B2B Day 79 Litton Mill to Bakewell: The Cafe Crawl

A handy Monsal Trail sign (click picture for detail)

For an OS map of today's walk (6.42 miles; 10.33 km; around 200 ft total ascent), click here.

After yesterday's recuperation day, Ken felt significantly better this morning. It was also nice to know that we had just a short walk to Bakewell planned using the Monsal Trail, which was a good path along a disused railway line—a nice easy day for Ken on the road to recovery from his cold. (We had initially planned to walk down the bottom of the dale along the river to Cressbrook Mill—first built by the famous eighteenth-century inventor and industrialist Richard Arkwright—where we would cross a footbridge over the weir and then ascend up the valley side to the Monsal Trail. But in another instance of local knowledge being invaluable, Brian & Linda saved us lots of time by warning that the weir bridge was out.—Ken)

One the railway tunnels above steep-sided Cressbrook Dale

So after another lovely breakfast with lots of fruit and another enjoyable chat with Linda and Brian, we left yet another lovely B&B on this trip that we didn't really want to leave. We set off at 10:05 a.m., crossed the footbridge over the river Wye at Litton Mill, and then climbed the steep but mercifully brief path uphill to the Monsal Trail. Like most converted railway lines, the Monsal Trail was fairly level, and the scenery on both sides of the trail, which hugged the south side of the deep valley, was beautiful. 

There were a fair number of walkers and cyclists also out enjoying the trail, so that was nice, too. We went through two tunnels and crossed a stunning viaduct high over the valley of the river Wye before arriving at the viewpoint and cafe at Monsal Head following another steep but short climb. 

Crossing the railway viaduct

 

At the top, the view of the railway viaduct crossing the sharply curving valley was excellent. The viaduct, which John Ruskin had heavily criticized in the 19th century as ruining the landscape so that "every fool in Buxton can be in Bakewell in half and hour, and every fool in Buxton," is now a well-know beauty spot.

 

Monsal Head: at the top of the steep path

 

At the cafe, we sat inside because like a lot of days on this trip, it was just a little too cold for comfort outside (the two ice cream trucks parked outside were not doing much business). We shared a Cornish pasty for lunch.

The station house & disused platforms at Great Longstone station

Back on the trail, we passed through another long tunnel and then continued to enjoy the views on our looping way towards Bakewell. We passed Thornbridge Hall and the former Great Longstone for Ashford Station, with its pretty station house. Just after that we met a very happy couple going the other way on the trail. The man was in a mobility scooter. They greeted us and recommended "Quackers" cafe which was just a short way further on the trail. We thanked them, but inwardly thought that we wouldn't go because we had just had lunch. However, when we reached the path to the Thornbridge Estate, advertising gardens, a cafe, and other delights, we thought we'd take a look. We ended up inside the cafe, which was wonderfully warm. It was called "Quackers" because the decor had a yellow rubber-duck theme. We shared a slice of orange drizzle cake and soaked in the nice atmosphere.

We hit the trail once again and not long afterwards arrived at Hassop Station. I went in to use the bathroom, and the station interior with its cafe was so impressive I made Ken come inside to look around. We didn't buy any food, even though they had an extensive menu and people were obviously appreciating their meals. We couldn't eat at every cafe we encountered during the day! If we ever come back, though...

The first view of Bakewell

The afternoon continued to get colder and darker, but we didn't get any rain. As we neared Bakewell down in the valley below, Ken began to consider our options for getting off the rail path. On the advice of a local, we decided to leave the Monsal Trail when we reached the former Bakewell rail station. As we decended the road to Bakewell we followed a couple who were also walking to the same destination. Ken described the woman as "striding purposefully." 

We enjoyed Bakewell when we did the Peak Pilgrimage in 2018, and it was fun to stride with purpose of our own across the old bridge into the centre of the town. It was a bit cold to linger too long sitting on one of the benches by the river like we did in 2018, but we did enjoy wandering about for a little while before checking into our B&B at around 4:00 p.m. Our host, Mark, was very friendly. We asked for a suggestion of where to eat dinner, and he mentioned The Woodyard pub which was nearby, just over Love Lock bridge, where we paused for a picture of the Wye and its weir.

