The one when I discovered I had the 'not quite right' map....

According to the weather people yesterday, after starting dull and overcast, would brighten up by late morning with long sunny spells in the afternoon. On that basis I had an early lunch and then set off for a run over a bit of the Pennine moors. As I set off to drive the short distance to Belmont it was still heavily overcast even though it was past noon; by the time I reached Belmont it was drizzling and ten minutes into the run I was enveloped in moderately thick clag. So much for the forecast! Still, it was good to be out, at least it wasn't windy for the first time in ages and the lapwings were singing somewhere above. The familiar run up the east side of Winter Hill, then I took the middle path down to Belmont rd and on northwards over the 'river' Yarrow onto the west side of Anglezarke moor. I didn't have my compass out and after coming round the second woods I must have gone too far NW instead of NE because after a short while Round Loaf was visible, whereas I'd intended going over Hurst Hill. A change of direction and some running over tussocks without a trod to ease the way was required.

The night before I'd consulted my newish map of the West Pennines and decided to try a new route over Wheelton, Withnell and Roddlesworth Moors, through Tockholes then up the NW side of Darwen Moor to the tower before heading back to Belmont. I'd never been over these moors before, largely because they looked rather flat and uninteresting, but having now covered most of the higher moors it seemed like time to at least visit these lower ones once.

I didn't take the map I'd consulted with me since I knew I had another, older, smaller one already in my running bumbag. Now, having crossed Hurst Hill and heading further NW I decided to get the map out and confirm that the stone wall I was contemplating using as a handrail (still no trods) down to Black Dean Brook was in fact the one intended (I'd only been over this section of moor once before and that going in the opposite direction and with thick snowdrifts changing the appearance of the landscape). It was at this point I suddenly discovered/remembered that the map I had with me only reached about one third of the way up the new moors I intending running over!

Well, the stone wall was indeed the one I expected and I followed it down into the clough debating as I ran whether to head over the new route regardless. After all, I simply had to head north for a while and then west. But if the paths were difficult to find that might mean crossing long stretches of rough tussocks and if they got so deep/high as to be unrunnable it could get frustrating. Having crossed the brook I opted instead to run up the clough then climb onto the main track leading up to Great Hill. By now the clag had dispersed and the view was reasonable, which actually made me glad I'd been forced to change my route – Looking north from Gt. Hill over the three moors I'd missed they looked every bit as uninteresting as I remembered (from this lofty perch at the compass wall) and the map suggested. Far better this run over the tops.
So I picked up my familiar path eastward down into the valley, over the main road and up the west side of Darwen Moor, looping north past the tower before taking a different path south and west, dropping down Turton Moor and along the side of Longworth Moor back to the car. And by now a hazy sun was finally pushing its way through the clouds.

Cake race

   You can see many things on a Pennine fell race. OK, most of the time it's just the ground 2ft in front of you, but if you do raise your eyes there are usually vast expanses of open moorland, some of it covering steep cloughs and valleys, other times more undulating and expansive, sometimes with rocky outcrops. You can often see a reservoir or three and, these days, usually at least one wind farm. There are spring lambs, birds on the wing and ..... llamas! Well not often, but there were today. Just two, a brown and a white one. Not running free across the moor but peering curiously across the wall from a field near the start/finish of today's race. 
    It wasn't the only unusual feature. It's called the Cake Race because if you bring a homemade cake you get free entry to the race. While the runners are out pounding over the moors someone judges the cakes. This has to be the one and only time I'll enter a cake baking competition! 
   A less welcome oddity was the long flight of stone steps going down by the dam on Butterly reservoir and the corresponding and equally long flight going up the other side. But is the up or down worse? Up is obviously harder but I did pass 7-8 people whereas I was passed twice on the downward flight. 
   And when, oh when will this fierce wind die away? The steps don't actually get you very high so after contouring round between the local golf club and the reservoir there is still a 500ft climb onto Marsden Moor. By fells standards it looks rather tame, but that's without taking the wind into account. A super strong head-on wind makes running on the flat hard work, especially when you already got 7 fast miles in your legs; going up even a moderate incline is tough. Two of the men I'd passed on the steps had already re-passed and got away. I spent most of this climb tussling with two others but I lost concentration as we crossed a small brook and they got away too. I thought I was running strongly on the long descent to the finish but still got taken by another two! Ah well. 86 mins for 10 miles and 1,700ft climb is not so bad.

     The day had started with heavy, threatening cloud, in fact just before the race there was a fierce squall. However, by early afternoon it was brightening up and I went for a walk on a different section of moor and enjoyed blue skies and sunshine, though the wind became, if anything, even fiercer and nearly blew me off my feet several times (I maybe need to carry a heavier rucksack just to weight me down). There was surprisingly few birds to be seen – or perhaps not so surprising; what bird in its right mind tries to fly in such a gale? Plenty of twites (I think) and a few crows but not much else. I was slightly disheartened to discover that part of the pleasant little path down Willykay Clough (approaching Marsden from the west) which I had walked last summer has now been covered with great slabs of stone to 'preserve' it. How many more miles of the moors will be covered with these eyesores which are so horrible to walk/run on (so lots of people ignore them) and dangerously slippery as soon as they are wet, let alone icy?

   At the sight of Pule hill across the valley, I suddenly remembered I'd wanted to climb it last time I was in the area, but was then heading north, so today I modified my route slightly and took it in. Well worth the windswept climb and I enjoyed a sandwich stop on its south side with long views over Marsden and Wessenden Moors. All in all an excellent day out.