Little Hayfield

April 8, 2015.

LITTLE HAYFIELD, PARK HALL WOODS, MIDDLE MOOR, CARR MEADOW, KNARRS FARM, KINGS CLOUGH HEAD FARM, LOWER MATLEY MOOR FARM, LITTLE MILL INN AT ROWARTH, HEXT FARM, AND THE LANTERN PIKE INN AT LITTLE HAYFIELD

Distance: 8-9 miles.

Difficulty: Easy.

Weather: Blue skies and sunshine.

Walkers: Steve Courtney, Tom Cunliffe, Colin Davison, Alan Hart, John Jones and George Whaites.

Apologies: Mickey Barrett (recovering from foot operation), Peter Beal (hols in Catalonia), George Dearsley (in Turkey), Lawrie Fairman (hols in Florida), Geoff Spurrell (recovering from replacementhip replacement operation).

Leader: Cunliffe. Diarist: Hart.

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

Starting time: 9.40am. Finishing time: 2.02pm.

Spring had well and truly sprung for this outing which took place in warm, sunny weather. This was in sharp contrast to the wet, cold and windy conditions a week ago when Colin led a walk of three wanderers on April Fools Day.

Before we started there were encouraging medical bulletins on two of our wounded comrades, Mickey and Geoff, who are making good recoveries from injuries which have rendered them hors de combat for many months.

Mickey had an operation to remove gronoids from his foot two weeks ago. The stitches have been removed enabling him to drive and he expects to be able to walk with us again later this month. Geoff suffered from an infection during his hip replacement operation last year which was finally diagnosed last month. Earlier this week he had the infected replacement replaced and is now back on the road to recovery although it may be several months before he can enjoy long walks.

They missed a great day for walking under the guidance of trainee leader Tom, who would have earned a perfect score and been a shoe-in for his leader’s badge if he hadn’t got us to the half-way pub six minutes before it opened. We must put this minor error down to lack of experience and no doubt he will receive counselling from his former metallurgy mentor, Lawrie, when the latter returns from foreign parts.

On the nature front, we also some entertaining sights, watching three crows gang up on a hunting buzzard, which appeared to have killed a grouse, and being serenaded by a robin at Pietime. We alsospotted rabbits and passed a flock of sheep where one of the ewes had just given birth to a lamb.

With the daffodils still in full bloom, there is surely no finer sight than a spring lamb – especially when served with a sprig of rosemary accompanied by new potatoes, garden peas and a portion of mint sauce.

To celebrate the warm weather two of our walkers were wearing shorts for the first time in 2015. Steve and Colin may have had cause to regret that decision as Tom led them through prickly undergrowth on Middle Moor, but a health and safety inspection revealed nothing worse than surface scratches.

From the pub we turned right and crossed the road to enter Park Hall Woods (3mins). By following the path uphill we passed through the gate to access Middle Moor (9mins) and continue the climb. When we reached the path across (21mins) we turned left towards the distinctive white shooting lodge.

Just before we reached the lodge we turned left to follow a sign for Glossop via Carr Meadow (29mins). This took us over a wooden footbridge (56mins) which brought us into Carr Meadow. We turned right with the main road visible on our left. Ahead we saw a large buzzard gliding and occasionally hovering as it looked for its prey.

This display brought out a crow which tried in vain to interfere. The crow went back for reinforcements and with two of his pals appeared to have driven the buzzard away. Later, though, we saw the buzzard fly away from the moor, dropping two grouse feathers behind as it disappeared into the distance.

When we reached a wooden stile on our left (72mins) we crossed it and went over the main road to follow the road uphill in the direction of Charlesworth. We ignored the first footpath on the left and took a second opposite a farmhouse(77mins). At a grassy bank we stopped for pies and port (79mins) as a chirpy robin, full of the joys of spring, sang to us from a telegraph wire.

Continuing we went to the right of a farmhouse and crossed a stile to follow a wooden public footpath sign (85mins). After crossing a stone step stile (89mins) we turned left downhill, went over a wooden stile and through a metal gate to reach a road (92mins).

Here we turned left, passing Kings Clough Head Farm on our right (102mins) and passing Lower Matley Moor Farm on our left (104mins) before crossing a stile to follow a footpath straight ahead. The path took us through a wooden gate and across a stream (107mins). Twenty yards beyond the stream we took a left fork and crossed the stream again by a ford (114mins).

Following a wooden stile on our left, we went through a wooden gate with the stream now on our left. We reached the end of a row of cottages and turned left at a red phone box before turning right along a path just past a stone commemorating a Sunday school for all denominations built in 1824 (117mins).

As we descended a rocky path we passed on our right a cottage which appeared to be stuck in a time warp. Outside was a rusting Fordson pick-up van.

The Fordson E83W, sold later under the Thames brand, was a 10cwt light commercial vehicle built by Fords at Dagenham between 1938-57. It was powered by an 1172cc 10hp side-valve engine with a three-speed gearbox. Reaching a top speed around 40pmh, it is not expected to feature on Top Gear, with or without Jeremy Clarkson, any time soon.

According to Wikapedia, a Fordson with a wooden back pick-up was used by the president of Uruguay, Tabare Vazquez, during his ascension parade on March 1, 2015.

At the foot of this stony track we reached the Little Mill Inn at Rowarth (122mins) at 11.54am. Our premature arrival gave us time to study the giant, and now stationary, water-wheel outside the pub. We are indebted to John for eliciting the information that the wheel has been repaired twice since it changed ownership in 2007 at a total cost of £3,000.

Its third breakdown occurred when it was running too quickly under a heavy flow of water and a spoke came loose and dislodged the wheel’s housing. They hope to repair it again at the end of summer.

When the pub opened shortly after noon, we were able to enjoy excellent pints of Banks’ bitter at £2-85 in the sun-soaked beer garden by the front door.

Resuming our walk, we turned right uphill, passing a farmhouse on our right before following a rocky path ahead (127mins). When the path swung right and levelled out we paused for lunch on another grassy bank with a pleasant view across the valley (132mins).

Continuing, we reached a T-junction where we turned left (159mins), passing Hext Farm on our left (161mins) and ignored two opportunities to turn left and head for the peak of the Lantern Pike. Instead we continued our descent until we reached a track on our left with a row of cottages (169mins).

We turned left here, observing on our right a meadow full of expectant ewes, of which one had just given birth. The path took us past the end of the Giggle Gaggle Way, which emerged from our right, and at a fork we turned right to continue downhill to apartments at the former Clough Mill (184mins). We were soon back at The Lantern Pike Inn car park to de-boot and enjoy Tom’s hospitality of generous portions of chip butties.

The Timothy Taylor Landlord was as always in pristine condition at £3-50 (Motto: reassuringly expensive; why pay less ?).

Next week’s walk will start from the car park of The Quiet Woman at Earl Sterndale, Derbyshire, at 9.55am. We intend to stop for a bracer at The Pack Horse in Crowdecote in the Upper Dove Dale Valley around 12.15pm, finishing back at The Quiet Woman at about 2.30pm.

Happy wandering !