Little Hayfield

LITTLE HAYFIELD, CALICO TRAIL, RIVER SETT, HAYFIELD, SNAKE PASS TRAIL, MIDDLE MOOR, CARR MEADOW, CHUNAL MOOR, MATLEY MOOR, KNARRS FARM, KINGS CLOUGH HEAD FARM, LITTLE MILL AT ROWARTH, CLOUGH MILL AND LANTERN PIKE AT LITTLE HAYFIELD

Distance: Nine miles.

Difficulty: Easy.

Weather: Occasional snow showers mingled with blue skies and sunshine.

Walkers: Mickey Barrett, Peter Beal, Tom Cunliffe, Malcolm Halley, Alan Hart and John Laverick.

B walkers: Tony Job, Peter Morrall and Geoff Spurrell.

Apologies: George Dearsley (w*^king), Lawrie Fairman (proper poorly), Jock Rooney (w*^king in South Africa, Julian Ross (w*^king at home), Ken Sparrow (domestic duties), Colin Davison (Brittany) and George Whaites.

Leader: Beal. Diarist: Hart.

Starting point: Car park of The Lantern Pike, Little Hayfield.

Starting time: 10.02am Finishing time: 2.40pm.

Despite the official arrival of spring, the weather conditions were still wintry with The Peak District under a blanket of snow. Consequently the proposed venue of Errwood Reservoir car park was transferred to Little Hayfield, where conditions were deemed to be more conducive to walking.

Lawrie’s wife Wendy had informed your diarist that our Geordie boy was suffering from reflux problems and was unable to come out to play. It was therefore agreed that Peter B should take over the mantle of leader as a local lad who understands the mysteries of maps.

The change involved a delayed start while your diarist rang around informing people of the new venue.

The list of apologies shows that three of our regulars were w*^king, a disgusting habit that most of us gave up years ago, so our numbers were down from the record levels of recent weeks. Those who did sally forth were rewarded with a mixture of sunshine and snow showers.

                                                               Kinder with its white mantle

                

From the Lantern Pike we turned right and then right again after 100 yards into Slack Lane. We went left (4mins) at a public footpath sign which was the start of The Calico Trail. This took us through theMay Queen playing fields and over the River Sett (15mins) near the start of the Sett Valley Trail.

We crossed Market Street to the right of The Pack Horse (20mins) and passed shops which had undergone a retrospective for filming a new six-part series called “The Village” starting on BBC next Sunday

Arthur Lowe's plaque. I wonder who lived here???   Don’t tell him Pike!

The series, starring Maxine Peake and John Simm, and written by Bafta-winner Peter Moffatt, begins in 1914 when the first bus to stop in the village arrives to great excitement. It continues to tell the story of succeeding generations to present day. It has been filmed in Hayfield and Chapel-en-le-Frith.

The television theme continued when we passed a row of terraced cottages on our left which overlooked Hayfield Cricket Club. On the wall was a blue plaque erected by Derbyshire County Council dedicated to Arthur Lowe (1915-1982), who was born and raised in one of the cottages. He was known and loved by millions in his role as Captain Mainwaring in the BBC sitcom “Dad’s Army.”

Although this was featured on the plaque, no mention was made of an earlier part he played with distinction which brought him to the attention of TV audiences. From 1961 until 1966 he appeared in Coronation Street as the pompous shopkeeper and lay preacher Leonard Swindley.

His biographer reveals that Lowe despised Corrie but even when he left the show it was to appear in a spin-off from the soap entitled “Pardon The Expression,” which was Swindley’s catchphrase.

Lowe started his acting career with the Manchester Repertory Company earning £5 a week, later appearing in West End musicals “Call Me Madam”, “Pal Joey” and “The Pyjama Game.”

He also had a small part in the movie classic “Kind Hearts and Coronets” (1949) in which he played a reporter from Tit Bits magazine !

Dad’s Army ran from 1968-1977, and between filming Lowe continued to tread the boards with his actress wife Joan. When they toured coastal theatres, the couple used an 1885 former steam yacht called Amazon, which they had bought as a houseboat and converted into a sea-going vessel, as their floating base.

Lowe also appeared in movies, performing in a surreal film by Spike Milligan called “The Bed Sitting Room,” (1969) in which he mutated into a parrot; as a drunken butler opposite Peter O’Toole in “The Ruling Class,” (1972); and as one of Vincent Price’s victims in the horror film “Theatre of Blood” (1973).

Lowe also played Micawber in the BBC serialisation of “David Copperfield” and provided several voices for the children’s “Mr Men” series, which he also narrated.

