Walk 27/2009 – Calver

Sunday 1st November 2009

Seven of us braved the elements and set off to Calver, near Chesterfield, for our ten mile White Peak Walk. We passed through Stamford and picked up our new walker, Nick, who could have joined a bus trip to Brighton, but decided to give us a whirl instead! Alan got slightly distracted by ‘Big Baps’ (a shop selling sandwiches, well I think that’s what it was selling) and stopped at green traffic lights for a moment.

The rain was lashing down all the way to Calver and that all important decision of whether to put full wet weather gear on at the start of the walk, was already made for us. Owen found a phone box which made an ideal changing room and the ladies in the group averted their gaze.

Somehow, a nice warm pub seemed more appealing but instead we braced ourselves and set off into the rain and wind. A bus shelter was a good choice for our coffee stop and we were soon spotted by paparazzi, or was it Debs behind her big lens camera? The weather had cleared by now as we set off across Longstone Moor and the beautiful scenery was shown off to it’s full glory by the sun’s rays.

There were lots of stiles on this walk and Alan wondered whether some limbo lessons were required to help get under them.

Lunch was taken in a sheltered spot near a stone wall. We enjoyed plenty of banter and swapped ideas on cleaning our waterproofs i.e. to wash them in a non biological washing powder and then soak them in a proofing agent in the sink (as opposed to the washing machine).

Not a lot of interesting animals or birds to be seen today. Just a solitary goldfinch, cows and a bull which we bravely passed. We did spot a “thing” on the grass – we thought perhaps a bird had bitten off more than it could chew and dropped it. Chris refused to poke it with her pole, so we were none the wiser as to what it could be. Alan Flatley refused to do some tap dancing when he acquired a stone under his boot whilst walking on the road.

We finished off the walk with refreshments in the Derwent Water Arms and reflected on the day. To all those fair weather walkers – you missed a good walk!

Report – Claire

Pictures – Alan

Walk rating – good

A bus shelter provides a bit of cover for our coffee stop..

Rather intriguingly, this stile did not seem to be in the middle of a fence.

After the rain, the light starts to improve.

Looks like a bit of a fisherman’s tale.

And the views are looking better.

A late attempt to capture some Autumn colours.