After a little confusion at the start over how we got onto the ridge, and after Molly found herself being harassed by a Biscuit (small dog), we eventually found ourselves on top (so to speak). This being the second time we had been around these parts, and as before there was the usual smattering of school parties and climbing sorts at the beginning.
Once we were on top of the ridge however we pretty much had it to ourselves, save for keeping an eye out for the occasional sheep, that could lead Molly astray (see this weeks episode of Countryfile). Other than that the only issue was the biting wind and the periodic threat of rain. Thus this really is my sort of walking with views that are both bleak and magnificent. Once we had found a large rock to shelter behind we had our lunch (Salmon roll being the highlight) whilst I explained to Molly how Mini Cheddars are wasted on dogs.
Having come down the other end at 'Ridge End' we then set off for our furthest point on the way out which was the Hanging Stone. Oh did I forget to mention that we were using one of those Country Walking route cut outs again, which up to this point had been easy to follow. Thus things started to get a little more confused, over which signs we were meant to follow and, on more than one occasion, whether we had actually reached the Hanging Stone or not. In the event we hadn't leaving us to debate whether we should follow a route back that we had done on the previous occasion which would have taken us past Lud's Church.
We pressed on however, eventually reaching the Hanging Stone, by the route which we were actually meant to be departing it. No matter, as of more pressing concern was Helen's somewhat rash (in me and Molly's opinion) to climb to the top of it. Whilst my first instinct was to carry on without her, lest I get dragged into some dangerous (for me anyway) rescue attempt, I eventually had to reconsider given that she had the keys to the car.
Once Helen had come back down to Earth, and after some debate about direction once more, we carried on a track that was below the ridge. Eventually conflict broke out again over which route to follow, especially given the instructions wanted us to go along the road. By some miracle I prevailed, and we retraced our steps back over the ridge, before eventually finding the stepped path down to the car. So overall a brilliant walk, with the weather just staying this side of reasonable.
Walks Since Last Blog Entry: Chesterfield (Trans-Pennine Trail) Circular - (Derbyshire) - 16/09/13 - 10.8 Miles
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