Ascent/Descent:
782m; Net Walking Time: ca. 6 ¾ hours
Toughness:
9 out of 10
The walk will start at 09.45, when the bus from Bamford arrives (groups are welcome to start earlier).
For walkers arriving from Sheffield by public transport:
Update: the bus options now are the 08.05 (line 275, arrives 08.35), with breakfast at The Ladybower Inn (please pre-book), or the 10.30 (line 275, arrives 11.00), or taking the 09.14 train to Bamford and risking a 3 minute connection (09.36/09.39) to the 275 bus from there to Ladybower (board front of train, go up steps, turn left along road for 50 metres).
Return bus to Sheffield: 18.45 (line 275).
Return
trains to Sheffield from Bamford: xx.42 to 20.42, then 21.41, 23.11.
A
walk of contrasts on the Derbyshire/South Yorkshire boundary in the north east
corner of the Dark Peak area of The Peak District. From the Ladybower Inn you
rise in stages up to Derwent Edge, towering above the Upper Derwent Valley –
with ever-improving views over the surrounding hills of the Central Dark Peak
area and along Ladybower Reservoir. You then follow a clear and well-engineered
path along the edge past some famous gritstone rock formations to the highest
point of the walk at Back Tor and out to a magnificent viewpoint on Lost Lad
hill. Derwent Head, Bleaklow and Kinder Scout dominate the views from here.
An
easy gradual descent through the moors on a good track leads into Bradfield
Dale to lunch in Strines, overlooking the Strines Reservoir.
Through
woods and pastures you then reach the elongated Dale Dike Reservoir and loop
around it through some pretty woods with views up and down dale. Rise to Boot’s
Folly, a tower on a grassy ledge above Strines Reservoir, and further up Lodge
Moor, and follow ancient turnpike roads (with far views) past remote farms and
pastures back to a viewpoint above Ladybower Reservoir, where the morning
ascent route is met. Turn left along Lead Hill and Ladybower Tor for final
views to Win Hill and the Hope Valley and descend back to the Ladybower Inn.
Options
to shorten the route are described, as are Alternative Endings (or Starts) in
High and Low Bradfield.
Walk
Options:
Plenty
ways to shorten the walk, see the pdf or the webpage for details.
Lunch: The Strines Inn Bradfield Dale (10.7 km/6., food all day).
Tea:
The Ladybower Inn Ashopton, Hope Valley (open all day, food all day).
Tea
Bradfield Endings: see the pdf or the webpage.
1 comment:
Strenuous and varied day with lots of highlights. We started in rain and ascended Lead Hill, thence the Derwent Edge with on-and-off rain and a cold wind in the face. The various rock formations were a delight, several were climbed up on and out we walked to Lost Lad viewpoint. All this stretch we had magnificent cloud formations moving through, many bearing rain, often producing rainbows. That stopped at noon, as we started the descent through the grouse moor to Strines for lunch. At the Strines Inn we experienced the all too familiar "we are fully booked please sit outside and ignore the many empty tables" frustration (most of those tables were still empty when we left).
On down into Bradfield Dale to the Strines and Dale Dike Reservoirs and through some cracking woods with plenty of good autumnal colours. Some muddy paths here, but all in today: not too bad for the amount of recent rain.
The weather improved all the time while we never lost the cold wind and eventually we turned back towards Ladybower, with views of the Derwent Edge and the rock formations contrasted against the sun and cloud filled sky, and with Stanage Edge, Win Hil, Bamford Edge etc framing it.
One last gentle heave back up to Lead Hill and curve around back to base with last views down to the reservoir and the surrounding hills. 5 had cut out the last bit of ascent and taken the direct route to the LB Inn.
Rainbows: 5
Walkers: n=10
Weather: w=showers-to-noon-then-improving-to-largely-sunny-always-with-a-cold-wind
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