| Walk: | Burbage Edge, Goyt's Moss, Goytsclough Bridge, Stake Side, Shining Tor, Cats Tor, Pym Chair, Windgather Rocks, Fernilee Reservoir, Erwood Reservoir | ||
| Start Point: | Car park off Goyt's Lane (White Peak Area) | Grid Reference: | SK 023 751 |
| Distance: | 13 miles | Ascent: | 2,500 feet |
| Time: | 6.5 hours | ||
| Weather: | Dry and sunny with cloud above the summits but excellent visibility at the start. The temperature in the valleys was 0°C with moderate wind giving high wind-chill on the summits. There was a thick covering of snow with heavy showers in the afternoon. | ||
| Comments: | Five people took part in what was a pleasant walk in a mixture of moorland and reservoir areas. Excellent views were had of the surrounding countryside, particularly on the ascent of Shining Tor. At this point the good view of the Cat and Fiddle reminded us all why it features on the traffic news a lot in winter. The newly laid paved section between Shining Tor and Cats Tor made progress across the moor much quicker. Some hardy rock climbers could be seen on Windgather Rocks. no doubt practising for great adventures in Summer. The weather forecast proved to be very accurate with the significant snow arriving by 3pm. Despite this we all arrived back safely at 4.30pm - looking rather like snowmen (and ladies!). | ||
Scroll down to see photos of the walk
Cars turning round in the road ahead warrant further investigation
The reason soon becomes clear as the road is iced up so we decide to retreat
Parking elsewhere we walk down to the intended start point . . .
and join the disused railway track
Eventually reaching the 'end of the line' . . .
we start the climb up to Burbage Edge . . .
negotiating some tricky sections along the way
We climb into the deeper snow . . .
until we reach the trig point
We continue until we meet the path to the Goyt Valley . . .
where we cross Goyts Clough Bridge . . .
and stop for elevenses (note that John has gallantly cleared the snow from the seat for Debbie!!)
Leaving the valley we head for Stake Side . . .
from where we get a good view of the Cat and Fiddle Pub
Cat's Tor can be seen in the distance as we leave Shining Tor . . .
and the paved path gets us there quickly
The snow thins as we approach Windgather Rocks . . .
where some hardy rock climbers (in shorts!) can be seen honing their skills
The going gets tricky as we descend through Goyt Forest . . .
and the snowflakes start as we enter the woodland walk by Fernilee Reservoir
The route becomes much harder as we reach the dam road . . .
and harder still as we climb back towards the cars
The original parking spot confirms that we made a wise decision earlier in the day