Ascent: 800m
Weather: Sunny start, chilly wind on tops, drizzle turning to rain
Heard: Buzzard, skylarks
Seen: Rangers getting very excited about a buzzard, alpacas, lapwings and curlews, guinea fowl, goats, chaffinch masquerading as something interesting, mandarin ducks, squirrel, little lambs
We set off from home at quarter to 10 and it was sunny and quite warm. Over brushes Clough there was much excitement about a buzzard, and we actually followed the proper route of the Oldham Way, rather than just heading towards Denshaw on the paths we usually walk. There was quite a lot of snow left in the sheltered spots by the lanes and walls. There were a lot of song birds singing.
Through Denshaw past the new reservoir construction work, we started on the chocolate eclairs, bought for Offa's Dyke last year and not yet eaten, we decided they probably hadn't been out for many walks yet, given that the bag still seemed to be in good condition.
Over Stanedge Edge a chill wind got up, we past quite a few well wrapped up people and also quite a few dead sheep which was a bit depressing. Turning off the Pennine Way and on to the Tameside trail we went down into Diggle, and decided to follow the canal for a while rather than follow the Oldham Way around Dovestone Reservoir. The canal goes past a rather nice looking cafe at the Brownhill Countryside Centre which has just opened just on the outskirts of Dobcross and then into Uppermill and Mossley. There were lots of ducks and geese and a worryingly wobbly bike rider on a very narrow bit of tow path under a low bridge.
At Mossley we turned off the canal and made our way through Grasscroft and Grotton, then over the fields into Lees, in the rain, and back home.
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