Bradford Dale Swimming Pool & Fishing Pools

Only 3 of us today, Ike was on door hanging duties at his daughters house. It was Robs turn to drive and we zoomed up the A6 to Alport and parked up just past the old phone box on the opposite side of the road. We've been on this walk a couple times in the past but the last time some of the pools were dry so we wanted to see if they had been filled with water again. It was still dark when we got there and bagged prime spot in the car parking area being first ones there.The walk starts just across the road and soon joins up with the water course that is the river Bradford. Its still quite dark as we walk along the track and soon get to the old packhorse bridge at the bottom of Bradford village. Continue to the Youlgreave road and then the track stays rigidly to the path of the river. Just a hundred yards in and there is a young Heron standing on the opposite side of the river, its absolutely motionless so much so i think it must be plastic but it did move when we got to close but it just walked off and didn't fly. Just a bit further up we came to the swimming pool and then we crossed over to the other side of the river and eventually came to the fishing pools, some in better condition than others, one in particular was dryish with a wall that had collapsed We got to the bridge with the Riddle of the Stones on it and crossed over to investigate the remains of the old building still standing, we were told by a local it used to be a wheelwrights workshop. There is no signs at all of the old mill but we found the route of the millrace and a wall with what looks like an arch of some sort at ground level.
We stayed on that side of the river and followed the footpath that climbed all the way up through the woods to the Youlgreave road where it came out next to the allotments. We had our breakfast on a seat there and then it was a walk down through Youlgreave where we passed lots of churches and the smallest hall in Britain, Thimble Hall. One of the other features in the village is the large water tank installed in 1829  From there it was back to the car where the car park was now full.

This weeks trip around Bradford Dale

Still dark when we parked up just after 07:00

This is the river Lathkill  that joins up with the Bradford just a couple of hundred yards away.

Lovely old stone bridge.

Footbridge

Nice GR postbox

What is it with cats and walls

Juvenile heron

Dipper

I think this was the swimming pool

First of the fishing pools

Another lovely old stone bridge

The bridge has got some of the poetry on it

This pool has a collapsed wall and is dry compared to the last time we saw it

Remains of the Wheelwrights workshop

Looks like an arch at the bottom of this wall

Another shot of the Wheelwrights workshop

Couldn't resist this shot of the pub sign in Youlgreave

Thimble Hall, the smallest hall in Britain

Elaborate carvings on the wall of an entrance to a large house.

A cracking little walk, a bit of a hill to climb but not to strenuous and no styles to climb over. Nice to see the heron and dipper close up. 

See you next week