David and Jacinta's Walks- 2023

 Hayfield, Mill Hill and The Shooting Cabin Saturday was fine and dry but windy, so we adjusted our original plans to have a walk from Hayfield. We picked our way up William Clough- the light was lovely. William Clough waiting for us At the top, we sat and had a break and a cup of tea by the direction post. The direction post at the top of William Clough South Head and Mount Famine from the top of William Clough It was, by now, very windy and, instead of going up to the Kinder Plateau, we decided just to go up to Mill Hill, and descend via the shooting cabin. Jacinta on the way up to Mill Hill (Cairn just visible on horizon) The way down was muddy and slightly tussocky, passing several shooting hides, until the familiar sight of the shooting cabin came into view. It proved to be an excellent spot to have lunch and it was lovely to enjoy the sunshine as we ate. From here, it was a short walk back to the reservoir and then back to Hayfield. A shortish (5.8 miles) walk but nevertheles...

 Hayfield, Sett Valley Trail and Peep-O-Day There was time for a short walk today as Jacinta had an evening commitment. We went to Hayfield, starting with our usual coffee at the Sett Valley Café. Their menu is quite varied and adventurous for such a small place. We walked up towards Chinley Churn- unlike our walk in February, the day was not clear. Climbing done- about to descend to Higher Hills Cottage We occasionally glimpsed Kinder through the mist but at least it was dry and still. We descended to Higher Hills Cottage, where they have accumulated (or acquired) huge numbers of horseshoes. Lots and lots of luck! From there, it was down past Whiterakes to Peep-O-Day. Whiterakes with Chinley Churn behind From Peep-O-Day we walked back to Hayfield, passing the Phosides, the bottom of Foxholes Clough and the ruined mill behind Phoside Farm. The ruined mill at Phoside Farm Despite the rather muddy and saturated paths across the last few fields, it was a very pleasant excursion in a f...

Hayfield, William Clough and Mill Hill Despite a somewhat dodgy forecast, we decided to try a slight variant on our usual walks from Hayfield to Kinder Downfall and Kinder Low- inspired by one of our new Dark Peak walking guides. We parked up at the Bowden Bridge "Trespass" car park and made our way up to the Kinder Reservoir dam, where a few sheep were grazing on its slopes. Sheep grazing on Kinder Reservoir dam As might be seen from the photo above, the cloud was down over Kinder. For a change, we stayed on the path that runs beside the reservoir- this has much more pastoral views than our usual path, White Brow, which runs further up. We joined that path at the foot of William Clough and started our way up towards Kinder. As we climbed, the drizzle turned into more persistent rain and it became much more windy. When we reached the col between Kinder and Mill Hill, we decided that walking along the western edge of the Kinder Plateau would be pretty unpleasant in the wind an...

Hayfield, Lantern Pike, Mill Hill and William Clough We decided on a relatively close walk today, and the temptation of the Sett Valley Café was just too much to resist, so we went to Hayfield and made the café our first stop. As the weather was lovely for September and we were feeling energetic, after Lantern Pike we wet down to cross the Glossop-Hayfield road just above the old Grouse Inn. Off towards Burnt Hill from The Grouse crossing At Burnt Hill, we had a snack and admired the views- we could see as far as Mount Famine and South Head, and beyond. Mount Famine and South Head from Burnt Hill Our next stop was Mill Hill, where we stopped for lunch with a view of the Kinder Plateau and Kinder Low. The Kinder Plateau and Kinder Low from Mill Hill Normally, we come up via William Clough, but this time it was our way down. Like many descents, it looked as if it was much harder coming up! The descent via William Clough From the foot of William Clough, we reversed our regular walk across...

