marshes and mud

Part two - Monday and Tuesday 26,27 February 2018 (and a Friday surprise)

So, the birthday happenings didn't stop with the weekend (and if you've missed that see Landmarks first).

After a late night run dropping off the younger members of the Famous Five across London, we carried on forging East to our late night destination, the lovely Bell Inn in the quaint hilltop hamlet of Horndon on the Hill.  Felt like a treasure hunt, finding the key in a little box and a note directing us up old wooden steps to our cosy room above the 15th century inn.

and after a good night's sleep we could see better where we'd climbed last night in the dark

and the front of our pub

and explore the lovely Horndon on the Hill 

with it's ancient Woolmarket. 

We'd hoped to peek inside the interesting looking Grade 1 listed church of St Peter and St Paul, built in the 13th century, but sadly it was all locked up.

So no chance to warm up there and I tell you - it was absolutely freezing cold.  The Beast from the East was forecast to start tonight and already snowflakes were trying their best in this little corner of Essex.

But, hardy Northerners that we are, we wrapped up and headed down to the Thames Estuary, just 5 minutes drive away, to the lovely little nature reserve - Thurrock Thameside Nature Park  - beautifully thought out, overlooking Mucking Flats and marshes and Canvey Island.

Note how the new visitor centre mimics the shape of the oil terminals on Canvey Island - and inside they had an amazing log burner surrounded by seats, sort of Viking friendship hut style - very welcome on a day as cold as this!

Just look at that snowstorm working it's way across to us from Canvey Island - to our right

and to our left the sky is still blue- but we had to quickly dive into the visitor centre as the snow storm created a complete whiteout for 10 minutes or so!

But we soon venture out again 

it's so very wild and very beautiful - and see how quickly the sky changed as yet another snowstorm passed over

Bit of warmth in the hide and spotted a kestrel

But now it was back into the car and overland to the town of Maldon - famous for it's salt

Fascinated by the last of the Thames Sailing Barges, lovingly restored and moored up.  These were built late 19th century and early 20th and you can even take trips on them in the summer around to Mersea.

A kindly local let us peek on board

But it was onwards and upwards and a little hike out to St Peter's Chapel on the edge of the marshes of the Blackwater estuary at Bradwell-on-Sea on the Dengie Peninsula

wild and totally wonderful and icily cold

with an amazing fragile coastline made of cockle, beyond the salt marshes

But it was back to our cosy Bell Inn for the most fabulous meal and a blazing log fire.

Tuesday

We set off from Essex as the 'Beast' started and just got back to Sheffield before it caught up with us there and we were snowed in for 3 days!

And finally, a week or so later, Mike had another post-landmark birthday celebration, this time at the cosy Packhorse Inn at Little Longstone - more log fires and more fabulous food and lots of lovely friends

 'twas hard to drag ourselves away from the fire . . . 

But we were soon revitalised by a quick hike around the lovely dale of Water-cum-Jolly, through the eerie drippy tunnels of the Monsal Trail and back along the muddy banks to Monsal Dale. 

Fabulous week all round!

signs of the times

Our Sunday hike was pretty amazing too.

And loving these old signposts dotted around S35 and the upper reaches of S6.  Always marvelling that we have such incredible places within our wonderful Sheffield city boundaries.

 and just in case you weren't sure, this was on the opposite side of the road!!

fabulous old gates as we passed Edge Mount, beyond Oughtibridge on the Onesacre Road

and a stunning view of Agden and Dale Dyke Reservoirs

Setting off on our walk from Broomhead Hall, in the parish of Bradfield, and, wow . . . some googling reveals that the old bridge in Glen Howe Park was originally dismantled and moved there from the Ewden valley, before it was flooded many years ago to create the Broomhead and More Hall reservoirs for Sheffield's water supplies. Read about it here.

We searched and searched for an enclosure marked on the OS map - but failed to spot the Ewden Beck stone circle which I think is what the 'enclosure' meant.  Also on the map you can see the long earthwork we were about to reach marked very clearly marked.

 miles and miles of stone walls standing sturdy in the middle of nowhere - incredible!

and finally our the jewel of our quest, the impressive and ancient earthworks spanning three quarters of a mile above the little brook

and we bravely transversed it's whole length - sometimes needing to dip down into the dry river bottom - spectacular and we had this whole moorland to ourselves!  For all the world it felt like we were hiking down a smaller Hadrian's Wall!  And I guess this was probably Bronze age like the other similar remains in the area and used for defensive purposes.
If you read this Sheffield History discussion thread but skip down to 'Jeremy''s comments on "IV. The Bar Dike and Other Earthworks at Bradfield" you will read some fascinating theories about this particular earthworks.

in my master's steps I trod - ha ha

base stones of the earthwork, at the level of the beck

the construction certainly went deep - way below the 'modern' dry stone wall on the top today.  I can't find anything more about this particular earthwork, although the nearby Bar Dyke, which we visited last year, is scheduled and listed.

and on a completely different note - right at the end we discovered this brutal trap but have absolutely no idea what 'they' were trying to capture?  Obviously some poor creature who innocently traversed the log bridge!

and so we came back to the start with views across to Ewden Height

Then, on our drive home, we noticed the Canyard Hills, curious little bumpy hillocks on the side of a cliff edge.  We assumed they were old mines - but interestingly they are a rare geological feature - see article above!

That will have to be our next exploration.  Loving these retirement options!!

Spring in our steps

Beautiful balmy Spring day up on Wharncliffe Crags this Saturday

with my erstwhile companions

 across the Trans-Pennine Trail

 and back through the woods

Then a final stroll around the tiny hamlet of Onesacre which was mentioned in the Dooomsday Book.  Its beautiful Hall was built around 1640.

Ahh Sheffield, your golden frame certainly did us proud today