Friday 9 December 2022 - Pete Varley, Around Timperley, and Nessit Hill

Friday was a sad day. I attended a wake following the death from cancer of a fellow TGO Challenger, Pete Varley (aka Lilo). Pete was a real character, a really nice bloke, and a role model to which few people could aspire. Sue and I met him on several Challenges, and we spent a few days with him and Trish in Chamonix in 2009. 

The picture above shows Pete finishing the TGO Challenge with me in 2013, at a very windy spot in Frazerburgh.

Pete's life was celebrated with speeches, readings, pictures and music, and we got to know a bit more about his multifarious activities. The TGO Challenge and other long distance walks were a love of Pete's life, and five of us - John Enoch, Dave Wood, David Milton, JJ and I were present to pay our respects, as did other Challengers - in particular Biaggio, Sue and Ali - on this sad occasion.

Pete loved the outdoors, and I'm sure that he would be quite content to share this posting with a few contemporaneous images. A bike ride that passed through Wythenshawe Park found me surprised that some of the trees had retained their leaves so far into December.

A couple of days later, and Lindow Moss on a bright, sunny day, was altogether more wintry, with leafless trees towering over the frosted moss next to Black Lake.

Later that day, I admired sunset from Timperley Bridge, looking towards Altrincham.

A few minutes later, the sun was still in evidence as I walked from Timperley Bridge towards Brooklands.

After Pete's wake in Otley, I returned to Manchester, to wrestle my way past closed roads with a long, foggy, single track diversion, to Trentabank, for our annual winter walk up Shutlingsloe. Sue arrived separately, but unsurpisingly, nobody else turned up. 

We were not inclined to risk the slippery rocks (frosted with a thin layer of snow) on the final foggy ascent of Shutlingsloe this time, so instead we took the track over Nessit Hill in a 4km clockwise circuit from Trentabank.

After failing to fall over, and meeting just a couple of dog walkers, we got back to our cars, then headed down to the Leather's Smithy for refreshments.

It was a tedious drive home, trying to get around closed roads and roadworks. And in my case failing, but comforting myself by imagining Lilo's laughter if he could see the antics involved in what should have been a straightforward journey home!