September and a New Challenge

Some time ago we walked with members of Pioneer Church from Cromford along the High Peak Trail. Last year we inadvertently climbed up the Middleton Incline to Middleton Top. Having completed the Monsall Trail this became our new challenge.

Our refreshment stop was the cafe in Bonsall. The three mile walk took us through Hopton tunnel and on up the Hopton Incline. This was not as steep as the Middleton one but engines struggled to get up it. 

It was one of our noisier walks as we passed by noisy and dirty cement works. There was more industrial archaeology in the form of what were, most likely, lime kilns. They did very much look like Aztec temples.

 Ten days later after a pot of tea and delicious cakes (£3.50 in total) at our favourite tea shop in Wirksworth we set off to park where we had left off the walk last time.

We left the car all alone in a lay-by and walked over a field on to the track. The walk started past a group of rose bay willow herb which was changing from purple to the snowy colour of the seed heads.

A little way on was an unusual piece of industrial archaeology. Because we were on top of limestone there was no water. The solution was that an engine pulled tanks of water from Cromford up to a special platform and engines filled up from them.

The panoramas along the route were some of the most spectacular that we have seen.

On this walk we were to see ancient archaeology in the form of a tumulus (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tumulus); now known as Minning Low Hill.

At this point we began to see an even more impressive stone build. This time it was a huge embankment crossing over the valley.

At the other end of the embankment was Minning Low car park where we sat for our picnic. From there we returned carrying with us a great respect for the builders of the now abandoned railways.

There was then an urgent need to drive back to Middleton Top and the relief that was on offer there.

The following day I just had to take my camera up to the allotment. The profuse growth and colour was stunning.

Two days later it was Irene's mum's funeral. Nan had lived a long life and after a well fought battle against death she quietly succumbed at the age of 94.

The funeral was a good opportunity to spend time with our three boys and partners. In the morning we gathered together at the Peace Pagoda in Milton Keynes and went on to have refreshments at Campbell Community. This is a campus for special needs people where they grow their own food and serve in a cafe.

It was a dignified event at the crematorium with many people attending. Martin and Irene spoke well about their mother. Seeds were given out as a reminder for each generation to sow good things into next.

There was an old fashioned tea party in a nearby church hall. This was a good opportunity for the wider family to catch up with each other.

Then Irene and I gathered a wreath from the crematorium collection to put by the headstone and bunches of flowers to give to the staff and residents of High Clere Nursing Home.

Finally the Norwoods gathered in the garden of the local pub to spend more time with each other before sharing meal to end the day.

On the following Wednesday there was only time for an afternoon walk. This we did at Calke Abbey, resulting in a lot of bright, colourful images.

 The first Saturday that we were not obliged to go to Milton Keynes was not entirely free as the Haven Church had Vision Weekend in the afternoon and evening. But in the morning I took the opportunity to set up a photographic lamp and take photos of the layout. All of the photos were put on to Facebook but I include a couple here.

 Our Wednesday walk took us to the next part of the High Peak Trail. This time we had to start at Minning Low car park. The nearest refreshments and toilets were back in Wirksworth.

The sky was quite blue but we walked into a cold breeze. For the first time this year warm clothing was needed. The walk took us to a car park at Friden. We then went passed a factory producing special refractory bricks and then a little further to get to a recognisable place to turn round. Back at the Friden car park we sat down for lunch and I found a toilet stop. The nettles stung. Irene had to grin and bear it until she found a suitable wall to duck behind. Hopefully this will be the last time without there being any convenient conveniences. 

The last Saturday of the month was the celebration of our friend Mary at her house in Burrowash.

What Happened to August – It Went

What Happened to August – It Went

The review of August is odd. We seem to have had little free time to pursue our explorations of Derbyshire.

The first set of photographs was of the building that was to become ‘Haven Church’. The purpose of the work was to document the state of the building. It was a school that was simply abandoned. More than that, the last occupiers left the junk that they did not want and removed anything of value. Included in the items removed was the control board for the alarm system.

On Sunday the church said ‘Goodbye’ to the old building.

