Lots to do today & the weather wasn't particularly promising so we just made up this short lunchtime jaunt around local villages
Interestingly, there was only cloud hanging over Ipstones but it was raining down in the valley at Froghall. Climbing to Kingsley & Kingsley Holt we walked above it again!
Glorious, sunny end to the day, naturally....!
Set off from Froghall along the Caldon Canal towards the 'Black Lion' (last Monday's pub) but, about half-way along, we dropped down to the River Churnet, ducked under the heritage railway & picked up the Staffordshire Way
The Churnet's source is up on the Staffordshire Moorlands, not far from the Roaches (more about them in walks to come!) & its waters flow into the Dove before heading off for the North Sea
It's believed that the river was once one of the most polluted in Europe because of the industry it supported as it flowed through its gorge-like valley. A typical example was the manufacture of copper wire at the Thomas Bolton Copper Works here at Froghall for use in the first transatlantic telegraph cables - more on the industrial heritage later....!
Les was intrigued by the fact that the canal & the river flow in opposite directions!
Clever stuff!
One of the purposes of today's outing was to investigate how all these footpaths link together around Ipstones & we already seemed to be following 2 at the same time!
And here's another couple after we'd mountaineered out of the valley on its southern side & stumbled back down to the river from Kingsley Holt
Very steep up to Kingsley & decidedly slippery after the morning rain. It wasn't just us: a couple of young men, part of a large group walking the Staffordshire Way, caught us up & then stopped for a very long breather while they waited for the rest of their party to catch up
We didn't see them again & that made me feel quite fit & healthy!
Passed a Falconry Centre just below Kingsley & that looks worth a visit - after LeJog, Les is an expert!
We'll have to come again in any case.... for the views lost in the clouds today!
Ended up here, at 'The Railway' in Froghall, & as you can see it was fine enough to sit outside by this time!
Popped in for a 'Speckled Hen' after yesterday's shopping expedition but enjoyed a more relaxed cider today
Message to Kirstie & Di: this is the 5th pub I've visited so far within comfortable walking distance & I understand there's a few more that I still have to discover!
Bit more heritage: the railway opened in 1849 & was an important passenger link with Leek as well as an outlet for Thomas Bolton's copper products, raw materials for which had been transported down the Manifold from the mines at Ecton (see walk 2!)
Closed to such traffic in the 1960s, the line continued to carry sand from the Oakamoor quarries, which will no doubt figure in a later walk, to Pilkington's glass factories on Merseyside until 1988
Now the line is home to 'the longest beer festival in the country', the Rail Ale Trail offers more than 50 real ales and 20 ciders served from bars at three stations, two trains and four pubs! This year's 'event' is on the 13th & 14th July if any of you happen to be here!
Song of the Day: 'Burn On' by Randy Newman.... thinking about the River Churnet in its former days!
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