Tuesday 19 July 2011 – A Cheshire Ramble

Steve and JJ sometimes lead walks for the East Lancs Group of the Long Distance Walkers Association (LDWA).  They have an idea that the group will enjoy a 15 mile trample across the fields of Cheshire.

These walks are taken seriously.  Much planning is necessary, with many reconnaissance trips to suss out the best route.  Today was one such ‘recce’.

Starting as instructed from King’s Road in Wilmslow, I found myself totally alone, and having no idea of the planned route I decided to start by lapping the car.  I should have known – JJ was driving.  He eventually turned up, deposited Steve and Viv, and rushed off to take delivery of a staircase.

Our route comprised a circuit of Alderley Edge, starting in Wilmslow and heading across Lindow Moss, often visited on these pages, but not from quite this direction.  It’s always good to explore new paths…

JJ was waiting for us, in disguise; the staircase hoax wouldn’t fool us, surely?

I could swear I saw a couple of wallaby and a family of emu in the background – an elaborate hoax, even for JJ.

It had been raining.  The undergrowth, mainly nettles, balsam and willowherb, had been growing apace.  It was sodden.  So were we.  Steve came off best as he had shorts.  But he did get nettle rash.

By and by we came upon the new Alderley Edge by-pass.  The old rights of way have now been re-opened and we found our way across easily.  A local farmer, upset by the whole enterprise and the wide swathe of the new road through prime farmland, had confirmed this to Steve.

Here you can see the new road, with Alderley Edge beyond.

After passing through a tomato factory, we reached the hamlet of Nether Alderley, where there’s an attractive church, St Mary’s, dating from the 14th century.  The yew tree is apparently 1200 years old!  There’s lots more information on this interesting place in this Wikipedia link, extracts from which are reiterated below.

The large building in the graveyard – the Stanley Mausoleum – was built in 1909 by Edward Lyulph, 4th Lord Stanley. He died in 1925 and it contains his ashes and those of his wife, Mary Katherine, who died in 1929. The mausoleum is built in ashlar buff and red sandstone with a Kerridge stone-slate roof. It was designed in the neo-Jacobean style by Paul Phipps, and is rectangular in shape, with two storeys and a three-bay north front. The central bay contains a door, above which is the Stanley crest, a three-light window and a date plaque in the gable. On the sides of the upper storey are three four-light windows. Inside the mausoleum is a white marble sarcophagus.

There’s also a sandstone schoolhouse in the churchyard, built in 1628; the school room was on the ground floor and the schoolmaster's accommodation was above. A large room was added to the rear in 1817, and in 1908 the building was restored and presented to the parish by Lord Stanley.  It is now used as a parish hall and is listed Grade II.

Across the road from the church and from Millbrook Cottage Guesthouse, is Nether Alderley Mill, a National Trust property dating from the 15th century. The watermill is one of only four virtually complete corn mills in Cheshire, and is a grade II* listed building. The mill was in active use until 1939, and was acquired by the National Trust in 1950. A period of extensive renovation followed, although the present machinery is about 100 years old. The mill is powered by a pair of overshot Victorian water wheels arranged in tandem and fed by the mill pond behind the building. The Trust regularly demonstrates grinding flour.

The flagstones of the timber-framed roof, which extend almost to ground level, weigh about 200 tons.

Beyond Nether Alderley, Bradford Lane leads inexorably towards the Edge, climbing imperceptibly to its 190 metre summit.

The route goes through pleasant woodland, though it was very dark here today, under the steely grey clouds.

Alderley Edge has appeared on these pages on several occasions.  Readers may be pleased to learn that I forgot to take any pictures today.

Himalayan Balsam (Impatiens glandulifera) accompanied us for most of today’s walk, soaking us from time to time as we hacked through its water-laden foliage.  If you look carefully you can see a bee, and apparently some bee keepers are great fans of the plant, from which an excellent flavour of honey is said to result.

Eventually we made it to the Bollin Valley Way.  We noticed that the path to our right was still impassable due to a landslip, requiring an alternative route to Prestbury.  There are no such problems in the Wilmslow direction, new stiles and fingerposts having been recently installed.  There are even intricate carvings on this fingerpost, below the circular plaques.

On the outskirts of Wilmslow, JJ eventually appeared, claiming to have taken successful if rather belated delivery of his new staircase.  He was looking friskier than usual!

 
We had seen no other ramblers, but on gaining the byways of Wilmslow we were joined at times by the dog walking fraternity.

The balsam is rampant in the Bollin Valley, and the citizens of Wilmslow are trying to do something about it…

Here’s our route – 25km, with 250 metres ascent, in a little less than 6 hours.  An excellent local stroll for us, but of how much interest to the sturdy chaps from East Lancs LDWA?  We shall see…

A slide show of all 29 pictures taken today is here.

I recorded the route on the Garmin Gadget, the result of which is shown below.  It gives the exact route – perhaps useful to Steve and JJ should they want to transfer it to a GPS or tweak the route, which could easily be extended to encompass an interesting circuit around Styal.

Sunday 17 July 2011 – Training for the Cairngorm Challenge (aka ‘A Wet Day in the Peak District’)

No, I’m not entered for the Cairngorm Challenge. But Richard is entered for the 100km Gold Route, and is trying to build up his fitness for the event on 10 September.  Given the forecast for rough weather, I’d suggested he got some miles into his legs by doing a 65km circuit from home using the canal towpaths and the Trans Pennine Trail, but he insisted on a Peak District rendezvous.

So, we assembled at a picnic spot near Robin Hood’s Cave, below Stanage, on the outskirts of Sheffield.