He was a heavy smoker and his favourite tipple was gin and ginger ale with a slice of cucumber. In later years, he became an alcoholic, suffering a stroke in his dressing room at The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham, where he was appearing with Joan in a tour of “Home At Seven.”

Lowe died the next day, aged 66. Surprisingly his wife Joan did not attend his low-key funeral because she was appearing in “Home At Seven” in Belfast and felt “the show must go on.”

In his youth, Lowe had been a member of Hayfield Cricket Club. During the hugely successful run of Dad’s Army he recruited his cast colleagues to appear in a charity match which was attended by thousands of fans. The ageing Private Godfrey fielded at third slip in an armchair. Happy days.

After passing the plaque we turned left at a public bridleway at the start of the Snake Pass trail (28mins). Thus began a steady ascent which took us on to Middle Moor. Before we reached the distinctive white shooting lodge, we turned left following a signpost towards Glossop (58mins).

                                                                   A bridge too far?

This led us to Carr Meadow and a wooden bridge over a stream called Hollingworth Clough. On the far side in the lee of the wind, we stopped for Pietime at 11.30am (88mins). Resuming, we turned right uphill on to Chunal Moor and reached the road between Hayfield and Glossop (115mins). We crossed it and followed the sign for Charlesworth.

After cresting a hill we turned left at a public footpath sign (122mins). As we turned we passed an intriguing wheelie bin which was tied with a strap marked “Girls On Tour” and a black feather boa. The path led us on to Mattley Moor.

Just before Knarrs Farm we turned right, crossed a stone step stile, and turned left (124mins). Another stile brought us to a road, where we turned left downhill (136mins). Passing Kings Clough Head Farm on our right (145mins) we crossed a stream and forked left (150mins).

Ignoring the first footbridge on our left we continued then crossed the second. After fording the stream to reach its left bank again, we turned left over a wooden stile marked with a yellow arrow (158mins).      

                                             “Pie times over you’ve had your 30 seconds!”

The path brought us out by a red phone box where we turned left for a few yards and then right to follow a public footpath sign by the side of large stone in the wall which was inscribed: “Sunday school for children of all denominations 1824.”

This path brought us to the Little Mill Inn at Rowarth (162mins) where the Banks bitter at £2-75 was not to everyone’s taste. This did not prevent a second pint from being consumed.

Leaving the Little Mill, we turned right uphill, passing the giant watermill on our right. Where the lane forked we went right (173mins) and continued a gradual climb until we went through a gate and turned immediately right (192mins). This route took us along the shoulder of the hill called Lantern Pike as we dropped down to the pub of that name, passing Clough Mill and w*^king George.

The pub was the third site of TV interest of the day, for it was here in 1960 that Tony Warren penned the early episodes of Coronation Street, while renting a house in Little Hayfield. One of the parts was for a character called Elsie Tanner which he had written for a local actress named Pat Phoenix.

Here the Timothy Taylor Landlord was deemed to be in fine form, as it should be at £3-22 a pint, and Tom kindly laid on a liberal supply of chips to sustain us.

We later learned that the B team had caught a bus to The Ram’s Head at Disley from where they had walked uphill into Lyme Park, past Lyme Hall and down to Higher Poynton, crossing the Macclefield Canal en route. After drinks in The Boar’s Head, they had then walked to Wilfred Wood Wetherspoons in Hazel Grove for further refreshment at the end of a walk of around five miles.

Next week’s A walk will start at 9.30am from The Soldier Dick at Furness Vale, with a midway livener at The Dandy Cock, Disley, around 12.15pm and an anticipated 2.15pm finish back at The Soldier Dick.  

Whaley Bridge

March 20th, 2013.

WHALEY BRIDGE AND ENVIRONS

Distance: 10.7 miles

Difficulty: Strenuous

Weather: Chilly, light snow, occasional sun

Walkers: Pete Beal, George Whaites, George Dearsley, Alan Hart, John Laverick, Jock Rooney and Tips, Colin Davison, Tom Cunliffe, Lawrie Fairman, Micky Barrett

Apologies: Julian Ross (decorating), Malc Halley (Corfu), Ken Sparrow (seeking advice on his balance, physical not financial), Geoff Spurrell (returning from holiday)

B Walkers: Tony Job, Pete Morrall (making his debut)

Leader: Fairman Diarist: Dearsley

Starting Point: The Cock, Whaley Bridge

Starting Time: 9.34am. Finishing Time: 2.37pm

Oh what a grey day, to misquote Larry Grayson.

