The first of today's images is of Mam Tor at the far end of the great ridge seen from Back Tor a dramatic rock outcrop that overlooks Edale which can be seen spread out before us in the second image. On the skyline on the far left of the image Kinder Scout is also visible.
So for today I decided to get out and do some hiking, something I haven't really done too much of for a while and I headed off to where my hiking adventures began about 30 years ago in the Derbyshire Peak District.
I chose a circular walk starting from the village of Castleton to the top of Mam Tor and along the ridge dividing Edale and Hope Valley. It was a great day out with some absolutely stunning scenery. The walk is billed as the 10th most popular walk in the UK and although it was a weekday, because it was New Year's Eve there were a lot of other people out enjoying the hills too so it wasn't the quiet getaway I had imagined but it was fun nevertheless.
I decided to shoot this view of Mam Tor reflected in a small roadside pool in portrait mode and landscape mode. I had to be patient because although the water was calm when I arrived a couple of dogs went in for a paddle. After a few minutes though they moved on and I was able to get these lovely reflections.
It was such a relief to see the top of the hill bathed in sunshine because when I first arrived the whole ridge had been enveloped in fog and I had worried that I was in for a cold and damp walk with no views at all.
2019 has ended well for me, let's hope that 2020 gets off to a good start too.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!
So here are a couple of shots of a Speckled Wood butterfly. If you look closely you will see that the eyes are actually hairy just as part of the surface of the wings are also hairy.
This specimen was seen at Bodnant in North Wales and being in the north this accounts for the brown colouring, southern varieties have a brighter, orange colouring but despite the different colouration they are the same species.
Last summer I had a lovely couple of days on a trip to the Whitby area in North Yorkshire and I spent a couple of hours visiting the North York Moors Railway at Grosmont.
It was a hot and sunny day and the good weather and the lure of steam had brought a lot of people to this otherwise sleepy village. I was like a kid when the steam engines came through but I wasn't the only one and it was so nice to see the excitement on the faces of other people who were there. In this shot the platform looks deserted but not long after this the place was heaving.
It was a bit of a trek up to the top of The Roaches in the Peak District, but with views across Staffordshire in one direction and Derbyshire in the other it was well worth the effort.
The moorland at the top was covered in this expanse of cotton grass in full bloom and in the breeze as it was waving gently it looked really beautiful. A little way along the path was Doxey Pool which was a quiet spot for a short break before setting off on the rest of our walk.