To our surprise, it wasn’t raining, but the light was flat and very few photos were taken.  Amazingly, Richard’s route was fairly dry, despite yesterday’s rain, although about half of it was along quiet tarmac lanes.  The off-road sections were superb, and no uphill pushes were needed, though he did choose an exceedingly technical descent back to the cars from Stanedge Pole (see points 5 to 1 below).  Richard’s full suspension coped better than my rickety old machine, from which I had to dismount for safety a few times on the rocky sections with drop offs.  Next time I’ll take the easier track below Stanage Edge to join the road at point 327.  Nevertheless, it was good fun.

By the time we reached Stanedge Pole (pictured) on our figure of eight loop, it was indeed raining.

Just as well then, that we chose a relatively short outing taking only just over 2½ hours, as the rain got heavier whilst we luxuriated after the ride in Outside’s café in Hathersage.

Here’s the Anquet ‘take’ on our route – 25km with 666 metres ascent.  I reckon it could easily be done in two hours if you didn’t keep stopping like we did.

I used my ‘Garmin Gadget’ on this occasion, and it produced the following result:

Click on ‘View Details’ if you want to see the full works, and if you roll your cursor over the map you can change the scale.

What fun!

Saturday 16 July 2011 - Training for the Jungfrau Marathon (aka ‘A Wet Day in the Peak District’)

No, I’m not entered for the Jungfrau Marathon. But Alastair is entered, and is trying to build up his fitness for the event on 10 September.  He had done a hilly 13 mile run earlier in the week but had ordered “around 20 miles with at least 1500 metres ascent” for today’s outing. I’d originally planned the Langdale Horseshoe, but this substitute close to home seemed a reasonable FWA (Foul Weather Alternative).

At least ‘Two Hours of Heavy Rain’ were expected, and we timed our 8.30am departure from Tegg’s Nose car park to coincide precisely with the star of the predicted deluge.

In our haste, we omitted to actually go over Tegg’s Nose, and headed straight down the less slippery path towards Clough House and the track around Teggsnose Reservoir.

It was lashing down. A brief spell along the Gritstone Trail took us to Ridgegate Reservoir, from where a gentle ascent (this is a lovely descent in the other direction on a mountain bike) through Macclesfield Forest, close to its south western edge, led to the familiar slabs of the motorway that heads quickly to the fine summit of Shutlingsloe.

As you can see, the views were magnificent.

We took the path that leads south, curving around to descend to Wildboarclough, rather than the precipitous route directly from the summit. The view through the blanket of rain was soon regained.

Past a gaggle of despondent D of E Award students, we paused briefly on a bench by the bridge at Wildboarclough, before going up the road to the east, past St Saviour’s Church, built between 1901 and 1904.

Heading due east along good paths after taking the lane past Crag Hall, the meeting of Cheshire with Staffordshire and Derbyshire was soon attained at Three Shire Heads, a place usually thronging with folk on a summer’s weekend morning. It was deserted. There were very few people ‘out’ today.

The Staffordshire path took a familiar route to Flash. The sandy surface had turned into slurry. I was pleased that the Keen walking shoes I’ve been testing withstood this – the waterproof membrane still seems to be effective, though today I should have employed the ankle gaiters that I use with these shoes for cycling in wet conditions.

The pub in the high village of Flash was not yet open. We had been moving too fast!  This pub, the New Inn, is apparently the 4th highest in England.

Luckily, there’s a tea shop up the road, and another pub, the Knights’ Table (the third highest pub in England), that was open. We chose the tea shop, and indulged in its cakes. I created a small pond with the water from my rucksack cover. Al’s clothes drained to form a larger pond. Describing his outer shell as ‘waterproofs’ would be incorrect. Perhaps they once fitted that description, but judging by the state of the rest of his clothes, his entire wardrobe for today had the absorption qualities of blotting paper.

Luckily, by the time Al had enjoyed a second cuppa, the sky had exhausted itself after ‘Two Hours of Heavy Rain’, and our outer layers (mine are completely waterproof, Al’s are perhaps vaguely wind-resistant) could be stashed for a few minutes as we strolled along to Readyleech Green and the path over Axe Edge Moor to cross the main A537 road. We continued north to reach the lane to Derbyshire Bridge, near where a bedraggled group of Duke of Edinburgh Award children were puzzling over a map and being advised by their mentor, who judging by the stickers on his car was a highly qualified outdoors professional without whom these youths would be lucky to survive a day on the obscure paths of the Peak District. I‘m sure that in days past the children would be allowed to learn from the odd mistake, but these days their every move seems to be closely monitored. (Just an impression; I may be wrong.)

The rain had restarted by the time we reached the Cat & Fiddle, the second highest pub in England.  [The highest, of course, is the Tan Hill Inn.]  More sustenance was taken on board, together with other walkers (just a couple) and bikers (just a couple) in what is usually a busy place.  I just managed a snapshot in between the clouds that regularly descended right down to our feet to douse anyone foolish enough to be out and about.

Shortly before we reached Shining Tor, the high point of the walk, we lunched in the shelter of a high wall.  It didn’t take long.  Al had already scoffed most of his provisions; mine were limited.

We rushed on to Shining Tor.  Al shot straight past the summit and slew to a halt.

He had spotted White Nancy, our next objective, in the far distance.
”My shins are starting to hurt” he announced.  Well, we had been keeping up a fair pace - he was supposed to be training for a marathon.  Anyway, discretion is the better part of valour, so we cut the planned route by a few miles and headed straight back to Tegg’s Nose, via Lamaload Reservoir, which looked as if it badly needed today’s rain.

There were good views towards Shutlingsloe.

We did manage the 20 mile target, but failed miserably to get to 1500 metres ascent.  The route plotted on Anquet shows 33 km (21 miles) with 1269 metres ascent.

But according to my Garmin gadget (see below) the distance was actually 34 km, though we only ascended 934 metres – quite a startling discrepancy.

The rain had cleared dramatically between showers at the end of the walk, which we finished at 4pm.  Here, Al can be seen striding towards the finish, from where the Cambrian Mountains could be seen very clearly, some 100km away.

