Fox House to Bamford

I got off the bus at Fox House and walked across the moors at the back of the pub, going down to the bottom of the Burbage Valley. The last time I walked in this area was before the extensive felling of the plantation had taken place. The area is much more open now and the landscape has started to recover; many of the logs and deadwood have been left on the ground and this made it a bit difficult underfoot in places - if I wasn't tripping up over the logs or the brushwood I'd be slipping or rolling on the logs instead. It was a new walking experience for me though and I enjoyed the challenge, it also meant I could photograph the scenery from new angles.

There wasn't an ice cream van in the car park at Upper Burbage Bridge so I just briefly stopped for a drink of my orange squash and continued up to Stanage Edge...I had the trig point all to myself, but there were still plenty of people up there.

I only walked along the top of the edge for about a mile before I got down to the road, taking a path through some tall bracken. I then headed off westwards towards the bus stop at Bamford Railway Station but after moving a bit away from the main line of the footpath in a clearing in a wooded area to rest my boot on a rock so that I could re-fasten my lace I noticed some steps cut into the hillside. I checked the map and this was Access Land so I could go up there and see where it led to. Actually the path took me back up to the road, only a few hundred yards from where I was previously but I enjoyed exploring a new area so close to Hathersage, an area I know so well...and there was a nice waterfall which I tried to get some photographs of, but failed miserably...I'm rubbish at photographing moving water.

I thought I might as well walk down the road now; at a property marked as Outlane on the map, but now re-named as Curlew Cottage since it's become a holiday cottage I took the footpath going in the direction I wanted to be travelling.

After climbing over a stile where the landowner had taken particular care in making sure that the electric fence wouldn't be a hazard I noticed this sign.

I arrived at Bamford with plenty of time to visit the cafe at the garden centre for tea and a scone.

I didn't walk very far today, only about six miles, but it has been my third walk in four days and I pulled a muscle in my right thigh today...so I decided to take things easy.

It might just be me, but when I was waiting on the platform at Sheffield Station for the train back to Doncaster I was shivering and felt quite cold. I suspect that I've been harbouring a viral infection for a few days though, so that's probably the explanation.