Monday, 14 October 2013

W/C 12th October 2013 - Ashford-in-the Water Circular, via Longstone Moor

Once again I joined the Sutton In Ashfield Ramblers for a walk in Derbyshire. This one started at Ashford-in-the-Water, doing a figure of eight via Monsal Head, Great Longstone, Longstone Moor and Little Longstone before returning  to our starting point. The weather forecast had been very pessimistic, promising heavy rain all day. In the event, it only rained heavily for about an hour - the rest was very gentle rain, dry or even sunny at times.

We began at Ashford , heading north west along footpaths towards Monsal Head. This is the view as we left Ashford, looking down the hill towards our finishing point by the old bridge.

 Looking back to the south, it was very cloudy, but we experienced little or no rain at this stage.
 The sun came out briefly, just as we approached Monsal Head. The sharp curve of the valley was visible below.
 At Monsal Head, we stopped for a brief break. I took a similar shot to that below when we last visited the area in early June - in bright, warm sunshine.
 Monsal Head was very quiet.
 Here is a view of the old railway viaduct from the main road. We shortly walked down to the left hand end of the viaduct, before following the old railway trackbed to Great Longstone.
 The railway enters a tunnel just east of the viaduct. Here is a view looking west from inside the tunnel mouth. The railway trackbed is now a walking and cycling trail.
 The tunnel is fully lit. Here is a view from around the middle of the tunnel, looking towards the eastern portal.
 Great Longstone Station is now a private property, situated next door to the Thornbridge Hall, which seemed to be undergoing restoration.

 A short way beyond the station, we turned north towards Great Longstone village. Passing through the village, the rain became moderately heavy. This is a view looking down from the church towards the village centre.......
 ......and the church itself.
 We then climbed up onto Longstone Edge. The route we had passed along was below us, including Great Longstone in the middle distance.
 For a time, it rained quite heavily. Here is a view looking west along Longstone Edge towards Monsal Dale from the same spot as above.
 By the time we reached the top, the rain had eased considerably. Looking back south, the view was really dramatic for a while, with dark clouds rushing overhead and sunshine in the far distance.
 Once up on Longstone Moor, the weather improved dramatically. We almost felt sunshine again. This was the view looking south west towards Cressbrook and Monsal Head.
 Monsal Head became much clearer, lower down the slope. The buildings are visible, middle left in this shot, with the V-shape curve of  the valley to their right.
 By now the view south east was very clear. The Derwent Valley is in the far distance.
 We turned south and paused in Little Longstone for a late lunch. We left in very gentle rain.
 By the time we reached our destination at Ashford, the weather was more or less dry again. Here is a view from the old bridge towards our starting point, just up the hill.........
 ..........and the church.

The turnout was not as large as usual for these walks. I guess the weather forecast had put some off, which was a shame as we only experienced a short period of really poor weather. I thoroughly enjoyed the day. Many thanks again the the Sutton in Ashfield Rambling Group for an excellent walk.

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