As there were only four of us, we piled into Steve’s new car and were interested to hear about all the features shown on the dashboard and how it performs on the road. After a smooth journey, we arrived at Chatsworth House car park, where it is free to park until the middle of March.
The weather was warm and sunny, positively spring-like, which was a nice change from previous walks we had done, so we decided not to eat our sandwiches in the car, but to walk towards the Hunting Tower and picnic up on high.
We walked past the Farmyard and laughed to see a young spaniel proudly carrying a 4 feet long branch in his mouth. There were many families enjoying the warm sunshine with their dogs, and various varieties were spotted – a Dalmatian, Red Setter, Retriever and quite a few Spaniels.
At the Hunting Tower, we struggled to find a bench as the place was buzzing with people. If the building, a holiday let, was occupied by visitors that day, they probably wouldn’t have liked seeing so many people on their doorstep blocking the wonderful view of the estate.
Lunches eaten, we set off towards the lakes, the road taking us straight through the middle of the Emperor Lake with no signs of wildlife whatsoever. On our left we saw Swiss Cottage and the lake, which has been dried up for years, full of reeds and grasses. We went through a small wood and over a brook to arrive at a gate and the peaceful surroundings of the moors.
We scrambled down the winding, rocky path knowing that we would encounter mud and so it was. Julie, as leader, set off exploring into the nearby bracken, with us following, to try to avoid the worse part of the sloppy goo. It seemed to work, and after all that manoeuvring, we arrived at a pleasant, green field. We passed Beeley Hill Top Farm where Steve spotted two calves in separate pens, chewing on the hay. There was an attractive display of seven, moss- covered, stone toadstools at the side of the narrow road, and we had to stand back to allow two motor-scrambling bikes and a car travelling in the opposite direction, to pass us safely.
Our walk continued beside the river with the sight of the magnificent weir and Chatsworth House standing behind it. A big dog with a white fluffy face and tail, with no hair on his body, bound past us, so full of life. The owner stated that the dog was an Old English Sheepdog, but as he got so muddy when out for walks, he had arranged for him to be sheared! He was a beautiful dog.
Back at the car park at 3.30pm, Steve impressed us by using a special brush he had bought for removing mud from boots – must buy one.
Any new members will be welcomed on our next walk on Sunday April 7th. We meet at 12pm with a packed lunch outside the church gates.
Evelyn Lowe