By: Blonde Two
Not-at-all-Blonde’s current seat of study is Buxton, so I had visited the Peak District a few times before I arrived last Monday with Blonde One. Buxton and the surrounding countryside are lovely, but as you drive towards the walker’s Mecca that is Edale, everything gets… well it all gets a bit ‘Peakier’.
The final bit of road takes you along the bottom of Rushup Edge (which we didn’t immediately rush up) and then through the cutting below the odd-shaped and distinctive fortifications on Mam Tor. As you round the bend of the cutting, The Vale of Edale emerges in front of you, a pastoral scene, following the River Noe and enclosed by majestic ridges of hills that just call out ‘climb me’.
I think it is safe to be said that we Two Blondes fitted right into Edale. It had everything a happy walker could want, campsites, a Youth Hostel, quiet lanes, a coffee shop, very friendly people, a church, a pretty grave yard, a village shop, a visitor centre, a tiny school (long may it continue), well-maintained footpaths in every direction (including the start of the Pennine Way) and two pubs with the words ‘Rambler’ and ‘Hiker’ above their respective doors.
As you can imagine, on Tuesday morning, we thought that we had woken up in heaven (albeit a rather misty one!)
What more can I say to recommend Edale? If you haven’t been yet then you should go soon. I would recommend avoiding a summer weekend as it got a bit busier on our Saturday. You could even go by train if you wanted to (45 minutes from Manchester Piccadilly, 12 trains daily), the station is near to pretty much everything (2.5 km to the YHA). If you do go, you will love the walking; we did all but one of our walks straight from our accommodation (a very satisfying experience). Each walk was different and we really enjoyed being able to sit after the long days and point out to each other where our adventures had taken us.
Just lovely! Edale is definitely to be recommended.
