Tuesday 25 January 2011

Peak District - Kinder Scout - Wild Camping

Wild Camping in the Peak District is something I haven't done for a while, I suppose as its so close to home its easy enough to cover lots of distance on a day walk and still be home in time for tea. I've walked up Kinder Scout more times than I can remember but decided to go for a wander and see where I ended up. I started by getting the train from Chesterfield via Sheffield to Edale, something i've never done before so enjoyed the novelty of it.


The first part of my journey took me up the never boring Grindsbrook Clough, a nice little scramble in summer or winter. Its here where I decided to have my first stop and have a quick go at some slow exposure water movement style photography, that is my technical term so is undoubtedly wrong.


The image below will give you an idea of what the upper part of Grindsbrook Clough looks like if you haven't been, it was rather misty but you get the general idea. a bit of a boulder field and allot stepper in person than it looks in the picture.


Next I pushed on along westward along the southern edge of the Kinder Plateau, It gets rather boggy at times and I had very low visibilty today. Luckily I always go prepared so had my map, compass & gps, even though I've been here many times before I never risk it as the path goes to nothing at times amidst the bog.

I stopped for lunch at the trig point at Kinder Low and took a few photos, they haven't made it onto the sight as i've probably taken the same view more times than regular viewers of my site could stand. I headed off north along the western edge towards Kinder Downfall, it was rather still there today with just a small amount of water trickling over the edge down towards Kinder Reservoir. I pushed on and it didn't take long before you reach the north western edge of Kinder. It was then that I swung east along the northern edge, an edge that is less wandered by others and have only been along a couple of times myself. The path is non existent at times and your met with knee deep bog but the plus side is you have an edge to follow.


I managed to get as far as I had planned to get today which was the eastern tip of the Kinder Plateau, It had gone dark by the time I had got there and had walked with the head torch for around half an hour before. The long days walk through the bog had taken it out of me whilst carrying my kit, I was certainly ready to pitch up and have a break for a while. I'd had no mobile signal all afternoon but luckily it re-emerged as I got to the edge so could update Lisa of my location.


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