However, the Wanderers’ inestimable bonhomie rose above the persistent, if light, falling snowflakes and slate grey sky to record an impressive 10.7 miles, at least according to Mr Cunliffe’s new-fangled gadget.

We have used the Cock as a starting point so many times your diarist has omitted to research Whaley Bridge itself. The name of Whaley Bridge comes from the ancient crossing place of the River Goyt which was used by the Romans for their road from Buxton to Manchester.

It was later a key point on the major route south from Manchester to London and was a main crossing from Cheshire to Derbyshire.

The road ran from Stockport over Jacksons Edge from High Lane, through Disley by the Rams Head and straight up the hill through Higher Disley, Longside and Stoneheads, where the old posting house can still be seen.

 It then came down Whaley Lane passing directly in front of the Jodrell Arms and straight on down Bridge Street.

 Going over the Goyt on the original Whaley Bridge the road then turned right and ran next to the river passing in front of the White Hart, which is now the back, and then up Old Road to Horwich End.

The route then continued along Elnor Lane south to Wythen Lache and along the Roman road past White Hall to Coldsprings and Buxton. The local road from Chapel over Eccles Pike joined this road on Old Road near the Drill Hall.

We left the Cock and turned left as usual, taking the immediate left turn and soon finding ourselves on the newly renovated Shallcross Incline.

At the end of the path we turned left and at the end of that road, right.

This brought us to a Y-junction and we took a path on the left. This was Elnor Lane.

In true Wanderers’ tradition we were on an early and demanding climb.

By 10.04am the path had evened out. But after only 75 yards of horizontal we had to climb again, following a path to the left which required us to negotiate a five-bar gate.

By 10.16am we had reached the summit. But our joy soon turned to anxiety as confusion – generated as usual by Mr Davison - abounded over which path to take.

After two minutes of map consulting we veered right across open countryside and down a valley.

                                           “Have you got it the right way up” (as the actress said to the bishop).

This brought us onto a road where we turned left and at 10.40am we began a descent.

We past Whitehall (as the sign said) or White Hall, as it is sometimes written, on our right. This appears to be an outward bound centre.

We took a path to the left, following a sign saying “via Combs to Chapel-en-le-Frith”.

At 10.52 Pie Time was declared and despite the butty-less Mr Cunliffe’s urgings we enjoyed a full 10 minutes of feasting. We set off at 11.02am and by 11.25am had reached a road and a sign which said “Combs”.

We turned right past a large pond on our right.

This brought us to an impressive barn conversion with some rather aggressive signs about sticking to paths. We dutifully turned right and began an ascent.

At 11.40am the sun came out, albeit briefly.

We turned left over a railway bridge and then immediately right which brought us along the side of the rail line which took us to Chapel railway station.

Here we turned left past the car park and down the hill. Only a few short weeks ago we were here struggling in deep snow to turn our cars around.

                                                                        50 Shades of Grey

At the bottom of the road leading to the station we went straight over into Alston Road.

This brought us to the main road in Chapel, where we crossed and entered the Roebuck at 12.19pm.

By Mr Cunliffe’s machine we had walked 7.44 miles, although some Wanderers disputed this. Our Pie Time had been taken at an altitude of 1044 feet after 4.25 miles.

At the Roebuck Black Sheep was £2.80 and Tetley’s Mild £2.45.

At 1.33pm we were joined by the B Walkers who had started at the Cock and clocked up four miles trekking up the Goyt Valley to Fernilee, going left at the Royal Oak and then taking a bus to Chapel.

Talk then turned to the travails of Mike “Wally” Walton.

Some Wanderers may have been shocked to receive an e mail from Wally which I publish in full below (with all the grammatical errors).

I'm sorry i didn't informing you, my family and I came down here to Manila Philippines for a short trip, unfortunately we got mugged at the park of the hotel where we stayed. all money, credit card and cell phones were stolen off us but luckily for us we still have our passports with us.

We've been to the embassy and the Police here but they're not helping issues and our flight leaves in few hours from now but we're having problems settling the hotel bills and the hotel manager won't let us leave until we settle the bills, I will appreciate whatever you can afford to assist me with,I promise to refund it to you as soon as I arrive home.

Of course, even had this e mail NOT been an obvious hoax, none of the Wanderers would have been foolish enough to respond.

However, it transpires that Wally’s misfortune had been to have had his computer “cloned” in Sri Lanka.

The cunning cyber bandits then wiped all his contacts not only from his laptop but from his home computer too.

