths where it would not have been possible to maintain social distancing while passing other people, but fortunately I only needed to do that where there was just about enough room. This brought me all the way down to the popular seaside resort of Combe Martin on the edge of the Exmoor National Park. The coastline beyond Combe Martin, outside of Exmoor, is not quite as spectacular without the high cliffs that characterise the stunning Exmoor coast so I was more than happy to turn around at this point and start heading back. After having my lunch I climbed steeply out of the village on a deeply gouged path with high earth banks onto a road that prolongs the climb up Knap Down until eventually the gradient eased and I rejoined the coast path on Girt Down. Unfortunately the deep valley of Sherrycombe was in my way and I had no way of avoiding that stupid descent and ascent again until finally I came off the coast path to head up to the top of Holdstone Hill.

Earlier, while on the coastal path, I had skirted around Holdstone Down, but now I was able to head straight up to the large cairn and trig point that marks the top of Holdstone Hill. On the far side of the moor I could see Trentishoe Down and my map marks the summit as Trentishoe Barrows so, not able to help myself, even though there is hardly any path to the top and the path I wanted goes nowhere near the top, I headed out across the heather down to the ancient burial mound. Since there was hardly anything to see there I soon turned around and headed back the way I had come until I could take the wide track that I should have been on across the southern slopes of Trentishoe Down gradually descending into woodland in Trentishoe Coombe. Near the bottom of the valley I came across the excellent path of Ladies Mile that serenaded me along the side of the valley before turning downhill to the bottom of the valley where I followed a path that took me back to Hunter’s Inn.

Although the weather improved on this walk after the mid-morning rain it remained overcast all day and was never particularly warm. The walk was very exhausting with having to steeply descend into and climb out of Sherrycombe twice and it had just not enthralled me for some reason. It is understandable that I didn’t enjoy the walk in the rain the day before but that doesn’t explain this walk and that is a shame as it is a lovely area.

Heddon's Mouth

Thursday 3rd September 2020

The weather on this walk was terrible. Over the Bank Holiday weekend in Dartmoor I had been blessed with great, sunny weather, but since moving to Exmoor the weather had deteriorated. It had started raining when I got back to the campsite after my walk the day before and it was still raining when I got up, which was not making me enthusiastic about going for a walk. I was sitting in my car, sheltering from the rain, thinking I don’t want to go, I don’t want to walk in this weather, but eventually I got all packed to go and was back into my car ready to drive to the car park for the start of the walk, and my car wouldn’t start. It was just the battery, but I didn’t want to be calling out the A.A. in this weather so I was really unsure what to do. I didn’t want to do anything in this weather. After much delay I decided that I would go for a walk from the campsite and finish early so I could call the A.A. in the afternoon. My plan had been to drive to Hunter’s Inn, in the Heddon valley, and walk along the coastal path, but since I could no longer do that I decided I would start the coastal path from the campsite heading to Hunter’s Inn. Heading down the hill I entered Caffyns Heanton Wood, just as I had done the day before, but whereas then I had turned right towards Lynton now I turned left descending steeply through the wood until I reached a picturesque little valley with the stream of the lee running at the bottom.

Taking a track on the other side I soon reached a wood-lined road along with the South West Coast Path and walked along the road for a while, which is what I had planned to avoid as this section of the coastal path just follows the road, until events had conspired against me. Eventually my surroundings improved as I reached Woody Bay where the lovely orange flowers of crocosmia decorated the entrances to driveways. There I turned off the road onto a path that crosses the bay above Martinhoe Manor and led me through West Woodybay Wood until finally I emerged out into the open coastline with views out to sea from the bracken and gorse covered hillside. Unfortunately, because of the rain, the visibility was very poor when otherwise the views would have been fabulous walking along a narrow path high above the Bristol Channel, and instead I had to content myself simply with the walk. After passing Great Burland Rocks I swung round the headland and entered the long, narrow valley of the River Heddon where the path gradually descends to the bottom of the valley.

When I reached the bottom I saw a sign for Heddon’s Mouth so I left the coastal path and turned north past the raging river, swollen by the rain, and came out at the mouth of the river where it meets the sea in spectacular surroundings. A stony beach and fantastic rock formations provided me with lots to look at, though the rain was not making it easy and the rocks were very slippery. When I got fed up with slipping on the rocks I headed back inland, this time staying on the western side of the river, passing the coastal path as it crosses the valley until I reached a road not far from the Hunter’s Inn where I had planned to park. While wishing it would stop raining I had my lunch before setting off back towards the campsite taking a slightly different route branching onto a path that takes a higher route up the hillside and it wasn’t long before the rain finally stopped and as I climbed into the side valley of Hill Brook the air cleared down the valley affording me with views that I had not been granted earlier in the day.

