Memories of Other Walks

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I haven't been out much these past few weeks, a small health problem (happily now sorted) and a knee injury keeping me confined to barracks. So I thought I'd drag out a few pictures to share with you that bring back memories of other walks.

Some friends of mine live in the village of Repton on the outskirts of Derby, and when I go and visit them we sometimes drive over to the nearby village of Willaston to take a stroll along the Trent and Derby Canal. This picture shows one of the many long barges that frequent this stretch of the canal.

This picture was taken on the first country walk I went on after I had heart surgery in 2003. I went to visit a friend of mine in the small town of Mossley, and she took me for a delightful stroll around Dovestones Reservoir.


This is another picture of the reservoir, this time from close by the headquarters of the sailing club. Although the weather was threatening rain for most of the walk it didn't detract from the enjoyment of such lovely scenery. It was this walk that sparked my love of country walking, I only wish I had done it much sooner in my life.


This picture shows a local feature that is known as either the Pigeon Tower or Dove Tower. The Tower sits at the north-western edge of the Oriental Gardens, and was built by Lord Leverhulme as part of his large estate It originally had three stories, with the top room being Lady Lever's sewing room and the lower two levels housing ornamental doves and pigeons. Whilst structurally sound following renovation work in Spring 2006, the property has not been inhabited for many years.


This picture is from one of my facourite walks in Derbyshire, and is a view of Chrome Hill. On my first visit to this area I had a delightful walk around Chrome Hill, starting and finishing in the village of Longnor. It wasn't until my third visit that I finally climbed to the top of the hill to take in the terrific panormic view. It seems that, about 60 million years ago, Chrome Hill and some of the neighbouring hills were part of a coral reef in a shallow sea.


And here is a picture from another of my favourite Derbyshire walks, this time showing a view of the Great Ridge that separates the Edale valley from the Hope Valley. My usual starting point for this walk is Castleton, then via the footpaths past Mam Nick to reach the start of the Great Ridge at Man Tor. From there it is an excellent walk along the ridge to Lose Hill whilst taking in the great panoramic views before dropping back down to Castleton.


This picture is of a local landmark known as Waterman's Cottage, and is on the banks of Anglezarke Reservoir. There are many walks in this area that will take you past the cottage, one of which is featured elsewhere in this blog.


I came across this old barn during an eight mile circular walk in the Trough of Bowland area. I got the walk from an excellent book called "Walks in the Forest of Bowland" by Jack Keighley and published by Cicerone Press. The walk begins in the village of Abbeystead and travels via mainly pathless pastures, taking in the tiny hamlet of Tarnbrook.