Love Lock Bridge, Bakewell

 

The Woodyard had good service, and the food was excellent. In almost every pub we've eaten at, there has been a candle on the table that has never been lit. The Woodyard has the honour of being the first place that actually lit our candle! The pub had a nice ambience overall, not just owing to the candles. I ordered a duck noodle salad, and shared a bit of Ken's lamb kofta pizza. (At this point in the trip we started to notice that every pub menu seemed to feature lamb kofta. It was interesting that as we walked northwards, the pub offerings subtly started to change, and in each area everyone seems to offer similar entrees, whether it be lamb kofta or butternut squash risotto.) 

The last cuppa of the day...

Although we didn't order a dessert, we ordered hot chocolate—perfect on a cold summer day! It arrived with a beautiful leaf-like pattern of foam. Because we're not coffee drinkers, the fancy foam was definitely a novelty for both of us!

After returning to our B&B, I had a relaxing hot bath and we settled into our beautiful room for a good night's sleep.

B2B Day 78 Chee Dale and the Monsal Trail? Not today, sadly.

For an OS map of today's planned walk that we didn't do (7.3 miles; 11.75 km; 1,104 ft total ascent), click here.

If the weather was going to be good, Ken had planned a walk in the dramatic gorge-like stretch of Chee Dale for our rest day at Litton Mill. The weather was not good, and Ken was still not feeling well, so we had a true rest, er, recuperation day. He was disappointed that we weren't able to do the Chee Dale walk, which he had planned and even scouted out via a YouTube video. [Someday we'll come back and do this as it is a Peak District classic—Ken]

We went down to breakfast and enjoyed a lovely mix of fruit, nuts, and granola. I had pretty much a full English breakfast with the addition of a fried Derbyshire oatcake, and Ken had a lovely combination of scrambled egg, avocado, and streaky bacon on toast. We enjoyed chatting with Linda and Brian. We went downstairs to our own guest lounge, but Ken wasn't up for a game of ping pong! While we were in the guest lounge, Linda tidied up our bedroom and replenished our tea and milk, and in addition left us two slices of lemon drizzle cake.

We came upstairs to our refreshed room around 11:00 a.m. I posted two blog posts and worked on another while Ken slept till after 1:00 p.m. Then it was my turn to nap from 2:00-3:30 p.m. after eating a bun for lunch. Ken wasn't hungry.

I read a slim book about John Newton that I found spiritually refreshing and quite interesting. (Ken had skim-read it earlier and also really enjoyed it.)

Eventually we pulled ourselves out of our dozy state and left at 5:05 p.m. to walk to The Angler's Rest—appropriately named, given our lazy day. However, even walking at our slow pace, which was made even slower by our taking some photos along the way, we arrived before the pub was serving food.

Beautiful scenery on the way to the Angler's Rest

 

We sat outside the pub on a bench, and then headed in around 6:00 p.m. A table for two was available in the small dining room, which was decorated with a bookcase and many cute animal figurines. The "Specials" board had several items crossed out, some of which would have appealed to us. When Ken ordered a burger from the main menu, he was told that they didn't have any beef burgers left, but he could order a chicken burger instead. He did. When it arrived, it was indeed chicken, but between two slices of bread. We suspected they had run out of hamburger buns as well as beef. (It was a Monday night and maybe they don't get restocked until later in the week?) I had a vegetarian lasagne, and we both agreed that it was good pub food.

We were back at our B&B by 7:25 p.m., and received our laundry from Linda washed, dried, and folded. We felt so cared for.

For the rest of our evening, I worked on the blog and half-watched an episode of Grand Designs with Ken, followed by a European track and field competition. We ate our lemon cake and listened to the rain and hail patter (and sometimes pound) on our skylight. We again fell asleep to Night Tracks.

 

 

B2B Day 77 Hartington to Litton Mill

For an OS map of today's originally planned walk (10.7 miles; 17.22 km; 1,287 ft total ascent), click here.