Wally, who was due to combine business with pleasure on his trip, was left like an internet Billy No Mates.

Mr Hart suggested the Wanderers might hold a competition with a prize for the best limerick about the incident, the first the of which should be

“When Wally went off to Sri Lanka….”

One can only surmise what the final word might be.

We left the pub at 1.10pm, turning right into Eccles Road. We carried straight on until we reached open countryside.

At 1.50pm lunch was declared. Mr Cunliffe’s gadget claimed we had done 9.11 miles and were now at an altitude of 1019 feet.

We set off again at 1.57pm, reaching a road where we turned left.

We passed Hilltop Cottage on the right.

Then on the left we passed an impressive Ollerenshaw Hall.

                                                                         Ollerenshaw Hall

  Ollerenshaw Hall

One owner was a businessman called Mr Thornhill who had made his fortune as a carrier in Stockport

In 1822, Thornhill purchased Ollerenshaw Hall for £8000 together with 170 acres and retired from the business. 

Thornhill was described as a man of penurious and parsimonious habits whilst also rather ostentatious.

He was a man with a kind disposition who employed large numbers of local people at Ollerenshaw, who would otherwise have been out of work. Parsimony however, was exhibited in the smallness of their wages.

Thornhill had a curious way of dealing with his labourers. He would make them work in a line and call them to work or rest by sounding a horn. 

Thornhill was also said to have peculiar religious notions involving communion with the spirits of the departed. He was a Methodist of "The New Connection".

In November 1839, at the age of 47, Thornhill married a Miss Barlow, 40, who was heiress to a sum of about £10,000.

His wife had a "temper and disposition not calculated to make him at all happy".

They were said to have a shocking terrible life from violent wrangling and quarrelling.

From his wife or her mother "he never got a sixpence", but only an old bad note (a debt presumably) for £300 from the old lady who thought that he, if anybody, could get it settled.

He managed to retrieve about £170 of it, the remainder being lost.

In May 1841 a legacy of £250 was left to his wife and together they went to the solicitors to collect it.

The sum was produce with a receipt which she duly signed. Thornhill, however, refused to sign unless he got the money. Relenting, she said that he might have half but he still refused.

A dreadful row ensued in which “shocking language” was used by both sides. Ultimately she dashed the pen through her name and the inheritance was never received by either party.

In their quarrels, both Thornhill and his wife frequently talked of divorce and in 1842 she left him.

He contemplated a suit against his mother in law to recover a portion of his wife's £10000 inheritance.

A bill was subsequently prepared by solicitors but in June she took it into her head to return to the hall.

Thornhill decided to drop the proceedings on account of her violence. In December she left home again, not to return until shortly before his death in 1845.

On one occasion, he had his wife sit with him all night long in the coal cellar. At one time he mistook a log of wood for a devil and would have shot at it. At another time he was beset by twelve devils, went out and fired a pistol twelve times after which he was pacified saying he had "killed all the devils".

In his will, Thornhill left between £30,000 and £40,000 to his brother Jonathan to whom he was dotingly attached. His wife was to receive just £5.

The inheritance had also been promised to cousin Walter Thornhill on condition that he live on the estate. Walter challenged the will on grounds of insanity and the jury found in his favour.

By contrast, in February  1916 Ollerenshaw was home to Emily Moon Kerr  (Founder of the Tipperary League, which operated a number of "Tipperary Rooms",  temperance clubs for women).

I also found this on a message board

In the 1950's when Ollerenshaw Hall was derelict for a few years I went round the hall (without permission of course) and in one of the bedrooms was the biggest pile of empty beer,wine and spirit bottles. The pile was enormous and even though the years have passed I can still remember the pile. I did inspect and look for returnable bottles because in those days there was 3d on bottles. Unfortunately there were none.

                                                           Mr Davison puts the Ham into Hamlet

We swung right and then left over a stile. We came onto a road and turned right.

We were now on the outskirts of Whaley Bridge.

After 50 yards we turned right again down a narrow lane with high walls on each side.

This was Bings Road. At the bottom we turned left.

Within a minute or two (at 2.37pm) we were back at the cars.

After de-booting we entered the Cock, where Unicorn was £2.70. Had the Chancellor’s penny been removed?

                                                                    Our Pie Time stop

The B Walkers had done another two miles.

Next week’s walk will start at 9.40am from the top car park at Errwood Reservoir (the car park is apparently called Errwood Hall).