The normal flow of life was interrupted on the following day when the scheduled installation of our new patio door to place. It was a hot dry day when man and son demolished our property. At one point the upper floor was supported on two jacks. At the end of the day, after many cups of tea, the work was done. It was then that the installers pointed out some damage to the doors and we found more damage. First the handle was replaced (and is awaiting another replacement) and the casement was taken back to the factory. This was done on Friday. There was a big hole into our living room for several hours. Just as the men finished the rain came. The door was shut as the heavens opened.

The next day there was an opportunity to complete the photographs of the new church building. Irene and I also made a start on painting the ‘Community Area’. Our painting work continued into Wednesday. And on Thursday morning the building was open for ‘Food Bank’. Then we continued with painting the area of the church.

On Friday the rain continued to pour, but it was hot. In the evening I opened the windows and the doors of our community centre. But the rain came so suddenly and we were flooded.

Sunday the 10^th was the opening of the church for worship. The rain continued to pour. We had the pleasure of collecting two ladies to take to church. Each one has disabled walkers. Before we even left the last house we were both soaked to the skin and paddled from the car over the flooded driveway.

On Monday Irene Bexton and I examined the guttering and found that the filter over the drain pipe was blocked and so we cleaned it out.

The committee meeting was on Tuesday and so shopping was on Wednesday morning. By way of a treat this was followed by our friend Phil buying us a meal at The Nurseryman. We had not been there for many years and I really appreciated the ‘stilton melt’ as a starter. Phil paid for the much appreciated meal and then we took her home. The afternoon ended with more painting in the church building.

Friday came again and so did the rain. This time we closed all the windows and doors of the hall in time. I went into the porch and was pleased to see that there was no water running down the door and that it was rushing down the drain pipe. Ten minutes later I went to look again but this time something like a bucket of water fell on my head.

The following day was dry but cold and windy when we set off for Leeds. The plan to get to the Travelodge was quite good but I made a mistake and went through the city back to the M1. Once on Stile Hill Way we found not only the Travelodge but also Macdonald’s. The coffee and muffin was actually quite nice. Then we went to park nearer the motel.

After notifying the staff of our arrival we caught the bus into the city. There were some impressive carvings on the buildings as we passed them on our way to the town hall. Our first visit was to the art gallery. Some of the paintings were dramatic but it was not the largest collection we had ever visited. However, attached to the main gallery was the Henry Moore Institute. Some of his work was on display in the main gallery also.

Next we headed up to the City Museum passing and entering the Catholic cathedral. It was quite small, as cathedrals go. There was a wedding on and so our visit was brief. Opposite the museum was ‘Millennium Square’. A seaside feature was on. Judging by the state of the museum carpets we could tell that sand was involved.

In the museum we learned that Leeds has a short history and it was named after the river which has since been renamed. We also learned that that there were few celebrities of note and few achievements. However, we did enjoy the display of competition photos. It reminded me of the advice about not becoming a professional. We had a good lunch and left in search of the Tetley Gallery.

We had already discovered that the people of Leeds were very friendly and for the second, and not the last, a passer by volunteered assistance without being asked. Getting to the gallery meant going across and along the River Aire. This took us along the back of the main offices of Asda.

The building in which the new gallery was housed was the old Tetley brewery. (This is one of the city’s best products.) Unfortunately we are spoiled by being so close to the Nottingham Contemporary, and found that the Tetley was not that exciting.

At about this time we received a text from Tim and met him at the entrance to the art gallery. Our choice for dinner was Wagamama Japanese restaurant. The food was interesting and tasty. I ended with the white chocolate and ginger cheesecake. Tim ended with the ‘mix it up mochi ice cream’.

Just before we left the gallery area we spotted a new landmark for Leeds.

Now it was time for the event of the weekend. The three of us made our way to our seats in the town hall; collecting 4 large brown paper bags each on the way in. The town hall interior is just fabulous, glowing with civic pride. No one minded me taking a few snaps, but this changed when Izzie appeared on stage. Now we were under orders to take no photographs because children were on the stage.

