Sunday 5th June

So far the weather has been good and Sunday promised to be the best so far 22C+ and sun all day long. We had decided to drive to Carsington Water and to cycle around the water.

This was only 8 miles but definitely was not flat with a number of very steep hills which luckily were relatively short. There had been plans to do the circuit twice but the LLW put her foot down and once was enough!

Again it was great to see so many people enjoying the facilities for walking, cycling and sailing etc.

Saturday 4th June

The LLW was free of work and we had decided to tackle the Manifold Trail together. This is yet another disused railway track following the Manifold and Hamps valleys for 8 miles pretty much S to N. A very pleasant day and we headed off in the Honda for a few miles along the A523 to the village of Waterhouses where the southern end of the trial begins.

The fairly newly acquired tow bar based cycle carrier is proving a great buy - very solid and once the bikes are locked in place they stay put and even travelling a 70mph on a motorway is no problem.

Off we went and the LLW fairly sped along the track which to be fair was quite level; she even ignored 2 ice cream stops to arrive at the northern end where coffee and cakes were needed to provide energy for the return leg

 

A really lovely and easy cycle ride with great facilities and we must commend the local council on the excellent work they have done in providing these trails. WSCC please note; providing more facilities like this is a great way to get people out into the countryside - its very inexpensive and good for health.

Friday 3rd June

Sadly the LLW had yet more work to do so I decided on a long ride this morning and we agreed to meet lunchtime at the restaurant at Carsington reservoir. Getting there on a bicycle involved 3 miles to the start of the Tissington Trail, 13.5 miles north, and uphill, along the trail to a village called Parsley Hay where the High Peaks Trail was joined (12 miles to Middleton Top) and then downhill steeply to Carsington Reservoir and around the reservoir to the restaurant at the visitor centre. 32.5 miles in total and I enjoyed every minute of it, although I must admit that when I reached Parsley Hay having ridden 16.5 miles, I was shocked to discover from the finger post that it was still 11.5 miles to Middleton Top. However, the High Peaks trail is fairly flat and runs along another disused railway line but one on which the carriages were pulled by horses, except at 2 fairly steep inclines, where Steam driven mechanical winches were employed. The railway was used to transport minerals and goods between two canals. The views all along were spectacular.

A long downhill section on minor roads and the along the cycling track which circumnavigates the reservoir and I arrived at the Visitor Centre. Within 5 mins the entire support team arrived and we enjoyed a light lunch at the restaurant with great views over the water. Carsington Water is managed by Severn Trent Water and they have done a brilliant job in developing it as an activity centre with walking, cycling, sailing, canoeing, paddle boarding etc all on offer. Being half term, it was busy and families were all having a great time.

Back to base for a bit of a rest before dinner at The Lighthouse which is a highly recommended fairly local restaurant. The restaurant was just OK; the food was fine but they had a very high opinion of themselves, the service was unsmiling and matter of fact and overall they were very pretentious. This was epitomised by the heavily rehearsed comment from one waitress when announcing the chive flavoured butter that 'the chef had picked the chives himself"!!

Thursday 2nd June 2016

After staying the night with my aunt Hilda in Kingston upon Thames, we headed off through Richmond Park, around the north circular and then on to the M1 on our journey to the HPB property at Blore Hall in the southern Peak District National Park. The Honda was fully loaded with 2 bikes on the back and lots of outdoor gear. It was an uneventful journey with heavy traffic but no holdups and as we arrived at Ashbourne, we spotted an out of town M&S Food store which was perfect for initial provisioning!

We arrived at HPB slightly early but were able to check in anyway as our cottage Tythe Cottage (no 16) was ready. The site manager Chris was on his best behaviour as he was being visited by Nigel from HQ!

What a beautiful site HPB Blore Hall is! Relatively small in HPB terms, it seems like a collection of farm buildings around a courtyard and Manor House. The properties are lovely and the views over the Peak Dstrict and Thorpe Cloud are stunnng.

The LLW had some work to do so I headed off for the first cycle ride of the week down the hill to the outskirts of Ashbourne and then the steady but unrelenting climb along the Tissington Trail (a disused railway line converted into a wonderful walking and cycling track). Not liking the look of the very steep climb on the final section back to HPB, I had negotiated a pick up from the support team at the beautiful village of Ilam at the foot of said hill. I managed just under 13 miles and it was great. The first part of the trail climbs steadily from Asbourne and is surrounded by trees and hedges but just past the village of Tissington, the views open up with spectacular vistas across the hills and fertile valleys. Brilliant cycling and with perfect timing, the support team had just arrived when I cycled in to Ilam.

Roast chicken from the aforementioned M&S was on the menu for dinner and very good it was too.