April 2020 had to be the grimmest month in British history in my lifetime. We spent it stuck at home watching reports on TV of people in their 1000s getting sick and dying. At least the the lucky among us who didn’t get sick and die did. For a month I didn’t leave my flat except to put the bins out. But if I didn’t get out I reckoned I would, quite literally, go mad. The police had put out some guidelines out to say we were allowed to drive out of town to take a walk if the drove was short and the walk long. So I thought: Langsett. Not too far. Hopefully not too busy. Nice open moors with footpaths that stayed away from houses and farmyards where I might be unwelcome. The Langsett Barn car park was closed. So was the other car park up nearer the roundabout. But the big lay-bys near each car park were open and not quite full. I parked in the smaller one near the roundabout and took the track across the road. Then right where there is a crossroads of paths to head towards Swindon. West for about a mile to the end of Swinden Lane. I had a couple of noisy lapwings for company here. Towards the end I hesitated when the narrow lane was blocked by a gang of cattle. A man on bike came along and emboldened me a bit. I stuck close to him as we passed the beasts, who parted obediently enough. I say ‘close’: as close as was consistent with sensible social distancing. Left after this and down Hordron Road past Upper Hordron. Down to the bridge and on up Laund Clough. I thought this would be a good place to avoid the crowds and I wasn’t wrong. After a bit I followed a track and then a line of grouse butts up to the high ground of Howden Moor. From there it was a long solitary bog trot over Outer Edge with its trig point onto Featherbed Moss and the top of Cut Gate. But after a month of house arrest it really was heaven. I headed down Cut Gate and back to my car and home.
RSS Feed
