Day 364 - A Walk in Cressbrook Dale

Another walk today and I managed a whole 6 miles! My feet were once again very painful, but tolerably so, and the knees and ankles held up well! I'm still waiting for a diagnosis (more blood tests and a hospital visit needed) but am pleased as I do seem to be healing myself at the moment, though I know it could all flare up again any day and I'm not sure how good my feet/ankles will feel tomorrow!

Anyway, today I fancied a walk through the wild garlic in Cressbrook Dale. It's been a long time since I last walked these paths. I started off just outside Wardlow Mires, near Peter's Stone and all the common spotted orchids...

That lump above the orchids is Peter's Stone, the site of the last gibbeting in Derbyshire in 1815. I read an interesting book all about it earlier this year! From here I made my way down into Cressbrook Dale.

 

looking back

looking back again

There were lots of insects out on the sunshine today. I think this one is a wheat stem borer (Cephus pygmaeu), a type of sawfly.

Cryptocephalus hypochaeridis

In Cressbrook Dale...

The wild garlic smelled so good!

Another sawfly, this time Tenthredo ferruginea I think

unidentified hoverfly

The wood avens was popular with bumbles bees and Heineken flies

I thought this stick looked like a praying mantis or something popping up from behind the wall! It definitely has an eye!

This was (as is often case!) a make it up as I go along walk, so after leaving Cressbrook Dale and arriving at the mills, I walked alongside the River Wye for a little while.

Here I watched trout jumping up for flies.

Then I headed up the steep rocky path to Cressbrook Hall

where I saw a speckled yellow moth.

I carried on, up through Cressbrook and then following paths across the fields to Litton.

It was hot in the evening sunshine so I stopped in the shade for a few minutes respite. Thank you little sycamore tree!

Moving on, the orange of these parasite attached to some mating flies caught my eye as I passed nettles along the edge of the path.

Looking towards Litton ahead...

and to the right, a slightly zoomed in view towards Peter's Stone

Almost back at the car, here's a view of Peter's Stone and the dale from the road...

Just before I reached my car, I noticed this at the side of the road...

A dead violet ground beetle (I think) being dealt with by a load of ants.

Two good walks in two days this weekend! There's only two more days to go in my Wild Year... I wonder what tomorrow will bring?!