Absolutely horrible yesterday (Sunday 23/6) with strong winds & heavy rain almost all day. Drove to the 'Dog & Partridge' at Swinscoe for Sunday lunch with Ian & Carol, Les' brother & his wife, who'd come up from Bridgnorth for the day.... we had been hoping to go for a walk!
Today's forecast wasn't a great deal better but we wanted to visit the weekend's new well-dressings before they were totally destroyed by the weather!
So, Di, here's a veritable bumper-bundle for you, & we even managed to fit in a walk as well!
Drove to Hope first, where we've walked on many occasions
Like many other villages Carnival Weekend, Well-Dressing & Scarecrows go hand-in-hand
Hope's theme was 'Musicals' &, unsurprisingly considering the weather, there was an abundance of Gene Kellys!
Outside Hope Valley College, an 11-16 comprehensive
After last week's visit to Rocester & the JCB Academy (Postscript 8) I was interested to discover Hope College's House names
They are: Derwent, Ladybower & Howden; the three Upper Derwent Valley dams, just over Win Hill from the village & another area we've been known to go for a stroll!
This is the Edale Road Well, commemorating the 60th anniversary of Hillary & Tenzing's conquest of Everest
The side panels show Himalayan prayer mats depicting the Lung Ta (Windhorse), as well as rope & ice axes, while the top represents the Himalayan Trust set up by Hillary to support the Sherpa people
Had intended to nominate a 'well-dressing of the day' but today's were just too good!
Settled on a favourite from each village & this is the choice from Hope
Had intended to nominate a 'well-dressing of the day' but today's were just too good!
Settled on a favourite from each village & this is the choice from Hope
I'll leave the explanation to the people who created it - they can say it far better than me
Drove to Tideswell, another village where we house-hunted enthusiastically!
Spent a week here over Easter 2008 when I walked the Peak District Inn Way - more about Tideswell in future postscripts as, I have no doubt, we'll be back!
Several dressings in the village - these are our favourites
Created by the 1st Tideswell Scout Group as part of their fund-raising efforts to send village Mogul Skier, Ellie Koyander, to the 2014 Winter Olympics
The crossed skis represent one of the jumps, involving a 360 degree flip with the skis crossed like this!
Several dressings in the village - these are our favourites
Created by the 1st Tideswell Scout Group as part of their fund-raising efforts to send village Mogul Skier, Ellie Koyander, to the 2014 Winter Olympics
The crossed skis represent one of the jumps, involving a 360 degree flip with the skis crossed like this!
One of two dressings outside the Church of St John the Baptist, 'the cathedral of the Peaks'
Tideswell's Community Well Dressing
All the villagers are invited to take part in this project which helps to fund things like the attractive flower troughs scattered about all over the place!
Other community activities are depicted in the side panels - pleased to see that beer & cricket appear to be high on their agenda!
Our favourite Tideswell dressing, The Village Well Dressing on Fountain Square
Looking back over recent years cathedrals & local churches have been a common theme with St John's featuring in 2003
This year's is a celebration of the Wiltshire countryside: from white horses, crop circles & Stonehenge to Henry Edmunds, named as 'the UK's most wildlife-friendly farmer' by the RSPB in 2012
So, time for a walk
Clouds still threatening but not enough to prevent us from enjoying a beer outside 'The Red Lion' in Litton, barely a mile from Tideswell!
Beer of the Day : 'Absolution', another from Sheffield's Abbeydale Brewery
Bit wary after their 'Deception' (Postscript 7) but this is very good - light & fruity, I couldn't believe it's 5.3%!
I'll be looking for this one again
This is the Children's Well-Dressing, outside the village Primary School
When we passed they were setting up to give a lunchtime musical concert
Our favourite from Litton
Using the theme 'things people like doing', quite a few of the pictures are based on poems written by village well-dresser, Joyce Battey, who died earlier this year
Another cricket fan though it looks as if she preferred tea or champagne to beer!
On with the walk!
First time I'd come across a way-marker for the Peak District walk created by my favourite walking magazine
Launched just over a year ago while I was busy fussing with my knees but, at 27 miles spread over 3 days, I could probably just about manage it now!
Watch this space!
Heading down Tansley Dale & Les obviously still a little concerned about the weather!
Last time I walked here was in snow & the path was buried
Cressbrook Dale from the south
Tansley Dale is the valley climbing away about half-way up the picture to the left
And, having climbed all the way up here, we were heading back down to Ravensdale & Litton Mill!
Looking up Monsal Dale to Monsal Head with its hotel, from the top of Cressbrook village
Those clouds are the reason that Les was still clinging to her waterproof!
The magnificently named Water-cum-Jolly Dale
The curve of the old Manchester-Midlands rail line, now the Monsal Trail, can be seen in the centre
More on all of these places in future Postscripts when I don't have well-dressings to go on about!
Lone chimney above Miller's Dale & Litton Mill, presumably built with a tunnel to avoid the need for a ridiculously tall chimney to climb above the limestone cliffs
Found a friend to help me tackle the 27 miles of the White-to-Dark Peak Trail!
Located about half-way up Tideswell Dale where there used to be fine wooden carvings of an owl & a sheep
This dear lady was here the last time I visited, overseeing the entrance to Tideswell Dale car-park; though, with respect, she did look a little younger in those days!
Finished the day back in Tideswell village & here we were with the scarecrows again
Didn't look too scary & thought I might wander over for a chat with this young lady.... until I realised the error of my ways & repaired to 'The Horse & Jockey'!
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