Sunday 6 October 2013

Walking up that Hill

Hello Lovelies,
I'm aware my "52 weeks" posts have been missing for a couple of weeks now. I just don't seem to be good at capturing the small things with my camera at the moment. But there have been many happy moments.

Yarndale was a major happy for last week , and this week another dale has thrilled me.
Maybe it was a glimpse of the gorgeous hills around Skipton that finally gave me the push to visit a place I've meant to journey to for the last ten years!

Right back when my boys were in playgroup I heard a little boy talk about his visit to the stepping stones at Dovedale.
White Peak is the name now given to the area above Ashbourne in Derbyshire which is at the very bottom of the Peak District national park. Dovedale is within this beautiful area.

The river Dove was flowing quickly thought the trees in the valley bottom when we arrived..........


Once we were across the bridge in the photo above , I let youngest choose which path to follow, along the river or uphill. He likes climbing more than walking along the flat, so I wasn't surprised when he chose the hilly route away from the river ...


This is a rubbish picture of the hill we set out to climb. Thorpe cloud had already wowed us from the approach road . It's steep sides and pointed summit making it a stunning site after travelling through typically flat midlands countryside.


The view of sheep in green fields and low rolling hills as we began to climb upwards looked more like midsummer than October .....


The route was easy enough at this point, but in the warm sun it still made you hot and short of breath......


It was nice to find an excuse to stop and  admire the view. We could see a little Autumn colour , a red Virginia creeper on this building and just a few trees beginning to turn red or orange. We were interested by the stately home just visible behind the creeper covered building. A bit of internet searching and I'm pretty sure it's Ilam Hall....a youth hostel....what an amazing place to stay on a budget !


On such a gorgeous day  this stone barn , shelter for the sheep, was a reminder of how  exposed this site is....


Do take a look at this stunning aerial photo of Dovedale in the snow. Thorpe Cloud is the Pyramid like hill towards the top of the image.

As we got closer to the top the gradient got much steeper and Limestone outcrops were everywhere....


Suddenly we were looking down on the little barn and the sheep........


Time to concentrate on the climb, watching your footing and thinking of the reward of reaching the top....


And what a reward ! "Oh Wow" is all I could say when I turned around at the summit and was greeted by the stunning view........

The barn looks so little down below now and you can see for miles.



 We sat on the rocks for a while and  absorbed the wonderful views. It's pretty windy at the top and I found it a bit scary but exhilarating.......





After a while , when we were all feeling a bit more rested we carefully walked along the ridge....this is looking backwards towards were we sat..........

As you can see there are plenty of other people around, it's not a place to go for solitude.  But it's easy to see why it's so popular. It took us less than half an hour to get to the top so it's well within most peoples ability.

And I just loved the view into the valley on the other side, that was hidden till you reached the top........


It reminded me of the Yorkshire dales and the light was wonderful.

The shadows of the clouds drifting across the hillside.....



At the other end of the ridge I ( very, very carefully ) peered down on the river below. Yikes, are we really that high !



Now it was time to descend Thorpe cloud, I think this photo gives you an idea of how steep this side of the hill is..........


It was not much fun trying to negotiate the  super steep path with it's loose  stones. Half way down I really wished we had gone back down the way we came up..........

Still, the views of the river Dove were gorgeous.........


And thankfully we all got down without any accidents..........


There were so many people near the stepping stones that  I didn't take many photos...........


I think we were all glad to stroll along the side of this pretty river while our jelly legs recovered.......


It's a shame the sun had gone by now........


But the boys minds were already thinking of this place we spotted when we first arrived....

It's not made of stone at all, it's a mobile catering unit...clever huh.

And what did my boys have their hearts set on ?....ice cream of course.........

Toffee ripple , mint choc chip and raspberry ripple .......a well deserved treat which was already being hungrily devoured by the time I snapped this picture  :0)

I loved making the most of another glorious Autumn day and really hope it revisit this lovely area again before too long....there is so much more we didn't get to see on this visit.
Jacquie x



28 comments:

  1. Wow, I really love the photo's you made. In the Netherlands we only have hills and dunes, so thes views look wonderfull to me.

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  2. Wow - those views are stunning - worth the hard work to get there (although I'm not good at climbing hills.
    It's been beautiful here too - but Matt has played rugby both days, so although enjoyable, not quite the same as a day out. x

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  3. Beautiful photos! I've just been catching up on your last 3 or 4 posts, yes it's taken me that long to recover from Yarndale, lol. I was so excited to see a photo of my little field mouse greeting card on your blog teehee, thank you for the mention. It was lovely to meet and chat with sooo many charming bloggy friends, it's a bit a blur now. Hopefully I'll see you again next year.
    love Fi x

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  4. Great views, up and down! Looks like a great walk was had by all, and those ice creams were well deserved at the end!

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  5. These gorgeous photos make me long to visit your beautiful England!!!
    xo Kris

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  6. Stunning indeed!

    You took the most wonderful pictures.
    I especially love the sheep.

    Brigitte
    http://homeiswherethedachshundis.blogspot.be/

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  7. Sounds like a really perfect way to spend a clear fall day - especially the end treat!

