Wentworth...Hoober.

29/04/2018.

I like to get up early and get out...This morning I opened one eye,blinked, opened the other eye,looked at the clock...Damn its 8.30. Decided to stay local.
We drove to Wentworth for a walk we have done dozens of times, a bit of a South Yorkshire favourite. Parked up at Holy trinity church, a fine old church with a huge spire, a spire that is visible for miles around. A spire that will always be popping up in views during this mornings walk.

We set off across the fields towards Elsecar, a bit muddy underfoot, lets hope everywhere drys out soon. I noticed that the fields of Oil seed rape are beginning to colour up nicely, I love to see these fields of Yellow every April/May.

Before we reached Elsecar i decided to change the route to take in Kings wood as I had a feeling that there would be a carpet of Bluebells covering the ground..i wasn't disappointed, we were greeted and treated to quite a display. Apparently half of the worlds Bluebells can be found in the UK. So lucky to be able to see these beauties each spring.

A steady climb from the woods and we were up on the broad ridge that separates Wentworth from the Dearne valley. Several people along here, excellent views along here too, After awhile we passed the Needles eye, one of several follies built around the Wentworth woodhouse estate. Legend has it that Earl Fitzwilliam built the structure as the result of a wager that he could drive his horse and carriage through the eye of a needle...It is also said to be the site of a death by firing squad, there are several pockmarks in the stone said to have come from Musket shot.

We picked up a lane to pass through the small hamlet of Street, some lovely old cottages along here.

Before long we found our way up to Hoober stand,a 98ft pyramidical tower that stands on the highest ground in the borough of Rotherham. It was built to commemorate the quashing of the Jacobite rebellion in 1745. I remember climbing the steps to the top a few years ago to see the fantastic long range views...It was closed today but I believe it is open to the public on Sunday afternoons throughout the summer months..Well worth a look.

Downhill to the village from here. Some lovely walks around these parts, often overlooked. In fact most of South Yorkshire is overlooked by walkers as it is rushed through by folk heading for the Peak district. The boroughs of Sheffield, Barnsley, Rotherham and Doncaster all have some beautiful places to walk.

Back at Wentworth we decided to go to have a look at the big house, When I say big house, I mean huge, massive house...in fact Wentworth woodhouse is one of the largest houses in the whole of Europe. Its quite a spectacle, After years of neglect I believe it has quite recently been bought for something like 7 Million pound and is being restored to its former glory. I understand that they have started house tours and the gardens are soon due to open to the public ....all good news.

We walked back to the car along the main street, The blue and yellow Yorkshire bunting was out in preparation for the Tour de Yorkshire which is due to pass through here in a few days time. I enjoyed todays little walk,.

Peak forest...Peak district boundary walk.

22/04/2018

Time for another walk, we chose to knock a few more miles off the Peak district boundary walk today. We found a quiet spot in Peak forest to park the car and set off .Quite warm, wish I had put my shorts on. It's been 3 weeks now since we set foot on the Pdbw, where does the time go, 3 weeks but it only seems like yesterday. We rounded the corner onto the main road and were greeted by a shocking scene, some numbskull has ripped all the Daffodils up, why would somebody do this?

We crossed many fields today through lovely Limestone White peak scenery, many fields mean many stiles...Squeezer stiles..Stone step stiles and Ladder stiles. we slowly made our way over them with no trouble. Alfie [our dog] on the other hand found them a real struggle and we had to lift him over many of them. He's nearly 11 now so jumping too high is beginning to become a hard task..years ago he would have leapt over these walls without hardly touching them.
Quite warm today with hazy sunshine but before we knew it the sky became grey and sullen..i do hope it doesn't rain. The good thing about the PDBW is that it will take us to many places that we have never walked before, this is certainly true for todays walk as the whole route was on new footpaths to us. I like to visit new places but I find that I spend half the time looking at the map, checking that we are going the right way.Stopping to take time to look around from time to time..i enjoyed the view of Eldon hill and a distant Mam tor from here.

The fields were filled with sheep and lambs. Some right little characters. Mainly Texal sheep a big thickset sheep that I always think are ugly critters. I think they are originally from The Netherlands.At Bolt edge we saw a change in the landscape as we left the White peak, we had entered the dark peak. From Limestone to Gritstone.Ahead lies a more barren landscape, wild moorland, higher hills, a mouth watering prospect...A long decent now towards Chapel en le frith although thankfully the route does not enter the town. It was raining now so the waterproofs came out of the rucksack [why are they always at the bottom?]...We passed through the pleasant little hamlet of Blackbrook.

In the next mile or so we passed over a couple of roads, we were on the lookout for somewhere to park up next time. A place called Slackhall looked our only option. So with a parking space sorted we now needed to retrace our steps back to Peak forest. The weather was clearing from the west beyond Eccles pike.

