28th of March
Found myself & Leroy on kinder Scout, the highest peak in the so called peak district, the weather was sunny & warm. I found it quite demanding with Leroy having to wait for me many times, thing is my fitness is quite good but having gained two stones since November 2011 my legs tier as soon as the going heads up hill, which is a problem given the nature of the challenge, that factor combined with a weakened right leg from a childhood illness ( osteoMilitis) has left me with much to do & so it begins
Found myself & Leroy on kinder Scout, the highest peak in the so called peak district, the weather was sunny & warm. I found it quite demanding with Leroy having to wait for me many times, thing is my fitness is quite good but having gained two stones since November 2011 my legs tier as soon as the going heads up hill, which is a problem given the nature of the challenge, that factor combined with a weakened right leg from a childhood illness ( osteoMilitis) has left me with much to do & so it begins
8th April
Was cloudy day with low cloud cover covering the mountain tops out in Derbyshire & so we chose to follow a circular route on the tops near Hathersage a very wet & windy afternoon was spent going through the motions, though we managed to keep ourselves upbeat with the usual banter. I actually don't mind walking in the rain, as thoughts of a hot shower along with clean bed sheets to head for after a nice evening meal & hot chocolate
Was cloudy day with low cloud cover covering the mountain tops out in Derbyshire & so we chose to follow a circular route on the tops near Hathersage a very wet & windy afternoon was spent going through the motions, though we managed to keep ourselves upbeat with the usual banter. I actually don't mind walking in the rain, as thoughts of a hot shower along with clean bed sheets to head for after a nice evening meal & hot chocolate
bring it's own reward. Another dimension to the usual up's & down's.
We then had a 3 week break as Leroy took off for Uganda & so we did our own thing. I am also training in a gym as many times a week as I can manage & so i hit the gym, with a trip of my own planned to Inverness to stay with my secret weapon for training in all aspects of the 3 peaks & some much needed mountain training on the Munro's of Scotland.
27th April
Sees me at the foot of Cairn Gorm Mountian the highest of the range named after it. The weather was wild with very low visibility with wind & snow in equal measure, not the best conditions for my first Munro. We set off & soon I found myself hyperventilating I'm used to going through the pain barrier but this was something new, I just couldn't catch my breath ( Peter told me later, that he thought I was about to quit ), we pressed on & I began to settle, though I was having to stop as I did back on KinderScout one month earlier. Then the ground under foot threw up a new angle of hard ship to my ascent, as the snow covered the path ahead & began to freeze due to the wind chill. One minet I was sliding backwards the next up to my knees in snow, as we drifted off the path onto uneven ground.
Sees me at the foot of Cairn Gorm Mountian the highest of the range named after it. The weather was wild with very low visibility with wind & snow in equal measure, not the best conditions for my first Munro. We set off & soon I found myself hyperventilating I'm used to going through the pain barrier but this was something new, I just couldn't catch my breath ( Peter told me later, that he thought I was about to quit ), we pressed on & I began to settle, though I was having to stop as I did back on KinderScout one month earlier. Then the ground under foot threw up a new angle of hard ship to my ascent, as the snow covered the path ahead & began to freeze due to the wind chill. One minet I was sliding backwards the next up to my knees in snow, as we drifted off the path onto uneven ground.
All this along with the thought that the ground would only get steeper & the wind would get stronger ( Wikipedia tells of the " Windy Top" which it advice's avoiding, lol ) & here I was heading into Arctic conditions in a total white out, good job I trust my old friend Peter. Being with him & the mention of a cafe up top gave me a fresh prespective & so we pushed on. Over two hours passed as we fell in upon the cafe, the temptation to stop for a rest was put to one side & we continued on, meeting other people at last, who were snowboarding above the cafe, they walked up a path we used to go up top & so we had one take a couple of pictures of us, then we moved off into the misty void soon out of sight of the skiers, then came the windy top -5 whipped up into minus 20 windchill slicing, biting wind, the like of which I have never known. I don't know how I did it but I did, I found Peter in front of the trig point now burried under a mountian of snow, we had landed right on it. Peter led us off to our left as we faced the cairn & we soon came upon the weather station where Peter had mentioned we could find shelter from the blizzard, then after taking photos trying to log our journey & prove I had made it up my first Munro, Peter asked me if I could see our footprints, oh no !