The orchestra filed on to the platform and the warning about photography was loudly repeated to the assembled audience of admiring families and friends. For the most part this fell on deaf ears. The six pieces of music was played with absolute professionalism and at the end the audience player their part with their paper bags. The 1812 should really have had cannons, but the bags were very effective.

Having seen Tim, Izzie, double bass, large stool and other things to the car we had our hour wait for the bus. It has been a long time since we joined with the Saturday night revellers (if ever we did). We made our way passed bars and clubs to the city centre bus stop. Have you tried getting coffee on a Saturday night? We settled for two beers in the Café Chocolat.

Although we were in the city centre the bus stop was completely dark in a completely unlit place. Once more we were given the pleasure of hospitable Leeds citizens. A young couple, seeing that we could not work out when the bus was due, showed us the timetable on an app.

There really is an Arkwright's

After a good night sleep it was time to go home. The plan had been to visit a local National Trust priory. However, rain threatened and we decided that a visit to Eyam Hall would be a better plan.

The route took us over the Derbyshire moors. Through the murk of rain the purple colour of the heather was visible. Now was not a good time to stop, but later in the week might prove better.

The Hall was quite fascinating and worth the visit. The coffee and rocky road was good too. The little museum about the plague was also interesting. By the time we left the sun was shining and people were piling into the little village.

Three days later and the promised visit to the heather happened. We drove out to view the heather at one of our favourite places; Curbar Edge. Before setting off we did our usual stop for coffee. It was the first time that we had stopped in the village, but the rocky road was good here as well.

We were able to park a little below the car park and walk up to the gate into the walk. As always the views were stunning as was the heather and the stones that decorated the route. We walked as far as Frogatt Edge to find a place for lunch. At the first group of rocks a family were sitting and so we moved on to the next group of rocks. Once our lunch was opened the family came over to sit and have their lunch near our space. What does this tell you about human nature?

 The sky began to darken. We turned to go back. Behind us the valley began to show signs of rain. As we neared the end of the path the first spots of rain landed.

We went passed men in silver suites who began to put things over them and their camera. The rain came heavy as we reached the car and set off home.

On the way back I called into B and Q to collect some weather sealing strip. On Thursday I applied it, with difficulty on the community centre doors. On Friday we experienced rain again, but none managed to get through to the hall for the Friday night dance.

On Saturday morning we had to make the trip to see Nan in Milton Keynes. It was bank holiday and the traffic was horrendous. Nan is not eating well and is getting thinner.

On Sunday it was our wedding anniversary (46 years or 16,801 days). We celebrated with crispy duck for tea and chocolate from our friends.

On Monday it really rained. We removed a damaged floor tile from the kitchen and replaced it. This took some effort. In the afternoon we spent some time on the railway planting trees and in the evening sat to play some board games.

We finished off our August walks with a visit to Lathkill Dale. We first visited the Dale about 7 years ago but did not walk far. I took a number of shots of a building we saw, but was disappointed not to find it this time.

Our second visit to the dale was last August when we walked from Alport to Over Haddon. At the end of July, this year, we walked the 'Limestone Way' from Monyash, down to a bridge on the dale and up to the top of the dale at Monyash.

To finish our exploration of the dale we needed to walk from Over Haddon to the above mentioned bridge. This necessitated a stop at the 'Old Smithy' cafe in Monyash for another helping of fudge cake etc. and of course the use of the toilet. Is was then a short drive to park on a street in O. H. and walk past the 'pay and display' car park, down the hill and along the dale. We had allowed 1.5 hours to get to the bridge which was exactly the time we took. 

The river has a habit of disappearing but the waterfall, marked on the map, was in full flow. At the bridge we sat for a picnic and returned the way we came. We were dry, reasonably not cold and successful.

The following day was Jan's birthday and we went to join them for the 'Curry Club' at Weatherspoons in Ilkeston.

Today, Sunday is the last day of the month and, just to end on a good note, we have just had an electric-car charging point fitted. It has added £2000 to the value of the house and cost nothing. I do not think that we will ever have an electric-car. The cheapest is around £30,000.

Having said at the start about the lack of days out we did not do too badly after all.