The Dark Peak is the gritstone area of the Peak District with its distinctive gritstone edges and high moorlands.
Late summer and early autumn is the time for berries. On the hills and moorlands of the Dark Peak, billberries are very common and occasionally you can also see cowberries. We found these cowberries in the Upper Derwent Valley. Cowberries are edible and some people prefer them to cranberries. They are however rather acidic Continue reading Cowberries
A cement factory might be an unexpected thing to write about in a countryside blog, but if you have ever been walking in the Hope Valley area of the Peak District, you will have seen the Lafarge cement works which forms a dominant feature in the landscape. The factory is visible from the whole of ‘The Great Ridge’ – one of the most popular walks in the Dark Peak. The initial reaction that most people have when seeing it for the first time is ‘what an eyesore in a beautiful valley’. Admittedly it is a bit ugly, but there is a lot … Continue reading An industrial site in a place of beauty!
The Wain Stones are huge gritstone boulders high upon the remote moorlands of Bleaklow in the Peak District. It is easy to see why they are also know as The Kissing Stones. Continue reading Kissing Stones
All over the Peak District moorlands bilberries are now in flower. The berries will ripen in August and are delicious! Bilberries are known in other parts of the country by other names such as Whinberries or Whortleberries but they are the same thing. Continue reading Bilberry Flowers on the Moors
On our Stanage & Bamford Edges guided walk today we enjoyed some stunning views of Stanage Edge, Bamford Edge, and the surrounding hills and moorlands in the snow. I don’t think any of us expected to be walking in snow over Easter but we had a really enjoyable day. Our Stanage & Bamford Edges walk is great without snow too! Why not give it a try? http://www.peakwalking.com/day-walks/open-group-walks/stanage-and-bamford-edges/ Continue reading Easter Snow in the Peak District
Autumn and winter are great times to see the many abandoned millstones that are scattered beneath the famous gritstone edges of the eastern Dark Peak. During the summer months these iconic features tend to be hidden from view by bracken which grows prolifically in the area. Millstone production, along with lead mining was one of the main medieval industries of the Peak District and the two main centres of production were above Hathersage and Baslow. Production is believed to have started as early as the 14th century, reaching its peak in the late 16th and 17th centuries. It was a huge … Continue reading Millstones on the Moors
Yesterday we ascended Kinder Scout from it’s North East side and the vegetation was covered with dozens of Fox Moth caterpillars. We had to be careful to avoid treading on them. These caterpillars enjoy sunbathing and I think yesterday they were making the most of the autumn sunshine. The Fox Moth lives on moorland and grassland, and the moth is a buff brown colour with two pale wavy stripes on each wing. Continue reading Fox Moth Caterpillars
This wonderful photograph was taken by one of our customers on our walk on Kinder Scout last Sunday. Kinder Downfall is the tallest waterfall in the Peak District, with a 30-metre fall. It lies on the River Kinder, where it flows over the edge of Kinder Scout. Although usually little more than a trickle in summer, after heavy rain it is quite impressive. Last Sunday there was a strong wind which funnelled up the clough and the water was blown back up as it started to descend. We could feel the resulting cloud of spray from a long way back … Continue reading Kinder Downfall – Going Up!
Yesterday we enjoyed a short walk onto Stanton Moor from the village of Birchover. As well as being carpeted in beautiful purple ling heather, there are also a wealth of interesting features on the moor to marvel over. Stanton Moor is believed to have once been a very special place to our ancestors. In Bronze age times the landscape would have been very different with fertile farmland, and timber roundhouses scattered over the area. Evidence has been found all over the moor of field boundaries, burial mounds, and stone circles. The best known stone circle is the Nine Ladies. Local legend … Continue reading The wonders of Stanton Moor
This morning our ‘Nature Walk’ took us onto the Peak District moorland along Burbage Edge and across the beautiful Burbage Basin. It is a wonderful time to be walking on the moors as the heather is just beginning to come into flower. It will be a few weeks yet however before it is at its best. There are three types of heather in the Peak District. Ling Heather is by far the most common and it is the Ling Heather that gives the impression of our hills and moorlands being carpeted in purple. Less common is the Bell Heather which has … Continue reading Three types of heather on the moors
Peak Walking Adventures Blog 