A picture dominated post this time. I did this identical walk a year or so back in pretty much identical conditions and wrote it all up. Which also tells you that the main reason it’s photos only is that I can’t be bothered to write the same old stuff down again and bore you senseless with my stream of prose.
Safe to say it was a cracking good day full of blue sky and abundant sunshine.
If you want some words to accompany this then you can read my first post here. The music on the slideshow is much better 🙂
I’ve never really been to Suffolk other than a few days spent in Lowestoft when I worked for a company based there. We took a trip down that way in late November and paid a visit to Orford down on the coast, a very familiar place even though I’ve never been – it’s my mums maiden name
Very nice it was too. We went for a lovely walk from the castle, through the village and along the banks of the River Ore after a hearty breakfast in a local cafe
It kind of feels like the coast with all the boats in the estuary but in fact the sea lies a couple of miles over the various spits of land divided from the mainland by meandering rivers that characterise this part of the world. The coast is also home to a myriad of WWII remains when this coast was the last line of defence from a sea-borne invasion. Some of the constructions look like flattened pagaodas and together with bird-life the area looks well worth an explore. Given more time we’d have taken the ferry over and taken a more thorough investigation
For now we made do with our short walk.
We were in the area for one main reason. You may ask why we went all the way from darkest Herefordshire to Suffolk for a weekend – a good 4-5 hour drive away. We went to pick up our new toy, an OPUS Folding Camper. We spent or first night in it and despite the cold weather we were toasty warm as it has a heater. Run Cottage Campsite was very nice indeed and practically deserted as you’d expect at the end of November!
We spent most of the weekend learning how to put it up/down and hitch/unhitch it – with a few minor hassles but it really is cracking piece of kit and we’re really looking forward to Spring when we can start to try it out for real
Once I’ve used it a few times I may even post a review – reviews are not really my thing. Still it made a change to have a weekend away somewhere different and see some new places
Yet another of our traditional weekends – this really is starting to make me sound old, which of course I am – is an annual weekend up a chez-Fester in Manchester for some football/beers/curry on the Saturday and walking on the Sunday. TJS joined us this time and finally after many attempts got to see Man City win a game. And a very good game against Swansea City it was too
Sunday had a forecast of grey skies clearing to some decent spells of sunshine. Uncle Fester is the local expert and suggested a walk around Macclesfield forest and up Shutlingsloe, one of my favourite hills in The Peak. We parked up at te head of Macc forest above the reservoirs and set off into the cold gloom.
The morning was very grey with little sign of the promised sunshine. Still the walking was pleasant and it was nice to let someone else do the navigating for a change. We’d parked within a short walk of the summit but were on a route that kind of spirals around Shutlingsloe before climbing it at the end of the walk. Turned out to be inspired idea but for the first couple of hours there weren’t many photo opportunities worthy of the name.
Still the walking was nice and the company good as we dissected many topics mostly football related and it’s always good to travel across new terrain
We reached the southern flanks of Shutlingsloe on a very fine traversing path and stopped near Higher Nabbs Farm for lunch. It was amazing how the temperature had changed. The day before had been mild and damp. Now it was bitingly cold. As we ate the skies suddenly began to clear and the sun came out.
As we continued the traverse above Wildboarclough, the light just got better and better
Onward and upward, very upward as for all its modest height, Shutlingsloe is a steep bugger.
There was keen and cold wind on the summit. Not a place to linger but the views were majestic.
Less than 2000 feet high Shutlingsloe has a mountain feel and views to match that defy its diminutive size. The Cheshire Plain and the industrial spread of Greater Manchester make for fine views. Sutton Common and its transmitter made for a fine backdrop for the setting sun. Another small hill with disproportionately good views
It’s but a short walk back to the car and there is now a permissive path across Buxtors Hill. Boggy at first it soon becomes an extremely fine path above the forest and a really superb route. Well worth seeking out if you can survive the floating plastic matting on the really boggy bits.
The light was fading fast and getting dark. A mist started to form in the trees and blow and waft about in a most beguiling manner.
A fantastic finish to a superb day
Shutlingsloe deserves to be better known. A superb spot and one of my favourites, climbed many times when I lived in Derbyshire. It felt good to re-acquaint myself from a new direction
Another weekend away and another regular calendar fixture. The kid free weekend when the grandparents have a chance for some quality time with the younger generation and the parents have a weekend without worrying whether the kids are bored, hungry or general need of attention, medical or otherwise.
Back to the same place as last year the excellent Littletown Farm who as before did us proud with home cooked food and comfortable rooms at a reasonable price – very hard to come by in the Lake District.