After rounding the headland I passed the remains of a Roman fortlet, called the Beacon, and I couldn’t resist climbing the muddy, eroded path up to the top where I now had relatively good views down the coast. Back on the path I now had a much more pleasurable walk along the path with better views and without the rain, but eventually the path brought me back into West Woodybay Wood and robbed me of the views. This led me onto a road that took me back onto the coastal path at the point where I had earlier left the road. Not long after this point the coastal path has an alternative route that heads out to Crock Point and I was tempted to take this route now, but I needed to get back to the campsite so I could call out the A.A. to get my car fixed, so instead I branched off the road to climb through Bonhill Wood, crossing the Lee, and climbing, once again, all the way up to the campsite. It is amazing how much nicer it is to be walking when it isn’t raining. The views are so much worse when it is raining and you are keeping your head down just trying to get to your destination as quickly as possible. Without the rain you take your time and enjoy the views and your surroundings as you slowly stroll along the path. However, since this is Britain you have got to get used to the rain.

The Valley of Rocks and Watersmeet

Wednesday 2nd September 2020

After four days in Dartmoor I had driven north to the Exmoor National Park, which is a place that I had visited only once before, in 2007, when I did a walk across the moor passing over the highest point in the park at Dunkery Beacon and completely ignored the spectacular coastline, but now I had a chance to correct that and spend a bit more time in the area. I was staying at the Caffyns Farm campsite near Lynton and decided that would be my first target, so under overcast skies I set off from the campsite into the Caffyns Heanton Wood. After enjoying four days of fabulous weather in Dartmoor conditions had now deteriorated as it inevitably does in Britain, but I wasn’t about to let a bit of rain spoil my holiday as I descended steeply through the wood. However, I couldn’t help thinking that it wouldn’t be enjoyable to have to climb all the way back up to the campsite at the end of a long, tiring walk, so I was already trying to come up with an alternative way back, though I was on a walk that was not yet completely planned even though I had already started it. My first goal was just to walk along the coast path until lunchtime, so after a brief visit to Lee Bay I walked along the road past Lee Abbey to the Valley of Rocks, which is a place that I had heard a lot about and was looking forward to experiencing, even if it wasn’t to be in the best of weather.

On crossing a cattle grid the coastal path leaves the road to a viewpoint above Wringcliff Bay that looks into the Valley of Rocks with the Castle Rock prominently the view. The rocks are much shattered leaving very low, but steep hills, while the most striking feature is the proximity of the sea with sheer cliff faces falling straight down. Some people were climbing up to the top of Castle Rock, but the path seemed too narrow to be able to follow them up so I instead took a clear, tarmacked path that passes to the seaward side of the line of hills and provides spectacular views up and down the coast while walking on a good footpath. Despite the poor weather the misty views across the Bristol Channel towards Wales were tantalising and the views up and down the coast were enthralling as I made my way along the path while trying to keep a social distance from the other people passing me. At a branch path I climbed steeply to the top of the ridge where I had a great view along the line of hills and was tempted to scramble all the way along, but although I was enjoying being at the top of the ridge I didn’t linger and instead reversed my steps back onto the coastal path.

Soon the path entered a wood and widens into a road as it enters Lynton, which is a popular tourist resort that is composed of two, twinned villages with Lynton at the top of the hill and at the bottom of a steep hillside, at the coast, is Lynmouth. A cliff railway links the two and the path crosses it three times as it slowly zigzags down the hill so I had three opportunities to see the railway carriages that are propelled purely by water as they travel up and down the hill before finally, and much to the relief of my aching knees, I reached the bottom. Quickly passing through Lynmouth while doing my best to avoid the crowds, I kept on the route of the South West Coast Path crossing the river and was soon climbing steeply out of Lynmouth. The main road follows the path up and must be a big test for car and driver, and it was very exhausting for me as I toiled up the path constantly climbing until finally the terrain eased and I could now enjoy the terraced path high above the sea that passes through the gorgeous vegetation of heather and gorse below Butter Hill.

Soon the path started descending towards the Foreland where a path signposted as being dangerous heads off to the lighthouse at Foreland Point and maybe with hindsight I should have tried that path as instead I followed the path along the top of the Foreland where I was exposed to violent winds that threatened to blow me over. Eventually I returned back along the ridge to the coastal path and followed it down into the sheltered Coddow Combe where I had my lunch. At the bottom of the valley is a tarmacked road that goes to the lighthouse and I followed that uphill even after the coastal path leaves it to continue along the coast as I climbed back up along the zigzags of the service road onto the heather covered moor to the east of Butter Hill. Soon after I veered off towards the top of Butter Hill it started raining and, thinking the rain was going to be here to stay I got all my waterproofs on before continuing to the trig point and radio mast that is at the top of Butter Hill. Turning south I came to the road at the small community of Countisbury where I took a path that after crossing a few fields starts to descend steeply through woodland to the popular tourist attraction of Watersmeet at the bottom of the East Lyn valley.