We had a spot of lunch beside a stream near Blackbrook...Sausage[vegetarian] sandwiches, Marmite crisps,fruitcake washed down with Green tea..boy that chunk of fruitcake tasted good...walking back was good, the map went into the rucksack, time to relax, take it easy.Back on the path to Bolt edge we looked back to the country we would be walking on our next visit. Ahead lies South head, one of my favourite hills then it was downhill to Hayfield, but that will be next time. no hurry. I think we have done about 16 miles of the route so far, so that leaves about 174 miles...I'm enjoying the walk too much to hurry it.

Back to Bolt edge we had to drop down through an area of Gorse bushes, I remember thinking how glad I hadn't put my shorts on. A sharp down then a stiff pull up and we were passing through Middle Barmoor farm. 2 dogs ran out to greet us, barking wildly "oh no here we go" I thought but they turned out to be the most friendly dogs I have ever met. The farmer came out, a Sgt Bilko lookalike. Don't worry about them he said they will lick you to death. He sat on the ground talking to Alfie [who just ignored him]. He said they didn't get many walkers passing through here, we had a chat and all the while he sat on the ground, i remember thinking how strange it was to be talking to someone while they sat on the ground...Anyway his dogs licked our faces one more time and we were on our way. Friendly man, friendlier dogs..if every one was this laidback the world would be a much better place.

Nearly back now...we decided to follow the road back for half a mile or so to avoid some of those stiles..only 10.8 miles but my feet don't half ache...I'm thinking a soak then a few beers...perfect day.

Lincolnshire Wolds... Caister and Nettleton

15/04/2018.

The route for todays walk was taken from the April edition of Country walking magazine, a magazine that I like to dip into from time to time. Not been to the Lincolnshire wolds for quite a while, so I was looking forward to todays walk.We found the car park behind the Town hall, Caister is a cracking little market town with Roman roots, perched on the western escarpment of the wolds. The name Caister is derived from the latin 'Castra' meaning fortified camp. The Romans were probably drawn to the area by its abundant natural springs. We dropped down steeply on an attractive tunnelled footpath to cross the first stream, we instantly noticed how hilly it was around here,as the steep decent 'got' our legs. A beautifully clear stream that was lined with Marsh Marigolds known by some as Kingcup...My obsession with wildflowers kicked in having to take a photograph or two.

The start of this walk skirts around the Eastern side of Caister, pleasant enough but nothing too exciting. A bit of a misty start today, but I'm sure it will clear to leave another nice day. The weather of late has been dire, but with two nice days under our belts, spring is beginning to break out into a canter...Lovely views across the misty meadows toward the village of Nettleton. We were lucky enough to see a Roe deer sharing the pastures with the sheep, she took off before I had the chance to get a snap of her.

We passed through the village of Nettleton. The Salutation pub and The Dunn deal tearooms both being shut..too early for a drink anyway. Theres an old story/ tradition from Nettleton in which on Boxing day locals would bang on the doors and play practical jokes on water drinkers [teetotallers] the tradition comes from an 18th century story in which a Nettleton resident Thomas Stickler, who had declined alcohol for 20 years, became inebriated one Christmas day after drinking half a pint of ale...I'm not sure I believe such stories....I mean who gets pissed on half a pint of ale?..Enjoyed the walk through the village.The church of St John the Baptist being the highlight.

Leaving the village via the Viking way, a 147 mile route around Lincolnshire and Rutland. We entered the valley of Nettleton beck by Nettleton grange. a footpath rules sign along here made me smile, a lengthy list of do nots...from throwing dogs in the pond to fornicating in the crops...from parking your Zimmer frame to urinating in farm buildings, nice to see some people have a wicked sense of humour...or maybe they are serious.

We enjoyed the walk up the valley but two things spoilt it a bit for me 1.The mud and 2.Motorbikes, probably about 100 of them, making a noise, making more mud. I know the countryside is for all to enjoy, just gets my goat when they have to do it in an area of outstanding natural beauty.

A steady climb and we were out of the valley. The highest point in Lincolnshire lies nearby marked by a trig point at Normanby le wold...standing at 551 feet above sea level, its no Scafell pike but it goes to show that Lincolnshire is not as flat as most people imagine....Along the high lane now all the way back to Nettleton, when roads are this quiet they are a pleasure to walk. Some nice long range views from up there, still a bit misty though today. Never mind.

We retraced our steps through the village before following the path network back to Caister to end an enjoyable 8.5 mile walk. A real pleasure.

Drakeholes....Chesterfield canal and a village on a hill.

08/04/2018.

