When I got off the bus at Bakewell I headed straight for the award-winning toilets, then to the shop.
I started by walking along Matlock Road until I reached the last house in Bakewell; this is where the footpath up onto Haddon Fields is. It was quite a steep climb uphill until I reached the part of the footpath which goes through an apple orchard. The ground here is flat and should be easy walking; however at this time of year there's an additional hazard I needed to look out for, hundreds of apples on the grass which rolled under my foot every time I took a step. Here's a new word I've invented for Mr. Google to catalogue - APPLESURFING...I'm not very good at it though.
There were even more apples still remaining on the trees; I bit into one, it had a bitter taste.
Beyond the orchard the walk took me through different landscapes, woodland, grassy fields, and arable fields, including one where both barley and oats had been planted at the same time. I've never seen this before and have no idea why the farmer might have done it.
At one point in a clearing in the woods I was struggling to get past some dense brambles; growing higher than the brambles were some tall bushes with red leaves and strange-shaped berries. Yet again something I've not seen before.
I walked down to the Alport road past a flooded quarry and then climbed up the other side of the valley; the steps cut into the hillside made it much easier.
I was soon in Stanton in Peak, sitting by the church and eating my sandwiches. I would have liked to have a look inside the church but it was closed for building works. Fortunately the builders' equipment is out of sight in the photograph.
As I walked along the path which leads to The Nine Ladies Stone Circle, and then Stanton Moor, I passed a couple of rangers carrying several plastic bags filled with empty beer bottles and cans. It must have been a wild party with the ladies last night.
I made a quick crossing of the moor, just pausing briefly to take photographs of the heather and the gorse.
I continued through the camping site at Brookfield Farm, it looked like it has closed though. Just beyond the farm there was a small group of alpacas. They were safely behind a wall, so I could get up close to them, not too close though because they have a reputation for spitting.
The next section was along the track to Darley Bridge; tied to a public footpath sign I found a question.
The final part of the walk was alongside the tracks of the Peak Rail heritage railway; two trains passed, one in each direction. There were trees in the way both times and so I didn't get any photographs.
I ended the walk about a mile north of Matlock town centre and sat on a wall next to the bus stop to wait for one of the buses going back to Bakewell or Chatsworth House. As a red car passed me a youth shouted 'Good Morning' to me...even though it was just after three o'clock in the afternoon. This was just the latest example of the incessant low-level abuse I have to suffer because of my Asperger's syndrome - in particular my poor gait, posture, and poise makes me a target for this type of behaviour.
If I had a job or a relationship; a place in the world, it would be so much easier for me to deal with this knowing that I'm loved and am respected for doing a good job, or at least a good enough job...but I don't have a job or a relationship, and have never had either. I'm not likely to ever to get a job now since Doncaster Social Services say I'm too vulnerable to be allowed in the workplace...and I'm not likely to find a girlfriend, or even some mates, sitting at home most of the time, not interacting with anyone.
I was hoping I wouldn't have long to wait for a bus at Bakewell, but because of Chatsworth Country Fair the buses were running late and I had nearly half an hour to wait, so I had a wander round Bath Gardens, right next to where the buses go from and got a nice picture of the flowers.
Two buses going to Sheffield via different routes arrived at the same time; I got on the 218; it left earlier and takes the shorter route.
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