This is the spot where the East Lyn River and Hoar Oak Water meet and where there is an old fishing lodge that is now owned by the National Trust and run as a souvenir shop and café. The rain stopped soon after I reached the bottom of the valley but would return periodically throughout the afternoon much to my annoyance as I didn’t know whether to wear waterproofs or not. I still didn’t have a route for the rest of the walk and dithered around for a while trying to decide whether to climb the southern bank of the valley until eventually I decided that I would stay at the bottom of the valley and walk along the northern side of the river following the course of the Coleridge Way. This initially climbs the northern bank before descending back down to the river, but is a delightful woodland path and was very popular so I constantly had to keep my distance from people as made my way along the path until eventually I returned to Lynmouth just as it started raining again. My idea from here was to head up the West Lyn valley, but there seemed to be no other way than to follow the route of the Two Moors Way climbing steeply up the hillside of Lyn Cleave high above the East Lyn River and then once I had climbed all the way up to the top I was able to turn right into the West Lyn valley.

This was very exhausting and very frustrating as I soon started heading back down the hill passing through gorgeous woodland to the West Lyn River at Lyn Bridge where a permissive path continues up the valley through lovely woodland to the village of Barbrook. To get to the campsite I followed the track of a dismantled railway for a short distance before a stretch of road walking brought me back to the Caffyns Farm campsite. The weather had not been too bad on this walk with the rain holding off for most of the day except for a couple of occasions. The scenery was spectacular with a lot of very steep ascents and descents that left me feeling very exhausted at the end of the day, which I feared might be the norm with walking along the North Devon coast, but with scenery as stunning as this I wasn’t going to complain.

Sharpitor and Great Staple Tor

Tuesday 1st September 2020

After a lovely, cold night in the valley of the young River Plum I woke to another gorgeous day in Dartmoor. On my previous visits to Dartmoor, particularly the first in 2007, the weather was poor, but now I was being blessed with fabulous weather and I felt so fortunate. After breakfast I put my tent away and retraced my steps past Gutter Tor back to the car park near Sheepstor where I made a course across Yellowmead Down towards the hill that lends its name to the village. Faint paths through the moorland took me past stone circles and up to the top of Sheeps Tor where the views were extensive but dominating the view was Burrator Reservoir at the foot of the hill and was where I now headed descending the rocky, bracken-covered western slopes. Turning right along a bridle path I passed around the foot of Sheeps Tor skirting the edge of a plantation until I reached the road that goes around the reservoir.

After a short walk around the road to the northern side of Burrator Reservoir I set off up a delightful path that climbs through the wood to Devonport Leat, an artificial water channel that diverts water from the heart of Dartmoor into the reservoir. Although there is no path marked on my map on the ground I found a path that continues the climb up the hill, but soon became lost amongst bracken and boulders leaving me on my own to work out a route slowly scrambling up to the top of the hill. With great satisfaction I finally reached the top where there is a tall ridge of rocks, Leather Tor, that demanded to be climbed. Although requiring a bit of scrambling I reached the top of what had looked like a sharp peak from the south only to find that it is a ridge, and I couldn’t be more excited. I was reminded of mountain tops in the Highlands as I slowly made my way along this rocky ridge negotiating the undulations until triumphantly I reached the end of the ridge where a relatively easy, though steep, descent brought me back down to the bottom. In a year when I have been unable to go to Scotland this ridge was a little compensation. The actual summit of the hill is a short distance away up a grassy slope to the top of Sharpitor whose rocks were ridiculously easy to summit in comparison.

Coming back down the other side I crossed a road and climbed the hill opposite but ignored the two meagre sets of rocks at the top of Leeden Tor before descending once again. Ahead of me were some stunning views of my onward route, but the skies over Dartmoor were becoming overcast and I was now becoming rather weary as the strenuous walking of the last three days was beginning to take its toll on me, including blisters. On reaching the course of a disused railway I turned along it to contour around the disused Sharpitor Quarries and King’s Tor not having the energy or will to climb to the top. Stopping for lunch while looking out at the sunny, western views revived me a little, but I stayed on the old railway until I was the other side of King’s Tor where I descended to cross a stream and over a hill covered in the remains of ancient settlements. Descending from there brought me to a road and the small settlement of Merrivale where I crossed the bridge and passed the Merrivale Dartmoor Inn and then tried to find the path up the hill.

