John led two sets of walks in 2017:

April 30th and May 1st as part of the Big Session in Buxton. The first walk was a gentle amble up to Solomans Temple on the Sunday morning, returning for the ceilidh with Oysterband in the afternoon. The second walk was a more challenging walk on May Day morning. It involved a steep climb and a steep descent. Some experience and the right walking gear was necessary. We took the train from Buxton to Dove Holes then walked back to Buxton. From Dove Holes station we climbed up to Lady Low, then along Black Edge to Flint Clough and the descent back down into Buxton.

September 21-24th in the North Lakes

There were three walks planned:

1. Thursday 21st September half day – Castlerigg Stone Circle walk down into Threlkeld
2. Friday 22nd full day – Cat Bells, Derwent Water and beyond
3. Saturday 23rd full day – Blencathra, towers above Threlkeld where we are based

Everyone did the Thursday walk. On Frday and Saturday, there were two routes planned for each day for different levels of walking – A was the most challenging and required experience, B has less challenges, but remember this is the lakes, nothing is easy. With everyone’s safety in mind, JJ had the last word on who should do which walk.

For further details, click here: 2017 Lakes walk descriptions to see them in a PDF document. This provided enough details to allow walkers to organise themselves.

JJ writes:

“After a classic Lakeland day on Friday of great views and walking through mist and torrential rain, the weather really turned against us on Saturday and a huge sigh of relief was heard when JJ announced a change of walk.

The whole group met at the Threlkeld Village Hall and walked around the side of Blease Fell and up the valley to Skiddaw House. Then after a well-earned rest, back down the other side of the valley along the Cumbrian Way to take advantage of the fantastic views from Latrigg. Finally one more climb up to the Blencathra Centre and down into Threlkeld.

While not the highest, this was one of the best 13 mile walks we have done together. A great collective spirit continued into the evening and the village hall rocked.

Special thanks to Graham and Vanya and also to Barbara and all those at the TAA for making this weekend very special indeed.”