MONDAY 2nd JULY 2018
PART 2 of the LINK to the PENNINE WAY
SHAWFORTH to the PENNINE WAY
Five walkers left Quarry Street in Shawforth on a very hot Monday morning and made our way up Eagley Bank as far as Winterbutlee Farm. The farm is also home to a thriving saddlery business established by Michelle Miller in 1982.
Once through the farm yard we turned right and made our way over the first, of what was to be many strange and inadequate stiles on our route. From here we started our climb up to Middle Trough Farm and onto Trough Edge, where the ladder stile was impossible to climb as the first rung was missing. The climb onto the moors was rewarded with clear views over towards Todmorden and Stoodley Pike.
Our descent, from the moor took us to a disused mine where we joined the track used by the miners which took us past an empty Ramsden Clough Reservoir and onto Foul Clough Road that passes Brown Road Farm where we have previously encountered a rather large bull. However, on this occasion the bull was in the barn, making his displeasure known at not being able to join the cows and calves on the moor.
At the next farm, on our route, the owners had placed a large gorilla alongside the stile that gives access to the footpath which passed their front door and over the lawn. Not deterred we passed the farm and made our steep descent into Walsden and into Granny Pollards Fish & Chip Shop, where we stopped to sample the food even though it was only 11.30am.
Suitably refreshed we walked up Top O ‘Th’ Hill Road and made our way onto the Pennine Moors first passing Basin Rock, not missing the opportunity for a photo shoot, and on to Gaddings Dam. The hot weather had brought the sunbathers out and many of them were soaking up the sun on the beaches around the reservoir with one brave soul swimming around the perimeter of the reservoir, in a wet suit and floating aid.
From Gaddings Dam it is an easy walk to the Pennine Way as much of the footpath is paved with old stone flags from disused mills. Once on the Pennine Way we turned right and headed towards Warland Reservoir, which is still drained of water whilst undergoing maintenance work. We turned right just before the reservoir and made our way down the hill back to Walsden where we stopped in the shade for refreshment before starting the climb up onto the moors where we retraced our steps back to Shawforth having covered a distance of 11.5 hot miles.