This was not easy to find and I suspected the faint path I climbed after the last house was not the correct one as it was nothing like the route marked on my map, however I now realise my map is out of date and quarrying has forced a redirection of the old path, which I came across half way up the hill where I could now continue up the much clearer path. Dark clouds were now covering the centre of Dartmoor, but on the western edge of the National Park I was enjoying lovely sunshine, which was the complete opposite to the situation I had the day before. The sun felt very hot and draining as I slowly climbed to the top and made me think I wouldn’t have the energy to visit the various tors in the area, however once the gradient eased, although I ignored Middle Staple Tor, I made my way to Great Staple Tor, climbing to the top. On the other side, a short distance away, was another rocky-topped hill and now I felt I couldn't ignore it as I made my way to the top of Roos Tor where a red flag was flying to designate that the nearby Merrivale Range was in active use.

Similar flags were flying at the top of the nearby hills of White Tor and Great Mis Tor that I had visited the day before. Then I had been able to enter the firing range because it wasn't active, but now it was so I turned around and headed back down skirting the northern slopes of Great Staple Tor to cross over to Cox Tor and my last hill on my holiday in Dartmoor. The weather, on this western edge of the park, was still sunny as I looked out at the extensive views west before dropping down the grassy slopes to cross the valley and return to the small car park where I had left my car the morning of the previous day. Although it was only mid-afternoon I had a long drive ahead of me so appreciated the early end. This was a good walk in good weather over some of the tors on the western edge of Dartmoor, but was marred by blisters and fatigue. I have not been able to do as much walking this year as I would normally do so these four days in Dartmoor were greatly appreciated, but they were very tiring. It had been a long time since I'd last been to Dartmoor so hopefully I won't leave it so long next time.

Great Mis Tor and the Jobber's Road

Monday 31st August 2020

At the end of my walk on the day before this I drove from the village of Belstone to a car park near the Dartmoor Inn and from there set off into the hills camping beside the young River Lyd. I had found a delightful valley in blissful surroundings full of gorse and heather and the following morning, after a cold night, the ground was saturated with dew, which was definitely not from rain as there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. After eating my breakfast I tried to shake off as much of the water from my tent as possible before packing it away and returning to the car park drove down the A386 road to a small car park near the tiny village of Peter Tavy. A track took me onto the moor, but I couldn’t resist soon branching off to reach the rocks of Boulters Tor before resuming my trek along the track onto the moor eventually veering north toward White Tor passing the remains of ancient settlements. Looking at the view west I thought this must have been an amazing place to live while I made my way up the rocky terrain to reach the army flag pole that sits at the top. The edge of Merrivale Range is a short distance away from the top of White Tor and a red flag flies from the top when the range is active, but not on this day so I kept going east to enter the firing range.

Soon I turned off the track at a standing stone to take a faint path through the grass across Petertavy Great Common until I reached a stream that is marked on my Ordnance Survey map as Dead Lake, where I turned south into the valley of the young River Walkham. This would make a wonderful spot for a wild camp, but it was the wrong time of day, so I crossed the river and climbed the steep slopes of Greena Ball contouring around to leave Merrivale Range and reach the top of Great Mis Tor. The top of this hill is littered with rocks and tors creating a fabulous landscape and in the good weather the views to the west were superb especially across the Tamar Estuary with the sea in the distance. As I sat near the summit looking out at the view while having my lunch I tried to decide what to do next. My walks on this holiday had not been planned in advance so I was making them up as I went and since I wanted to do another wild camp the last thing I wanted to do was head back towards my car, so I turned south. After a diversion to visit Little Mis Tor I joined a sometimes wet footpath that follows a fence to the B357 road at Rundlestone.

After my hike across the wild moor during the morning this was quite a rude intrusion of civilisation, but worse was to come as I climbed the hill past the scattered rocks of Rundlestone Tor and up to the top of North Hessary Tor where there is a transmission station with a 196 metre high mast. A trig point sits at the top of the tor, but I was unable to visit it because it was occupied by a family of small children so I continued along the path down the hill towards the village of Princetown, though its famous prison was not in sight. The village was packed with bank holiday visitors so I carefully made my way around them until I could take a heavily constructed footpath that seems to have suffered erosion from heavy rain, so perhaps it hasn’t been very well maintained, or simply wasn’t designed to cope with the enormous amounts of rain that we have had in the last twelve months. The good track is known as Jobber’s Road and is part of the Abbott’s Way that links abbeys on either side of Dartmoor. It continues for a considerable distance and provided me with easy walking across the moor past South Hessary Tor. Sadly the path was the most interesting feature in the landscape as all was bleak grassy moor with nothing to see.