Friday 15 July 2011 – Lantern Pike

Tonight seven stalwarts of our evening walks congregated in The Pack Horse in Hayfield, under gathering skies. Rain was expected, but only JJ had wimped out, leaving two Richards, Notchy, Nightbird and Diana to brave the elements with Sue and me.

In the event, the rain just about held off, and what drove us indoors in the end were the voracious insects that ganged up on us after the walk as we sat outside The Pack Horse in a bid to enjoy our post walk refreshments.

Our 9km route with 350 metres ascent is shown below.  It’s an excellent summer evening’s excursion, or a short morning or afternoon’s stroll, taking around 2½ hours.

We started down a lane by the Post Office opposite the Pack Horse, then along a path to Swallow House Lane.  The metalled road took us all the way to a row of cottages known as Cliff Villas, shortly beyond which, at Windy Knowle House, a bridleway leads up towards Lantern Pike.  For those with an aversion to tarmac or with few minutes more, you may prefer to walk along the Sett Valley Trail from Hayfield, leaving it at the head of a small reservoir to walk uphill and join our route.

After entering open moorland, a thin path to the left leads immediately up to the 373 metre summit of Lantern Pike.  Here, the assembled masses enjoyed a few bottles of beer on the warm evening. (See header image.)

The views from here are extensive, but with rain imminent it was rather dull tonight.  However, I did manage to capture the view down to Hayfield; Kinder Scout is away to the left, with South Head and Chinley Churn in view.

From the summit, we dropped down to the lower path and took the obvious route north, to Blackshaw Farm, where a right turn led us all the way down, past several idyllic looking properties that were for sale, to the main Glossop Road.

Turning left, we braved the main road for 400 metres before heading into open country once more at Carr Meadow.  Ancient and modern signs directed us towards Edale.  Notchy dashed off worriedly to look for a bridge.

Following Notchy’s inadvertent directions (he had been pointing towards the bridge) we found the good path that heads south east across the moor to a path junction near a white shooting cabin surrounded by railings.

By now the troops were beginning to flag.  Some were asleep on their feet, others were just pretending to be zombies.  Revival CCS was handed out to minimise the risk of casualties.

A sharp right turn, along the path intersected by Notchy’s head, put us on the Snake Path back to Hayfield, which after a few hundred metres follows the left branch where a minor path heads off to the west.

Before we knew it we were on the outskirts of town.  It’s traditional on such evening walks for Sue to befriend a needy nag.  Tonight was no exception.

So, that was a jolly walk!  We all returned to the pub for a beer and a blather in the balmy, not to say ‘moist’ summer air.  Unfortunately the midges drove us straight back inside where we could lounge in the plush chairs of the refurbished tart known as The Pack Horse.

9km, 350 metres ascent, very easy to follow route, 2½ hours.

The next evening walk is on Thursday 28 July:
”Another adventure with Notchy - Deepest Cheshire (2) - starting at 7.30 pm from The Golden Pheasant, Plumley Moor Road, Plumley - SJ 722 753.   7.95 km with 36 metres of ascent, but not all at once.”
All are welcome.

Friday 15 July 2011 - Timperley to Sholver by Bike

Sholver is a little north of Oldham. Kate lives there. The journey takes about 40 minutes by car. I’m in the habit of trying to combine family visits with a bit of exercise, but last time I tried this trip it took me about five hours.

So today I planned an easier line, taking the Bridgewater Canal into Manchester, then the Rochdale Canal out to Chadderton, from where bridleways should take me east through Royton and Shaw and on to Sholver. I reckoned on 35km in about three hours.

My route into Manchester was familiar, but an early setback had me returning home for the map that I would need later, as I headed relentlessly north. The pace slowed as I approached Deansgate, and threaded my way through groups of tourists that seem these days to be a constant reminder of the rehabilitation of Manchester’s city centre and canal network.

I must find a better way through the city centre. The towpath disappears from time to time shortly after it leaves the Castlefield area (pictured above with the Beetham Tower), and a little road work is necessary to get to the point where the Rochdale Canal splits off from the Cheshire Ring canal system and heads north. There’s currently work going on at this point, with the towpath route to the city centre having been closed for at least a year. I managed to find the start of the Rochdale Canal, and headed on up the towpath all the way to Chadderton.

The Rochdale Canal, I discovered, has armies of Canada Geese patrolling its banks.

The canal passes factories and old mills, many of which have been refurbished and looked resplendent in today’s bright sunshine. Here’s Regent Mill, the home of Russell Hobbs.

In fact the whole route portrays Manchester as a busy, vibrant working city, albeit not without its ghettos of malaise. 

Despite the largely urban environment, sections of the route were surprisingly ‘countryfied’ and the whole route along the towpath was very pleasant. Much more satisfying than the drive round the M60 motorway.

Believe it or not, I did go wrong a few times, and mistakenly left the canal before I should have done. However, once I’d found the correct departure point, bridleways took me all the way to the outskirts of Shaw, from where a fast downhill road section deposited me on a very rocky track (found at the second attempt) that led virtually to my destination.

“I didn’t know there was a way up there” commented Kate, who has lived in Sholver for a while now.

The 35km plan turned out to be 40km in practice on this occasion, but the timing was around three hours and could be reduced considerably. Especially if I decided to cycle this route in the other direction, in which case it might be a two hour downhill blast!

After all that, Sue arrived by car, we enjoyed a luxurious lunch, and after forgetting to take any pictures of my smiley grandson, we returned to Timperley by car.

Here’s are the stats from my Garmin gadget:

And here’s a map…

One For The Road

Happy Days in the Maritime Alps - here's a pic that missed the cut a few days ago.

Note that I've now replaced the original image with a better version taken with a proper camera!

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

A Stroll from Tende to La Brigue

6km, 400 metres ascent, 3 hours, lots of flowers.

Waking to another bright sunny morning (once the shutters had been opened) we enjoyed a leisurely start on our last day in these hills for the time being.