The half-way point will be the Cat and Fiddle and we will finish with a drink at the Cock, Whaley Bridge. Your diarist may be working.

Taddington

TADDINGTON, MILLERS DALE, MONSAL TRAIL, WYE VALLEY

Distance: 10 miles

Difficulty: Strenuous

Weather: Blue skies and warm sunshine

Walkers: George Whaites, George Dearsley, Alan Hart, Colin Davison, Tom Cunliffe, Jock Rooney and Tips, Lawrie Fairman,

Apologies: Pete Beal (walking in the Lakes), Micky Barrett (China), John Laverick (man flu), Julian Ross (cycling in Belgium), Mike Walton (Sri Lanka), Geoff Spurrel (Canaries), Malc  Halley (working), Ken Sparrow (Cheltenham)

Leader: Davison  Diarist: Dearsley

Starting Point: The Queens Arms, Taddington

Starting Time: 9.47am. Finishing Time: 2.30pm

And so to Taddington, a Derbyshire village 1,100 feet above sea level, that could look charming if it made the effort. It grew around farming and quarrying for limestone and lead. From 1863 to 1967 the village was served by Millers Dale railway station, some 2 miles away, which was on the Midland Railway's extension of the Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway.

Its main attractions are Five Wells, a chambered tomb topped by a cairn, and the 14th-century church, with the remains of a 7th-century Celtic cross in the churchyard.

We didn’t bother.

Notable local buildings include Taddington Manor and Marlborough House.

Fields around the settlement show evidence of both Celtic lynchett terraces, and of Mediaeval strip farming. Kinky.

What first greeted the Wanderers, however, was a pair of skinny, tight-wearing legs sticking out from the wall of the Queens Arms, meeting point, like some undernourished burglar making his escape through a ventilation shaft.

I think the members of the Tidy Village committee should have a word.

Queens Arms...and legs

We set off at 9.47am, turning right coming from the pub car park and walking up the main road.

After 120 yards we turned right onto a footpath across some fields, climbed a wall and turned right again.

Crisp and uneven

This brought us to the A6 which we crossed and went straight on.

At a crossroads of tracks we went straight on again, over a stile and down a steep embankment which Mr Davison described as a “dip” but which, if snowed over, would have tested Franz Klammer.

We went through a gate and onto a track where we turned left.

After 50 yards we went right, climbed a wall and found ourselves facing an ice covered pond.

The opportunity to revisit Mr Davison’s Jesus impression was too good to miss.

You may remember the time when the Wanderers’ answer to Evel Knievel tried to walk on ice on the canal near Marple golf club and ended up soaked.

Here he was a bit more circumspect and after an ominous cracking noise retraced his steps immediately. What a wuss.

                                                    Mr Davison walks on water…for a second or two.

We negotiated a wall and were afforded a wonderful view of a valley. Cressbrook Hall was away on our right.

We walked along a limestone wall which Mr Rooney described as “Chasing the Devil” because we were actually following a lead mine’s “vein”.

This was Millers Dale, a popular beauty spot in the Peak District of England, much of the area being preserved as a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Nearby is Ravenstor and Cheedale, both popular with rock-climbers. Just to the north of the Dale lies the village of Wormhill and the lesser known valleys of Peter Dale and Monk's Dale.

The local landmark is the viaduct, first built by the Midland Railway in 1866. Increasing traffic meant that a second viaduct parallel to the first was built in 1905, increasing the number of tracks to four.

The area is of great interest to geologists, particularly where the strata have been exposed by quarries and railway cuttings.

 In Station Quarry, which is owned by the Naturalists Trust, two layers of limestone can be seen, separated by a bed of shale. At one point there is a dip in the lower layer, possibly from a watercourse, millions of years ago. This is filled with the shale and a large limestone boulder can be seen within it. Elsewhere in the area there are signs of lava flows from long-ago volcanic activity.

Over the top

As we descended what looked like a harmless track Mr Rooney and Mr Davison were both fallers.

We went down some steps and turned right onto an old railway track.

This, indeed, was the former Buxton to Matlock line which later became the main rail route to London.

It is better known now, of course, as the Monsal Trail, about 8.5 miles (13.7 km) in length, starting at the Topley Pike junction (in Wye Dale, 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Buxton) and running  to Coombs viaduct, 1 mile (1.6 km) south-east of Bakewell.

 It follows the valley of the River Wye and runs parallel to the A6.

For many years the Trail could not trace the trackbed  as rail  tunnels had been closed for safety reasons, such as at Monsal Head and Cressbrook, meaning that the Trail was diverted.