Dark clouds began to cover the sky to match the bleakness of the terrain as I continued heading south passing Siward’s (or Nun’s) Cross to climb around Eylesbarrow on a deteriorating surface. As I gradually started descending I passed the remains of Eylesbarrow Tin Mine and with the terrain and path improving so did the weather until I reached a car park at the end of a road near Sheepstor. I still wasn’t sure where I was going but the excellence of the path had prompted me to keep following it as far as it went and this car park was where it had brought me. Near the car park is Gutter Tor so I climbed the steep bracken-covered slopes past the outcrops of Gutter Tor to the trig point at the highest point on the hill. Returning to the rocks of Gutter Tor I looked at my map to decide where to go next, but since it was now four o’clock I really needed to decide where I was going to camp. There are not any paths much further south to warrant continuing, though there is a good track that goes from the car park into the valley of the young River Plym so I descended the hill and took this track into the valley.

Turning east I headed up the Plym valley until I found a delightful spot beside a stream that comes out of Drizzle Combe and there I stopped to make camp. This was an interesting walk with lots of varied walking from the open moor around the River Walkham to Great Mis Tor before following an easy footpath from Princetown to Sheepstor. The weather was fantastic, except early afternoon when it clouded over, but I’ve never had such good weather in Dartmoor so I really appreciated the chance to experience the delights of a part of Dartmoor that I’d never visited before and in fabulous weather.

Cut Hill and Great links Tor

Sunday 30th August 2020

At the start of this day I got out of my tent to gorgeous blue skies and cold northerly winds. I had camped near the top of the East Dart River, right in the middle of nowhere and with no sign of civilisation anywhere. After having my breakfast I crossed the river and battled through long tussocky grass as I slowly climbed the slopes of Black Hill veering south to the col with Cut Hill with the aim of reaching the top. Cut Hill is the joint third highest hill in Dartmoor after Yes Tor and High Willhays and is the same height as Hangingstone Hill, all of which I had visited the day before. After a boggy traverse I found a neat pile of stones at the summit with an animal skull perched on top. There are no outcrops on Cut Hill, but a short distance west is Fur Tor, which is littered with rocks, so as if they were drawing me on I headed in that direction passing a line of red and white posts that mark the boundary between Merrivale Range and Okehampton Range. Fortunately the firing ranges were not active at this time so I was safely able to cross the hillside and reach these impressive rocks. I had seen them the day before as I descended into the valley and was keen to make a closer acquaintance.

The rocks at the top of Fur Tor are immense and it was really difficult to find a way up to the highest point, but despite this I circled around until I found a spot where I thought I could make an ascent and finally succeeded. Feeling pleased with myself I looked around at the tremendous views in the sunny weather and decided my next target would be the rather distant Hare Tor, which was the other side of the River Tavy. First, I needed to negotiate the complex array of rocks that defends Fur Tor before crossing boggy ground as I slowly descended into the valley to the meeting point of Amicombe Brook and Fur Tor Brook where the map indicates is Sandy Ford. However, I could not see an easy crossing of the river so it was only with difficult that I eventually managed to get across and followed the north shore passing through a mix of good, firm ground and more boggy ground to veer into the side valley of Rattle Brook.

Crossing the stream I found a trace of a path and some heather that was flowering delightfully, but it is a shame the plant is not more widespread across Dartmoor. Slowly I climbed up the hill to reach Hare Tor where I could see extensive views across the countryside to the west of Dartmoor and Sharp Tor followed soon after passing around some cattle and visiting an ancient cairn on the way. After having my lunch I ignored the large collection of rocks on Great Links Tor and instead followed almost non-existent paths over Rattlebrook Hill passing Chat Tor and across boggy ground to Higher and Lower Dunna Goat, which are also rock outcrops. Not far from there is Green Tor and the ruins of Bleak House, which must have been an amazing place with an awesome setting amongst the hills and tors. Turning my back on it I finally made my way across to Great Links Tor, which is the next highest hill in Dartmoor after Cut Hill and to celebrate I climbed to the top as I had done on all the previous hills on this walk, however once I had got to the top I saw there was another large rock tor across a gap and this was inaccessible. On the far side of that, perched on a low shelf, is a trig point, and if that is good enough for the Ordnance Survey it is good enough for me.

I visited this hill in 2007 in considerably worse weather, but despite a few clouds at lunch the good weather had continued so I made my way down to Little Links Tor, which I found to be easily accessible and soon climbed to the top. Turning around I crossed the slopes of Great Links Tor to reach a clear track that I had used in ascent in 2007 to take me gradually back down the hill. I assume this clear track was originally a tramway to serve the mine at the top of Rattle Brook and provided me with an easy descent before branching off to reach the trig point at the top of Sourton Tors. Returning to the track I started trying to find my way back to the village of Belstone where I had left my car, though this would require several hours of walking across the northern slopes of the Dartmoor upland, but initially I had to descend into the valley of the West Okement River. When I reached the bottom of the deep valley I found a delightful place with wooded surroundings such as are not found in the vast, open Dartmoor so was more appreciated than would usually be.