The youth hostel bunk beds were not kind to us. Ken had a terrible night of not much sleep, feeling really uncomfortable and feverish with his cold. The duvets were too hot. The hostel room was quite an uncomfortable place to be if one was feeling sick. The small room had only bunk beds, not even a chair. The shared toilet was in a separate room next door—convenient, but still outside the room. These things are all fine when you're feeling well, but don't lend a sense of being comfortable when you're sick.

I went down to breakfast alone and had cereal and a croissant. Ken felt terrible and couldn't imagine walking today. (It didn't help that the weather was dismal: cold and rainy.) We got ready to check out at 10:00 a.m., and just before breakfast ended, Ken did get a glass of orange juice and some croissants. 

After we checked out, we sat in the YHA library, and Ken emailed our hosts to say we were going to try to get a taxi. Our hosts, Brian and Linda, emailed back and said that Brian would pick us up at 12:15 p.m. and bring us to the B&B in Litton Mill. Their kindness made Ken want to cry. We were so grateful. 

I walked down to the village stores in Hartington and got a turkey salad sandwich and crisps for our lunch, then I bought four buns and a pot of original curry noodles for our dinner. We ate our lunch in the library, and the sandwich was excellent. 

We went outside to wait for our ride. It was cold—today's high was supposedly 11C, and it felt it. Brian picked us up and drove us via a very scenic route to Litton Mill, taking us through beautiful countryside. The view of the valley which opened up as we passed Taddington was stunning. Our walking route would have gone in a similar direction, which brought mixed feelings for Ken, who had been very much looking forward to this walk.

We were so grateful to get settled in our lovely room, which was exactly the kind of comfortable place one wants to be when not feeling well!

We had some hot drinks and biscuits left for us, and we had a good long nap in the afternoon. We had our dinner of noodles and buns, then some tea and biscuits while watching Antiques Roadshow, followed by the same portion of a special on Helvellyn that we had watched last year. 

Seal bars!

The otter-seals were excited to see that we had been given Seal Bars, and we ate those as an evening snack. At lights out we listened to a BBC3 radio program called Night Tracks, which we enjoyed as we drifted off to sleep.

 

 

B2B Day 76 Thorpe to Hartington: Revisiting the Peak Pilgrimage

Revisiting the Peak Pilgrimage

For an OS map of today's walk (9.05 miles; 14.56 km; 1,541 ft total ascent), click here.

Today we planned to revisit some of the areas we covered on the first day of the Peak Pilgrimage, which we did in 2018. The highlight of that walk and of today's was the same: the lovely valley of Dovedale—famous for its beauty and angling associations from Isaak Walton's The Compleat Angler.

We slept well, though we were awake fairly early. Ken woke up feeling not great yet not too bad, all things considered. I talked with our hosts and although Ken volunteered to eat upstairs, they said it was okay, so we both went to breakfast, with Ken sitting facing away from the other guests. He took an antihistamine and had a Coke with breakfast to try to counteract the slight sleep-inducing effects of the antihistamine. I had a Devonshire oatcake as part of my breakfast and really enjoyed it. The morning rain was pelting down as we had breakfast.

We went back to our room to pack and had one last enjoyable time of watching the lambs on the hillside. Ken noted that one of the lambs had a hitch in its gait, and I said that maybe it had pulled a lambstring. [Groan!—Ken]

After a farewell to our hosts Sarah and Steve, we set off at 10:05 a.m. I still had a bit of vertigo, and was quite stiff and slow. Because of all the rain earlier in the morning making things slippery, on Steve & Sarah's advice we decided not to climb Thorpe Cloud, a lovely mountain that had been tentatively on our route today. However, as we passed, the rain had stopped and it was beautifully sunny; it looked lovely in the sunshine. 

Shapely Thorpe Cloud

A close-up from another angle: note the climbers on the peak

 

There were beautiful views in all directions...

 ...and even the lambs were smiling.

 

Because it was a Saturday, there were many people out enjoying the beauty of this area. We aimed just to the right of Thorpe Cloud and walked down Lin Dale, with lots of stops for photographs of the peak and the emerging views of Dovedale as we descended.