The Saturday was grey and blue in equal measure, one of those days that could go either way. Sadly it went the wrong way
Rather than follow the masses we trusted in Mark, our Birketts man to find us a lesser known route to the top. He duly provided High Crags, a nondescript looking spot on the map but a fine viewpoint overlooking the Newlands Valley.
There was a path to start with but it soon petered out and the going was rough but worth the effort to lose the trail of hikers on Cat Bells. Lost in catch up chat we were up on Bull Crag on the main path to Maiden Moor in no time.
Tradition dictates that even though we’d not long had breakfast it was time for a stop. Stoves came out, brews were made and an hour sped by while the clouds descended and we were soon lost in a swirling mist
We pressed on through the murk and over High Spy. We were supposed to be heading up Dale Head but some navigational carelessness left us at the top of Tongue Gill. I really couldn’t be bothered with another long climb up Dale Head to not see the view from the top having not seen the view several times before. I made a bid for a return via Castle Crag and surprisingly got a vote of confidence. We descended through the mine workings and onto Castle Crag. I’m pretty sure I’ve never been up before and I can’t fathom why as it’s a superb little craggy eminence with a classic view down Borrowdale and over Derwent Water. The high fells were still swathed in cloud but lower down it was quite bright
It was a long stretch down past Grange to make the climb to Hause Gate and back down to Littletown but I really enjoyed it in the fast fading light. The crowds had gone and lights of Keswick and the surrounding villages were beginning to twinkle. I like being out at dusk as the mountains take on a completely different feel.
There is a price to be paid however. It was almost dark when began the climb to the col and pretty much dark when we got to it. Walking down a steep and rocky hillside in the dark can be tricky but luckily we’ve had lots of practice as a dark finish is a feature of these weekend strolls.
A very fine day indeed.
The Sunday forecast hadn’t been good and like the day before it was largely grey at first light. There was a very prominent clear patch over the Solway Firth. One of those days that could go either way. Fortunately it went the right way
By the time we were ready for the off it was glorious, blue skies prevailed and it was sunny and almost warm. We followed the deep valley, Newlands Beck I think, up past the waterfalls to Dalehead Tarn, a really wonderful walk.
Dalehead Tarn was splendid. Sunny and warm with a perfect spot for a long relaxing rest. It would make a fine wild campsite.
They have improved the path quite impressively making for a relatively easy staircase climb to the summit of Dale Head. For the first time I had a view from the summit and a very fine one it is too. The valley we’d walked up being perfectly laid out below us. The classic glacial valley
We ambled off down Hindscarth Edge to Hindscarth itself for another stop.
It’s not a particularly long walk but already the light was fading again. That’s walking in a large chatty group for you. Another dark finish coming on but the light was just glorious, all sunlight and shadows
There are some pretty steep rocky steps on these ridges and we picked our way down the damp and slippery grass and rocks. The ridge levels out at mid height. We and Mark abandoned the path in favour of an off piste route along the edge high above Little Dale. There were some airy little spots and it’s well worth the detour.
As we descended the last of the tricky rocky bands the sky gave us a final light show with pink tones touching both the clouds and the distant summits of Blencathra and Skiddaw.
That just left us the traditional final walk back to the cars in the dark to head home.
Another wonderful weekend with good company. You can read an alternative take on the weekend from Marks blog here and here.
October half-term regulations state “a week/weekends at your parents caravan on the mid-Wales coast”. Rules are there to be broken. But not this one
TBF and the kids spend the whole week there while I get the weekends. The first weekend was spectacularly uneventful and dreary. Or at least I assume it was as I didn’t take a single photo. I have absolutely no recollection of what we did. A blank. Age related forgetfulness I’m sure I read somewhere. I can’t remember now.
The second weekend was much better. Despite the grey skies I convinced the kids a walk was in order. Consulting my trusty Jarrold Pathfinder guide I found a suitable i.e. flat – ish – walk from Devils Bridge. A very famous local attraction is Devils Bridge with some splendid waterfalls. They were splendid when I saw them as a kid but I’ve not seen them since on account of the fact you have to pay to see them. I don’t believe in paying good money to see waterfalls when I can see perfectly acceptable ones for free. No, it was the open, expansive (and free) valley of the Mynach river that feeds the falls that we were off to.