Our host, Julie, took today's photo outside the gite when we were packed up and ready to leave. You may see (if you can spot it) that Sue has succeeded in preventing further damage to her neck by carrying just a light bum bag. Her neck has survived the trip, even if I did find it a little difficult to keep up at times.

Today's relatively low level stroll was taken very slowly as it was hot, and there were lots of flowers to photograph, starting with masses of Melampyrum nemorosum (a kind of Cow Wheat) and moving on to Red Lily and an assortment of stonecrops, including banks of White Stonecrop.

The path started up from Tende's shady campsite, heading through trees towards Col de Boseila, before which it emerged onto an open belvedere with airy drops and fine views back to Tende and south towards the coast.

At the col we admired Julie's friendly and very placid horses before strolling down the path for a welcome beer in La Brigue, a much smaller and less vibrant place than Tende.

It didn't take long to visit most of the village's attractions, after which we wandered down to the station to catch the Italian train to Ventimiglia. This connected with a French train that in the company of Chris from WA (Western Australia - hi Chris) brought us here to Menton, and a comfortable room with a bath (these things can be important) at the Hotel Moderne.

Menton yields happy memories as it was from here that we started our 'Italian Border Route' trip some three years ago.

Sue has been for a swim in the Med, our dirty clothes are now clean and dry, and we are looking forward to a nice meal in the old town of Menton before returning home in the morning.

So, that's it from the Maritime Alps for the time being. It's a wonderful area, great to visit, and you may be 'quite rare' if you are English. James and Helen are the only English we have encountered since the train to Breil.

We hope to encounter SAHH tomorrow....

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

A Day in Tende

After nine consecutive days of exercise we've taken a day off.

We waved goodbye to James and Helen, who are off to walk the 'Mont Bégo Loop' over the next couple of days*, and then settled into a couple of chairs outside Hotel du Centre and proceeded to fill ourselves with coffee and Danish pastries whilst enjoying the progress of the Fête, to and fro along the main street of Tende. A jazz band, muletiers, various carriages, dancers, and much more, all conducting a full tour of the town before congregating outside the town hall.

We chose the best possible day for our wind down here.

Then we embarked on a tour of the town that I may describe in fully illustrated detail when we get home. Today's picture is of the Collegiale, a church passed on our tour.

A visit to a bar, then to the fine museum of rock engravings, brought us all the way to 5pm, entry time for the gite d'étape, where we could use the kitchen for a most welcome brew, enjoyed from outside the gite with the fine view of Tende from an earlier posting laid out before us in the soft evening light, and the familiar whistles and acrobatics of the resident swifts to keep us entertained.

*J + H enjoyed walk number 22 from Palanfré after leaving us. They even saw a Man Orchid. Hope they have a photo...

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Saturday 9 July 2011 - A Walk from Refuge des Merveilles

16km, 600 metres ascent, 7.7 hours.

Today we completed the 'Mont Bégo Loop', all the way back to Casterino by 3.45, in plenty of time for the 4.30 bus to Tende.

We slept surprisingly well in the huge dormitory at Merveilles, perhaps because it was well ventilated.

Breakfast was sparse but well organised. "Terrible" commented the organiser of Gilles's trip, on the content of his repast. Plenty of bread, and a decent sized bowl of coffee, but just one little cube of butter and a single mini-carton of jam.

But the setting beside Lac Long Superiore on this brilliantly sunny morning was wonderful. Everyone seemed cheerful as they set off, mostly in large groups, some with guides.

The path led past numerous information boards for the Copper and early Bronze Age rock engravings that date back 5000 years. We lingered to admire the engravings and catch up with our diaries after the turmoil of last night's socialising! Marmots and wheatears monitored us closely.

In rock dominated scenery strewn with small lakes, the path led through fields of spring and trumpet gentians, bright blue amongst the multi-coloured pansies.

Finally, we exited the zone that is protected as a National Monument, and after chatting to a warden who was guarding the engravings I was allowed to reinstate my walking poles for the steep ascent to Baisse de Valmasque, 2549 metres. This was the highest we got today. It has commanding views back along our morning's route, and onwards to Lac du Basto and the ring of jagged peaks beyond.

From here, the ascent of Mont Bégo looks an easy undertaking. I think Susan went up from here. There are apparently great views towards the Mediterranean, especially early in the morning. Perhaps a bivouac near the summit would yield a huge dividend.

Sadly, plan C's time constraints didn't permit us the indulgence of that ascent, and after lingering on the sunny col we descended regretfully towards Refuge de Valmasque, stopping for lunch above Lac Vert (pictured, with the Refuge in the background just above the lake).

Of the three lakes, Basto, Noir and Vert, two were very scenic despite their conspicuous dams, but Noir, the central one, looked rather sad in its half full state.

We called in at the Refuge for refreshments. You are correct, Susan, in conjecting that Plan D could have involved staying there. We didn't enquire, but judging by the number of people we saw today, it may well have been fully booked.

Turning to Alan's comment about this area's perceived likeness to the Picos de Europa in Spain...
Well, it's hotter here, less temperate (ie drier), more Alpine, with perhaps a wider range of flora and fauna, higher mountains, more mountain huts, fewer canals, more towns, better constructed paths, etc, etc. So, I wouldn't really say there's much of a likeness, except that both areas sport wonderful mountain scenery.
Congrats on booking a trip to NZ, Alan, we are sure you'll enjoy that one.

The route back to Casterino from the Refuge started along a narrow and twisting rocky path, eventually passing below some fine waterfalls before ambling along a steadily improving jeep track to join a metalled road for the final thirty minutes of this fine two-day excursion.

We lazed in the sun at Casterino before cruising down the hairpins back to Tende to a frantic Tour de France commentary blaring from the radio of the battered bus. It occurred to us that Casterino would be a fine finishing point for a stage of that race.

