Saturday Ramble: Mam Tor & Rushup Edge
After what had been an eventful and stressful week in both my work and personal life, I was longing for the weekend and a good hike before the stormy weather hit. With this in mind, we decided to leave the car at home and train it to Edale on Saturday morning with the pup. It was another early start as we made our way to our local station in the dark, but the promise of a day hiking and walking kept us going
During the train journey, we lay our OS map of the dark peak out on the table as we plotted out the route, planning to walk up to Mam Tor before following it along to Rushup Edge for a change. With the sun finally breaking through the clouds, I settled back into my seat and reflected on the week, life has been tough recently and I find myself feeling both emotionally and mentally drained more frequently than I would like. I was desperate to get outdoors and feel the cold, winter air on my face and walk my problems away a little.
Edale, as many of you know, offers so many fantastic walks and it was fairly busy when we arrived just before 10am. Knowing where we were going, we headed off in the direction of Hollins Cross, which as I have mentioned before, gives you stunning views of the Edale Valley, Kinder Scout and the great ridge. It was a muddy affair as we made our way up and onto the ridge, but with the sun out, it was a truly spectacular start to the day.
The walk up to the trig point on Mam Tor was glorious, with a brisk wind, the clouds raced across the sky, which meant we were treated to some stunning light and shadows across Kinder in the distance. With the number of people petering out the closer we got to the top, the more we were able to enjoy the silence of being outdoors. There were many moments, I slipped off to shoot Rushup Edge rising in the distance, or the light and shadows of Kinder and I felt my stress slipping away.
With muddy boots, slightly muddy hands from an over enthusiastic pup and windswept hair, we made the trig point on Mam Tor and quickly descended to the curved Edale road. It was here; we crossed over and made the sharp accent of Rushup Edge. I adore this walk, with many people on Mam Tor, Rushup doesn’t feel as busy, but the views are amazing. With clear blue skies, sunshine and cold, brisk wind, we made our way along with the ridge to the highest point, Lords Seat. Here we stopped for a snack and to take in the stunning views.
The landscape eventually opens up into a windy moor, here the pup raced around the long grass whilst we walked towards Edale and our descent. There was nobody else around at this point, only me, Sam and pup. With darker clouds now drifting in slowly and the wind picking up, we finally came to our crossroads and the path back to the village. The descent is steep and tough on your feet, but the views of Kinder and surrounded hills make this one of my favourites and I got a little snap happy with my camera.
We did stop half way for a warming brew and it was one of the best cuppa stops I’ve ever had, surrounded by hills and peaks with only my favourite person and dog for company. Once at the bottom it’s a fairly flat route back to Edale, with around 15 minutes of road walking, so do take care. With 10 miles under our belt, we popped into the Ramblers Inn for a hot cup of tea and some lunch, pup meanwhile snuggled up under our table and slept.
It really was a good way to spend a day, after such a stressful week, there was nothing better than getting outdoors and enjoying nature.