Practice Walk - Kinder Scout

Last weekend we did our first practice walk: a 23 mile hike in the Kinder Scout area; the highest point in the Peak District. The day started with an early wake up at 5AM, a 2 hour journey to Hope Valley (the start of our walk), then a start at around 8:30AM. We were not really sure how long it was going to take us travelling in an unfamiliar area so we decided to maximise the amount of daylight we could get on the hike. For those who don't know, Kinder Scout is a very large plateau, where walkers typically climb on top then walk around it (see map below):



The walk up onto the plateau (to Grinsdale Knoll) was a little bit 'knackering' to say the least, however the views once we got to the top were spectacular. We should mention that we were particularly lucky with the weather (the entire day was sunny with a light breeze). Due to most of the route consisting of walking around the edge of the mostly flat but quite rocky/muddy plateau, our orienteering skills were not significantly tested. Due to the fast approaching darkness towards the end of the hike a few detours were required i.e. instead of coming down from the plateau using the same route as for the ascent, we decided to descend using Jacobs ladder in order to ensure that we got off the 'mountain' before it got dark. We managed to do the walk in about 10 hours at a fairly leisurely pace including a number of stops on the way.

Here are some photos of the walk:

The intrepid adventurers begin their journey..


Barry on route (Southern edge)...


Mike on route(Southern edge)...


Barry working on his tan...

For Rob..

We thought it only fitting to have the first post of the blog explaining a little more about why we are doing the Coast to Coast walk. Early this year Rob Disspain (Barry's brother in-law and Michael's uncle) succumbed to Lung Cancer, leaving a wife and two young children, a loss made all the more tragic by the fact that Rob was a fitness fanatic, a medical doctor and a non-smoker for many years who always ate healthily and was incredibly active.

We are aiming to raise money for the Roy Castle Lung Cancer Foundation in the hope that we can in some way contribute towards research into the prevention and cure of this illness. You can make a donation here:

http://www.justgiving.com/BarryAndMike-CoastToCoast/

This is Rob...



An Overview of the Coast to Coast route can be seen here:


A More details description of the route can be viewed here:
http://cms-stu-iis.gre.ac.uk/km44/map/