Break out the emergency tiffin, squadron! Sunday 15 June 2014

An early-morning alarm clock’s bell can be a rude awakening even for the most seasoned of ramblers.  At this time of year, the long days at least mean that the sun is already up, which helps.  But the big reason for not throwing alarm clocks vigorously out of the window this particular morning was that one of Ian’s Derbyshire walks was in the pipeline.

Hmm, cheese sandwiches, you say?

Can I join in?

We started in the impressively picturesque village of Tideswell, complete with many a fine cake-shop (toffee tiffin!), and headed off into the rolling countryside.  A spot of drizzle cooled us down as we climbed hills out of Monsal, and before long we had found a friendly herd of cows to sit and eat lunch with (at one point they were rather too friendly, until a part-time cowboy who shall remain nameless drank a can of pop too fast, the inevitable sound effects happened, and a herd of bullocks fled from the scene).

Down in the dales, our afternoon diversion was a warmer walk, which of course justified an ice cream stop – where we were entertained by very sociable cats.  The rambling highlight for many of us was probably the return route via Cresswell Dale, an unspoilt valley full of orchids.  Yep, that was worth getting up for.

Of course, after all that exercise and intellectual stimulation, we all had to stop for a cream tea at the end.  Well, mens sana in corpore sano, and all that.