The next dozen or so miles of my challenge walk could best be described as a pilgrimage, because this area of Derbyshire and Staffordshire contains a selection of quaint and historic churches. As early as 1663, Brassington had a King’s Highway passing through it. Inhabitants of the village had strict instructions to maintain and upkeep this important road. ‘Everie one everie yeare scowre their ditches adjoyieinge to the King’s highway before the first daie of May or else to

I couldn’t have asked for a better day to complete the third stage in my epic challenge. There was a hard frost, no rain and no mud! Returning to Bonsall my walk with Nellie to Brassington was just over five miles in length, beginning at Fountain Square before heading up The Dale to just past the Ebenezer Chapel which has a date plaque of 1893. From here we ascended a narrow path to follow a stretch of the Limestone Way. This then led us through a long succession of fields w

It seemed strange to return to the location of my previous walk as normally each issue has a very different whereabouts, as I randomly pick and choose where to go. However, this new series is definitely different to the norm and will feature both circular and linear walks and make use of some well-established long distance walking routes along the way. Nellie seemed surprised when she emerged from the car to be back at Darley Bridge. I could swear there was a look of deja vu

Way back in 2006 I had the bright idea to walk with my sister, west to east, across the Peak District National Park, starting at Upper Hulme and ending in Rowsley. It took us 2 days with an overnight stay on the outskirts of Hartington. Later that year I set off from Marsden in the north to Thorpe in the south, completing an approximately 75-mile hike in nine staggered stages. Each section was completed with a family member and so I entitled this series ‘A Relative Descent Of

by Sally Mosley Another year has whizzed by! Nellie and I have had some fabulous walks with highs and lows, hills and thrills, but thankfully no trips or spills, exploring into all corners of our beloved Peak District. As we all know, the weather has been a very mixed bag in the last twelve months, but then it wouldn’t be our green and pleasant land if it wasn’t. At times our walks have been a struggle through persistent rain and mud but there have also been occasions when i

Rather appropriately this turned out to be a festive walk as unwittingly there was a twinkling of Christmas markets taking place in the vicinity of Cromford that day. It was also a crisp and bright sunny morning that added a winter ambience to proceedings along the way. However, driving down the A6 had me blinded by low sun which seemed to be directly ahead the whole time. After parking in Cromford Meadows, Nellie and I set off along the canal path which was busy with weeken

The picturesque village of Tissington lies embedded into a historic landscape fashioned and farmed by man going back centuries and beyond. A surrounding gridwork of drystone walls enclose rich pasture with evidence of medieval ridge and furrow field systems. The village itself is a time warp of quintessential Englishness that melts my heart with its prettiness and character. And so it was that Nellie and I headed off from Tissington station car park for a wander along the tr

After a ‘back of beyond’ walk for the last issue, this was more of a ‘back to the future’ kind of ramble. I parked in the free car park up Wirksworth Dale just off Dale End at the top of Brassington, then walked back down the village to a footpath sign just before the lovely Tudor House on Dragon Hill. Built in 1615, this is said to be the oldest dated property in the village. A datestone shows the initials of Thomas Westerne its builder and his wife Anne, although the words

I’ve been with Nellie to the back of beyond! We began our glorious walk in Flash where for a donation of £4, it is possible to park at the village hall when not in use. Flash is a lovely little village with a very strong community spirit. Its friendly residents still uphold a traditional parade in June that was established in 1846 by the Flash Loyal Union Society, known as the Teapot Club. It was created as a ‘Friendly Society’ that you paid into when you could and made a re