This week I walked with the Sutton Rambling Club in a small corner of Staffordshire around Longnor. We strayed into adjacent parts of Derbyshire too, including Earl Sterndale. The day started well with cold, but fine weather. By mid-afternoon it was wet and windy. Nevertheless, we enjoyed some excellent walking, with fine views, a very traditional English village pub; there was even a small bit of "mountaineering"!
The walk began in Longnor (the one in Staffordshire) This village is well off the beaten track, to the south of Buxton.
Although little more than a small village, Longnor has a sizeable market place.
Above this doorway is displayed a list of tolls payable at Longnor markets and fairs, dated 1903. Buyers had to pay four pence for each horse they purchased, for example.
We started the walk by heading north past the church.
After a short climb along a footpath, we crossed from the Manifold Valley into the Dove Valley. We continued along a very muddy path towards Glutton Bridge.Across the valley we could see some of the landmarks we would meet later in our trek on the far side of the valley, including Chrome Hill and Hollins Hill.
We were walking parallel to, but slightly below the route of the main road, which we eventually crossed to take the minor road to Hollinsclough. This is a view looking south from the road, towards the Manifold Valley.
Ahead of us, we could see the hills above Hollinsclough. Hollins Hill is on the left, Chrome Hill on the right and High Edge in the far distance.
Looking back, Parkhouse Hill looked like a mini-volcano from this angle.
We soon arrived at Hollinsclough, a very small settlement. Nevertheless, it had a few interesting buildings, including this former school.
This is the centre of the village, including the Methodist Church, on the left.
A relic from the Victorian era was this postbox, embedded in a stone wall and still in daily use.
Beyond Hollinsclough, we followed a footpath along the ridge just below the road towards Tenterhill. The hillside was very steep, but offers fine views across the Dove. From left to right, we see Hollins Hill, Tor Rock (in the background), Chrome Hill, Parkhouse Hill and Hitter Hill.
This was the view north, showing the short, narrow valley between Hollins Hill and Chrome Hill. Eventually, we would be walking along the top, between the two.
We noticed several springs, including this one right next to the footpath.
The site of our lunch stop soon came into view - the stone building in the middle of the picture.
Looking back, the steep sides of the Dove Valley at this point are obvious.
The site of our lunch stop was now much closer - the stone building in the middle of the picture. Just to the left of it, you can see the small stone bridge we would soon cross ad above it, the steep lane we would climb later.
Here is the bridge, which crosses the River Dove. At this point, the river marks the boundary between Staffordshire and Derbyshire.
The river valley is wooded here. The bare, moss-covered trees looked very atmospheric - even more so, as light drizzle was coming down.
This branch looked a bit like some fantastic creature from a horror movie.
Into Derbyshire now, and the steep lane wound up the hillside beyond the river, as we climbed towards Leycote and Booth Farm
Looking back, near the top of the climb, we could see over to Hollinsclough Moor in the distance.
At the top of the climb, we saw a sign, like the one at the bottom of the hill, limiting the width of vehicles to a maximum of 1.3 metres.
We passed the head of the short valley I mentioned earlier, on the way.
This view is looking down the valley and across the Dove towards
Hollinsclough and Longnor.
We then turned south east, off the narrow lane and along a path past Tor Rock
The fun then began, just as the drizzle really set in. Before us was the jagged, undulating, wind-swept edge of Chrome Hill.
Despite the slippery conditions and moderately strong winds, we climbed up onto the hill, which is long and very narrow. This is a view looking north from one of several high points.....
....and a view south west into the Dove Valley, far below.
Beyond the high point, the ridge gradually falls to the south east, with lots of undulations along the way.
Towards the bottom, a second, smaller ridge - Parkhouse Hill - comes into view.
The northern extreme of Parkhouse Hill looks a bit like some ancient temple, but it is a natural feature.
This is a view looking north towards Parkhouse Hill from Hitter Hill. By now, my camera lens was wet and the battery was playing up, so I was having great difficulty taking pictures at all.
Over Hitter Hill, we approached the village of Earl Sterndale.
Here is a view of the church
and a view of the quaintly-named village pub. We spent a while here warming ourselves and drying out a little.
By now the light was fading badly. It was a race to cross the fields towards our finishing point back in Longnor.
Despite the slightly wet afternoon, this was another great day out with the Sutton Rambling Club. I thoroughly enjoyed the day, which included some really spectacular scenery and exciting climbs. Many thanks again to the organisers.
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