Thursday Walk 5 June 2025 – Report

[Andy Smith]

5 members met at the parking near Fairholmes under cloudy
skies with a threat of heavy rain (which later
materialised). We headed up through the trees and reached
Lockerbrook, our progress interrupted briefly by a
“navigational overshoot”. We turned north on the bridleway,
negotiating patches of a substance little seen in recent
weeks – MUD. We arrived at Ouzelden and joined the road
past “Tin Town” (site of the temporary village of
Birchinlee, built for the workers constructing the dams,
and their families). A coffee break was taken at Howden
Dam and we remarked on how low the water levels in the
reservoirs were for this time of year. The final stretch of
tarmac brought us to Westend, by which time the rain had
become quite heavy. As we climbed the path up through the
woods, we were met by torrential mini mudslides flowing
downhill past us. We emerged from the woods and passed
numerous substantial grouse butts. We spent some time
looking for the shooting cabin which had been used as a
shelter for lunch on a previous walk. Having failed to find
it, we continued and on reaching the edge of the plateau we
were rewarded by a spectacular view over the dramatic
Alport Castles. Fortunately by this time the rain had
stopped and the sun came out, so we decided this was a
great place for lunch. After a pleasant if brief stop, we
set off on the penultimate section of the walk, across
Rowlee Pasture, mostly on flagstones. As we neared the
trees, the rain started again, and a final set back was
that our intended direct footpath down to the cars was
closed for tree felling, so we had to detour past the
outdoor centre and retrace our upward route. With all the
detours and diversions, our distance was 9.5 miles – a bit
long for a Thursday walk, but nobody complained (much).
Andy and Rosy.
Pete’s pics:

Rosy’s pics:

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