I knew how I'd first seen the station & so I ran round it until I was happy I was stood on the same approach as a few minuets earlier & notice the snow was uneven & followed it till it brought me upon the Cairn I called Peter over & whilst he kneeled down & pulled out his compass & map I made my own calculation as I had on my approach to the weather station, my heart was pounding but I was able to keep focused, I drew a line in the snow & said " Pete, it's this way, let's go ( my top lip was now freezing & Peter had turned purple, we both had back up clothes in our sacks but this setback had made our direction a priority & with that Peter took his reading which was almost identical to my line in the snow, we moved off at pace knowing we were on the right track, soon enough we found tracks indicating the right side of the mountian. Some 20 mins later we were sat in the highest cafe in Britian eating homemade vegetable soup & laughing our heads off, panic'll do that to ya, lol. We were soon back out on the mountain only this time it threw up a new set of problems, deep snow, it turned into an all out struggle fighting to get out of the deep onto the shallower parts, I actually took to rolling downhill as it was easier but soon drained my upper bodies strength, we were in hysterics at one point as I lay covered in snow from top to toe.
One hell of a day on the mountains.
29th April
Peter & I returned to Cairn Gorm mountian only this time the sky was clear blue though the wind still held a cold bite, in fact it was just as cold as two days earlier only this time I could see just what I was climbing, the views were breathtaking. We intended to catch the cable car up to the cafe to get pictures from the summit but decided to go for it again using a different route this time, we spent all day on the mountain exploring along the ridge taking pictures all the time. I actually caught a suntan, lol.
1st May
I left Inverness & moved on to Edinburgh where I stayed a couple of days. I hired a push bike & cycled round the city but first of all I drove down to Lieth harbor to see the royal yacht Britannia, then crossed over to the foot of Arthur's Seat an impressive cross between a hill & a mountain, Robert Louis Stevenson called it " a hill of magnitude." I made the summit & back down in one & a half hours, stopping for a picnic by a lock at the base. The weather was ok, cloudy with sunny spells. Fantastic views
3rd May
Back home I met up with Leroy & returned to kinder Scout, where I had struggled a month, Leroy found me much improved & so we extended our walk along the ridge we had dropped down early from, on our last visit & carried on up to a cairn that we thought was the summit of kinder Scout, though now it seems not, we will go back next week & get to the bottom of Kinder scout summit, lol. The weather was cloudy & cold.
Back home I met up with Leroy & returned to kinder Scout, where I had struggled a month, Leroy found me much improved & so we extended our walk along the ridge we had dropped down early from, on our last visit & carried on up to a cairn that we thought was the summit of kinder Scout, though now it seems not, we will go back next week & get to the bottom of Kinder scout summit, lol. The weather was cloudy & cold.
9th May
We returned to kinder Scout today only we didn't find it's trig point instead we took a fresh route named ( ) & enjoyed the most demanding steep ascent so far in our training together. We climbed slowly & gradually through the valley's foot & up by a riverbed that cut's it's way into the peat & rock hillside rising at a steep angle, all the while our fate is plain to see... A very steep climb with only one choice, just when shall we strike out & attack it, there are no meanders just a straight up & up. As usual the reward of incredible views makes it all well worth it ! The weather started out warmish with Leroy turning up in shorts but soon deteriorated into a wet & windy maelstrom, mid ascent. The windchill caused the rain to bite the face, how quick the weather can turn up on high ground.
Lost track of what where & when, waiting for Leroy to give me the photos of our training days for the rest of May, will update as soon as.
10th June
Leroy could not keep our arranged trip to do Pen-Y-Ghernt & meet with Anthony from Compass York so I tried to go by train. This didn't work out as the earliest train to Horton Ribblesdale arrived at 2.30 pm to late to meet Anthonys party & the train to Selby arrived to late to catch them before they left Selby, as Anthony didn't reply to my email whilst Friday I was pretty stuffed. So I turned a negative into a positive & called an old friend who has just done hcv treatment & like me is having a tough time with depression post treatment, he had failed to link up with me after arranging a few earlier walks & so I gave it one last shot, he took my call & we met on Sunday morning then went on to walk 26 km according to his pedometer, I hope he keeps it up. Nice one mate & a great effort !
16th June
17th June
My old pal Tony came over to mine & we walked from my house to Stanage Pole on to Stanage Edge which we followed toward Fox House making our way up & over the moor via the Roman Rd that leads to Ringinglow, descending into Mayfield Valley then climbing back up to lodge moor & home a 15 mile round trip. The weather looked gloomy but soon cleared & allowed some sunny spells to brighten the day, it was good to see my old pal & catch up.
