Caching in the Peak District

Hello!

My dad and I have been wanting to go to walking in the Peak District for ages; with stunning walks and some of the most favourited caches in the country, we knew that we wouldn't be leaving disappointed. We have some friends in Matlock who invited us to stay, and so after a few days in Devon we had three days in the Peak District to look forward to!

Unfortunately, it was pouring in rain the day we arrived. However, this did not stop us exploring the local area. The first cache we found was the Derbyshire Little Quest, GC15KQD, which offered fantastic views over Matlock. It was placed right next to Riber Castle which can be seen from most of the town. This marked only my second LQ cache as I slowly work my way towards the finale.

Nice view over Matlock from the LQ cache 

We then went up High Tor, above Matlock Bath. There is both an Earthcache (GC5TZ3H) and Multi cache (GCHFP3) there. Whilst it was raining to begin with, it soon cleared up as we began our walk along Giddy Edge completing the Earthcache and Multi simultaneously. There were great views to be enjoyed along a path only made possible by geology and Victorian ingenuity.

The Earthcache was fairly straight-forward, however we encountered problems when it came to the Multi. Several of the answers at the different stages were rather subjective, but we went with our gut instincts and saw that the coords were a mile away across the Derwent gorge! We realised that this couldn't be correct, so we tried again and again. Eventually we decided to head home and email some recent finders as we read in nearly every log that people were finding it difficult to come up with  a logical final location. Fast-forward two days and we found the cache thanks to some help from the previous finder.


GC5Q5FZ, TRotAM, 14 miles, 50 caches, Hope

Let me start by saying that this is one of the best series' I have ever done.

We chose to do this series after our friends informed us that the views from Mam Tor ridge were beautiful and that it would be a stunning walk overall judging by the terrain on the map. I was unsure, however, as typically loops with lots of caches disappoint. How wrong I was.

The series takes you through Coleridge's The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, which tells the tale of a sailor who has returned from a long voyage. It starts and ends in the village of Hope.

Our friend decided to come with us to learn about Geocaching. After the very first cache, he was hooked, and decided he would register as 'moz63'. The series is split into two loops; the first is 6 miles long whilst the second is 7. We had decided to do the series in reverse, starting with the final cache of the second loop. This was only due to the weather forecast: with sunshine set for the afternoon, moz63 told us that it would be best to be walking along Mam Tor ridge at that point of the day.

The caches were all straight-forward finds in peaceful spots. At one point near towards the start of the walk, we passed through a field of cows. They didn't cause us any problems since they simply weren't interested in us. We then began a steep uphill climb which was worth it as we were rewarded with gobsmacking panoramic views and great caches.

Views. The clouds soon cleared!

As we continued to walk up, the views became even more impressive. I became immersed in them. I loved how the caches were placed at points which helped you appreciate them even more.

We loved one creative hide nearer the top. We were barely a couple of miles in and this series was already extremely promising with such beautiful views and a unique hide now thrown in. We were soon at the top of Win Hill, a stunning peak with superb views out towards Mam Tor and Kinder Scout.

Win Hill

We continued our walk along this ridge whilst enjoying the beautiful landscape. We crossed ways with some other cachers (Vandark) as we were doing the series in reverse. We then gazed into the spectacular Vale of Edale as we walked down a steep hill back into the lowland. In fact, it was so steep that we were glad we decided to do it in reverse and take the more gentle, although longer, route up.

Vale of Edale

We found several more caches before arriving back in Hope. Here, we enjoyed a delicious lunch and some cold drinks in The Old Hall Hotel. It was great to stop off there and cool down now that it was getting warmer towards the end of the first loop with the sun coming out.

Up to Mam Tor ridge

We decided to complete the next loop in numerical order. We weren't too keen on it at first, since we had to walk along quite a busy road for the first few caches. However, we soon forgot about this as we began our walk through some more lovely countryside, with Mam Tor looming above us in the distance. We had made the right decision this morning as there was (almost) not a cloud in the sky.

Before too long we began the steepish walk up to Mam Tor. Of course it seemed more tiring than the earlier incline, having walked 8 miles already. Again, it was worth it as stunning views began to emerge. Once we were up on the ridge, there were even more fantastic open landscapes either side of us.

Views from the top of the ridge

We decided that, whilst we were there, we had to divert to Mam Tor. This added just over a mile to our walk in total, but it was undoubtedly worth it. There were 360 degree views to be enjoyed and it was the perfect place to stop and have a break. It's hard to put it into words: it was simply stunning up there. The strong winds were invigorating and filled all of us with positive energy.

Views from the top of Mam Tor

After our worthwhile visit to the top of Mam Tor, we enjoyed more views along a superb walk on the ridge. It was great how we could see out towards Win Hill where we were just a few hours earlier. The caches kept on coming and unfortunately we had to skip out two extras since we had ascended Back Tor too early - and we weren't going back down after the walk up!

Mam Tor ridge

There were even more views as we descended back down into Hope. After just over 14 miles and 50 caches, we had completed possibly the best series we have ever done.

The views as we finished

It had everything: an outstanding walk over varied terrain (riverbanks, pastures, woodland, moorland, rocky peaks, ridges and green lanes), fantastic scenery and views, and purposeful caches. Whilst some were a little forgettable, there were a few creative hides, some of which I had not seen before. I don't think moz63 could have had a better first day caching!

I definitely recommend this series, especially to those who love elevated walking within a beautiful landscape. We won't forget this marvellous series. What a cracker. 

GC2M97J, Alphabet Soup, 9.5 miles, 25 caches, Darby Dale

We have read rave reviews about this series, and it has also been personally recommended to me. As we were staying just a couple of miles away, we decided that we couldn't leave the Peak District without having a go at one of the most favourited series' in the UK.

It's a shame that the CO doesn't seem to be as active as they once were, and as a result a few of the caches weren't in the best condition. Although broken, the first cache was awesome and from this point on we knew that there would be more treats in store.

We went wrong to begin with; couldn't quite understand why the second cache was placed on a parallel footpath to the one we were meant to be on. So we had to backtrack. Once we were on the correct path it was an enjoyable walk to begin with.

There were some nice views as we began to ascend. The great thing about this series is that many of the caches were ingenious hides - you never knew what to expect, so you have to commend the CO for keeping the cacher on their toes.

We were soon in Ladygrove Wood, which was beautiful. There were some great paths, and it was a brilliant surprise to find a waterfall there!

Waterfall

Unfortunately it was a DNF at cache J (which was disabled, but people had been finding it). Glad to see that we weren't the only ones to get a DNF that day, though... perhaps it is now truly gone?

Good paths

We were then in Halldale Wood, which was another lovely piece of woodland. Several great caches later, we found ourselves on the final stretch of the walk. There were still some more super caches to be enjoyed. Perhaps the only downside of the series was that that some lengthy sections of the walk followed roads. However, thankfully they were mostly quiet lanes, but of course it would have been ideal for even more of it to have been along footpaths! 

Overall, this was a nice series in a lovely part of the country. The caches were brilliant, and I can only imagine what they were like a few years ago when the series was newer and feeling less tired. It's good to have finally done this famous series. 

We thoroughly enjoyed our trip to the Peak District, finding some outstanding caches along some stunning rights of way. What another great county for caching. We will be sure to return very soon. 

Griff Grof