Wednesday 19th May, 2004
Left Gainsborough at 8:49am. Alighted at Edale at 10:51. Weight of rucksack slowed me right down. Even the slightest slope is an effort. A young couple ahead gradually disappeared into the distance. Stopped at 12 o'clock just before Jacob's ladder for some water and dried fruit. Felt better. Refilled my water at a stream. The climb up Jacob's ladder (a zigzagged path) didn't seem so bad. It was very windy especially at the top. Broken cloud. Up to Edale Rocks for lunch at 1:00pm in a sheltered spot behind rocks. I made a large mug of milky coffee. When the sun broke through it was warm. The clasp on the waist strap of the rucksack had broken so I used a spare shoelace to hold it together. A few people but relatively quiet.

Continued on at 2:00pm. Spoke to a few people but once I got beyond where all the paths diverged I saw no one else. Stopped again at 4pm just short of A57 and ate my orange and some more dried fruit. Didn't make tea. This was a monotonous path-fairly flat and paved all the way. I think the workmen must have been drunk as it snaked across the moorland with no apparent logic. I was glad of it however as it was boggy terrain as evidenced by the bog cotton just coming into flower. Occasionally there were deep gullies in the peat which were easily crossed by via the large stone slabs of the path. My load seemed lighter this afternoon, perhaps because some of the food had been eaten and perhaps because I myself had probably lost a couple of kilograms.

After crossing the busy A57 it was uphill again along what can only be described as a sunken river bed. Fortunately completely dry. It was occasionally marked by large stones but not always obvious.

Eventually I came to Hern Clough, a pleasant stream in a little valley, and thought of camping but it was only a 5:00pm and also very high up. I refilled my water. The strong wind that had been blowing all day was still in evidence. A few minutes later it started to drizzle. I thought of retracing my steps back to the stream to camp but instead donned rain clothes and continued. Within a few more minutes the drizzle stopped and did not return! Just past the high point, Bleaklow Head, I phoned Gemma and texted David. I wandered down the valley and looked for a place to camp. Eventually I espied a place but it was far below me as the path had not followed the stream. By this time my legs were tired. I decided on a long scramble down to the stream, there was no path, and I had to be extremely careful with the heavy load affecting my balance. I was relieved to reach the bottom. I found an idyllic spot under a small oak tree and sheltered by some rocks. I pitched the tent by 7:30pm, took off my boots and socks, fetched water from the stream and washed. Already I felt refreshed. Brewed a mug of sweet tea and sat and calculated how far I had walked. The intended 12 miles was in fact almost 15!  

By 8:30pm I was ready to eat my sumptuous meal:
Leek soup
Four sausages
Mashed potato
Baked beans (whole tin!)

Now I realised how hungry I was and started feeling a lot better. I skipped the intended next course of porridge with dried fruit and finished with a large mug of milky coffee and a chocolate bar. A sheep and two lambs visited at this point. As surprised to see me as I was to see them. By now it was gone 9:30pm and I was ready for bed. I fell asleep straight away.