23 June
We did our own thing as weather was bad, I made the most of a good walk round my home turf. I have a walk that includes two steep climbs they are short by Kinder Scout standards but I put a bit more pace on to increase the hardship
27th June
Tony Beatson & I drove out to Kinder Scout & walked up to Kinder Downfall, an amazing site to see water blowing back up hill, Tony had passed it on his way walking the first leg of the Pennine way & so I got him to show me the way up Jacobs ladder to the Summit trig & on past the trig point, in fact there is a Cairn near the summit trig with a ridge path that passes near to it. Get on that path & it will lead you up to a gorge, there you will find Kinder Downfall.
We doubled back to the trig, then struck left toward Crowden Tower then we descended Crowden Brook from the top of the gorge, this is very steep & requires some rock climbing until you land on the path aside the brook that straggles the water from side to side. Be careful coming down such rocky paths, especially when on tired legs, it's very easy to slip or trip, apart from that it's great exercise for the legs.
30th June
Leroy & I went up Kinder Scout via Jacobs Ladder. The day was made up of passing showers that varied in severity from mild to driving hail, it was too wet to get the camera out on the top & so we didn't bother trying to document the day. I feel it appropriate to take summit pictures at the trig point to show that we are doing the training, whether it's raining or not, in fact we've only had a couple of really sunny days on the mountains so far, at least if the weather is bad come the day we'll be more than ready. I'm due to link up with Mike & Richard from SASS ( Sheffield Alcohol Support Service on Tuesday & have a day out walking, they are joining us & loaning us their minivan to do the event on world hepatitis day.
3rd July
I met up with Richard & other service users from SASS to go for a walk around the Chatsworth house estate, as Richard has offered to drive the 3 peaks route for us it was a chance to meet him & see the minibus SASS have provided for us. I arrived 30 mins late but thankfully they waited for me & so we set off from their headquarters on Abbydale Rd Sheffield at 12.30.
We parked in the houses car park & headed back towards Endsor finding the river & following it along to a road bridge about a mile along, crossing the bridge put us on a heading that would take us up onto the ridge that runs behind & above the house. once on top we follow a dirt road that heads back toward the house passing the Swiss lake, Ring Pond & brings you to the Hunting Tower that is clearly visible from the house up on the top of the hill behind it. we didn't get to the tower & cut around a lake onto a path that brought us to the top of the waterfall path & went to the Ring pond which is the source of Chatsworths waterfall & the water terraces that form the centeral focul point of it's landscape. We then followed the watercourse from the Ring Pond back down the hill using the path that zig zags down to the house & back to the van.
The weather was poor with a couple of mild showers that didn't manage to halt our progress. All in all it was a very pleasant day out with lots of good conversation with people set on a similar path to myself, a path I call... The road to recovery.
4th July
Tony joined me once again, he lives just round the corner from SASS & so I stayed at his place after my walk the day before with the members of SASS. We set off late arriving in Edale at 1.45, getting onto the mountain by 2pm.
We headed up Grindsbrook onto kinder Plateau & followed the ridge along past Crowden Head, onto the top of Jacobbs Ladder we then followed a path that takes you onto the valleys opposite ridge, & out onto a very boggy moorland crossing, this route heads toward Mam Tor & ends around Winnets Pass, which is virtually the opposite side of Edale to where we set off, making it a circular walk this one is not for those with little patience & those who mind getting their feet wet & trousers muddy.
This walk is classed as hard in the book, whilst only 8-9 mile in distance it is taken up by rough ground & boggy moorland that all throw up their own varying degrees of hardship. The weather was foul for the most part but training comes first & I felt it appropriate to get in a few back to back walks before we go, to simulate the challenge itself. I'm happy with my progress, Leroy is training in the boxing gym his time is limited by work & personal circumstances & so his time on the mountains has been limited to once a week, he is much fitter than me & so I hsave no doubt we'll be fine.
Onwards & upwards !!!
7th July
We took it a bit easier this week & did Win Hill a striking peak to look up at it has a kind of Matterhorn look to it with it's sharp summit that breaks through the massive forest covered slopes below, we had remarked on it before & decided to go do it. We parked up at the Southern end of the Ladybower dam system in the lay-by on the A6013 crossed the bridge like path that runs atop the dams head their are 2 sink holes on either side on the waters surface, they were in full flow that day with tons of water cascading down them very minute a site not often seen, you have to stop & take it in, so bear it in mind next time it's rained heavy & you fancy a walk.
