Moors and Meadows around Blakey Ridge walk report.

We started at 9.00am on Saturday 14^th November with a cracking turnout for our monthly club walk. Meeting at the Lion Inn at Blakey, 23 in all several from other LDWA groups, amongst the visitors we had Neil who had been an LDWA member way back in the days of co-founder Alan Blanchford, in the past Neil had been a fell runner with the elite of the time.  Neil’s membership had elapsed many years ago for personal reasons, however after the walk he asked for an application form to re-join and hopefully we will see him on another walk sometime soon as an LDWA member.

The weather was quite good, but breezy when we set off, unlike the rest of the country who were experiencing high winds and torrential rain.  The walk connected up Farndale with Bransdale via Low Mill and Ankness Ridge, using a variety of secluded wooded paths, quite a lot of the group hadn’t been on some of the paths before.

After climbing out of Farndale and across the heather moor we had our first break in a sheltered spot away from the wind, lunch time proved more difficult but we all sat in the heather on Shaw Ridge, with fantastic views across Bransdale.

We returned via Shaw Ridge, Esk House and the old railway track where the weather suddenly changed lashing us with rain as we scurried back to the Lion Inn where some of us enjoyed a well-earned drink.

Albert Bowes