DOVEDALE AND MONSAL TRAIL

I woke up to the most beautiful view across the Peak District it made all the hassle of getting stuck in the mud and the flat tyre yesterday worth it. I was also very excited because my boyfriend was coming to spend the weekend with me. I knew he would find it hilarious that I had got stuck in the mud, so I prepared myself to put up with his jokes. Actually when he came, after the initial laughter and jokes, he was very understanding and helped me fill the water tank using a bucket, water container and a watering can. I certainly was not going to risk it again driving down to the tap.

Thankfully my boyfriend knows the Peak District really well and he has a book of walks. So I was able to switch off and let him plan the walk for the day. We started off along a section of the Tissington Trail, which is a bridleway, footpath and cycleway in Derbyshire along part of the trackbed of the former railway line connecting Ashbourne to Buxton. 

We headed towards the path that took us to the River Dove and past the Dove Holes Caves. They are down in the Dovedale valley, which was carved by the two Ice Ages and subsequently by the River Dove.

The dry caves were once used by hunters as shelters around 13,000 BCE and later,(4.500 years ago) as tombs by Neolithic farmers. The caves are near Nab Dale and are part of Dovedale National Nature Reserve. Its thought that the oval forms were probably created by swirling meltwaters when massive glaciers filled the valley. And of course like a big kid I had to clamber inside and take a look ,even though it was very slippery in parts because of the recent wet weather.  

We continued the walk down a very overgrown footpath full of nettles to Milldale,  a small village on the Western bank of the river Dove. We sat by the river and it was just beautiful to listen to the sound of the river and relax. Then we headed back to the car. It was approximately six miles. And I don't know what it is but no matter how far a walk is, I am always ready for the end during the last mile. 

The next day it was bucketing it down with rain but we were not going to let that deter us from going on a walk. Today despite the inclement conditions we ventured out a bit further with a seven mile walk. The Miller,s Dale and Monsal Dale walk.

We walked along the banks of the river Wye which was very swollen and flowing very fast because of the heavy rain over the last week. It was still raining, but it did not dampened our spirits at all. As long as I am wrapped up in waterproof clothing I don't mind the rain. It is when I start getting wet through that it becomes miserable. We passed the most amazing viaduct which was another disused railway line. Then carried on further downstream, where we had to paddle through deep water because the river was so swollen, until we arrived at a really attractive Weir. 

And of course having walked down into the valley we had to make our way back out of it. We zigzagged up the hill through the trees and emerged onto open fields high above the valley.  Unfortunately as I was walking down a steep slope I lost my footing and ended up slipping in some cow poo!!!! it was horrible and it smelt awful! For a nanno second I contemplated crying, but then I saw my boyfriend just falling about laughing and that just made me laugh and realise how it must have looked to him. And of course he got the photo of me in the poo!  I got as much of the cow poo off as possible in the grass and with tissues and bottled water. And set off again down the hill.

Further down the river I washed my hands thoroughly and felt much better about life. Even though we got soaked and I had that mishap it was still such an amazing walk. And when we finished we stopped at a pub on the hill to look down on where we had walked and it was just breathtakingly beautiful. I am grateful that my boyfriend has such an extensive knowledge of the Peak District because we are doing walks that I am sure I would not have thought about on my own. I am getting to see the most wonderful places in the Peaks and I am pushing myself on the steep inclines and descents which I find exhilarating when I conquer them.