High Peak Trail & Lots of Snow

This week the 4 of us went up to Parsley Hay in Robs 4x4, the temperature in his car was reading -5. We got to the car park just before 8:00 and set off north on the trail. There were great views from the trail and just a little snow at the Parsley Hay car park and the fields had a scattering of snow against the walls. We only got a couple of hundred yards along the trail when we encountered the first drifts across the track. Some of the drifts were anything up to 5 feet deep with a lot higher at walls and banks. The snow was absolutely solid under foot, when you walked over it there was very little give if any at all.

At Parsley Hay car park

Geoff getting his first pic of the day

Some peaks and troughs in the snow

We're going back when the weather is fine to see how high this sign is

Jim trying a bit of ice climbing

Ike on top of the world

Rob on top of a huge drift

This wall must be 5 feet high at least

Got to be 25 feet to the bottom of this slope

This is a rare pic - Geoff in front!!

Angel wings

Beware of the snow Ninja!!

This lady was en route to Buxton - she had come from Ashbourne and had to walk most of it across snow drifts

Breakfast stop

The main road with Minninglow  visible on the horizon just to the left of the road sign

Off the main road heading for Slipper Low Farm

Minninglow on the horizon with a guide stoop in the foreground.

The famous burial mound of Minninglow 

Not much room for manoeuvre 

Rob blames the navigator

A great walk this morning and a nice drive on some dodgy tracks in Robs Rav 4.
See you all next week
Cheers

Winter Walk on the Midshires Way, Belper

With the massive snowfall overnight on Saturday we decided it was to dodgy for us olduns so the morning walk was out. Later in the day on Sunday i decided this snow was too good a photographic opportunity to miss so i got kitted up and thought i would do my normal weekday walk which is just under 4 miles. After i got to the top of Belper Lane and saw the snow blowing right across the road i thought this is going to be interesting.
By the time i got past the Bulls Head and started up towards Longwalls lane i realised how bad the snow was. Incredibly some people were trying to drive up there in ordinary cars, a 4x4 you would have a chance.
Anyway i got onto Longwalls Lane and the Midshire Way the snow had drifts up to 7 or 8 feet in places and i was up to my knees in a couple of sections. Most of the time the wind was howling and blowing the snow right across the track. I only got as far as the lane leading down to Handley Woods, snow blocked any further progress.
The pictures show it better than i could ever describe it.
Enjoy

This is The Gorses just above The Bulls Head

If it was yellow it would look just like the dessert sands.

This was as far as i could go because the snow was blocking the way forward.

The entrance to Street Woods

Wind blown patterns in the snow

This snow arch was almost 5 feet high

I was in past my knees getting past this lot.

View from Longwalls Lane towards The Bulls Head and Belper

A digger was brought in to clear part of the road

Hopefully we'll be back to normal for next week
Cheers