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  8. Thank you for the outing. I'm out of breath now. I'll have a choocy ice please.
    Love from Mum
    xx

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  9. We've walked up here many times, I love Dovedale, it's great out of season as its not quite so hectic! :) x

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  10. I loved this post :) I've done the same walk myself a few times - I'm from the White Peak, a bit further north and west of Ilam, but my mum's best friend has lived in Ilam for a long, long time and I spent loads of time there as a child. Do visit Ilam Hall next time - the grounds are open to the public and there is a beautiful, historic church in the grounds too. Plus a good tearoom with fabulous views. I don't do Dovedale at weekends as I get fed up of the tourists around here, or just the high numbers of them, but it's a fantastic place on for an evening walk or when it's snowy and most people don't go out! It's also worth walking from Dovedale to Milldale, and maybe over Ravens Tor, or the walk from Ilam over Bunster hill is nice too :) I have loads of blog posts from the area, but this one... http://roachling.blogspot.co.uk/2010/09/friday-sun-shines-at-last.html ...has the tea room view and the Milldale ducks :)

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  11. Not been there but it looks like a very nice place to visit...

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  12. What a gorgeous way to spend time with your family. Those views are spectacular and well worth the climb.
    Thanks for stopping by my blog and leaving a comment about the studio. :)
    Anne xx

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  13. Hey Jacquie, what a lovely place to visit. Love seeing all the different shades of green and the cloud formations. I'm not surprised you had 'jelly legs' by the time you had descended the hill......definitely time for a treat. Great little mobile catering unit, fits in very nicely with the surroundings.
    No doubt you'll visit this lovely place again.......have a great week. It's a beautiful, sunny day here, perfect for weeding!!!

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  14. Oh wow and wow and wow again, Jacquie. Your photos taken as you all took that walk up the hill and down again are spectacular. You've truly made this big city dweller really know that we don't see anything so beautiful in our urban scurrying around

    Even the ice cream looks more delicious. Visiting your posts is so soul-enriching. I love being reminding that such places exist, as I plot how I might be able to find a way into such a landscape myself.

    Many thanks. xo

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  15. Just found your blog and to my suprise the first photo I saw was the bridge over the Dove where I walked with my children when my parents (sadly gone now) lived there. Happy memories. Jacqui x

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  16. How absolutely stunning, I really love England, I do xox Penny

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  17. Hi Jacqui thank you so much for this wonderful post. It brought back so many happy memories from a few years ago. We visited this lovely part of the country in weather similar to what we are having now and it was such a stunning place. I have always wanted to return to stay there for a while but have not been able to so your post was particuarly lovely for me to read. Thank you so much Jacqui for sharing this - it meant a lot to me.
    Big hugs
    Dorothy
    :-)xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

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  18. oooo, lovely. I did the same trip a couple of weeks ago in the sunshine. I'd wanted to go for such a long time. Thorpe Cloud really is a rewarding walk. I didn't take my camera so your images are really reminding me of a fabulous day. thanks

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  19. What beautiful country! I love all the green, the water, the trees - everything! What an amazing view you had from the top of the summit. It's a memory I'm sure you all will always remember. Thank you for sharing these beautiful pictures with us.

    Blessings - Julie

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  20. Lovely photos....I know the area well, J and I used to do a lot of hiking in the Peak district when we lived in Manchester. It is truly beautiful there.
    Glad you enjoyed some happy at the weekend, wasn't the weather glorious?
    Lx

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  21. Hi Jackie,
    Thankyou for all the lovely photos from Thorpe Cloud. I visited the area with friends a couple of years ago but we didn't have time (or for me the fitness level!!) for serious hill walking, so it's lovely to see the view from the top!!
    And thankyou for all the Yarndale photos - I feel as if I've been!!
    Kind regards
    Tina

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  22. Hi Jacquie, what a great walk! It is just so beautiful. I can't get over how white English sheep are. Ours here are mainly brown, yet curiously here in Australia with our harsher climate, we are able to produce really high quality knitting and garment yarns! :)
    The sights from the peak were pretty darn spectacular and the walk down looked a tad tricky. The view was worth it though. Thanks for remembering the camera - and to remember to take the photos!
    Thanks for sharing your day trip. :)

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  23. Thank you, I feel like I have just shared your walk with you. I have been to Derbyshire a few times and really enjoyed the lush greenness and the quietness of it all.
    Sally xxx

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  24. Oh my legs are certainly jelly imagining the walk down. It always feels worse on the way down doesn't it?! The views were certainly worth it and the weather was perfect for you. Thanks for sharing this as I had never heard of this place. xx

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  25. Thanks for popping by :) I love making blankets - but seem to get distracted along the way! Good luck with finishing your sons. I see Tracy @ Patchwork Chickens finished her sons one too!
    Enjoy your week - I'm off to Evesham tomorrow to meet up with my sister. x

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  26. Wow Jacquie what a glorious walk made me dizzy just looking at the photos!

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  27. The mobile van is very unique, never seen that before. Your photos are lovely and I really enjoyed your post. Everything is so green!

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  28. Que lugar lindo! Amei. Me lembrou o lugar da filmagem de "O morro dos ventos uivantes! , de Jane Eyre, segunda versĆ£o. Muito lindo, fiquei com vontade de conhecer. Beijos

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