Unfortunately I then needed to climb steeply back out of the valley, though with good views across Meldon Reservoir below, and soon I had no path to follow as I passed over Homerton Hill and up Longstone Hill. With military tracks now appearing I was able to follow these over Black Down, which greatly eased my walking as I passed below Yes Tor and the other peaks I had climbed the day before until eventually I returned to Belstone. This was a great, epic walk around the hills in the north-west corner of Dartmoor and was really satisfying as I took in many of the rocky tors in the area. On my previous visits I hadn’t enjoyed good weather, particularly in 2007, but now I was benefiting from some awesome weather and the walk was consequently blessed.

Yes Tor and Hangingstone Hill

Saturday 29th August 2020

I plan my walks a long way in advance so in March this year I already had plans to go to the Cairngorms at the end of May and to spend two weeks in the Lake District at the end of August while all my accommodation and trains were booked for a week at Easter in Scotland walking from the Trossachs through Glasgow to the Falls of Clyde. However, these plans all fell apart as a result of the global pandemic that forced me to stay at home and once I was able to go for walks I was unable to go any further than day walks in the Peak District. Youth Hostels have opened only for private rooms which makes it prohibitively expensive for someone on their own. Eventually I realised my only realistic option was to camp and that was when the idea of going to Dartmoor came to my mind. Although wild camping is legal without permission throughout Scotland the only place in England where this is possible is in Dartmoor, but I had never taken advantage of this before and I had not even been to Dartmoor since 2008. After a frustrating delay, partly thanks to poor weather, I eventually left the East Midlands for the first time this year and drove to the West Country stopping in the village of Belstone near the northern edge of Dartmoor where I, luckily, managed to find a space in the packed car park.

The bank holiday weekend and good weather had drawn many people to the area, although a brisk, cold wind made the day’s walking more bracing than it could have been. Setting off through the village and up Watchett Hill I stayed on the track for some relatively easy walking rather heading through rocky ground towards Belstone Tor. Initially, I was walking through pleasant scenery beside heather and gorse, both in flower, but after crossing the East Oakmount River the terrain deteriorated into dreary grass, typical of Dartmoor, as I followed the maze of tracks eventually coming off to reach the top of Rowtor and, after that, West Mill Tor, which I had, hopefully, thought was Yes Tor, but once I was there it was obvious that Yes Tor was the next hill so I continued my slog along the northern edge of Dartmoor until, finally, I reached the prominent peak of Yes Tor. The views north throughout this traverse had been stunning thanks to the good weather which had also brought many other people out, including those who had driven their cars as far as they could go up onto the moor, which doesn’t seem right to me, though there was limited parking lower down and I had been lucky to have found a parking space in Belstone.

The top of Yes Tor was very windy, but it had been even worse when I first climbed Yes Tor in 2007, though the weather was better the following year when I climbed Yes Tor at the start of a traverse of Dartmoor. I have always climbed Yes Tor when in Dartmoor, partly because it is so prominent, but mainly because it is right next to the highest point, High Willhays, and used to be considered the highest point itself. High Willhays is a short walk across a wide ridge and the highest point is at the southern end of the ridge so I made my way along the ridge passing the fine cairn that marks the summit. There are no tracks south of High Willhays, but I could see a faint path through the grass heading towards the small Dinger Tor where I found a track that heads back north. As the weather deteriorated with overcast skies I followed this track until I reached a junction where I turned right as I resolutely followed these tracks rather than heading straight across the tussocky grass as I had done in 2008. Much of the northern part of Dartmoor is a live firing range and these tracks owe their existence to the army, who were not using the range in August so I was easily able to make my way to Okement Hill.

Continuing along the track I crossed the young River Taw and up to the top of Hangingstone Hill where the track finally reduced to a path. As I neared the top I realised I had been repeating my route of 2008 without deliberately doing so, probably because I didn’t really have a destination in mind and was just blindly heading south. The map indicates a path on Hangingstone Hill goes around the boggy top so I followed this rather than heading straight across as I had done in 2008 and this was better ending with a climb up a peat pass to a memorial stone on the southern top. I was so pleased at spotting this I tried to locate another one, marked on the map, further south on Whitehorse Hill, but despite repeated searching I was unable to find it. All I had achieved was losing the path and leaving me in the middle of a tussocky, boggy plain with no idea where I was going. As it was now late in the afternoon I drifted into the valley of the young East Dart River where I found a place to camp not far from the remains of the first tinner’s hut in the valley. With the weather clearing once more I had a lovely evening on my own, miles from anyone else surrounded by the vast open moor beside the stream.

