David and Jacinta's Walks- 2026

 Black Hill via Crowden "Great" Quarry David was out on his own today; it had to be a relatively short walk as we'd booked to see The Devil Wears Prada 2 at The Savoy. Crowden not-so Great Quarry Much rock now more stable as it's on the floor of the quarry Black Hill from Crowden is relatively close to home and, at just under nine miles, perfect for the day. Rather than going up the usual way, via Laddow, I decided to go up via Crowden Great Quarry. Having climbed there once with Paul B, my opinion is that it's certainly not great as the rock is pretty friable and secure natural belay points are virtually non-existent. However, it appears that some adventurous climbing is still done there as I spotted a belay stake. Belay stake above the quarry After the quarry, it was a visit to the Hey Edge trig point which was lacking its characteristic peaty swamp around its base. Hey Edge trig with Holme Moss and Black Hill After Hey Edge, there are a couple of short but stee...

 Edale and The Lonely Trig It seemed worth going out two days running as the forecast was good and we headed for Edale again to try a different walk. We headed up Golden Clough and struck out to the Lonely Trig Point, across the moorland which was mercifully dry and easy going. Nearing the top of Golden Clough Rushup Edge in shadowy background Then we headed left and the "Seven Minute Crossing" which eventually takes one back to the south edge of the Kinder Plateau (we took more like 15 minutes!). From here we descended steeply until the Grindsbrook path was reached and the usual route back to Edale village. In all, a good walk of 5.4 miles and 430m ascent with some impressive ascents and descent which is what it is all about. 

 Bingley and The Harden Valley A new departure today with an organised walk as part of the Bingley Celebration of Walking. With a rousing sendoff from the Jazz Band in the market square, we joined about 35 other keen walkers, ably led by Jon, whom we both misidentified as a policeman in his day job. He guided us round the highlights of the walk including the Goit Stock waterfall and the spectacular Hewenden Viaduct, above which we had lunch. The going was good as the day was dry and it was very interesting to get a flavour of the woodlands and moorlands surrounding Bingley. We ended the walk going down through  the St Ives Estate, now a large country park. The park itself would be worth exploring. We ended the walk back in the centre of Bingley and went for a welcome cup of tea at Belgrave Road.  A walk of 11.8 miles with 500m ascent.

 Holme, Black Hill and Holme Moss David was out for a walk with Paul today. We met at The Fleece in Holm, dropped down to Digley Reservoir and joined the Kirklees Way up to The Isle of Skye Road. Disappointingly, Carol wasn't there with her tea waggon so we had no excuse but to plod our way up to Black Hill and then over to Holme Moss. After crossing the Woodhead Road, we became aware of the smell of burning, and then clouds of smoke from burning moorlands. Smoke above Wilmer Hill We had a brief discussion about what to do, as it was quite windy. However, the wind was in a generally favorable direction and we felt that continuing wouldn't be hazardous. Fortunately, the smoke reduced considerably after a while. We continued along the edge of Twizle Head Moss and stayed high over Ramsden Edge, finally dropping down to Brownhill Reservoir. After crossing the Ramsden Reservoir dam we made the final ascent back to Holme and a drink at The Fleece. A walk of 11.8 miles with 540m ascen...

 Bradwell and Great Hucklow We headed for the White Peak today and to Bradwell, arriving after a slightly hair-raising finish to the journey as several vans and cars with chatting drivers, converged on a narrow road. We chose to do the walk David had taken his Friends from Saffron Walden on, back in October. It is a pleasant walk to Great Hucklow, especially towards the end and we were able to enjoy our sandwiches on a bench in the sunshine. Above Bradwell- looking up to Win Hill The climb through the woods and then out across Abney Moor is the best part of the walk and the views all around are great. Looking over to Mam Tor, The Great Ridge and Kinder We then descended steeply back into Bradwell, going along the lane which in one of the garden gates, there is a cat door to give its feline owner access to the delights of the fields and hedges. The steep descent of Bradwell Edge A short but satisfying walk of 5½ miles with 350m ascent in a picturesque part of the Peaks.