Hayfield, Lantern Pike and Little Hayfield- Jacinta Solo A lovely sunny day after all the rain at the beginning of July- such a change after all the lovely sunshine in June.  I decided to go on a solo hike- a first and chose Lantern Pike as it is close and familiar. After a coffee at the van in the car park, I set off up Lantern Pike. Hayfield from ascent of Lantern Pile It was breezy but warm and the views over towards Kinder were excellent as ever. Summit Direction Indicator I carried on until the 5 way signpost and then made my way back through the bracken to reach the river at Little Hayfield. Descent path to Little Hayfield Ducks at Little Hayfield  It was great to see some of the Hayfield Well Dressing and to read about the work that goes into making these boards. Well Dressing Board at Hayfield I stopped to eat my lunch in the  sun, surrounded by greedy jackdaws who sampled everything on offer, from bagel to grapes. Probably about 6 miles.

Hayfield, Peep-o-Day and The Sett Valley Trail From the Trespass car park at Bowden Bridge we took a new route up the hill via the bridle way to the shoulder below Mount Famine, and then down familiar territory past Peep-o-Day. Rather than turning towards Whiterakes and Chinley, we continued straight up the track past Higher Hills Cottage, enjoying the views, the sheep with their lambs and the solitude- there was no-one else around. We were now reversing the route that we took back in February  Before we started our descent back to Birch Vale, we passed a section of drystone wall being rebuilt. Drystone wall being rebuilt The route went down to the main road at Birch Vale which, of course, allowed for a pit stop at the Sett Valley Café. Descent to Birch Vale We then picked up the Sett Valley Trail all the way back to Bowden Bridge. A nice walk of about six miles with 360m ascent. 2¾ hours.

Hayfield, Kinder Downfall and Kinder Low A better day than forecast, and by the end of the day it was beautiful and sunny. After leaving the Trespass Car Park it was lovely to see some signs of spring as we made our way up past the Kinder Reservoir. A quick break above the Kinder Reservoir. Kinder on the skyline We then took the long walk up William Clough, climbing through quite a lot of water, presumably the heavy snow last week contributed to the wet. On the way up William Clough- the dry bit! South Head and Mount Famine on the skyline At the top of the clough we stopped for a snack and to admire the view and made the final ascent to the plateau and the big cairn. Looking back to Mill Hill from the Kinder Plateau We made our way around to The Downfall, where we had our lunch, and walked on to get a view of The Downfall itself- flowing impressively. The waterfall had been nearly dry for most of the recent times we'd been there. The Kinder Downfall waterfall flowing as it should W...

  Hayfield, Sett Valley Trail and Peep-O-Day Farm As our diary was pretty full around the actual date of our 45th wedding anniversary, we decided to have a celebratory breakfast at the Sett Valley Café as we'd be saying that we should eat there for some time. On the way we passed a couple of llamas, which we'd not seen before. Llama 1 Llama 2 Breakfast was great- David had the All Day Veggie breakfast and Jacinta had the Shakshuka. We'll be using poached eggs on any shakshuka that we make in the future, rather than attempting to cook the eggs with the rest of the dish in the oven! Sett Valley Café flier After breakfast, we had a short excursion a little further along the Sett Valley Trail and then worked our way up towards Chinley Churn. It was lovely and clear, and we had a new perspective on Kinder. Mill Hill, Kinder and a cloud front Further view of Kinder, with the Downfall visible Before dropping down to Higher Hills Farm and Peep-O-Day we had a new view of Kinder Low,...

  Hayfield and Lantern Pike The forecast wasn't good, so we chose a local "old faithful" walk with plenty of options and (very important) a friendly café- Lantern Pike from Hayfield. The first section, along the Sett Valley Trail, ends at the Sett Valley Cafe where we stopped for a coffee, toasted teacake and peanut butter crunch- all very nice. The next section follows the Pennine Bridleway up towards Lantern Pike but, as the weather seemed to be deteriorating and it was pretty windy, we skirted the exposed summit. We did get a decent view of Kinder, though. Water was flowing down The Downfall, which had been pretty dry the last few times that we'd been up there. Kinder from below Lantern Pike It had been a good walk so we took the shortest route back to Hayfield, crossing the stream by the refurbished mill at Little Hayfield. Crossing the bridge at Little Hayfield Mill Even though it was a relatively modest walk, we were glad to have got out for a walk of 4.3 miles,...