David and Jacinta's Walks- 2023

 Shining Tor and Thursbitch Our last walk of 2023 was not very ambitious on account of the weather. We went up to Shining Tor as usual- battling into the wind; the cloud was low and just grazing the top of Shining Tor. Shining Tor with its head in the clouds After a very short break at the top, instead of just reversing the walk, we went down into the valley and visited Thursbitch for the first time this year. Clouds blowing in from Shining Tor towards Cats Tor The ruins of Thursbitch We saw no one except for some (hopeful) sheep who wrongly assumed that we might be bearing food. Optimistic sheep Persistently optimistic sheep The only downside to this really nice walk is the somewhat boring plod up the road from the end of the drive to Howlersknowl up to the car park at Pym Chair and the welcome sight of the car. It was then home for lunch.  An occasionally cold and occasionally wet outing of 4.6 miles with 320m ascent but well worth doing nonetheless.

 Shining Tor After a morning spent baking sourdough and baguettes- plus a carrot curry for supper- we decided to take advantage of the sunny afternoon to nip up Shining Tor. It's only a one-and-a-half hour walk round trip, bu the views today were clear and impressive and it's worth the effort. Foxlow Edge and Wild Moor from Pym Chair Shining Tor and Shutlingsloe The weather looked wet again after Saturday or, at this time of year, it's best to snatch the opportunity provided by good weather when one can! 4.3 miles, 175m ascent.

A Wet and Windy Shining Tor We needed to get out and get some (very!) fresh air but as the weather was wet and windy, Shining Tor seemed to be a good-value walk, being nearby and not to long but long enough. We parked up at Pym Chair and put on our full wet-weather gear and tacked our way along. Path disappearing into the mist on Shining Tor We had a breather a the top and admired the clouds. Jacinta and clouds at the summit of Shining Tor There seemed little merit in staying at the top for long, so we just turned back and went down the way that we'd come up. The cloud lifted a little and we managed to catch a glimpse of Shutlingsloe. Shutlingsloe just below the cloudbase Honour was served, cobwebs were blown away, and we walked a bit over four miles in 1¾ hours with 200m ascent.  

  The Cat and Fiddle, Shining Tor and Erwood Today we set out to go to Wildboarclough but the mist was very low on the hills above Macclesfield so we drove on to Buxton for a coffee and a mooch around. The mist seemed to have lifted a bit after 12:00 so we drove back to the Cat and Fiddle and set out to stretch our legs with a walk up to Shining Tor (again). On the way, David took a photo of a "make do and mend" gate which (at time of writing) has 522 "Likes" in the Facebook Gate Appreciation Society page. Make Do and Bend When we reached the summit of Shining Tor we took the appropriate selfie to prove that we'd been there. Shining Tor summit pic The dense mist was clearing so we decided to go down to Errwood and back up via Shooter's Clough and Stake Side. As the mist cleared, the views and colours were great, and the walk back up not too bad. Mist Clearing and colours appearing At Stake Side there's a signpost and, very satisfyingly, we'd actually...

  Shining Tor Time was limited as we'd been to a concert with The Bright  Quartet and Julian Davis at St. Michael's in Macclesfield. The noticeboard at the start of Oldgate Nick was clear about direction, but prohibitions were a bit faded. What can't you do? Who knows! The wind was pretty strong but that made it a bracing, but short walk. It felt good to be out after the epic walk last week . Although it looked rainy in the distance, if any rain was falling, it missed us! Shining Tor trig point and rain in the distance 4.2 miles, 160m ascent.

  Shining Tor and Erwood The weather forecast was mixed- high winds and some rain but certainly better than the weekend. We decided to go to Shining Tor which always has the option of making it a short walk if the weather turns bad. On the way up to Shining Tor it was blowing a gale so when we got there we continued to the Cat and Fiddle in search of a hot drink. Sadly, they no longer do coffee, but a pit stop in their outdoor seating gave us the time to consider our next moves. Cat and Fiddle stained glass Rather than retrace our steps across the very windy Shining Tor ridge, we decided to walk down to Derbyshire Bridge and then onwards down to Errwood Reservoir. Although this involved walking along the (quiet) road, there were good views and great colours to be enjoyed. On the way down to Derbyshire Bridge At Errwood (where we haven't been for many years) we had a brief stop. Errwood Reservoir Snack time at Errwood After a quick snack and drink, we set off to return to the Pym Ch...