Back in Tende, who did we find already installed in Hotel du Centre? James and Helen - no doubt as a result of the recommendation in Gillian's book. (You should get a commission, Gillian!) Thanks to Gillian's efforts on our behalf - Plan C - we were also booked into an excellent double room for €45 for the two of us. Thanks again, G.

We think it may have been one of the last rooms in Tende as this weekend the town celebrates the Fête de Saint Éloi.

So after a welcome shower we adjourned to La Margueria for a leisurely salad and pizza (we arrived early, it would be wise to reserve a table if dining after 7.15), during which the festivities of the Fête slowly began to wind up, with the main action commencing shortly before 10pm.

Crowds gathered in front of the flag bedecked Town Hall. As darkness fell and the birds came in to roost, folk dancers accompanied by a squeeze box (JJ would have been in his element) started the fun. A fire was lit under a pine tree erected for the occasion, and bangers attached to the trunk exploded when the flames reached them.

The crowd was large, but we were tired so went to bed, missing an unexpected firework display that according to Helen was excellent. The explosions were still echoing around the hills as we drifted off to sleep.

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Friday 8 July 2011 - A Walk to Refuge des Merveilles

12km, 1300 metres ascent, 6.25 hours.

Having shed James and Helen from the reconstituted 'famous five' yesterday, we shed Susan this morning, as she has to catch a flight from Nice to JFK tomorrow morning. We did enjoy your company, Susan, and your less expected company, James and Helen - we hope to see you again at cider pressing time.

Despite her living in Glastonbury, Connecticut, we anticipate more adventures with well-travelled Susan a bit sooner than some may expect.

Anyway, on another fine, sunny morning we said our goodbyes and jumped on the big old bus that now plies the 20km or so route between Tende and Castérino. A bargain for €1, but a challenge for the driver who has to manoeuvre the old vehicle around countless hairpin bends.

Our first objective in Castérino was to book accommodation for tomorrow night; our second was to relax with a coffee. We achieved the latter, but the village is full tomorrow - not a single bed remains. Plan B was implemented - go to Tende tomorrow and try to find somewhere. Only when a vague sort of 'phone signal appeared several hours later did we realise that Plan C could be an option.

Meanwhile, we set off on Gillian's walk number 2, the Mont Bégo Loop. Up a pleasant jeep track through pine woods where nutcrackers were in evidence. The otherwise deserted track was luxuriously lined with a plethora of flowers - martagan lilies with huge blooms, our first sightings of black vanilla and burnt orchids, cow wheat and large clumps of globeflower and marsh marigolds, to name but a few of the countless species on offer.

Refuge de Fontanalba provided welcome refreshments. It was otherwise deserted.

A short way further along the track, we branched to the right towards the site of ancient rock engravings. A guard (warden?) was in situ to check that our walking poles were stashed and would not be adding to the ancient markings, some of which are apparently reproductions, the originals having been taken for display in the museum at Tende.

We spent the best part of two hours wandering around this 'Fontanalba Rock Engraving Circuit' (walk no 1 in Gillian's book). We found it interesting, but just a little over-hyped. The section known as 'La Voie Sacrée' was shut, apparently for health and safety reasons due to some of the slippery stones having themselves slipped. Pathetic!

There were a few people around, including three Germans seen at Rif Soria-Ellena.

A 'phone signal appeared. I had a brainwave. Plan C for tomorrow night was hatched. The role of a guide book writer can be tough at times. This time Gillian far exceeded her duties and within a few minutes we were booked into a hotel in Tende. Thank you, Gillian.

Moral: pre-book your weekend accommodation in this area, even out of the main season.

Our afternoon stroll to Refuge des Merveilles was undertaken on virtually deserted, but delightful, paths, so it was a bit of a shock to find hordes of people outside the refuge. We knew the score, as this refuge has an internet booking system requiring a €10 deposit, and we obtained - a couple of weeks ago - two of the last places for tonight. It takes 79 people, and was full. Still a shock to find so many people after encountering so few all day.

We finished up on a table with lots of 'hut to hut' walking enthusiasts, including Gilles Clement from Paris, with five friends, on an annual pilgrimage. It was great to meet you Gilles, and your friends, and thank you for being so gracious about our failings in relation to the French language. Your English is excellent.

Back to our route - we encountered our first edelweiss on Baisse de Vallauretta, where I no doubt had Gillian puzzled by mis-naming it. Descending to Vallon de la Minière, we encountered chamois, and a group heading up to wild camp, with a pony carrying their tents and other gear.

It was perfect walking weather. Sunny but not too hot, with a cooling breeze. This enabled us to speed up to the refuge with 15 minutes to spare - we had been told that our places would only be reserved until 5pm! I don't think we'd have been turned away though. We then had to wait outside in the sunshine until 6pm, when we were shown to our beds in the huge dormitory. Meanwhile we could purchase a litre of hot water for €1, and I finally found the teaspoon that I'd packed to accompany the mugs, tea and dried milk.

One of the hut guardians spoke very good English - Kevin, who told us his father was English, one Steve Peacock, said as if we should know him...

The evening passed quickly in the company of our new found friends, and the four course meal was very good considering that nearly 80 people were being served in one sitting by a handful of staff.

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Tende

We are back in France.

Here's the view from the balcony of our private room in Tende's gite d'étape.

Yesterday afternoon Dario's taxi efficiently deposited James and Helen near their lodgings in Entracque, and took us on to the station at Borge San Dalmazzo. An hour's journey from there saw us arrive here in plenty of time to wash all our trek soiled items before heading off for some fine dining (it was Susan's last night with us, but no excuse was really required) at La Margueria.

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Thursday 7 July 2011 - An Alpi Marittime Trek, Day 6, Rifugio Pagari (2650m) to San Giacomo (1210m)

11km, 250m ascent, 5.4 hours.

Trek Totals - 80km (50 miles), 6000 metres ascent, 40 hours including breaks.

