"Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone" as we climbed Danebower's icy paths, while "Frosty winds made moan" on the exposed moor. It really was a walk "In the Bleak Midwinter", just like Christina Rosetti's Christmas Carol. Our usual approach to the valley involves a crossing of the River Dane, sometimes frozen solid, when it is easy, at other times an awkward balancing trick across stones, but today everything is easy for you don't have to cross the river at all.
LOCATION: 4 miles south-west of Buxton
START: Roadside layby on A54
Grid ref: SK008698 Postcode: SK170TG
DISTANCE: 4 miles
GRADE: Moderate
TIME: 2.5 hours
MAP: Explorer OL - White Peak Landranger 118 & 119
REFRESHMENTS: Pack a flask
EN ROUTE: Dane Colliery, River Dane, Cumberland Brook, Reeve Edge, Dane Valley Way, Holt Farm, Dane Thorn
This walk was originally published by
The Manchester Evening News