The appeal of Dartmoor is the rocky tors that sit upon the peaks and the best walking involves exploring these tors if you can avoid the bogs. The main problem with this walk was that I had nothing really planned before I started, except a starting point, so I had wandered aimlessly around and went up Yes Tor simply because that is where I always go. However, it was enough for me to finally be able to get away and go on holiday with the actual walk being less important than the satisfaction of being out there.

The Eastern Edges of the Peak District

Monday 24th August 2020

For my holiday at the end of August I had planned to head off to the West Country, but events intervened and I had to stay at home, but at the beginning of the week the weather was so good I couldn’t stay indoors and drove up to the Peak District parking at the Curbar Gap car park. I have used this car park several times in the past including on my first walking holiday back in 1998 and on this occasion set off onto Big Moor walking along a path beside the rather shallow White Edge. I walked along White Edge in 1998 and again in 2004 on a walk that I have never written up and I don’t have any pictures so all I’ve got is my vague memory, though I seem to recall I had a young lady with me, but those days are long gone! The weather on this walk was fantastic, however there was a stiff, cold breeze at first that had prompted me to put on my cagoule, but it wasn’t long before this came off. It was lovely walking in the sunny weather beside the rocky edge with a gently descending terrain to my left and the purple flowers of the heather moor to my right.

Passing the 365 metre trig point I continued along White Edge until I reached a road junction where I crossed over and entered the National Trust’s Longshaw Estate under a continuation of the rocky edge following a wide track towards Longshaw Lodge. These edges run along the whole eastern side of the Peak District with the River Derwent to the west and open moorland eastwards, and I was following them north on a walk similar to the one I took in 2004. From my vantage point on this track I had great views down the Derwent Valley with the two peaks of Win Hill and Lose Hill clearly to be seen and Kinder Scout behind them in the distance as I remembered the walks that I had done just a couple of weeks earlier. Where the track enters a wood I veered off around the visitor centre to avoid the crowds and walk along the edge of the wood before finally entering to take a course not far from a main road. Eventually crossing the road I took a path that climbs onto another rocky edge heading towards Burbage Rocks on a great path that was fun to ascend as any rocky path is and always immensely enjoyable.

With great views across the valley of Burbage Brook and towards the rocks on Carl Wark I made my way around a sharp turn in the path and across a depression to climb up to Burbage Rocks with the vast Burbage Moor to my right. Finally I reached the road at Upper Burbage Bridge where my friend and I had started our walk in 2004 having driven over from Sheffield. Instead of turning south to copy that walk my eye had been attracted to the rocks at the southern end of Stanage Edge, which I thought would make a good place to have lunch, so I headed across the moor up to the rocks and stopped near the trig point on the unnamed 457 metre top. The highest point on Stanage Edge, High Neb, is almost as high at 458 metres, so perhaps you could call this South Neb or Low Neb? I had my lunch there gazing out over the stunning scenery before setting off across the moor, over a couple of roads before climbing to the top of Higger Tor where the crowds were immense. There had been loads of people all day brought out by the good weather, but now they seemed to have grown to overwhelming numbers that detracted from the enjoyment of the walk.

Doing my best to avoid everyone and keep a distance I came down off Higger Tor and made my way across to Carl Wark and then to Toad’s Mouth, whatever that is, and down to Burbage Brook. Walking along the path beside the stream was really tricky as it was packed with people, mostly families enjoying the weather. As the terrain steepened the stream drops through the stunning Padley Gorge and the woodland scenery became quite spectacular. Some of my colleagues from work had found a website that listed the ten best walks in the Peak District and Padley Gorge was number one even though I had never heard of it let alone walked through it before. Unfortunately there were too many people around for me to appreciate the surroundings and the path doesn’t afford any good views up the darkly wooded gorge. Eventually I crossed the Burbage Brook and climbed up into Yanncliff Wood heading south through Hay Wood on a path that couldn’t compete with the open vistas of the eastern edges, but at least I was now away from the crowds. After crossing a main road I took a path that climbs up towards Froggatt Edge and now my fun could start again.

There is stunning walking along this edge that I have visited many times in the past including that first walking holiday in 1998 and I enjoy it every time keeping to the rocks along Curbar Edge as I slowly made my way south taking many pictures as I went until eventually I reached the car park at Curbar Gap. This was a fabulous walk with stunning weather and was really enjoyable especially when climbing on a rocky path. It was disappointing that I was unable to do the originally planned holiday, but I hoped that I would eventually be able to get away and until then this was great compensation as I enjoyed some great weather and some of the best walking that the Peak District has to offer.

