Rivelin to Whirlow Bridge

I travelled to Rivelin, right on the boundary of the Peak District National Park, and headed south up Lodge Lane to the path that leads to the car park for Wyming Brook Nature Reserve. Surprisingly there was a lot of traffic using the steep, narrow, winding lane; maybe there's a local road closure and people are using it as a diversionary route.

I continued going south, sometimes across the moors and at other times having to use the road until I reached Ringinglow Road. I briefly strayed into Derbyshire by not sticking to the exact route across the moors.

Because of my minor navigation error I was able to pick up a path going over to the Ox Stones.

I walked alongside the edge of Lady Canning's Plantation and then turned down into the Limb Valley  and finished the walk at Whirlow Bridge.

Houndkirk Moor, Ringinglow and Limb Valley

One of the advantages of using a concessionary travel pass is that I don't need to state my destination when I get on a bus. Today I wasn't sure what the conditions would be like on the moors and so decided to look through the bus window and make a decision on the spot. I was surprised at how little snow still remained on even the highest parts of the moors, considering that some of the side streets here in Doncaster are still icy in places, so I got off at Houndkirk Moor, the highest point of the 272 route to Castleton.

For the first half an hour or so of the walk I was passed by several dozen mountain bikers - I later discovered that there was an organised time trial of some sorts. I ate my sandwiches near to the Ox Stones, south of Ringinglow, a hundred yards or so off the main track, well out of the way of the bikes.

About half a mile further on my rather circuitous route I came across a toposcope which indicated that on a clear day I'd be able to see as far as the Humber Bridge, fifty two miles away...today wasn't a clear day though. It also stated what the altitude above sea level was - my GPS measured it as nearly a hundred foot higher though.

Near to Ringinglow I walked by an interesting sign; I wasn't tempted though, knowing that I had a casserole waiting for me in the slow cooker when I got home. If alpaca had been on the menu I might have stopped for a bite, there were certainly plenty of them grazing in nearby fields.

The last couple of miles was a gentle descent through the Limb Valley to Whirlow, where there were plenty of buses running to Sheffield.