Devils Bridge is also the terminus for a rather nice narrow gauge railway. Before you ask, no I haven’t paid for a trip on that either for the kids but I did treat them to a view of steam engine from the car park
It’s a fine walk through fields, open hillside and a forested river valley. Pleasant if unspectacular
There was a threat of rain in the air all day but it managed to hold off and it was good just to be out. I didn’t get out much in September or October due to the dreary weather so this was a much enjoyed day out for me even if the kids weren’t terribly enthusiastic
The route out on the northern side was easy-going
The return on the opposite bank was, well, the opposite. Deep, very deep, bracken, bog, mud, more bracken and mud and knee-deep puddles of water. Fun.
Not a bad day and a valley well worth further exploration
We also had a nice morning stroll up Allt Wen a rather prominent and as it turns out brutally steep hill to the south of Aberystwyth.
Fine views made it worth the effort and once up on top it’s a very nice stroll high above the sea
Finally after a week of dreariness, the sun came out between the rain showers. We had a wild and windy walk on the beach before we packed to go home and prepare for winter.
Oh, and I found a couple of photos from a week or so later when me and TJS took a stroll in the Brecons. Weather forecast promised a fine and sunny day with a few showers. It was. For about the first hour then it started to rain. Then it rained some more and then it cleared up and was really wet. I’m not bitter
Just a few photos from a short trip up Black Darren and the main Black Mountains ridge back in October.
It’s one of the closest access points to the mountains at home – less than 30 minutes drive – so I walk this route a lot
You can read more details in my post from a couple of years back here
This year I did it in reverse. The route highlighted by the steep scramble up the nose of the landslip, a fried breakfast on top of the ridge, low cloud filling the valleys and a navigational error. I headed down far to early from the ridge and ended up descending very steep grassy slopes and deep untracked bracken. Very bad for the knees
Every year, in early autumn,Mark and his family take the very foolish decision to invite us and our kids to overrun his house, make a mess and eat all their food. Its become something of a tradition now and everyone looks forward to it. Let the record show that they are the most gracious and generous of hosts and it’s always a most enjoyable weekend. Only downside (outsize) is my waistline. We barely have time to venture outside such is the volume of food on offer. Massive cooked breakfasts are the order of the day together with smorgasbord of lunch items and monster curry from the village take away. I never need to eat for a week after a weekend up here. Still I like to eat to it’s a win-win situation. Whatever, the hospitality is hereby recognised.
It was a long time ago but my memory of the weekend was one of average weather but then I looked at the photos and realised that it was pretty splendid. The various families turned up at various points through the Saturday so it was a collection of shorter classic walks around the village to fill the day. Firstly up to the Pepperpot, as fine a viewpoint as there is with woods to explore, a profusion of wildlife and flora and trees to climb
Even though we are very settled and happy in Herefordshire my idle mind often wanders to thoughts of where else I might choose to live. Being the outdoor mountain and water-borne enthusiast that I am the obvious thought would be to live in the hills or by the west coast. Notwithstanding the need for work (not much IT work in such places) I’m not sure I could live in such remoteness. I do like some of life’s creature comforts. Scotland with its glorious scenery would be a draw surely. But let’s be realistic it has some pretty nasty weather and as soon as summer arrives so do midges. The only thing that I crave is somewhere I can go for a walk through pleasant and interesting surroundings from my front door. I have some glorious mountains between 30 minutes and 2 hours from home but immediate surrounds are rather bland arable farming fields. Silverdale is blessed with some wonderful scenery and interesting walks with great views. It’s the only other place I know that I would live other than where I am now. I always enjoy my time spent here and I’m always grateful to Mark and his family for showing off their locale which they are always pleased to do
After lunch with a few more people in tow it was another favourite with the stroll down to Jenny Browns Point. I love this stretch with the expansive views across Morecambe Bay, the fossils in the rocks by the Lime Kilns and the bird life
With everyone in tow on the Sunday we took a longer walk heading for Beetham Fell and the Fairy Steps. Mark assures me he’s taken me here before but I don’t remember. It was a very pleasant warm morning and after some tomfoolery involving toilet stops and lost adults and kids we finally made some progress past Haweswater and over the limestone enclosed fields beyond
I suspect the plan was to lunch at Beetham Fell but we fell short, considerably short of that objective. We passed through a sunny meadow with a small wood alongside and almost as one flopped onto the grass. The adults to laze, drink tea, chat, talk nonsense, the kids to do what all kids should do, build dens in the wood. And a very fine job they did too. No finer way to spend the time
After that it was over the fields again to Beetham Fell.
This is the old coffin route from Arnside to Beetham when Arnside didn’t have a cemetery. There is an initial taster with a narrow passage cut through the rock before the main event.
