This is my favourite time of year with cool blue skies. Its been a good week – I have been up Pen-y-Ghent twice – once for for work and once for pleasure and both in glorious weather. The one blip in the week was tuesday afternoon, at home in Calderdale we had an impressive cloudburst and sure enough a day a walker reported a bridge missing at Graining Water. I took a walk up there this morning to have a look – its seems odd going to look at something thats gone but sure enough its gone!
I was amazed that last years Cleveland Way ultrarun winner posted a time of just over 24 hours for the full 110 miles. Now I’m stunned, as Neil Ridsdale smashes 3 hours off that time to win in 21 hours and 3 minutes! Makes me tired just thinking about it. Anyone up for the challenge next year?
Malcolm Hodgson
Have you ever been to Black Hill? you really should have a walk up there, it’s quite amazing. As a youth I spent a lot of time on Black Hill – much of it lost in the mist and wandering knee deep through peat bogs in the hope of coming across the Trig Point. You see Black Hill was once very appropriately named – pollution, fire and overgrazing had removed the vegetation leaving behind a black peat moonscape. The combination on bare peat, pennine rain and lost walkers made progress tricky and knee-length gators the must have fashion item. I once came across a walker genuinely stuck in the bog up to his waist – to this day I still wonder whether I should have helped him out. On my walk last Monday I hardly recognised the place – the Pennine Way has been flagged giving a sustainable path across the peat and even more striking the vegetation has been restored through the good works of the ‘Moors for the Future’ project. It’s not like in the good old days!
Steve Westwood
You can see plenty of digging just north of Sutton Bank on the Cleveland Way National Trail, as a month long archaeological dig of the Boltby Scar Iron Age Hillfort takes place this September. If you’ve got time on your hands you can even volunteer to get mucky. Go to the blog on http://boltbyscar.wordpress.com/ for more details. Meanwhile – here’s an inspiring photo of the start of the work!
Strolled out on the Settle loop of the Pennine Bridleway this Saturday. The air was hot and humid on the pull up out of Settle and judging by the number of groups of exhausted-looking youths we passed, Duke of Edinburgh assessment season is upon us once more. To be fair, none of them look either lost or as though they’re loathing every second and at least they’re out and about.
As I tend to aim for the tops, there’s a lot I’ve not seen before on this route – Stockdale’s very pretty. As the path tips over the skyline at Grizedales, there’s a splendid view taking in Malham Tarn, Great Whernside, Buckden Pike, Firth Fell and Fountain’s Fell; absolutely beautiful and I’ve never seen any of them from this angle before. There’s limestone paving here and I guess these fields must be in some sort of stewardship; I recognise at least five species of grass here and plenty of sedges and they’re almost at waste height. The breeze picks up too as we get a bit of height and everything feels much fresher.
The loop drops under Langcliffe Scar as it turns back west and we stop for some lunch in a lush meadow. The distant hulk of Ingleborough looms to our left and Pen-y-ghent can just be seen shouldering its way round the flank of Fountain’s Fell. I know it’s the easiest of the three peaks, but it looks really brutal. Most of the flowers have vanished from the upland meadows, but I think the grasses here are just as attractive; more subtle perhaps but no less handsome. Certainly more dynamic as they’re swept to and fro in the wind, a shimmering tapestry of greens, blue and purple.
Pen-y-ghent through grasses
As we bear left off the Langcliffe road, the path dips more decisively downhill but the going is easy – limestone country seems to generate such springy turf. As we drop down into Settle, you can see climbers up on the new routes on Castleberg Crag – will have to have a go at some of those. My friend has discovered he’s allergic to his sun-screen. He isn’t sunburned, but he is covered in angry bubblewrap. Nice. It’s been a great day – good weather, nice 10 mile stride and some very different views of the Dales. You can do it all by public transport too – what are you waiting for?
Lyndon Marquis