Thought we would give the Peak district a miss this week and stay reasonable local, We opted for a quick hop across the border into Nottinghamshire for todays walk....Its an area I return to again and again for a walk, in fact you could say I am often tied up in Notts. Drakeholes is a great place to start a walk along the Chesterfield canal. A few years back I walked the whole of the Chesterfield canal from West Stockwith to Chesterfield via Worksop and Retford....A 74 miles long route that is known as the Cuckoo way. I have always loved canal walks. I have often watched Kingfishers along here,none about today although I was treated to a good sighting of my favourite little songbird, the Blackcap, I could listen to these little warblers all day.

As we rounded the corner in the picture above we saw a women paddling awkwardly towards us on a Paddle board. She was going nowhere fast, "looks fun" I shouted to her, she explained that she was just practicing and that it was her first day out on it...Don't think I would be much good on one of these, but a kayak that would be different, I fancy the idea of getting a Kayak. Lazy summer afternoons along the canals, stopping off at various taverns along route....ahh I can see it now.

After a couple of gentle miles along the towpath we branched off into the village of Clayworth. We passed St Peters church, It looks like any other 12th century church from the outside,but walk inside and a real treat awaits for St Peters is home to the beautiful Traquair murals. All four walls of the church are covered in wonderful painted scenes...I wish I had a photograph of them to add here.

Leaving the village we walked through typical North Notts countryside, no breathtaking views,just lovely countryside...Whats not to like, the lane verges and woods are coming alive with wildflowers at the moment..Primroses, Dog violets, Wood anemonies and Lesser Celadine all brightening the scene..We took our time....Hurry is for slaves. Hurry breeds worry. Worry ruins health and happiness. Hurry is the poison of the age...So lets all slow down.

Uphill now [why am I wearing this jacket] to the village of Gringley on the hill. Its a nice place sitting on the highest ground around these parts, midway between Bawtry and Gainsborough. It has many lovely houses along its streets.

Back downhill now to rejoin the Chesterfield canal. I cannot pass the cottage by Gringley lock without taking a photograph. I'm sure everyone has places like this where they reach for the camera. Imagine how peaceful it must be to live here.

So that leaves a couple of miles back along the canal to Drakeholes.It had been a nice 7.5 mile walk perfect for a sunday morning..

Drakeholes tunnel.

Primroses.

Wormhill- Peak forest.

The Peak district boundary walk.

01/04/2018

This weekends walk started from the sleepy little village of Wormhill, sitting amid beautiful white peak scenery above Millers dale. Its a laidback sort of place, so quiet nothing much ever happens. A dog may bark,a tractor drives past, occasionally a Chicken will cross the road, that's about it. Parking up on the lane to the church [ which I shall visit on our return ] we set off passing the James Brindley memorial. He was the villages famous son the pioneer/engineer of Britains canal system. So that's a feather in Wormhills cap. Another interesting fact is that the village was once known as Wolfhill. A place where centuries ago Wolf hunts took place. It is said to be the place where the last Wolf in England was shot and killed. No wolves around today, if there were I'm guessing those Chickens would have crossed that road a bit quicker.

Away from the village and over a few tricky wall stiles we followed the route of the Peak district boundary walk. Good views began to open up, lovely White peak views. The Peak district is made up of two totally different areas, the White peak and the Dark peak "but which is best" I cant decide. The beautiful Limestone dales or the brooding Gritstone moors, I love them both. A few more tricky stiles and we were stood above Peter dale, quite gloomy today but an impressive sight nonetheless.

Dropping down into the dale, our path meets up with the Limestone way,a delightful route from Castleton to Rocester. As we walked we spoke of our Limestone way adventures, a walk we have still to finish. We have probably completed about 95% of it but gave up after a scary encounter with a herd of cows. I am not usually phased by cattle but I still shudder to this day when thoughts flood back to the stampede we were caught up in...Maybe we will go back and finish the walk one day. Next came Hay dale a nature reserve that will soon be alive with wildflowers after which came Dam dale. I enjoyed the path along its length until we heard a right old commotion Cattle lowing oh no! my blood turned cold... A couple of Buzzards circled overhead. We rounded a corner and there ahead of us was a farm. The noise got louder as we approached.And then we spotted them in a barn [thankfully]. Loads of them standing in long lines having their breakfast, doing a sort of Mexican wave with their heads as they chomped on hay.

More green fields and we had arrived at Peak forest, a small village on a busy road. This was as far as we would walk along the trail today. We will start the next section from here next week. We found a sheltered bench for a leisurely lunch to watch the world go by before heading back to Wormhill. The map informed us that we could return via a quiet country lane, this we did, seeing only a handful of cars along its entire length....Back in Wormhill all was still quiet.

St Margarets church.

Checking for Wolves.

The James Brindley memorial.