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| NO, WE ARE NOT GETTING MARRIED |
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| HIGH CUP WINERY |
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| SAMPLING THE WINE |
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| I WUZ THERE TOO |
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| NEAR CASTLETON |
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| AL FRESCO BREAKFAST |
Even
now that English and Scottish marriage laws have been unified, couples still
come to Gretna Green to get wed because of the romance of it, although the
place has become a bit of a theme park.
We
then drove south on the M6, exiting at Penrith to reach Dufton. Our intention
had been to walk from Dufton to High Cup Nick, from which the views down the
High Cup valley are astounding, but this plan was thwarted by the continuing
rain and low-lying fog which obscured all the hills around. We drove up a single
track road in the hope of getting close enough to see the famous glacial
valley, but without success. However, in the process, we did come across the
remote 'High Cup Winery' housed in a barn just off the road. Not only did the
Winery offer the opportunity to taste and buy its own locally made wine, but it
also served tea and home-made cakes. These could be consumed on the upper
floor, where pictures by local artists adorned the walls. There was also an
interesting display about the local geology to peruse. We spent a pleasant hour
at the Winery before departing, but not before purchasing a bottle of rhubarb
wine.
Our
next stop, which involved more than two and half hours of driving, was
Castleton in the Peak District, not far from Sheffield. This is a lovely
location from which to start walks, but it was getting late by the time we
arrived so our priority was to find a place for the night, which we did at the
foot of Mam Tor.
At
last, we had a little sunshine in the morning to accompany the day’s walk. From
our overnight parking spot we followed the remains of the road to Blue John
Cavern. I say ‘remains’ because the south east side of Mam Tor is an active
landslip site and the road has been steadily destroyed. After a quick look at the
gift shop at the Blue John cavern, we continued up to the trig point on Mam Tor.
From this 517m elevated spot we enjoyed excellent views all round. We continued
along the ridge towards Hollins Cross and then walked down to Edale village to
the north west. The Old Nags Head pub in Edale is the official start of the
famous Pennine Way, a tough, 268 mile long National Trail which takes the walker
to Kirk Yetholm, just inside the Scottish border. The
weather hadn’t permitted us to eat outside much during our 3 week break, so it
was pleasant to enjoy a drink and a snack in the pub garden.
Our
return to the car involved climbing back over the ridge, and we did this via
Back Tor and Lose Hill, another viewpoint at 476 m. From there it was an easy 2
mile stroll back to the car. The total distance walked was a little less than 9
miles and it was now late afternoon.
After a cup of tea we plotted our final route home, to arrive
around 10.00pm. It was a shame that we hadn’t had better weather whilst in
Scotland, but in spite of that we did most of the things we intended and
learned much about this beautiful northern part of the British Isles, which
differs so hugely from the south. I think that camping on the summit of Suilven
was perhaps the most satisfying achievement, although I am sure Rubi is also proud
that she climbed Britain’s highest mountain.
Sleeping in the car gave us flexibility and meant that we
didn’t have to look for accommodation (mostly fully booked anyway) or paying
for it (potentially excruciatingly expensive). We found the car reasonably comfortable
once we had got used to it, and we ate well in spite of only having a rudimentary
cooker. In summary, apart from the cost of fuel, we had a wonderful three week
holiday for little more than it would have cost to stay at home.