Lin Dale: walkers ascending to Thorpe Cloud whilst we descended to Dovedale

 

We proceeded down Lin Dale and eventually arrived at the stepping stones, which we fortunately didn't need to cross. The stepping stones had been displaced by storm debris in late winter and, although they had been reset, they were not as easy to cross as they had been in 2018 and were "offically" closed by the National Trust. But as we rested at the bottom we admired the view and watched as a few people carefully picked their way over the River Dove on the stones.

Dovedale and The Stepping Stones

We thoroughly enjoyed walking through Dovedale again; it was so beautiful in the dappled sunlight ("Glory be to God for dappled things"—G.M. Hopkins) with its weirs, pinnacles, caves, and its character changing seemingly every quarter mile or even around every corner.

Entering Milldale: Viator's Bridge

Eventually, we crossed Viator's (i.e., Wayfarer's) Bridge and arrived at Milldale around 12:45 p.m. A visit to Polly's Cottage, a take-out cafe, yielded a ham and tomato sandwich for me, an egg mayo sandwich & a genuinely ice-cold Coke for Ken, and Pipers crisps for us both to share. The man who served us at Polly's was efficient and cheerful.

Snacking in the (cold & partial) sunshine

We sat on our plastic bags on a grassy bank with lots of other people around and ate our lunch looking at the river. The man next to Ken borrowed Ken's map briefly. When the wind died down and the sun was out, it wasn't too bad, but it was generally quite cold, probably only about 14 Celsius (57 Fahrenheit). Despite the cold, I felt it was important that we have an ice cream, so we shared a vanilla waffle cone, which was delicious.

The steep path down from Gypsy Bank

We finally got going again at 1:45 p.m. Walking a slightly different path from 2018, we enjoyed a different dale, at least in name. (Like some British street names in cities, we were following the same river Dove, yet the name of the valley changed several times.) Later, the steep path down Gypsy Bank which we had descended in 2018 on the Peak Pilgrimage joined us.

As I mentioned above, every quarter mile, it felt as though the scenery would change. And this time the name of the valley changed: we entered Wolfscote Dale.

Entering Wolfscote Dale

The previous time we had walked through Wolfscote Dale, it was quiet and peaceful. We had passed a few fishermen and several sheep with adorable black lambs. This time there were no fishermen, no sheep, just lots of people out walking. One couple had their dogs off-lead, and one dog went into the water to chase a duck. We didn't like to see that. They did put the dog on a lead after finally getting its attention.

We also started to see groups of six to eight early-teenagers. The first group had orange pack covers, then we saw ones with teal pack covers. Much later we saw a group with blue pack covers, and I joked that next we'd see red pack covers . . . the words were barely out of my mouth when we did! We ended up also seeing fluorescent yellow and then pink.

A less pastoral but still favourite view in Wolfscote Dale: Peaseland Rocks (L) and Drabber Tor (R)

Heading to Hartington with the tired youth

 

The character—and name—of the valley changed again and we entered the dark woods of Beresford Dale. They were beautiful too, but we did enjoy emerging from the woods and seeing the sunshine, with a very pretty retrospective view of the hills to the south as Dovedale broadened out into a wide valley near Hartington. 

Broad and beautiful Dovedale just south of Hartington

 

When we got into Hartington, we could hear live music at the Charles Cotton Hotel, so we were glad we weren't staying there that night (a Saturday). Ken got a pint of lemonade at the Devonshire Arms across the way, and then we made the walk uphill to the YHA where we had stayed in 2018. 

Our reception at the YHA in 2018 had not been great, but this year it was really good. People were cheerful and helpful. We rested in our bunk beds before heading down for our dinner reservation at the Devonshire Arms for 6:30 p.m. For dinner, Ken had sausage, mash, and Yorkshire pudding, and I had a vegetable frittata, fries, and salad. The food was good, and our server James was very nice. We decided to order dessert, a sundae with coconut ice cream, cherry sauce, and chunks of waffle. It was excellent.

We walked back in the cold to the YHA. I sat in the library and emailed a bit, and Ken came down but felt so tired that we just went back up to our room so that Ken could rest. His cold was definitely getting worse.

