Peak District Hike

On Tuesday, Rowena and I were blessed with sunshine for our hike in the Peak District outside Manchester. We took a train to Chinley, and hiked about 11 miles up and down hills over to Edale. Of course, the train ride between the two villages is only 7 minutes, and it took us 5 hours to do the hike, but we weren't hiking as a mode of transportation!

The top of one of the hills

This was not encouraging! We felt that we were the "companion of fools" as this was the second time we had climbed up this hill in an effort to follow the original directions! [Quote says: "He that walketh with wise men shall be wise but a companion of fools shall be destroyed"]

When we had signage, it was often as helpful as this! Which way? At this point we had abandoned all hope of following the original path and we were trying to just follow posted signs. We got some help from other hikers, but at points we were definitely off the beaten path and crossing unmarked fields

The final mile!...

We had a great day, more sunshine than expected (i.e. sunburn!) and we had enough fuel and water to keep us going, just barely making it on the train we wanted to catch back to Manchester at 16:47. Removal of wet socks and shoes, hot showers, a homecooked meal, and a bit of TV before crashing out. A great day!

And on Wednesday, we went for a 5+ mile evening walk with a walking group in Chorlton, a nearby suburb to Manchester where Rowena is purchasing a house. Since I didn't manage to take any pictures of Rowena and I on Tuesday (well, I took a video that I thought was a picture...) here we are with a nice backdrop of wild flowers!