David and Jacinta's Walks- 2025

Cave Dale and the Great Ridge Although much of this walk follows familiar territory, the final part is less well trodden for us. We began at Castleton and walked up the limestone gorge of Cave Dale, enjoying the views provided by Peveril Castle and the village itself. Cave Dale and Peveril Castle Exiting Cave Dale We made our way up to the Limestone Way and through the disused mines and quarries that litter the hillside. It is an exhilarating walk from here to the start of Mam Tor, the hillside on this part littered with many sheep and only the occasional uninterested cow. Descending to Oxlow House The Great Ridge in the background We climbed over Mam Tor where many paragliders were preparing to take off and then went on to the Great Ridge and Lose Hill. Just before the top of Lose Hill we stopped and had lunch in an ideal rocky outcrop, closely watched by a number of crows who were hopeful that they would benefit from some leftovers as soon as we departed.  Paragliders above The G...

 Cave Dale and the Great Ridge The weather seemed set fair, but we weren't too sure how much time we'd have for a walk. Looking at the routes in our "Day Walks in the Peak District- 20 classic circular routes", route 6 "Cave Dale and the Great Ridge" looked ideal: if we started from Castleton rather than the suggested Hope, we could either do the full walk, or cut it short by returning to Castleton from Hollins Cross. Fortunately, we were able to do the entire walk. As suggested by the weather forecast, it was very breezy with quite a wind chill. This was quite pronounced as we walked up Cave Dale. It seemed strange, because of the sheltered nature of the dale! Despite this, the sun was out and the colours were great. On the way up Cave Dale One of the features of the walk was that parts of the walk were visible most of the time (although, obviously, not from the depths of Cave Dale). As we neared the top of the dale, we could see Back Tor and Lose Hill- tow...