 

 

B2B Day 75 Rest Day: A Toddle for Tea in Tissington

Ken definitely has the same cold as I have. Today was "the day of the scratchy throat," so it worked out well that Ken had planned a rest day with a short toddle over to Tissington. 

We had a delicious cooked breakfast and especially enjoyed the scrambled eggs with fresh chives from the garden. Sarah kindly did our laundry, which had accumulated to quite some extent, and we rested while it was in the wash. I hung it on a drying rack in our room, and at the leisurely hour of 12:15 p.m. we set off northeast on the Tissington Trail (the path created on a former railway line) for our short two mile walk to Tissington. It was a fairly gray and windy day, but I still enjoyed all of the wildflowers along the way.

Just before we arrived at Tissington, we passed a small group of adults with special needs and their carers out for a walk, and exchanged cheerful hellos.

When the trail reached Tissington, there was a snack kiosk that had just opened, but we resisted its allure because we had our sights set on Herbert's Tea Rooms in Tissington itself. Near the snack kiosk were two picnic tables amongst thick green grass that was several inches high. The grassy area was taped off with a sign that urged people not to step on the newly seeded area. I said to Ken that I thought the grass was probably long enough now to remove the tape and signs. 

When we got off the trail, we were enchanted by the buildings we saw. 

A glimpse, though we did not realise it at the time, of Tissington

 

After Ken took the photo above, we kept walking straight on and went up Chapel Lane. We met a black and white cat walking towards us in the opposite direction. As we kept going, Ken was surprised because we weren't reaching the village that should have been there! Just as were passing a Methodist chapel, we met a couple of walkers and asked directions. They gave us a couple of options, but it sounded like if we walked either way, the road would circle round to Tissington.

Perhaps the cat was Methodist...

Since we were right in front of the chapel, we decided to go in. It was small sanctuary that could seat 40 people. I appreciated how the beautiful bouquets at the front of the church were arrangements of wildflowers. The view out the front windows was of a buttercup-filled pasture with cows. Ken was seated in the "congregation" and I stood up front, and we sang the first and last verses of "And Can It Be," one of the hymns on the hymn board from the previous service. Ken was able to sing, though his throat wasn't good [I croaked my way through it—Ken]. While I was singing, I could see that the cat had jumped up into one of the windows and was mewing at me (or perhaps singing also?). After we were done, the cat jumped up in another window to watch what Ken was doing. We liked this church; it was peaceful and prayerful. I was also impressed that in their book sale they had a copy of Charlotte Brontë's Villette. After we exited the church, we retraced our steps, the cat following us partway down Chapel Lane. 

Tea and cake in Tissington

The village was right where it was supposed to be, and we found it. We easily located Herbert's Tea Rooms, which were really busy. We got the last available table, and used our recently remembered strategy of sharing a savory so we could have a sweet. We ordered a cheese and sun-dried tomato quiche. When it arrived, it looked unlike any quiche we had seen before, and it also looked like it might be a bit greasy. However, despite initial appearances, it turned out to be delicious and tasted a bit like a pizza. After our pizza-quiche, we had a pot of tea and a slice of lemon-curd cake each. The cake was worth sharing the quiche.

We left after 3:00 p.m., a bit disappointed that they had stopped doing take-away of savory items by then, since we were hoping to take away some quiche for dinner. Instead, we bought two fruit scones and two bags of Pipers crisps for dinner.

We took some pictures of Tissington Hall, which was quite impressive, and a couple of the village's many wells—the "dressing" of which after Ascension Sunday has made the village famous in the district.

Tissington Hall

Hall Well, appropriately named as it is right across from the big house

We next went to the church, St. Mary's. The baptismal font was incredibly old with seemingly mythical beasts as well as Christian symbols carved around it. 

Stained-glass windows of Noah's ark were noteworthy for their detail and beauty.

 

 

However, my favourite stained-glass window was the one in the east end above the altar. I could imagine going forward for communion and seeing Jesus breaking the bread and inviting the communicants to join him.