Last night we enjoyed our best meal yet, at the hands of Maria of Pagari. Antipasta > lasagne al forno > polenta with vegetables, carrots and mushrooms, all with exotic flavouring > crostata della casa. Delicious. Vegetarian.

Yesterday's posting was written before dinner, after which despite the apparent presence of a phone signal from time to time, it took until we reached the village of Entracque this afternoon before it finally 'sent' and we received comments from the last day or two. We hope we didn't worry Gillian into thinking we may have come to grief on the high route to Pagari! The guardian there tells us that some years the high route is not possible at all without ice axe and crampons, but in other years the snow may be safe for ordinary pedestrians by mid July. Just now conditions are dangerous, with a layer of hard ice underneath steep soft snow on a 500 metre section of the crossing. Perhaps a rope would also be handy.

Thank you as always for your comments...

Alan, you are so kind! EasyJet to Nice beckons for you and Sheila; we are sure you'd enjoy it here. The opportunities for wild camping are exceptional as well.

Nick, we have Yaktrax Pro footwear. As you surmise, they are good for icy pavements, but also can be kept in a day sack for steep snow and other conditions where more grip is desirable but full mountaineering kit isn't needed. It's important that you test them in order to know their limits. I did that in the Lakes and on Ben Lomond last year and found them to be grippier than expected, but no use on steep ice.
How are you getting on BTW?

Nightbird, I feel ashamed to have distracted you from important work, and also to have found a temporary replacement for you in the 'Famous Five' team. You'll be pleased to hear that the finely tuned restructured team has now been disbanded, but we do hope to have a reunion. Neither Susan nor Helen could match your 'Nightbird' performance, though their ability to cope with steep snow slopes was ... well ... better?
There will of course be a slide show.

We enjoyed muesli for breakfast! If they can do that at the highest rifugio, why not at all of them?
So we set out well fortified on stage 2 of Gillian's walk number 19, the descent to San Giacomo via Lago Bianco del Gelàs.

It started as a sporty route along a narrow rocky path interspersed with steep snow traverses (pictured). Luckily the snow wasn't hard enough to create any particular dramas. The most difficult section was a short traverse across a collapsed gully. After that, a minor route finding dilemma was resolved by following the marked path to Bivacco Moncalieri, as far as Lago Bianco del Gelàs. Here, a family group of ibex watched as we investigated the memorial to a man killed in 1971 whilst working on the construction of a rifugio here.

All that remains of the structure is its concrete base and a few piles of rubble.

But Rif Pagari is about to be extended.

The long descent to San Giacomo was steep but delightful, with 'new' flowers to record and a plethora of butterflies to enjoy. We also saw a ptarmigan and a black grouse, and heard a chiffchaff.

There was nobody else on this route, and little sign of anyone else having been there this season.

The weather teased us by producing a short shower out of nowhere shortly before we reached San Giacomo and the end of this excellent trek, but by the time we reached the café there, we were able to sit outside to enjoy our celebratory platters of meats and cheeses, etc.

Delicious!

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Wednesday 6 July 2011 - An Alpi Marittime Trek, Day 5, Rifugio Soria-Ellena (1840m) to Rifugio Pagari (2650m) via San Giacomo (1210m)

18km, 1500m ascent, 7.3 hours.

Yesterday's picture, if it wasn't obvious, was taken whilst we were enjoying a pot of tea outside Rifugio Soria-Ellena shortly after arriving last night.

From the window of our private room (still only €37 for half board) the morning sky was deep blue in hue. Marmots were whistling (perhaps Clever was out chasing them) and birds were chatting - there are small red breasted birds here, linnets I think.

It was with regret that we turned down the valley when we set off at 8.40, but with ice axe and crampons still being needed for the high route to Pagari, we knew it would be crazy to try with just walking poles and Yaktrax.

So we pottered down the stony 4WD track to San Giacomo. The flora was again superb, and now at the end of the day there is much discussion as to what we have seen. One definite ID is Spiked Bellflower, seen above under the spell of Sue's camera.

There were numerous people coming up the path towards Rifugio Soria-Ellena, which must do a good elevenses and lunchtime trade.

Shortly before reaching the beech woods that herald the arrival of San Giacomo, we came upon a vehicle containing a tank full of large trout. These were transferred into buckets and released into the river by the fisheries team. We weren't sure whether this re-stocking was for fishing purposes or for breeding, or both.

San Giacomo sports an excellent café that provided coffees, packed lunches and the booking of a taxi for when we return tomorrow.

The five hour, 1500 metre ascent to Rifugio Pagari could have been quite a slog. It wasn't. A most pleasant ascent in the company of myriads of butterflies, including the apollo, small blue, large blue, swallowtail, black-veined white, fritillary, small tortoiseshell, ringlet, comma, large copper, skipper, orange tip, painted lady, brown argus, brimstone, cleopatra, small fritillary, plus several unidentified. Thanks go to James for identifying most of these, and to Sue for capturing images of some of them. Butterfly afficionados may spot some rarities here.

Amongst all this butterfly spotting we couldn't help but be distracted by herds of chamois and ibex, the latter being particularly curious as to our passing, especially two young males who broke off their juvenile sparring to come and investigate.

Sadly, whilst the flowers are too numerous to record here, our bird count reflects the historic oppression of many species hereabouts. We've seen dippers and a heron, and there are plenty of redstarts and wheatears, but not much else other than the occasional alpine choughs and a bearded vulture. Absent from this list are the raven, ptarmigan, black grouse, peregrine, snow finches, and no doubt many more unprotected species.

After a couple of generous breaks, we arrived at Pagari at 4pm, taking just five hours for the well graded ascent. It's a small, friendly establishment. Already installed were two Germans who busily tested a litre of wine, and ten French walkers from Arle who were testing the beer. Our own testing has now started, after the ritual of afternoon tea on arrival at our resting place for day. The rifugio only has capacity for 24, so it's pretty full tonight.