The tunnels were walked by Julia Bradbury as part of BBC TV's Railway Walks: The Peak Express.

Many resulting access points and diversion paths were unsuitable for those using cycles or wheelchairs or with difficulty walking due to steep uneven stone steps or narrow paths.

Plans to make the tunnels safe and re-open them to the public were given the go-ahead at a cost of £3.78m and the tunnels were opened officially for use on 25 May 2011 at a ceremony at the Headstone Viaduct (they had actually been open 12 days earlier).

 As a consequence, the Trail is now virtually level (though the former diversions are still usable, if desired).

Millers Dale

Below, to the left, is the notorious Litton Mill, downstream from Millers Dale station, where orphans from major cities were abused by Ellis Needham, with the graves of many to be found in local churchyards.

Here the Wanderers split into three. The main body, led by Mr Davison, took a path on the right, over the first two tunnels.

Mr Rooney took a path to the left.

Your diarist and Mr Cunliffe decided to walk the tunnels and were afforded the sight of hundreds of ice stalactites.

                                       

                                                      Tom - That’s a long one….

The splintered groups converged about 500 yards after the second tunnel and entered the third tunnel - Headstone - as one.

Train drivers back in the day used to say when they emerged from this tunnel  (coming the other way to our walk) that they thought they were “in the Alps”.

As this was long before Judith Chalmers was born, we must assume their knowledge of the Alps was limited to picture books. But the simile is fully justified.

A few hundred yards from the third tunnel we took a path to the left following a sign which said “Little Longstone”. We reached a road and turned left, passing an expensive barn conversion on our right, to arrive at the Pack Horse (which opened in 1787, incidentally) at 12.03pm.

There was an array of guest beers, including Kipling (ABV 5.2) at £3.35, Lord Maples and Wild Swan both at £3.10, Black Sheep at £3.05 and Jaipur at an eye-watering £3.55.

We left the pub at 12.50pm, turning right and passing the rather pretty church.

Mr Fairman recreates a scene from the 1966 classic horror series Dr Terror’s House of Horrors.

                                                      

Film buffs may recall Tarot card reading oddball Peter Cushing - all scary eyebrows and German accent - foretells the fates of five rail commuters in this trend-setting horror film. While the movie never quite tops its jaw-dropping early episode in which legendary BBC Radio DJ Alan Freeman wrestles with a deadly vine with plans for world-domination, it comes close with the episode “Disembodied Hand”.

Christopher Lee is perfectly cast as a pompous, pretentious art critic, particularly fond of lambasting the work of artist Michael Gough. Subsequently he’s hounded by Gough, even after he runs him over and causes the artist to lose a hand.

We passed the Monsal Head Hotel on our left and went down some steps to our left. Lunch was declared at 1.15pm at a weir  but Cunliffe Time was observed as we set off again at 1.22pm.

                                                          Mr Davison in a rather effeminate pose

We crossed a bridge and found ourselves in the Wye Valley.

We approached the A6 again, crossed it and went straight over and up a hill following a sign saying “Taddington”.

This was a long and quite exhausting climb that took its toll on a few Wanderers.

We reached what appeared to be the top at 2.05pm only to find that a further climb was required and we swung right up a new incline to reach a road.

We walked on to a T-junction where we turned right and the outskirts of Taddington hove into view.

We reached the cars at 2.30pm, de-booted and entered the Queen’s Arms where Chatsworth Gold was £3.20 and Barnsley Bitter £3.

A sign by the fire said it all……

                                

                                                                                1765....and all that

Next week’s walk will start at The Cock, Whaley Bridge at 9.30am. The halfway point will be the Roebuck Inn at Chapel. Malc Halley will be in Corfu. Happy Wandering!

Bosley Cloud

RUSHTON SPENCER, BOSLEY CLOUD AND ENVIRONS

Distance: 9 miles

Difficulty: Moderate

Weather: Sunny

Walkers: George Whaites, George Dearsley, Pete Beal, Malc Halley, Colin Davison, Tom Cunliffe, Lawrie Fairman, Alan Hart

Apologies: Julian Ross (cycling in Belgium), Jock Rooney (Isle of Man), John Laverick (man flu), Mickey Barrett (skiing in Austria)

B Walkers: Geoff Spurrell, Tony Job, Mike Walton and Ken Sparrow

Leader: Fairman Diarist: Dearsley

Starting Point: The car park near the Knot Inn, Rushton Spencer

Starting Time: 9.35am. Finishing Time: 2.20pm

Spring is here! The first snowdrops of the year to be seen by the Wednesday Wanderers were recorded on this enjoyable walk. From snow to snowdrops in just four weeks.