I looked up the hymns on the hymn board, and we sang one verse of "Shine Jesus Shine," which was the last song listed.

We left Tissington around 4:00 p.m. When we reached the snack kiosk, it had closed. But someone must have heard my comment earlier in the day, because the signs and tape were removed around the picnic tables, and someone had mown the grass! There was a different mower in one of the fields below the trail, with a front mowing blade and one mowing blade on each side. Further down the trail, we saw a mother leading a small girl on a white pony, which was sweet.

We arrived back at our B&B around 4:30 p.m. and went up to our room. On YouTube we watched the most recent walk by Dave Ford and his whippet Logan (Logan's favourite crisps are Pipers, which is why we tested them out this trip!). Even at home I sometimes find watching Dave's walks so relaxing that I fall asleep, and . . . I fell asleep. Ken was reading stories on the Internet, and I woke up at 7:00 p.m.! We went downstairs to eat our evening meal of scones, and our host Steve kindly boiled a kettle for us to have some tea. 

Back upstairs, I worked on three blog posts (being quite behind) while Ken watched Gardener's World and then football (England lost a friendly to Iceland 1-0). We also kept an eye on the lamb show outside. Sadly, a ewe had died and we watched the farmer collect it while all of the animals came near to his vehicle to watch. Later, as the sunset threw the folds of the field into sharp relief, the black lambs again formed a pack that raced and skipped around the fields, and they were a delight to watch.

An action shot: look at those lambs racing on the right!

Talk about counting sheep before you fall asleep! The sheep provided a peaceful end to a pleasant day of rest.

 

B2B Day 74 Doveridge to Thorpe

For an OS map of today's walk as originally planned (13.88 miles; 22.38 km; 1,523 ft total ascent), click here.

For OS maps of today's revised walks, see Part One from Doveridge to Uttoxeter (2.50 miles; 4.03 km; 37 ft total ascent), at this link; and Part Two from Ashbourne to Thorpe (3.35 miles; 5.39 km; 402 ft total ascent), at this link.

Ken had originally written this introduction for today's blog post: "Today was our longest walk of the trip, but with the promise of the Peak District as our destination." Instead of this planned walk, Ken thought about several alternate options before he fell asleep in our little suite in Doveridge. In the morning, we decided that we would walk back to Uttoxeter and take a bus to Ashbourne, and then walk from Ashbourne to our evening's destination, the Station House B&B in Thorpe. We made this decision based on my ongoing tiredness, cough, and phlegm from the cold (not allergies after all, or at least not solely), my tender hamstring, the length of the walk, and the uncertainty of the condition of the paths. (I also awoke experiencing some vertigo.) Ken had read some dire things about the Staffordshire Way and Limestone Way (the paths we were to walk), and our brief taste yesterday was not promising. Finally, we had decided long ago that philosophically, the "B2B" was not going to be a "we must take every step" walk like we had done in 2008 (Wainwright's Coast to Coast) or in 2013 (our Devon to Dover "pilgrimage of thanksgiving"). If we found ourselves in a situation where it felt better not to "push it" to walk every step, then we simply wouldn't walk every step. So in light of the current circumstances, we decided to set a more leisurely schedule, taking the bus for a big chunk of the route.

Our host had told us last night that it was okay if we checked out later in the morning because no one was coming to stay that evening. Based on our decision to take the bus, we decided to have a leisurely morning. Although we woke around 7:00 a.m., we had a good lie-in till 8:00 a.m. We had our showers and enjoyed some wonderful granola and toast for breakfast, our hosts having left a loaf of bread and a selection of cereals. I updated the blog for a while, and then went across the street to visit the village post office and shop. (I was very sad to read a notice that at the end of June the postmaster was retiring, the post office was closing, and the shop was closing as well.) Because we were seated at a table in front of a window right across the street from the store, we had enjoyed watching people go to and fro. A couple of men had clearly walked in to buy their morning paper. I had a good look round the shop and bought a black Bic pen for 45p, since I had left my pen along with my journal at the Coach House B&B. 