Beacon Hill and Bardon Hill

Saturday 22nd August 2020

During this year of disruption I had been unable to go away for a holiday but with restrictions starting to be lifted I planned to finally go away starting from this date, however life then intervened and I was unable to leave my house for long. Frustrated, I decided to go for a walk in Leicestershire that takes in two of the highest hills in the county. This is not a walk that I hadn’t done before, but one of many that I regularly do locally when I am unable to get further afield and when I realised this walk has never been described on this blog I thought I’d enlighten you on its delights. I parked at the small car park for the local nature reserve of Billa Barra Hill, but immediately turned my back on the hill to walk along a track that goes around the old Cliffe Hill Quarry on a path that was increasingly overgrown and eventually disappeared under a dark canopy of trees while maintaining a good path underfoot. All too soon I came out onto Cliffe Lane where a bit of roadside walking was necessary until I reached a path that passes Peak Hayes Farm to reach the noisy M1 motorway. After crossing a stream I climbed through a dense tangle of weeds to a farmer’s bridge over the motorway and beyond continued to climb until I reached Hill Lane.

There is a path on the opposite side of the road, but this would mean missing out on the delights of Hill Hole Quarry Nature Reserve. A short walk up the road brought me up to the entrance where I ignored the clear path to climb the steep banks that line the edge as I slowly made my way around the reserve passing the impressive crags that prove tempting to rock climbers and has even tempted me previously, though only on the easiest slopes. It appears to be more overgrown with vegetation than I remember so maybe ascents are not encouraged now. After passing the trig point at the highest point I descended into the village of Markfield and walked along Main Street onto a path that passes underneath the A50 dual carriageway onto the route of my go-to walk in Leicestershire. I probably do my Charnwood Round, or more recently a slightly shortened version, at least four times a year and has been described on this blog. Whenever I am desperate for a good walk that will really stretch my legs this is the one that is done and since I have done it so many times I don’t have to think about the route, and that is one of its appeals.

Later in the week, after this walk, between the heavy rain and life’s requirements, I did the shortened version, which misses out this section of the round down a narrow, enclosed path to a stream before steadily climbing up Chitterman Hill to eventually reach Lea Road. I now had a long section of road walking along the quiet Whitcroft’s Lane until I reached a gap in the wall surrounding a wood that is part of Ulverscroft Nature Reserve. Access is restricted in this part of the reserve, but with my Wildlife Trust membership acting as a permit I climbed through the woodland passing over the open heathland at the top of the hill before descending into Poultney Wood. This is a lovely area that I love to walk through and was enthralled to find scabious flowers covering the meadows as I passed from the wood to the boggy valley bottom. Leaving the reserve I climbed up the hill past Ulverscroft Lodge eventually reaching a road with views ahead of Beacon Hill, which was accessible following a short roadside walk and after passing through West Beacon Fields. With stunning views across most of north Leicestershire from the top of this 248 metre high hill I left the crowds behind and headed down the hill through the narrow Martin’s Wood to reach Dean’s Lane.

At the bottom of the road I took a path that climbs through a couple of fields up to a road where I decided I would make a diversion from my usual route that usually sees me walking beside the road for a prolonged spell. A path opposite took me through thick grass around the hill of Chattens Rough bringing me to the B591 road where opposite is a young wood, part of the National Forest, where there is open access all the way through a long chain of woods back onto the road, however in practice there is no path and the trees are becoming so overgrown it is very difficult to make your way through or know which way to go. Eventually I retraced my steps back onto the road and walked along that just as the rain started to fall passing under the motorway and onto the lane that leads to Charley Woods Nature Reserve. With the rain proving short-lived and stunning views behind me through the tall grass I climbed the hill through Burrow Hill and onto Warren Hills Road. Opposite the road is a path that took me around the various quarry workings for Bardon Hill Quarry and eventually brought me onto the wooded slopes of the hill and up to the highest point in Leicestershire.

Descending back down the hill I followed the diversions around the new granite workings that have obliterated the landscape and paths near Bardon Hill to take a route onto the A511 dual carriageway. On reaching the edge of Billa Barra Hill I was now too tired to climb all the way up to the top so I crossed the southern slopes to cut the corner and finally reach my car. I had originally intended on walking somewhere much further away on this day but at least I was able to do a good walk climbing several hills along the way. Although my frustration with other events may have marred this walk and never gave it a chance to excite, at least I was still able to get out of the house and stretch my legs. Even though I have not been able to get up a mountain this year I do have the delights of Charnwood Forest in Leicestershire to maintain my fitness and, importantly, improve my mental health at this difficult time.