..............................................................................................Outside the Old Nags Head in Edale
The Pennine Way starts along a fairly inconspicuous footpath across the lane from the Old Nags Head pub in Edale. There is a cafe nearby where you can buy sandwiches, cakes and drinks to take away but its best to order the sandwiches the night before if possible to avoid delays in the morning.
It was a beautiful sunny day, not a cloud in the sky and not what I'd been expecting after the weeks of rain . Two other walkers, Matt and Tim, were posing for photos as I ambled up and I asked them to take mine. We wished each other good luck and at 8.55 a.m. I crossed the lane to take the first steps of a walk that I'd dreamed of for many years. Suddenly I was on the Pennine Way , the first steps were taken!
The path initially snakes around the side of Broadlee-Bank Tor and I strode out the first several hundred yards, feeling good in the sun and enjoying marvelous views in every direction. My enthusiasm soon took a slight knock , however (and not for the last time by any means), when I heard a 'thump' from behind and turned to see one of my two water bottles on the ground quickly haemorrhaging a large portion the days water supply! And this before I had even reached Upper Booth to start the first climb of the walk, to Jacobs Ladder.
I managed to salvage about a quarter of the contents of the bottle , cursed myself for being so careless and found a safer place for the bottle. I carried two bottles, each containing a litre, but on a hot day that was only just adequate. It was to be a day of rationing - I could have guzzled what was left after my ascent of Jacobs Ladder and Kinder Low alone!
I need something to regain my previous good spirits, I thought, and so it was that within 15 minutes of setting off I was eating the first of the over 30 Mars bars that would sustain me at low times before I trudged along that tarmac road into Kirk Yetholm 16 days later.
The climb up Jacobs was fairly steep but, happily, was easily accomplished and it was pleasing to know my fitness was not being stretched, even at this early stage! Kinder Low (2076 feet) soon came, reasonably hard going, then the path levelled towards Kinder Downfall. It was busy with walkers here, many sitting on the rocky outcrops enjoying fine views towards Stockport and Manchester. Yes, there are fine views towards Stockport and Manchester!
It was still fairly busy as far as Mill Hill but from then on across Featherbed Moss to Snake Road I was alone to contemplate how much more difficult this section must have been before the stone slabs were laid. To either side of the slabs are black, oozing bogs of peat and they really do give the impression that if you fell in you would gurgle your way steadily downwards to the depths of the earth. The bogs bought to mind Gollum from The Lord of the Rings, and I wouldn't have been surprised to see him rising from the black ooze!
I spotted a common lizard (Lacerta vivipara) on the section across Featherbed Moss on the first day, the first of two on the walk, for I was to see another on the last day in the Cheviots. Although named the 'common' lizard, I could count on one hand, or maybe one-and-a-half, the number of these creatures I've seen in England in my lifetime and I was pleased to have spotted them.
Eventually the cars and vans parked at Snake Road came into view and walkers were emerging from them in groups of three or four, and seven or eight, and from here to the impressive Wain Stones outcrop of boulders, just west of the main path, it was as busy as any High Street on a Saturday afternoon! Curiously, on the day I did the walk, not many seemed to be continuing to the top of Bleaklow Head (2076 feet) , and I did this section unaccompanied. It was an interesting section through deep gullies carved from mounds of peat, slowly becoming sandy at the summit.
.........Bleaklow Head Summit
From Bleaklow Head the path becomes progressively more difficult - steep and rocky - and after crossing Wildboar Grain it becomes narrow and precipitous. Torside Reservoir soon came into view and not before time! I was feeling thirsty now, due to my earlier mishap with the water bottle. The sun was hot and I felt I could have drained the entire reservoir.
I arrived at my accommodation at 3.30 , drank a huge pot of tea and gallons of water, had a bath and a well earned rest for a few hours. It had been a good day, dry and sunny, clear visibility, beautiful scenery and a cracking walk. There was nowhere to eat nearby and the crowning glory of an already perfect day came when the proprietors of the B & B took me into nearby Glossop to The Bulls Head, which is a combination of Pub and Indian restaurant!
With a good curry and two pints of Robinsons bitter inside me, I congratulated myself on getting the first day under my belt and slept like a log!
Rating for day out of 10 :-