A narrow passage through the rocks. Very narrow. It’s said that if you can reach the top without touching the sides you are granted a wish. Fat chance of me achieving that 🙂
At the top the views had gone a little grey (perhaps the reason for my grey memory of the weekend). It was still a fine spot to linger before the long walk home, more food and a long drive home.
Another great weekend of fine strolling and great company. You can read Mark’s account of the weekend here
What better way to welcome in 2015 than to continue with catching up on 2014 outings. Now that I’m done with Australia I can look back at Autumn
My memory of September and October is of endless grey and dreary days. One day did deliver though. In mid-September we took a weekend away at the caravan and the Sunday was a cracker. Before we get to that, a few photos from the Red Kite feeding station at Bwlch Nant yr Arian.
They feed the Red Kites everyday at 3pm and it’s a pretty impressive sight.
The light was truly awful – grey, dank and dreary so the photos aren’t the best.
Red Kites were close to being wiped out of Wales by careless hunting and a loss of habitat. Various programs have been hugely successful. They are a very common site when out walking in mid-Wales and number the hundreds on these feeding sessions. Perhaps now is the time to slowly and carefully withdraw these sessions and allow them to fend for themselves as a protected species now that their numbers have recovered. Whatever, they are a magnificent raptor and their gliding presence on walk is always a pleasure
There were also numerous small birds on the feeders to observe, LBJ’s mostly
Sunday morning was a transformation. Grey skies were replaced with blue, a glorious day and an open invitation to visit the southern Rhinogs. An approach from the west with some coastal views – my favourite – seemed in order. We parked up just past Cors y Gedol Hall and set off into the warm sunshine.
The views were sensational and it was the perfect day. Warm enough for shorts but a with a pleasant cooling breeze. This was well received on the taxing 1000 foot climb up steep grass to the top of Moelfre.
As we crested the summit the seaward views had to be ignored for a while in order to appreciate the spectacular view of Rhinog Fach and Rhinog Fawr. Small in height but an order of magnitude tougher on the ground they contrast markedly with Y Llethr’s grassy outline to the right.
The central Snowdonia range was also bathed in sunshine, Snowdon prominent
We sun bathed at the summit rocks for a good while in the warm sunshine – well the others did while I wandered off to the NW top for a different perspective
There was much walking to be done and we reluctantly dragged ourselves out of recumbent mode into walking mode and off towards the next summit of Y Llethr (tip – cross the wall on the summit and follow the southern side. The northern side is bugger to cross lower down) 🙂
It’s a very long steady plod up the ridge and then a very short steep climb to the summit of Y Llethr.
Its contrast with the Rhinogs to the north could not be more marked. They, are all rock and heather. Y Llethr has a grassy summit big enough to play sports on. The views are therefore a little foreshortened but it does make for a fine place to kick off your boots and socks and lie back on the grass for a brief lunchtime snooze in the sun.
A walk to the northern end of the summit does reveal the dramatic change of the scenery and the dramatically situated Llyn Hywel. Rhinog Fach is a tough one I’ve yet to do. A full traverse of the Rhinogs over a few days is a route I’m aching to do although I doubt my knees would agree.
Today our route took us south along the sublime, rough and twisting ridge of Crib y-Rhiw above Llyn Dulyn. Hard work on tiring legs but delightful all the same.
Another taxing climb brought us to Diffwys, the most southern of the main Rhinog chain. Time to relax again on its dramatic west-facing top, feet draped over the grassy edge.
The sun was starting to descend, lighting up the landscape to even greater effect and we needed to do the same. We still had a few miles to go and then drive back to the caravan and then back home. The ridge heading west was longer than I thought and we were all feeling the effects of a good deal of climbing and distance over some tough and wild terrain.
We followed the old coaching route down to Pont Scethin. It’s a stunning picture postcard little bridge and well worth a stop for some R&R. Alas time was pressing and we needed to get down. A long and knee bashing descent down the cobbled track brought us back to the car. I was surprised to see that we’d covered over 12 miles and over 3000 feet of ascent. A pretty long day by my current standings
A magnificent day in wild surroundings. Seems like ages ago which of course it was 🙂
I spend alot of my time surfing the web looking for ideas on places to go, walking routes, travel ideas and tips to plan the perfect holiday or day out. (I'm a project manager I like to plan). I thought it was time to share my own experiences and contribute to the vast amounts in information that's already out there.
I'll also add in some gear and tech reviews and when something irks me I may even use this forum to have a rant - I do that pretty well I'm told.There are a few pages at the top that give a bit of background to what I like to get up to and what you can expect to see in my posts. I'm not exactly a creative writer but I hope some people will find my stuff useful or inpsiring or at least enjoy some of my photos.
surfnslide 