                                                                   Snowdrops

We came out of the car park and walked past a building carrying a plaque which said “Ruston Station 1844”.

The railway station was built for the Leek and Macclesfield Railway and was eventually taken over by the North Staffordshire Railway. It  is now a dwelling house, of course.

I’m sure the Wanderers, like me, admired the coursed and dressed sandstone; banded and shaped tile roof; verge parapets with finials on corbelled kneelers and the circular and diamond shafted corniced stone stacks.

The poor commuters of yesteryear never had the pleasure of a cheery wave from the wide-eyed Polish Big Issue seller and the aggressive  tramp with the Tam o’ Shanter and can of cheap cider.

 We took a path on the right and then went down some steps to the left.

We crossed a stream, went over a stile, up some steps and through a wood.

A short climb was involved. This took us to Raven’s Clough.

At 10.07am we saw the snowdrops (above) and worrying also heard gunfire (just a clay pigeon shoot hopefully?).

We went over a stile on the left and Bosley Cloud hove into view.

                                                      Near the top of Bosley Cloud

Another climb was undertaken and this brought us onto a road where we turned left.

At 10.29am Mr Fairman stopped to remove a stone in his shoe, without the aid of a Swiss Army knife or anaesthetic.

We dog legged right and saw a sign which said “to Cloud Summit”

                                           View from near the top of Bosley Cloud

We duly ascended some steps and by 10.40am had reached the top of Bosley Cloud.

                     The Chief Druids discuss how best to get a sacrificial virgin on such a small altar

At 343 metres (1,125 ft) in height,Bosley Cloud is one of the highest hills in the area. Its heather-covered summit plateau is crowned by a trig point from which extensive views over Congleton, Biddulph, Macclesfield, Holmes Chapel, and the Greater Manchester area can be enjoyed.

The Cloud sits at the northern apex of a triangle formed by the broken ridge which runs along the border between Cheshire and Staffordshire and the hills stretching south through Biddulph Moor into Staffordshire. To its north, the River Dane wraps around its lower slopes whilst the A523 road runs to its east through the village of Bosley in Southeast Cheshire.

The place is linked to a phenomenon known as the double sunset ,  an extraordinary astro-geographical phenomenon, which was traditionally seen against The Cloud from the churchyard of Saint Edward the Confessor in Leek, in Staffordshire, on the summer solstice.

In clear weather, the sun sets on the summit of the hill, partially reappears from The Cloud's steep northern slope and soon afterwards sets for a second and final time on the horizon.

The occurrence was first recorded in writing in 1686 by Dr Robert Plot in his book The Natural History Of Staffordshire, and may well have been observed for centuries before then.

The spectacle is no longer visible from its traditional observation point because of tree interference, but can still be witnessed on the summer solstice from Leek: from the road to Pickwood Hall, off Milltown Way, and less well from Lowe Hill on the outskirts of the town.

Better observation sites of the phenomenon are from the A523 above Rudyard Lake, and Woodhouse Green.  Both of these events and their locations are described in detail in Jeff Kent's book The Mysterious Double Sunset.

A double Sundowner would be more appropriate for the Wanderers.

After a brief stop to admire a metal map that amazingly had not been defaced (vandals clearly haven’t the puff to get up so high)  we took a path to the left and began our descent.

At 10.49am Pie Time was declared and Mr Cunliffe asked if he could “borrow” some loo paper.

None was available but certainly no Wanderer would want it to be returned.

Mr Cunliffe duly disappeared into the undergrowth, presumably armed with either  a handful of grass or that day’s Sun newspaper.

After a full 10 minutes of gourmandising we set off again down the hill.

We went down some steps (11.15am) and followed a sign saying “Gritstone Trail”.

We reached a road and turned left, then took a path on the right.

This brought us into “Timbersbrook Picnic Area”, essentially a large car park with a seated area just about big enough to accommodate a family of four.

Clearly picnics aren’t that fashionable in Staffs.

Back in the day there used to be a bleaching a dyeing works nearby.

Workers would hurry on their break or after work to seek sustenance at a café run by a woman called Old Fanny Moss, which sounds more like a gynaecological condition.

Sadly Google could shed no more light on Fanny, although the search engine did helpfully  throw up a few interesting sites that occupied your diarist for an hour or two.

The tall chimney of the Silver Springs Bleaching and Dyeing Works at Timbersbrook could be seen for miles around before it was demolished by Blaster Bates in 1966.

