Disley

July 8, 2015.

DISLEY, BOLLINHURST RESERVOIR, DRAKE CARR COTTAGE, MILLENIUM WOOD,BLACK ROCKS, MUDHURST LANE, PEAR TREE COTTAGE, SWIZZELS MATLOW FACTORY AT NEW MILLS, HAGUE BAR MEADOWS, THE FOX AT BROOK BOTTOM, STRINES STATION, PEAK FOREST CANAL, THE WHITE HORSE AT DISLEY

Distance: 9 miles.

Difficulty: Easy.

Weather: Cloudy with frequent light showers.

Walkers: Colin Davison, Lawrie Fairman, Mark Gibby, Alan Hart, Julian Ross and George Whaites.

B walkers: Tony Job and Geoff Spurrell.

Apologies: Mickey Barrett (sailing), Peter Beal (narrow-boating), Tom Cunliffe (running pub while wife skives off on holiday), George Dearsley (in Turkey), Jock Rooney (domestic duties).

Leader and diarist: Hart.

Starting point: Car park of The White Horse at Disley.

Starting time: 9.23am. Finishing time: 1.58pm.

A prompt start and a fast pace meant we were in severe danger of arriving at our first watering hole before the pub opened. But in a dazzling display of flexibility, ingenuity and downright luck we were able to arrive at the appointed hostelry with split-second precision as its doors opened.

Only the weather disappointed as the forecasts of mainly dry with occasional showers proved in reality to be mainly showers with the odd dry spells before lunch. After our break there was little rain but it remained a dull day apart from the sparkling company.

We were pleased to welcome Mark back into the fold as his previous trek with the Wednesday Wanderers had involved getting lost on the moors with Tom and Steve on a walk which lasted six hours and 15 miles. The gruelling experience had clearly not frightened him off and we hope that a modest nine miles is not too short for him.

From the pub car park we turned right uphill along Ring O’ Bells Lane until we reached the Quaker Meeting House, which used to be the Ring O’ Bells pub with the inn sign on the wall still remaining. In front of the sign we turned right over a bridge across a stream and headed uphill with the cemetery of St Mary’s Church on our right.

We turned diagonally left along a path, reached a track and crossed a stile to go diagonally right through a field, aiming towards the distinctive landmark of Lyme Cage atop a hill within Lyme Park in the middle distance. We exited the field by another wooden stile and now headed along a farm track with Lyme Cage on our right.

Just before the farm we turned left at a footpath sign (14mins) and headed uphill with Bollinhurst Reservoir on our right. We skirted the reservoir until we reached a wooden stile on our right leading into a wood. This brought us out at a lane where we crossed The Gritstone Trail and headed for Drake Carr Cottage (29mins).

Just before the cottage on our right, we turned left into Millenium Wood and followed the path until we exited at the road out of Disley. We turned right for 200 yards and then turned left at a wooden public footpath sign by the side of a holly bush.

At this stage Lawrie, taking advantage of your diarist stopping to put on waterproof pants, seized the lead and led his meek followers on a low route avoiding Black Rocks. The ostensible leader, plus Mark, took the route to the ridge at the top of Black Rocks (53mins) from where, on a clear day, you can see beyond Lyme Cage to the distant shapes of the Welsh mountains. On this occasion we could just make out Lawrie’s party some 200 yards below us.

The dynamic duo turned left along the ridge, crossed a ladder stile and caught up with the second- raters just before we passed The Owls’ Nest, Manchester Grammar School’s outward bound centre, on our left. Instead of proceeding on our normal route through a farmyard and a path alongside Byrom House, we turned left through a field which exited via a gate on to Mudhurst Lane.

At the end of the lane we turned right and then left along a gravel track downhill (72mins). This took us past Pear Tree Cottage on our left. Just beyond a recently-renovated building on our left we turned right at a wooden public footpath sign (79mins), fearing that the direct route ahead would result in us reaching the pub too soon. We did not want to come prematurely.

The path led us through fields until we reached a pair of wooden footbridges (86mins). Just before them we turned left at a green public footpath sign and continued downhill until we reached the A6 (95mins). The boarded-up Swan Inn was 30 yards to our right. We crossed the road, turned right and then turned left at the traffic lights.

Before we reached the Swizzels Matlow factory, the aroma from its products, especially Love Hearts and Parma Violets, brought back youthful memories.

The confectionery manufacturer now employs more than 600 people and has a turnover exceeding £50 million a year. It started life more modestly as a stall on Hackney Market, London, in the 1920s run by brothers Maurice and Alfred Matlow.

They merged with a business rival, David Dee (who has no connections with Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Titch), in 1933 and expanded. But in 1940 the Blitz forced them to relocate to New Mills at the disused Albion Mill, built in 1856, as a wick factory.

They started making parma violets in 1946 and love hearts in 1954. The firm became Swizzels Matlow in 1975. Their most popular product today is “New Refreshers.”

We swung left around the factory and spotted a BMX track with two convenient benches in a playground on our right where we stopped for port and pies (106mins).

Resuming, we crossed the River Goyt by a long wooden footbridge (113mins) and turned left to walk through Hague Bar Meadows (122mins). This led us to steep steps on our right (126mins) which we climbed and turned left at a building site. This soon brought us to a road where we turned right (129mins). This took us over a railway bridge to a main road which we crossed and headed up Hague Fold Road.

After a steep climb we emerged at a T-junction by the side of a memorial bench to Eric Burdekin (141mins). We turned left, passing the bench and soon arrived at The Fox at Brook Bottom (143mins), whose doors had just opened. Pints of Robbies’ Unicorn or the pub’s own Fox cask bitter were enjoyed at £3-05.

Continuing, we retraced our footsteps for 20 yards then turned right down a rocky path which passed Strines Station on our left (155mins), then Strines Hall and its revamped lake on our right. In a field on our left there was a picnic table where we stopped for lunch (161mins). On our resumption we crossed Strines Road (163mins) and turned left at a wooden stile before reaching a canal bridge (170mins). This short path brought us to the Peak Forest Canal (171mins) where we turned left with the canal on our right.

We turned right over Higgins Clough Bridge (189mins) and reached the A6 by the left side of The Dandy Cock (196mins). We crossed the road, turned right,then left at the traffic lights to bring us to the White Horse and its car park (199mins).

After de-booting we enjoyed a friendly welcome from the barmaid and pints of excellent Robbies’cask bitter at £3. We joined B walkers Tony Job and Geoff Spurrell, who had arrived just before us.

Next week’s walk will start from opposite the Crewe and Harper pub at Longnor, Derbyshire, at 9.55am. We anticipate having drinks at one of the pubs in Hartington around 12.15pm and returning to Longnor around 2.20pm to find out whether any of their pubs are open at lunchtimes this summer.If not, we will find another hostelry deserving of our trade.

Happy wandering !