A Couple of Absolute Walkers: Introduction and a windy walk up Chrome Hill and Parkhouse Hill

Hello. I'm Chris, and that's Jen, and this is our exciting new blog.

We live near Manchester, in England, in a small village called Little Lever. I am 35, Jen is 28. We are now in our 10th year together as a couple, married for 2. For almost all of those years we have struggled to find a hobby we can do together. We both like loud heavy metal music, but that isn't really a hobby, is it? We aren't the type to sit around binging on Netflix shows, we have tried to get into so many programs, but we soon lose interest. We both quite like video games, but very casually, we are both easily distracted. We both enjoy the gym, but motivating each other to actually go is rather difficult. I am creative, she is productive. She enjoys the journey, I love a destination. I have a big beard, she has a bigger sense of adventure. We both love being outdoors. It seems only natural that a hobby found us, hiking.

In 2014 we quit our jobs and went on a 3 month drive around Europe, we saw some spectacular sights, drove even more spectacular roads, and drank yet more spectacular beer. We both agree that the best place we visited was Lake Como in Northern Italy, and our favourite day was the day we went on a 2 hour trek up a hill we found in a guidebook. The sense of accomplishment at the end of it was fantastic, we agreed that we would walk a lot more when we got home. We didn't.

It's now 2019 and time to fulfill that promise we made to ourselves. We haven't got any expensive gear. We aren't in great physical shape. We have no experience or training. We are loaded with some £20 hiking boots, some cheap waterproofs from Decathlon, a renewed sense of purpose and a ton of adrenaline. We are going to explore, we are going to adventure, and we are going to have a load of fun, together.

Chrome Hill

With this new sense of freedom, our first trip took us to the Peak District, February 17th, a wintery Sunday, in search of Chrome Hill and the visually stunning Parkhouse Hill.

We loaded the car with coats and food and set off for Buxton, just over an hour's drive away. Any drive though the Peak District is an adventure in itself, you meander along thin, winding roads to be sneakily greeted by adorable villages, busy farms, and tempting pubs.

With us we had a page from “Country Walking Magazine's 100 Greatest Walks In Britain” which told us to head for a small village called Hollinsclough, in Staffordshire and park near a red phone box. We found Hollinsclough and immediately saw the red phone box. Apart from a farm and a school, we saw little else to suggest anybody actually lived here. We parked on the side of the road and headed North towards a small path. After crossing a bridge we met a well trodden path next to a lovely hill which took us past another farm, Stoop Farm. We reached a road, and as we began to climb, 8 or 9 dirt bikes zoomed past us, crazily avoiding the road and zig-zagging their way up and over the cloudy horizon. We slowly followed their trail before detouring to the right, over a fence and into some lovely open fields, lined with stone walls, dotted with trees and populated by grazing sheep.

With no clear markers to indicate we were heading the right way and many a sheep seemingly enjoying our embarrassing lack of direction, we kept the kept on, opting to go "up" when in doubt. We mercifully found some craggy grey rocks thrusting their way out of the green, Tor Rock was described in our guide, and we managed to recover our bearings. Having some fun crossing and climbing we emerged on the other side of the rocks to be greeted by a beautiful view of our first knoll, in all it's glory!

The ascent up Chrome Hill wasn't particularly challenging with the help of our map, and a muddy path that presents itself as you get closer to the top. We were greeted by a couple of groups of fellow walkers all headed in the opposite direction to us, making us think we should have tackled the smaller hill first, but once we reached the top, we were confident we had made the right choice.

The view of Parkhouse Hill from the summit of Chrome Hill is something I'd recommend to anybody. Parkhouse Hill, as Jen pointed out, looks like a dragon's back. It's distinctive spine of exposed limestone is breathtaking, and I can't imagine there is a better vantage point than where we stood. We stopped for a few moments to take in the panoramic view of the surrounding national park, but Parkhouse Hill selfishly took all the attention. It was time to climb it!

The View Of Parkhouse Hill from the Summit of Chrome Hill

"It looks like a Dragon's back"

On our way down Chrome Hill, the wind picked up, it became very difficult to talk. However our whole silent descent of the hill, neither of us once took our eyes off the dragon's back, getting closer and closer.

At the foot of Parkhouse Hill a road divides the 2 peaks, there are 2 paths up the hill, one to the left, faintly trodden into the grass, and one to the right, alongside the majestic limestone rocks, a steep and muddy ascent. After stubbornly working my magic, Jen agreed to take the difficult path, and difficult it was. Using rocks to steady ourselves and even pull us up at times, the climb got easier the further up we got. At the top, our legs started to feel as though they'd climbed 2 hills, but once again, the views were to die for. Looking back towards Chrome Hill was just as spectacular, especially as the sun began to drop. These are 2 hills that really deserve your attention, and it really doesn't matter in which order you decide to tackle them. Only open to the public since 2000, this part of the Peak District is bound to attract more and more people each year. We will certainly be back again.

Chrome Hill, a limestone knoll, stands at 425 metres, while Parkhouse Hill is 360 metres tall. It was a gentle walk, made more challenging by the lack of distinctive paths, however, doesn't that make exploring the region a little more fun? Our hike took little over 3 hours, and afterwards we drove to a nearby pub called The Knights Table, for an exceptional Sunday dinner and I had a well deserved red IPA, while Jen opted for a refreshing Rose wine with lemonade. A wonderful finish to our first adventure. The next one came sooner than we thought...