Peak District day 1

Ann and I have taken a long weekend break and decided to spend it in the beautiful Peak District National Park, designated an AONB (Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty).  The area is adorned with lots of green rolling hills, rivers & streams, farmlands, stiles and all the features you would associate with the quintessential English countryside.  A very popular holiday destination, especially among cyclists and ramblers, we have chosen to explore some of the hiking trails in the area.

It took us about 3.5 hours to drive here yesterday afternoon, arriving at about 5pm.  We have booked into a local pub hotel called the "Pack Horse Inn", which is stone-built, typical of so many of the traditional buildings in the area.  Our room is neat and freshly decorated but still in the traditional style, in keeping with the building's architecture.

We had supper in the restaurant last night and then made it an early night.  This morning, after a hearty full English breakfast we donned our hiking boots and set off on one of the mapped hiking trails.  It was a round trip of about 7.6 miles (12.3 km), through a variety of different terrains, including many farm fields, several rough, muddy footpaths, a towpath along the canal, cobbled streets, wooded areas and a track beside an old, disused mill building beside the river, now a tourist attraction and restaurant.  We took our time, but kept a reasonable pace, interrupted only to take photos and appreciate the local surroundings.

According to the app on my phone, we were walking for 2 hours, 51 minutes, but with stops we were out for about 4.5 hours.  If you total up all the uphill and downhill portions, we ascended (and descended) a total of 1017 feet (308 metres).  Having spent most of the last 16 months getting virtually zero exercise, mostly sitting at my desk and seldom leaving my house, this was quite a shock to the system.  My body feels tired and well-worked, but hopefully I will avoid any serious aches and pains.  Tomorrow we will walk some more, but will probably choose a fairly moderate trail.

Enjoy the photos!