At the end of the path we struck straight into the forest that climbs vary steeply upward, your up on your tip toes most of the time, after a while you'll come across a footpath proper, get on it & follow it up through the forest & onto the hilltop meadows that lead you to that inviting summit. The top of Win Hill offers a 360 degree view fest, as good a summit view as any I've seen to date in the top 5 maybe 3. From the Trig follow the obvious path that runs off toward the Roman Rd till it runs by the forest, there you will see a gateway go through & down the path into the woods stay on it & it will take you down to the Dam turn right & follow the side of the water till you return to the sink hole where you started.
11th July
Once again old pal Tony turned out & led me on my longest walk to date. We parked at the pub at Fox House & headed onto a moorland path that runs from behind the pub car park area up through a disused quarry, on up to a first peak whose name I'm not sure of & on to Higger Tor then to Upper burbage then on up to Stanage Edge then we follow the Edges rocky ridge until a gap in the rock-face reveals a path that leads down toward Hathersage, arriving in Hathersage we went through the high street down to the Robin Hood pub & on down the path that runs by the pub that follows a stream, then on toward Grindleford following the river Derwent, we broke away from the river up toward the road that leads out of Grindleford up to Fox House, crossing the road above the Maynard Arms up a steep footpath that leads up to the top & left along to the Longshaw estate, through by the main house & up to our start point, over 15 mile 6 hours walk the weather began patchy cloud then broke into a beautiful evening, with no rain for once.
14th July
Kinder Scout once more, Leroy & I Parked under the bridge on the road that leads to Jacobbs Ladder but headed into Edale & on to the foot of Grindsbrook, I prefer to cover the route from the bottom of the Ladder to Edale at the start of the walk instead of the end, walking on tarmac & concrete drains tired legs, there is no doubt.
We headed up Grindsbrook only this time we took a different route by keeping on up the hill that runs by the forest after the first gate when it turns left you will find a path that's made by the water course, it's as steep as it comes, once on the top a whole new route up to Kinder plateu comes into view, offering you a path that leads off to the right via a set of crags once on top you'll meet the well trodden ridge path that runs all the way to the top of Jacobbs ladder but we decided to seek out a trig point that we had seen some weeks earlier, visible from the top of Grindsbrook, we struck out onto open moorland on a general bearing that was our best guess, our plan payed off as the trig finally came into view, on the map it is marked as a cairn not a trig but it is in fact both, it's a white trig post that sits atop a set of stones.
We could see no obvious path from the Grindsbrook side but we could now see the other side of the Kinder plateau & so we moved over to the ridge that overlooks the snake pass, we ate our pittas at Mad Woman's rocks, this side of the plateau is not well used & so it becomes hard work, we decided to head back over to Grindsbrook but could find no trace of any connecting footpath & so we returned to playing leapfrog by jumping from heather islands & rosks dotted amid the swamp like tops, be prepared to get your feet wet & turning back to find a less challenging leap weaving your way through these muddy marshy grounds is demanding but given that we are there to get fit this little expedition was just the ticket.
Once on the path at Grindsbrook we walked to Crowden Head & fairly trotted down onto Crowden Brook, now that does drain the legs,, descending very steep ground at pace. Once at the bottom of Crowden Clough it's a short walk back to the van. 9 miles but hard miles & 4 hours, the weather was fine with a very short shower but what's new, ey !
18th July
We parked by Ladybower reservoir just across the bridge that crosses the water, we headed back over the bridge & turned right away from the dam past a sign post for Cut throat bridge & Ashopton take the higher footpath, your now on the footpath that leads up to White Tor via a number of tops, the climb is demanding to start yet once the first peak is reached the going levels out into a series of climbs from rocky head to to rocky head all the time climbing. From this walk you really get a good look over Edale & I was able to start plotting the lie of the land ie, all the peaks we have done so far from Stanage Edge right across to Kinder Plateau. Once your on White Tor & the trig located on top of a large rock that's not easy to climb, an incredible view comes into range, we could see Selby power station the Emley moor transmitter plus many other far off lands that cry out for attention. From White Tor it's a straightforward path of large pathing stones but they do run out leaving a less well worn path through marshy tops, even if you come off the path the ground will roll you down to a gorge at the end of your heading follow the lay of the land round to the left to Little Howden Moor, follow the route on down to Howden reservoir & on to Ladybower, stay by the water on the footpath & your route back to the start is easy. 6 hours 12 miles once again we had good weather a patchy afternoon with a sunny evening.
10 days to go !
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