 Shining Tor and around Erwood Off we went to Shining Tor. Cats Tor in the background It was great to sit at the top in the dry weather, having experienced frequent wet visits throughout the winter months. A break at the top of Shining Tor Shutlingsloe in the background It seemed the right sort of day to go on to Erwood and we dropped down to the reservoir level to eat our lunch. The path we took back to Pym Chair was pleasant and it was good to keep on the higher level along Foxlow Edge. The Foxlow variation It's always enjoyable to spend a few hours in this familiar territory, especially if the weather is good. A walk of 6 miles with 380m ascent.

The Helicopter Walk via Oyster Clough David was out for a walk on his own today, and wanted to do the full helicopter walk as it was a nice day. After parking up at Birchen Clough on the Snake Pass, the first section was up through the remains of the felled larches, which had a desolate feel. However, the treeline was soon cleared and there was a view of Fairbrook Naze and the edge of the Kinder plateau.  Fairbrook Naze- the way down from the plateau The way up to the Oyster Clough bothy used to be a long haul, but nowadays it feels much easier, but it's still lovely to see it in the distance. Oyster Clough and the bothy The bothy had recently been cleaned up and tidied (the log book suggested that it hadn't been left in a particularly good state, though) and someone had left a Monopoly set in case people staying the night got bored. Monopoly set to while away the hours Having found a straightforward way down from the "Hope Forest" higher level above Cowms Moor, I sta...

Edale and Jacob's Ladder We started up our usual route from Edale village, but instead of heading up to Hollins Cross, we went on the right hand path leading to near Mam Nick. We crossed the road and got up to Rushup Edge, where we followed the bridle path which was sheltered from the chilly wind. Bridle path along Rushup Edge Mam Tor in the background After the wrecks of the Porsche and Land Rover Discovery, we took the route to Brown Knoll. Brown Knoll Trig Although the trig is now surrounded by slabs, there's a deep boggy section beside the junction of the path and slabs. We know this because an unsuspecting dog thought that he was taking a shortcut but ended up taking a mudbath. It was a bright sunny day and we had our lunch at the trig. We then decided to go to Jacob's Ladder and make our way back to Edale via the lower path which is sometimes a little uninspiring. Passing through Lee Farm, we spotted an unseasonable Christmas tableau. Merry Christmas? The sight of lam...

Bingley and Ilkley Moors (Baht 'at) We were staying in a comfortable AirBnb in Bingley, discharging Grandparent Duties... but David decided to stretch his legs and scope out a walk to take Cian on by-and-by. We had spotted a footpath sign close to where we were staying close to the Five Rise Locks and closer inspection of the OS map showed that this led up, through woods, towards the open countryside and moorland via Lady Lane. A sign at the top of the path identified the woods as The Greenwood. After a somewhat combination of signed footpaths and housing estate roads, I reached Higher Hights Farm with a varied collection of piggies. Higher Heights Piggies I now found that I was on the Yorkshire Heritage and Dales High Ways, leading below a couple of reservoirs. Two named footpaths for the price of one! After a while, the Yorkshire Heritage Way appeared to morph into the Millenium Way. After crossing the Bingley Road after Weecher Reservoir I entered Bingley Moor. Welcome to Bingle...

Edale, the Lonely Trig and Madwoman's Stones A lovely day with the sun making regular appearances. The Penny Pot (and Edale) called and we fancied a straightforward walk with not too many ups and downs after the first ascent. It had been a while since we'd visited the Lonely Trig in the middle of the Kinder Plateau. Although the initial climb is a bit of a grind, it's fairly flat after that. On the way up to the Kinder plateau Mam Tor in the background Grindslow Knoll and Grindsbrook Clough Rather than scrambling up the ridge of Ringing Roger, we took the more amenable Golden Clough. Nearing the top of Golden Clough Rushup Edge in the shadowy background After a breather at the Lonely Trig, we took the path northeast across the "top" of Kinder, avoiding most of the boggier groughs to arrive at the sequence of gritstone outcrops leading to Madwoman's Stones. Kinder outcrop Lost Lad background left After lunch in the shelter of the rocks at Crookstone Knoll we st...