Following the Cromford Canal ~ 1

I have decided to walk the whole of the Cromford Canal ... or what remains of it as it is disused and unusable in some parts. The first few miles are fine though ...

Starting at Cromford Wharf car park [where a fee is payble] there's a tearoom here and toilets ...

... and some of the original buildings ...



 Within, what, half a mile of the start of the canal there's an attractive stone bridge where some of my schoolfriends used to miss out a lap during cross country runs ...



I could name names ...

These photographs were taken right at the beginning of May and the leaves still have that springtime freshness ...



I reached the buildngs of High Peak Junction but unfortunately some of them were shrouded in sheeting but looking back you can see how quiet the canal was that day ...



 I reached Leawood Pump House which still works and which opens so many weekends a year.



There's plenty of information about it, here ... http://www.middleton-leawood.org.uk/

I'm being lazy, I know. However, I can confirm it is an interesting place to visit, though I would hate to keep all the machinery clean and polished.



Just beyond the pump house the Nightingale arm of the canal runs away towards John Smedley's factory. Just beyond the junction of the Nightingale arm and the canal proper there are signs of the canal getting silted up ...



 In the photo above you can see the bluebells in Lea Wood. On my side of the canal other plants were in flower, such as wild garlic ...



and butterbur ...



 As I came to Gregory Tunnel I spotted a long tailed tit's nest in a bramble at head height right beside the canal. I have a photograph but it's not a good one. It seemed strange that the nest had been built just literally out of arm's reach in such a busy place. Perhaps when the leaves came out a bit more then the nest wouldn't be so visible.

I walked through the tunnel ...





Primroses were out too ...



 I left the canal at the tunnel and crossed the River Derwent and passed under the railway line to come out on the A6 at Homesford Cottage. The pub there has now closed and I dare say it will never open again ...

Just beyond the pub I turned sharp left up a path that rises towards Longway Bank and from there [using a concessionary path in the wood] I reached Intake Lane.

It was thereabouts that I spotted a Midshires Way waymark ...



Intake Lane passes under the High Peak Trail on the edge of Cromford village ...



From there I descended into the village, crossed the A6 and got back to my car.

You can see the route I followed on the OS Explore website, here :~ http://explore.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/os_routes/show/19521

Date of walk ~ 2nd May 2010

Length of walk ~ 5 1/2 miles

Total walked so far in 2010 ~ 124.75 miles

Total walked since 1st September 2009 ~ 254.75 miles

23 of 2010

They think it's all over ... it is now !

or, finishing off Offa's walk ~ Day 6

On this day of days, Natasha and I travelled north to the Irish Sea. Parking the car near the seafront we turned inland away from the sea to find the Prestatyn-Dyserth Way ... and headed south.

 

The Prestatyn-Dyserth Way is an old railway line ... now a cycleway, path and inevitably dog toilet ...



As we got further south, we left most of the housing behind.



We could have nipped into Meliden and had a pint ... but it was too early in the day ... and we had some walking to do.



The Prestatyn-Dyserth Way is only about three miles long and perhaps calling it a Way is way too much ... but it is pleasant walking and got us out into the countryside nice and easily ...



Though we hadn't seen many walkers on it, there were even fewer now. Still it was a Friday ...



We reached the spot where we'd left the Offa's Dyke Path the day before. Natasha was just about to pose next to the signpost when she said I should stand there ...

So here I am at the beginning of the end of my last day on the Offa's Dyke Path ...



Any similarity between me and a sack of potatoes is purely coincidental.

So, we started to head north, back towards Prestatyn.



I was surprised and relieved that the last day was proving much more interesting than I thought it was going to be.

The walk runs through the Prestatyn Hillside Nature Reserve and although we didn't see anything particularly interesting as regards natural history, the views were impressive ...



We sat on the one seat we found in the Nature Reserve and enjoyed the view.

Looking to our left, we could see the Prestatyn-Dyserth Way with Meliden beyond ...



Straight in front of us we were looking down at Meliden with the golf course to the right, immediately beyond the Prestatyn-Dyserth Way ...



Finally, to the right, the outskirts of Prestatyn ...



We couldn't sit there forever though we could have stayed longer.

A little later beside the path someone had left a bowl and some water for passing dogs ...



The path wound on ...





As we neared Prestatyn the path got quite narrow in places ...



Then we were down into the town itself, passing a large Roman helmet ...



On the helmet was an image of King Offa ...



All the way down to the beach, a mile away, roadside posts had one of these on them ...



We were just a few hundred yards from the end of a walk of over 180 miles ...



Finally, we were at the end and I stood on the beach, returning to have yet another photograph taken.



5 or 6 years ago I set off from Chepstow and walked the whole route from south to north. In the process I must have walked at least double the 182 miles and I think I can say I enjoyed every minute. It's a great Long Distance Path.

So what do I do now ?

I am already making plans ...

You can see the route I followed on the OS Explore website, here :~ http://explore.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/os_routes/show/19007

Date of walk ~ 23rd April 2010

Length of walk ~ 9 miles

Total walked so far in 2010 ~ 115.75 miles

Total walked since 1st September 2009 ~ 245.75 miles

21 of 2010

The last day but one ... and one had mixed feelings ...

... or, finishing off Offa's walk ~ Day 5

Just one day to go after this and I felt slightly sad that I was near to finishing what I had started 5 [or was it 6] years ago ... but also pleased that I had walked from the south coast of Wales to the north coast albeit in a less conventional way than most.

We started where we had left off on Day 4, a mile or so outside Tremeirchion ...

The path wound around the south-western slopes of Moel Maenefa ...





We crossed the A55 ...

I had given Natasha the impression that Day 5 was going to be easy with no hills.

Well there was a good climb from the lane to the north of Rhuallt. It went up and up ... and then up again.

We had nearly reached the point where we were going to leave the long distance path when we caught a glimpse of the sea ... and the wind turbines.

We left the Offa's Dyke Path and swung south towards the village of Cwm, walking down through Church Wood ...

We found a seat in the churchyard at Cwm as the sun beat down on us. It was the warmest day we had experienced this week.

We walked along a quiet lane, back towards Rhuallt, with good views of the plain to our right. Then began the climb from Rhuallt back to the car ...

By now Natasha had developed a bit of a problem with her leg ... but she pressed on ... slowly ...

Eventually, for the last two or three hundred yards, the bridleway levelled out.

Overhead the rooks were calling noisily whilst building their large, messy nests ...

Another day's walking drew to a close.

You can see the route I followed on the OS Explore website, here :~ http://explore.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/os_routes/show/19007

Date of walk ~ 22nd April 2010

Length of walk ~ 8 miles

Total walked so far in 2010 ~ 106.75 miles

Total walked since 1st September 2009 ~ 236.75 miles

20 of 2010