Topley Pike

February 20,  2019.

TOPLEY PIKE, WYE VALLEY MONSAL TRAIL, BLACKWELL MILL, CHEEDALE, CHEE TOR, BLACKWELL HALL FARM, FIVE WELLS FARM, BANK PIT SPRING (ILLY WILLY WATER), THE CHURCH INN AT CHELMORTON, SHEPLEY FARM, DEEP DALE, TOPLEY PIKE QUARRY

Distance: 8 miles.

Difficulty: Moderate with one strenuous climb.

Weather: Mainly cloudy and dry.

Walkers: Alastair Cairns, Tom Cunliffe with Daisy, Alan Duckworth, Alan Hart, John Jones, Chris Owen and George Whaites.

Invalid walkers: Colin Davison and Lawrie Fairman.

Apologies: Mickey Barrett (Antipodean hols) ,Peter Beal (walking in Lake District), George Dearsley (in Turkey), Mark Gibby (frozen shoulder), Hughie Hardiman (filial duties), Julian Ross (celebrating birthday with wife)

Leader: Cunliffe. Diarist: Hart.

Starting point: Lay-by next to entrance to Topley Pike Quarry, three miles south east of Buxton.

Starting time: 9.50am. Finishing time: 2.33pm.

Forecasts of rain failed to materialise so The Magnificent Seven who turned out for this walk were rewarded with some spectacular views in ideal weather conditions. Overnight rain had left a film of water on top of the limestone rocks strewn along the pathways and a heightened sense of vigilance prevailed after an early faller.

Chris slipped on a highly polished step as we walked along the Wye Valley and was saved from serious injury by his rucksack, which broke the fall. This alerted us all to the perils and the only other victim was George, who, while carefully checking where he was putting his feet, banged his head on an overhanging rock. It is hard not to laugh at such misfortunes and we must all try harder.

My apologies to those who read last week’s report and looked forward to helping Julian to celebrate his birthday during this one. Inexplicably he chose to spend the day with his wife Dee instead of his real friends. Nonetheless we wish him many happy returns.

The good news is that next week Terry Jowett is celebrating his imminent birthday by laying on chilli, rice and chips at Poynton Sports Club at the end of the walk. He has asked me to invite all Wednesday Wanderers to join him for the meal at 2.30pm.

On arrival at one of our favourite pubs for a livener, we were joined at The Church Inn, Chelmorton, by our wounded comrades, Colin and Lawrie, who had arrived by a different route from Taddington and Flash. This account, following the directions of our hike on July 18 last year, covers the journey of the larger main group.

From the Topley Pike Quarry lay-by we crossed the A6 and turned right through the Wyedale Monsal Trail car park to reach the right bank of the River Wye.

The Monsal Trail was formed from a section of the Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway, built by Midlands Railway in 1863 to link Manchester with London. It closed in 1968 but 8.5 miles of the track were reopened in 1981 for use by hikers, cyclists and horse-riders.

It starts at Topley Pike junction in Wye Dale and runs to Coombs Viaduct one mile south-east of Bakewell. It follows the Wye Valley through Blackwell Mill, Millers Dale, Cressbrook, Monsal Dale, Great Longstone, Hassop and Bakwell, using six tunnels.

After passing the Blackwell Mill Cycle Hire shop on our right we crossed a footbridge over the Wye following a Pennine Bridleway sign for Wormhill (15mins) and turned right along a path into Chee Dale with the Wye on our right. After Chris had his stumble, leaving him shaken but not stirred, George suffered a bang on the head as we crossed a row of stepping stones next to a cliff wall.

Wednesday Wanderers shrug off these misfortunes and we continued along the path, at one point crossing a wooden footbridge to the right bank (40mins) and then crossing another back to the left (42mins). A third wooden footbridge on our right took us across a tributary of the Wye (58mins) and we reached another footbridge with a wooden footpath sign pointing across it to Blackwell (70mins). Here we paused for pies, port and damson wine kindly provided by Chris.

After crossing the footbridge on our right we began a long ascent of Chee Tor, once an Iron Age fortress with commanding views over two valleys. After stopping to admire the views and catch our collective breath we turned left at the drystone wall ahead of us until we reached a five-barred wooden gate (86mins).

We turned right through this and headed for the right corner of a field before turning right and then left through a seven-barred metal gate (94mins). Yellow arrows guided us along a lane through Blackwell Hall Farm  (101mins) and we swung left beyond the farm to reach a main road (104mins)

Crossing this we were following a sign for Priestcliffe and Taddington until we reached a stone step stile and a wooden public footpath sign on our right (106mins). We crossed the stile and walked through a field until we reached a main road (113mins)

We went straight on over a stone step stile to enter a spinney with a path alongside a drystone wall on our left. We exited the copse by another stone step stile (114mins) and proceeded through a field which we left via a stone step stile to reach a farm track (120mins). We followed the track right until we reached a path on our right just before a metal gate.

The path led us through Five Wells Farm (131mins) beyond which we swung left along a lane. At the end of this track we dog-legged left and right to follow a wooden public footpath sign for Chelmorton (135mins). This led us down to Bank Pit Spring on our right (144mins), which a plaque informed us was known locally in bygone days as Illy Willy Water.

In the past it has been impossible to find a volunteer to taste the water to seek an explanation for its unusual name. But on this occasion Corporal Jones sprang forward and declared it to be delicious. We look forward to his report of any symptoms next week if he is still with us.

Fifty yards beyond the spring we reached The Church Inn at Chelmorton on our right (145mins) where we enjoyed a selection of cask beers including Marstons’ Pedigree which were priced from £3-40 to £3-70 a pint. Tom was outraged to discover that the sign awarding the pub the Wednesday Wanderers’ seal of approval had been removed from the premises.

On leaving the pub we turned right and after 50 yards turned right towards Shepley Farm. However the disappearance of a wooden public footpath sign which used to indicate the way caused some confusion, followed by to-ing and fro-ing which added some ten minutes to our journey time.

Once we had established we were heading the right way the route back was straightforward: a straight line – apart from a dog-leg right and left (169mins) - through fields and gates and over stiles. We paused for lunch by the side of a drystone wall (178mins) before crossing a wooden stile prior to the steep descent into Deep Dale (186mins)

When we reached level ground we were walking along a path to the right of the fenced off quarry and reached our cars (199mins). Nobody seemed interested in having a final pint at Wetherspoons in Buxton as planned.

Next week’s walk will start at 9.30am from Poynton Sports Club car park. Because there is considerable doubt about the opening hours of The Boar’s Head at Higher Poynton, we will be heading to The Miners Arms at Lane Ends, Adlington, to knock the froth off a couple around 12.15pm before returning to the club at about 2.15pm.

Happy wandering !