Exploring the wonders of the Peak District National Park

When people ask you how your weekend went, usually you say “oh yeah, it was great thank you, spent most of it chilling” or seeing friends etc. Sound familiar? This weekend was different. Very different. Who knew it was possible to fit so much into a two and a half day weekend?

Friday afternoon we left home, to head out onto the road in the direction of Nottingham. The night was young and with time on our side, arrived in the city with time to spare, to settle in and make a plan for Saturday (in light of exploring the wonders of the Peak District National Park). Our primary target was to visit Stanadge Edge, High Peak which is where the famous Elizabeth Bennett, aka, Keira Knightley stands gracefully overlooking the various peaks, in Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.

Did we get there? Yes we did. Was there snow? Yes lots of it. Biggest snowfall I’ve seen in a while anyway. Despite the snow restricting views over the edge, it was a wondrous feeling being able to make it to the top after a nice, steady climb! Time has no boundaries and sometimes, you just need to cut yourself off from the world, turn off the sat nav and head in whichever direction the road takes you, because that’s where you experience the most magical of moments. You turn a corner, and suddenly you are in the middle of it all, the peaks rising above you from all angles, with not a car in sight. One moment in particular found us unexpectedly overlooking Bin Green reservoir, with snow falling over the peaks in the distance.

The most scary of times happened in the early hours of Sunday morning, when we decided to chase the sunrise up near the summit Holme Moss. We found ourselves up against icy single track roads. Little did we know thirty minutes or so later we would be stuck in the side of a bank, near the summit of Holme Moss. Its moments like this that you find something in yourself that you never knew even existed. The road can test you, it can leave you feeling lonely, or complete, scared, or content. We were rescued, and all was well and it is an experience neither of us will ever forget! Next time, we will remember to bring rope, just in case.

It is easy to say that you can get travel sick from going away from home. But I seem to experience the latter where I come home longing to revisit the places I have travelled. Late Sunday night, as we drove back home, I found myself wanting to turn back, for the road to take us someplace else instead.

The road is life. It can take you anywhere and everywhere all at once. It can lead you on a journey you never imagined, finding a part of yourself you never knew even existed until now.