Lamaload

LAMALOAD RESERVOIR, THURSBITCH, KETTLESHULME, JENKIN CHAPEL

Distance: 9.3 miles

Difficulty: Moderate

Weather: Sunshine and Showers

Walkers: Colin Davison, Alan Hart, George Dearsley, George Whaites, Lawrie Fairman,

Apologies: Peter Beal (on his boat), Jock Rooney (in Panama), Ken Sparrow (in Falmouth)

B Walker: Geoff Spurrell

Non-walking drinkers: Frank Dudley and Tony Job

Hors de combat: John Eckerley (see below)

Leader: Fairman  Diarist: Dearsley

Starting Point: The car park at Lamaload Reservoir

Starting Time: 9.37am. Finishing Time: 2.20pm

Looking back to Lamaload

From the car park we turned right and after a few yards headed left through a gate and up an incline at the side of a copse.

The hill got progressively steeper and it was only then your diarist realised this was a challenging climb towards Shining Tor.

It was, however, worth the effort.

As my photograph (above) shows the views from this point were spectacular.

Shortly before the last section to the summit, we turned left and headed down a valley.

At 10.15am the glowering clouds dropped a shower of rain, mixed with a few hailstones.

But we were to be pleasantly surprised that the inclement weather did not last.

Walking towards Shining Tor

We reached a point where there were two stiles and two yellow arrows.

We took the right hand path which led to a place called Thursbitch.

The name of the valley was used as the title of a novel by Alan Garner. You can read more about it here.

We went through an opening with two stone posts and veered to the right. But we soon straightened out following the line of a dry stone wall to our immediate left and away in the distance to our right, a hill.

At 10.47am we stopped for Pie Time.

Resuming our walk at 10.58am we found ourselves on a path which led from an isolated farm.

Where the path met the road we turned right and then immediately left.

We walked past a farm on our left and a few minutes later reached Dunge Gardens, where Mr Davison was bawled out by the male proprietor (sporting a strange crimson coloured hairstyle, which may even have been a toupee) for not following the official path.

A customer who had parked “incorrectly” got a similar wigging. So much for “customer service”.

You can learn more about the flower emporium here.

The proprietor, I think, is number 15 on the list to the right of the home page.

By this point Mr Hart had raced into the lead like some Ethiopian marathon runner…obviously Robo-Rambler.

We crossed a road (with a sign pointing right to “Kettleshulme” ) and veered left down the road with a sign on the right to Blackhill Gate Farm.

We past Round Knoll Farm on the right.

We picked up a path which at its end informed us that it led to Old Matts Farm and found ourselves walking through a tiny hamlet.

A few strides on we descended a set of stone steps to the welcoming doors of The Swan pub at Kettleshulme.

We crossed the threshold at 12.09pm, having covered 5.8 miles.

Unicorn bitter was £2.85, as was Marston’s.

We imbibed outside in chilly but bracing air.

Mr Davison spotted a woman’s head in stone on the outside of the pub and wanted to know here identity.

A Google search proved fruitless. And so did a later telephone call to the hostelry.

One for Tony Robinson (of Baldrick fame and later history programmes) maybe.

Geoff Spurrell was in situ, having parked at the Moorside in Disley and undertaken what he described as “a circle”.

Leaving the pub at 12.50pm, we turned left, walking up the road until we took a left up Side End Lane.

After 200 yards we took a right turn and shortly afterwards stopped for lunch from 1.14pm until 1.24pm.

We went through a farm at 1.39pm and took a metalled road to the right, where we met a second path and turned left.

This brought us to Jenkin Chapel. Discover its history here.

There is disagreement about the origin of the name "Jenkin". One theory is that the junction was the site where a man called Jenkin from Ruthin, North Wales, traded.

The track-marking stone at this point was known as "Jenkin Cross". Other theories are that Jenkin was the name of a local farming family, or that it was the name of a "fiery Welsh preacher" who preached at the horse fair held here.

We turned right, following a sign to “Bollington”.

We were back at the cars at 2.20pm having covered 9.3 miles.

Your diarist had duties elsewhere, but the remaining Wanderers went to The Dog and Partridge at Bollington, a Robbies' house where a pint of Unicorn cask bitter and a pint of Hatters' mild came to £5.

 I would guess that would be £2-60 and £2-40 respectively.

I have to report that non walker John Eckersley, who has moved into a new bungalow, was KO'd when he tried to pull down the ladder leading to his loft.

He suffered a head wound and spent the night in Stepping Hill, where his scalp was glued back together.

(Shamefully, this personal tragedy was greeted with hoots of laughter by those present).

Next week's walk will start from the car park of The Cock at Whaley Bridge at 9.35am. We expect to take refreshment at The Old Hall at Whitehough, Chinley, around 12.30pm and be back at The Cock about 2.15pm.