After a week of walking with Donna on and around the Yorkshire Coast, today was back to the usual haunt of the Peak District and out with friends.
Tony and Nigel were unavailable today but not 100% sure what they were doing, Nigel didn't say and Tony, well Tony often talks in riddles so who knows. So myself, Darrell, and the 'Sheffield United Twins', Malcolm and Stuart.
I'd planned a steady one today, in what turned out to be near perfect hiking conditions. The walk started in Baslow, then headed west before taking the path south towards Pilsley. From there we would continue in a south-westerly direction before taking a sharp turn towards Edensor and then on through part of the Chatsworth Estate back to Baslow. Only around 6 miles and finished in a little over two and a half hours.
It was really pleasant walking in these conditions, not too warm, very dry and with little wind. Plus, as the first 2/3 of the walk weren't on popular paths it was a quiet walk. That said, walking on less trodden paths does have it's disadvantages as I was to find out.
We were heading from Wheatlands Lane across the fields, past Longhorn Cattle, and down towards the A619. There were no clues as to the route across one of the fields so we headed in the direction we thought it was, down the hill towards a gate. However, the gate was chained and there was barbed wire on the top so either not the right way, or a farmer decided that hikers were not welcome. Of course we decided to climb over the top, and rip, a hole tore into the new hiking trousers that I had only worn once before. I was gutted!
Not point fretting about it though, so onwards and upwards; and literally so as the next section was the steepest part of the walk although thankfully only around 200m long. The short sections through the Chatsworth Hamlets of Pilsley and Edensor are always a joy as they are real picture book places.
By 11am I was back at the car and ready for the drive home.
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