We are high up here (2650 metres) and despite the afternoon cloud (mountain weather) we have great views of nearby peaks and of distant Alpine ranges to our north.

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Tuesday 5 July 2011 - An Alpi Marittime Trek, Day 4, Rifugio Remondino (2430m) to Rifugio Soria-Ellena (1840m)

13km, 1000m ascent, 8.4 hours. (All timings on this trip include stops. Gillian Price's book provides accurate walking times.)

Another fabulous mountain day.

The 'variable' weather forecast for today proved inaccurate. The weather was perfect for this mountain traverse of two halves.

The first half, to Rifugio Genova, was rough and tough, the second half, after an excellent lunch of pasta/polenta, was over a scenic pass involving well graded paths and lots of flora and fauna.

We set off as a 'famous five' at 8.30 after a good breakfast, and headed along the thin and rocky path towards Colle del Brocan (2892m). Soon the rocks mutated into snowfields and eventually Yaktrax crampons were donned by the three of us who had them. J and H managed easily without such aids, and the three German lads who followed us up were probably ok, though (as expected) we didn't see them again. However, a slip on this steep snow could have serious consequences, so those without previous Alpine experience, or dubious about their ability in such conditions, may be wise to leave the Colle del Brocan until the snow has melted - a bit later in the summer.

The effort was rewarded with great views over the Alps and towards the Mediterranean.

The 900 metre descent to Rif Genova was steep and rough, with some steep snow slopes to test Sue's glissading skills. The rest of us slithered along behind, eventually catching up when she stopped to record the passing of yet another wild flower.

Lunch at Rif Genova was a complete contrast to yesterday's dismal experience. Cheerful staff chatted about routes and served up our pasta and polenta with speedy efficiency. We lazed there in the sun for a good hour.

In contrast to this morning's route, the easy path up to Colle di Fenestrelle (2463m) seemed positively decadent, as we wound slowly up to the pass. Chamois and ibex were abundant here, and a lammergeier flew overhead, sending the local choughs into a frenzy.

There had been over 30 people at Rif L Bianco, over 20 at Questa, and 17 at Remondino. But there are just 8 of us here tonight, which means that we received a friendly welcome from the staff here, who remain unchanged from our visit three years ago, and another very good meal. Sadly Matilda the fox has not survived the winter, but Rifugio Soria-Ellena has gained 'Clever' the dog, and has a friendly ibex - perhaps a brother of 'Ronaldo', the ibex of Rif Questa.

Gillian, thank you for your comments, we are glad that you and Nick enjoyed the 'book posting'. No doubt other readers of these pages are too busy reading your book to find time to comment! (Ha ha! Actually they are probably on holiday themselves, not interested in leaving the shores of the UK, or simply bored with these ramblings...)

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Monday 4 July 2011 - An Alpi Marittime Trek, Day 3, Rifugio Questa (2388m) to Rifugio Remondino (2430m)

13km, 1000m ascent, 6.6 hours.

Cloudier today, but fine with sunny intervals until 3pm. At least yesterday's sunburn didn't get any worse.

Breakfast was better at Questa, with plenty of bread and plenty of coffee. Just as well, as although Ennio said we would be able to get lunch at Rif Regina Elena, his optimism was misguided and he could have sold us packed lunches.

It turns out that Sue and I have met Ennio before. He worked at the visitor centre in Terme di Valdieri in 2008 and kindly put on for our benefit an English language version of a film about the reintroduction of ibex to this area. He also helped with accommodation suggestions and with the identification of a lammergeier that we had seen (we had thought it was an eagle).

An 8.45 departure saw us strolling in a minor procession along more of the magnificently constructed King's hunting paths. Imagine 5 metre high dry stone walls laid horizontally through boulder fields. Roger, who spends a lot of time dry stone walling, would be impressed - these 'paths' even have kerbs! We could just imagine the king in his chariot rumbling along them some 150 years ago in his misguided quest to hunt the ibex to extinction.

Sue and Susan are pictured today, at around 2400 metres, near Lago inferiore di Fremamorta, on a section of the hunting path.

We got ahead of most of the Germans (described jokingly by Ennio in more racist terms that I hesitate to repeat here - they are all very nice), leaving two of them to attempt an obscure route to Remondino (they failed to turn up).

Meanwhile, James and Helen headed down for lunch, and the three of us visited first a memorial cross (by mistake) and then the red metal hut of Bivacco Guiglia. We wanted to show Susan that such a place could be home to nine visitors. We succeeded - there was sufficient to confirm that three people could enjoy a comfy night here - but there are basic provisions, cups, blankets, beds, etc, sufficient for nine.

The descent to Rif Regina Elena was steep at times, but not unpleasant. James and Helen were sitting disconsolately outside. We had all omitted to read page 147 of Gillian's excellent guide book. Despite Ennio's assurance, no food or drink was available as we hadn't given them 'at least one day's warning'. We enjoyed the rest of our reserve supplies, James's errant jelly was repatriated and eaten, and water was the food of life. The Rifugio could have taken at least €50 off us, but preferred to continue with a family party. Fair enough!

The 600+ metre ascent to Rifugio Remondino should take two hours based on Gillian's accurate estimate. But the sky had darkened; spots of rain caused us to hasten our pace. I led the intrepid quintet across a river - a risky leap instead of a bridge lower down. Nobody complained! A steady pace enabled us to knock 20 minutes off Gillian's estimate. The raindrops increased. J and H stopped to don waterproofs. I stopped a little higher when the rain turned to serious hail. I then discovered that waterproofs were not needed. I had inadvertently paused under an overhang. In a brief pause before the storm set in, we all managed to reach the Rifugio, fairly dry, at 3.20.