We certainly had a leisurely start, and set off in the cold sunshine at 11:55 a.m. Our first stop was at St. Cuthbert's Church at the edge of the village. Ken took a picture of an ancient yew tree, reputedly 1,400 years old, that was partly propped up in the churchyard.

A very ancient Yew

The church was interesting. We sang a verse each of "The Goodness of God" and "Amazing Grace."

Doveridge church

Retracing our steps from Doveridge to Uttoxeter was a pleasure, encountering the Victorian suspension footbridge again, and the fields. We went back along the paved bike path and came in the "back" way to the Tesco where our bus stop was located. We went into Tesco and got our "meal deal" lunch of a chicken club sandwich, baked crisps, and a Coke. We went to the lane of a cashier named Tim, who kindly used his own member card to get us a better deal on our lunch. 

We ate our lunch in the bus shelter outside the Tesco. Ken chatted with a woman who lived in Ashbourne and was also taking the bus. It arrived at 1:35 p.m., and was an interesting ride, taking about an hour to arrive at Ashbourne. 

St Oswald's, Ashbourne

On our 2018 trip, we hadn't had time to visit the church in Ashbourne, St. Oswald's. Today's bus trip enabled us to have time to visit—when we got there, we found it large, old, interesting, and impressive. It had a very tall tower and spire which made capturing the exterior in the camera very difficult, as Ken found out! We wished we had allotted more time to look around, because we definitely could have used it. The memorial tombs, ancient and more recent, and the stained glass windows were among the outstanding features. We sang one verse of "Praise to the Lord the Almighty," and the acoustics in the large open nave were impressive. We bought a guidebook to help us remember all the interesting features of the church.

We set off around 3:25 p.m. to walk on the Tissington Trail to Thorpe, as we had done six years earlier. For sentimental reasons, I felt like we had to stop at the snack kiosk at the beginning of the trail, so Ken bought me a lemon shortbread and a flapjack for himself, and we happily munched as we walked along. 

Partway along the trail we met a couple of long-distance walkers, Mark and Ella. We chatted for quite some time. They had started at the Arbor Low stone circle near Monyash, and were walking to Glastonbury to be there for the summer solstice on June 21. Their plan was certainly more ambitious than ours: this was their first day and it was 15 miles, and they had a 20 mile day coming up soon. They were from Yorkshire, and this was the first long walk that they had done in ten years. They had found their long tramp down the Tissington Trail, a path on a former railway bed, to be rather boring. Ken and I have sometimes felt the same thing on railway paths, but I actually greatly enjoyed walking along the trail. Buttercup, red campion, and Queen Anne's lace lined the path edges, and there were occasionally fields of sheep or cows.

On our 4:45 p.m. arrival at the Station House B&B, where we had stayed and loved it in 2018, we had a good chat with Sarah followed by tea and cake in the garden. We had fun watching the hens in the garden, and also the horses and sheep in the fields above.

At 6:15 p.m. we went to the Old Dog pub in Thorpe, a quick walk from the B&B. They had reserved a table for us by the fire, which was appreciated on such a cold day. Ken played it safe and ordered fish and chips, while I took a risk and ordered an onion bhaji burger with fennel slaw. When our food arrived, Ken said, "My fish batter is orange!" It was. We agreed that something tasted "off" in the batter; something just wasn't right. His throat felt strange, too. On the other hand, my burger was very good, and the fennel slaw was excellent and I wished there had been more. As we were leaving, our hosts arrived with a family party to celebrate their daughter's birthday. The pub had a nice atmosphere, and meeting people you know even slightly is always fun.

When we came back to our room at the B&B, we had an absolutely wonderful evening watching the livestock in the fields on the little hill outside our window, with four horses and many ewes that had new black lambs. The lambs were a lot of fun—at a certain point in the evening, they gathered together into a large group of eight to ten, and raced around in a "pack." Two rabbits were also racing around, and the chickens were on patrol chasing away a sleek rat. The animals were immensely entertaining and much better than anything on TV! 

The seals loved watching the animals from our room at The Station House

 

After updating some more blog posts, we settled in for a good night's sleep on our excellent memory foam mattress.