Water from Timbers Brook was once used to power the silk mill and the old Mill Pool is now a locally important breeding pond for toads. 

According to a council website,  “lucky” walkers might even see a Kingfisher or Heron silently waiting by the waters edge ready to pounce on any unsuspecting fish they spot. Sadly our luck was out.

Within a few hundred yards, however, we did spy a peacock, adorning a very sumptuous abode, as we turned right out of the car park.

Peacock

What kind of person keeps a peacock on their front lawn (done in a Lloyd Grossman voice) ?

We went left onto the Gritstone Trail, through a kissing-gate and across a field.

This, at 11.55am, brought as to the “half way point” the Coach and Horses, not the Waggon and Horses as Mr Fairman had forecast. A moot point.

Unicorn and Dizzy Blonde, both £3, were on good form.

Mr Cunliffe tucked into his obligatory plate of chips.

Tom's chips

We set off at 1.38pm, going out of the pub and straight over the road.

We turned left and then right into Cherry Lane.

Within a minute we were approaching Llamaland a large house and surrounding fields featuring dozens of inquisitive llamas and other creatures.

As every schoolboy knows, llamas are members of the South American camelid family and are mostly found in the high altiplano regions of the Andes in Peru, Bolivia and Chile.

They are the domesticated cousin of the wild guanaco and are extensively used by the Andean people and in the past by the Incas, as beasts of burden, for food, for fibre and their hides used as leather.

The British Llama Society has been set up to promote all aspects of llama and Guanaco ownership - good husbandry, breeding, trekking, driving, showing and much more. It publishes a quarterly magazine, Llama Llink, a magazine that surely has been featured on Have I Got News For You.

We then past Overton Hall. We joined a road that came in from the left and after a few hundred yards went left over a stile.

We went up a narrow path with prickly leaves to our left. At 1.03pm lunch was declared.

We set off again at 1.11pm carrying on a straight line past Flowery Fields Farm.

We reached a road and turned right. This was Pines Lane. At a T-junction we turned left. We passed Green Meadows Farm. We crossed a muddy field and onto a road where we turned right.

We passed Deepdale House and took a path on the right (1.50pm).

We crossed a field, reached a road and went straight on.

This brought us to St Lawrence Church, Rushton.

                                           There is a whiff of Midsomer Murders here.

The grave of Thomas Meakin, who was buried in 1781, is the only one in the churchyard facing east.  Thomas, a groom, was in love with his master's (an apothecary) daughter.

The old man did not approve  and eyebrows were raised when  Thomas suddenly died and was hurriedly buried (in Stone, Staffs).

His favourite pony kept returning to his grave and pawing the ground. When his worried friends finally exhumed the body they found him lying face down.

Had he been poisoned and buried alive? The apothecary had the motive and the means. Sadly John Nettles was not around. After that, Thomas’s family brought his remains back to Rushton they were reburied at St Lawrence's.

We went over a railway bridge, dropped down a slope and turned right to go under the bridge we had just crossed. At 2.20pm we were back at the cars.

After de-booting we drove to the Old Kings Head at Gurnett, where Speckled Hen and Tim Taylor’s Landlord were both £3.20 and Banks’ was £3.

Old Speckled Hen, an English ale from the Morland Brewery, now owned by Greene King Brewery, took its name from an MG car which was used as a runaround for workers in the MG factory.

It was first brewed in 1979 in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the MG car factory there.  Since 2000, when Greene King bought Morland and closed down the Abingdon brewery, it has been made in Greene King's Bury St Edmunds brewery.

 It is available in more than twenty different countries in bottles, cans and on tap from cask and keg. The brand has been expanded to include Old Crafty Hen, a 6.5% abv ale and Old Golden Hen, a golden coloured 4.1% beer.

B walkers Ken Sparrow, Geoff Spurrell, Tony Job and Mike Walton completed a strenuous route of seven miles from the Knot Inn around the Dane Valley, calling en route at the Ship Inn in Dane Bridge. The last three named joined the A-team at the King's Head.

I have been instructed to record that Ivor Jones has a new rescue dog, Sid, 7, replacing the much-loved Brandy who passed away in January.

Next week’s walk will start at 9.45am from the Queen’s Arms at Taddington.

(Hit Control and click on the link below)

http://www.queensarmstaddington.com/

The half way point will be the Packhorse at Little Longstone.

http://www.packhorselongstone.co.uk/

Mr Beal will be in the Lakes. Happy Wandering!