It's an excellent spot with good food and wine. And a hot shower that worked intermittently for some of us as the power went on and off in the storm. €5 for a shower, so the three of us shared it - quite interesting in a small dark room with intermittent power...

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Just for you, Gillian

Your book is very popular in these parts, Gillian.

Other readers of this posting should take note and order their copies before it goes out of print.

The maps may not be available from Stanfords, but can be obtained from The Map Shop (Upton-upon-Severn), and they are readily available locally.

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Sunday 3 July 2011 - An Alpi Marittime Trek, Day 2, Rifugio Livio Bianco (1910m) to Rifugio Questa (2388m)

15km, 1200m ascent, 7.8 hours.

A fantastic mountain day, the memory of which will stay with me for ever.

I have to be reasonably brief as Rif Questa is a most sociable place and it would be out of order to spend the evening writing the blog. I haven't seen any comments as reception today was virtually non-existent.

Breakfast was sparse, but the sun was shining so we were all happy.

The three of us got off at about 8.30, giving James and Helen a 20 minute lead, which they maintained all day.

A few others were seen on the way up to Lago soprano della Valletta, but none appeared to follow us to Colle della Valletta, where we were greeted by a fantastic array of peaks (pictured), with Monte Viso prominent in the middle distance.

We also enjoyed cloud inversions a plenty today. Lots of photos were taken - enough in one day for an entire slideshow.

The Colletto Est della Paur tried to live up to its name ('fear inducing'), but our Yaktrax crampons made the ascent of the steep snow slope very easy. We could, like James and Helen, have managed without them, but hey, we'd brought them with us so we used them.

After a steep but uneventful descent we glissaded (collecting James's jelly on the way) down to a small lake for lunch. Sue waded out to an iceberg and gave it a good trampling. It nearly sunk!

Well graded former hunting tracks (the Kings of Savoy hunted ibex to near extinction hereabouts) then took us all the way to Rifugio Questa, a small, basic refuge manned by Ennio and Temba. A ten year old stambecco (ibex) resides outside, and a redstart is nesting in the wall of our loft.

On the way here we saw more ibex and chamois at close quarters, together with wonderful displays of wild flowers.

Sue, Susan and James (still in remission from dropping parts of his lunch down a mountain) braved the cold shower, which is housed outside in a tin shack.

Dinner was an excellent hearty mountain soup featuring beans, chickpeas, rice, etc, followed by mashed potato and beef, then chocolate mousse.

There seem to be more than the stated capacity of 20 here, including an Italian couple we saw early this morning. They must have taken 11-12 hours over our 8 hour route. They looked exhausted, and were further dismayed when presented with an 8 foot ladder from which to enter their sleeping quarters from the main room of the quaint Rifugio. Everyone seems to be housed in a loft of some sort.

Earlier, James had commented that the timings in Gillian's book seem generous! Sometimes timings estimates can be a thankless task!

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange

Saturday 2 July 2011 - An Alpi Marittime Trek, Day 1, Sant' Anna di Valdieri (1000m) to Rifugio Livio Bianco (1910m)

9km, 1000m ascent, 4.5 hours.

After a good breakfast at the excellent Albergo Nazionale recommended in Gillian's book, we pottered off to the cash machine (the next five nights will be cash only at mountain huts), and then to the station for the 9.47 train to Borgo S. Dalmazzo, a 15 minute journey down the valley towards Cuneo.

Sadly, the sky was overcast, with slight moisture in the air, but still t-shirt weather down at 850 metres.

At Borgo, after admiring a rally of classic Citroën cars, a call to a local taxi firm advertised outside the station bore fruit, and a few minutes and €30 later we were happily ensconced in a café at Sant' Anna, watching a loudly hooting wedding cortège pass by.

"You must use the path that goes up by the cemetery and contours back above the village" said the friendly lady who served us in the café. We had plenty of time, so we took her advice.

After a 'start of trek' photo we set off past the church towards the cemetery, then up to the ruined village of Bartola, finally abandoned by its last occupant in the 1960s. Various information boards related the history and other information about the area. Terraced fields had reverted to flower meadows after their previous use for crops and medicinal herbs had come to an end.

From a balcony at 1200 metres, with fine views both up and down the Valle di Gesso, we gently descended 100 metres to the main path from Sant' Anna, where we joined the route described in Gillian's book. Not that a description was required for the straightforward walk up the valley to this Rifugio. First through shady woodland, then up an open valley on a well graded path, one of the paved royal hunting tracks constructed at King Emanuele's behest in the 1860s.

There were plenty of people about on this cloudy Saturday, including a large group of families with children who as I write are livening the Rifugio, albeit deafening the other occupants.

There were also lots of animals about, with brave marmots posing dutifully beside the track, chamois prancing daintily on the snow slopes opposite, and ibex obliviously going about their business in steep rocky gullies.
Alpine flowers of many varieties adorned the hillsides and filled the meadows as we ascended today - wonderful.

We've not had any rain, but here at the Rifugio, pictured above, we are about the height of the cloud base. It is definitely best to be inside; beers on the terrace will have to wait. "A litre of boiling water, please", was our first request. We have no stove on this trip (in deference to my role as packhorse - Sue is in 'bum bag mode') but we do have mugs, tea bags and milk, as well as Austrian Alpine Club membership which gives discounts in certain mountain huts.

We are in a dormitory for 12, in the roof, so it promises to be a hot night.

Dinner was in two sittings. Luckily we were allocated to the first, at 7 o'clock. It would have been tedious to have to wait until 8.30. We were accompanied at our table for five by '2 Germans', who turned out to be James and Helen from the Hereford area, with whom we spent a very pleasant evening, with pasta > meat and mash > cheese/cake, all with red wine.

We are, of course, thanks to our AAC membership, '3 Austrians'.

Amazing, isn't it: Germans and Austrians speak such good English these days that Italians (and the guardians here speak quite good English themselves) cannot identify us as being English!

Sent using BlackBerry® from Orange