Whaley Bridge

WHALEY BRIDGE, CROMFORD AND HIGH PEAK RAILWAY (DISUSED), ACROSS MANCHESTER-BUXTON RAILWAY, SILK HILL FARM, BUGSWORTH, ACROSS MANCHESTER-SHEFFIELD RAILWAY, COTE BANK FARM, THROSTLE BANK FARM, BIG STONE, CRACKEN EDGE, CHINLEY, OLD HALL AT WHITEHOUGH, PEAK FOREST TRAMWAY, BUGSWORTH BASIN, PEAK FOREST CANAL AND THE COCK AT WHALEY BRIDGE

Distance: Ten miles.

Difficulty: Moderate.

Weather: Dry with initial cloud giving way to blue skies and wintry sunshine.

Walkers: Peter Beal, Colin Davison, Lawrie Fairman, Alan Hart and George Whaites.

B Walkers: Ken Sparrow and Geoff Spurrell.

Non-walking Drinkers: John Eckersley and Tony Job.

Apologies: George Dearsley (working) and Jock Rooney (Hols in Egypt).

Leader: Davison. Diarist: Hart. Driver: Whaites.

Starting Point: Car park of The Cock at Whaley Bridge.

Starting Time: 9.35am. Finishing Time: 2.45pm.

After an unsuccessful attempt to pass his leader’s badge certificate a month ago, Colin had another brave try. Rather like the pilot who must get back into his plane as soon as possible after a crash, our curly-haired comrade took the courageous decision to lead our party. It is my sad duty to announce that he crashed again.

Given his (comparatively) tender age, he should not be discouraged. But after two retreats in the first hour, it may be some time before we hear him singing “The Grand Old Duke of York” again.

He still has much to learn from Lawrie’s school of leadership: in particular the rule that you NEVER, under any circumstances, admit you have gone the wrong way.

One could also criticise the fact that he allowed a quintet to split into three, but let us not be too harsh on a youngster who clearly means well.

From the car park we passed The Cock on the left and turned left after 30 yards to cross a stream. The icy ascent to the disused Cromford and High Peak railway line path was a sign of tricky times ahead.

We turned right and continued as far as a road bridge over our track, turning immediately right up a flight of steps to cross the bridge on Chapel Road (10mins). We were led left up Rock Bank and back down again five minutes later, before continuing along the main road past the Board Inn and turning left to head up Eccles Road (23mins)

We crossed the Manchester-Buxton railway line before swinging first right and then left at a public footpath sign through a gate marked with a yellow arrow (26mins). Keeping a drystone wall on our left we crossed a stone step stile and entered a field containing a herd of 18 Shetland ponies.

We exited over a stone step stile and turned left along a lane for 50 yards before turning right over another stone step stile to walk through the right side of a field. We went through a gate (37mins) and over another stone step stile into a field from where we could see Chinley Churn on our left in the distance.

Our party kept to the left of this field, leaving it by a gate and turning left along a lane (50mins) which took us past Silk Hill Farm on our left. Beyond the farm was a sign warning us, apparently, to beware of toads. (It was not made clear whether they were armed and dangerous).

After crossing the A6 we passed the Navigation Inn on our right. The pub, whose landlady in the 1950s had been Pat Phoenix, later to become a legend as Elsie Tanner in Coronation Street, announced it was open all day. On our right we passed first Buxworth Junior School and then Bugsworth Memorial Hall – a reminder that the village is still divided over how it should be named.

After walking under the bridge carrying the Manchester-Sheffield railway line (64mins), Colin led us left into Dolly Lane. Three minutes later (67mins) he led us back down the lane and turned left to continue along the main road until we turned left at Brierley Green and followed a wooden footpath sign into a field.

Our port and pietime (75mins) was interrupted by the arrival of two horses which came to check us out. They rejected half a sandwich and a piece of chocolate proffered by Peter B. Two other horses ambled over to inspect us from over a drystone wall and one of them also spat out a piece of chocolate. What is it with the horses of today ?

As we continued uphill a woodpecker was heard but not seen in the distance. Shortly afterwards we saw a peacock and his mate in a cottage garden.We crossed a stone step stile in front of Cote Bank Farm and turned right uphill before turning left at the farm’s flagpole. This led us to a road where we turned left (87mins) and passed Throstle Bank Farm on our right (92mins).

We turned right at a wooden public footpath sign marked with a white arrow and walked steadily uphill over a moor. After a long climb we went through a gate (112mins) and turned right to reach Big Stone at Cracken Edge (119mins).

As we descended the precipitous slope, our party split into three groups, with the leader and diarist taking a dangerously icy and narrow down-tilting ledge. Peter B accompanied Lawrie and George W to a safer path and then made his own way down to Chinley.

After reaching a road (154mins), the two duos were united and turned left before re-joining Peter B  at the Chinley, Bugsworth and Brownside war memorial on our left. Opposite this monument we turned right over a railway bridge into Green Lane (171mins). By following a sign for Whitehough we reached Whitehough Head Lane (176mins) and the Old Hall on our right (178mins).

Here we met Ken and Geoff, who had walked from Whaley Bridge. We ordered pints of Marstons’ cask  bitter at £2-60 or Hopsack at £2-85. Both were deemed excellent.

Departing the pub we turned left and soon headed left along the Peak Forest Tramway (180mins). This brought us to the front of the Navigation Inn at Bugsworth Basin (202mins), where we had lunch on a wall. Resuming, we walked along the icy towpath to the right of the Peak Forest Canal, crossing it at Bridge 17 to continue along the left bank.

This brought us to the car park at Tom Brad’s Croft (227mins), from where there was a choice between the path along the disused Cromford and Peak Forest Railway line or the main road through Whaley Bridge.

Both routes led us back to The Cock (242mins), where we de-booted and joined John and Tony for pints of Robbies at £2-75. Your diarist’s patience was tested when the changing of a barrel seemed to involve as trip to the brewery in Stockport.

Next week’s walk will start and finish at the same venue. We plan to set off from The Cock car park at Whaley Bridge at 9.35am, heading for Chapel-en-le-Frith and aiming to reach The Roebuck by 12.15pm. We hope to be back in The Cock by 2.15pm.

Colin will be notified by the committee when he can next apply for his leader’s badge certificate, but we recommend some studying and testing of routes would be