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A guide to our carer-assisted walks and places of interest – The Peak District

Posted on February 8, 2016 by ocadmin

The Peak District National Park offers a great range of walking and visitor experiences amongst beautiful scenery and picturesque towns and villages. Relatively easy walking can be enjoyed in the Edale and Goyt valleys or around the beautiful villages of Castleton or the historic market town of Bakewell, all of which can be combined with a pleasant place to stop for refreshments. For the more adventurous there are a wealth of walking opportunities, offering views of the beautiful landscape, that can be chosen according to your abilities. Walks on Mam Tor, Rushup Edge or from the village of Hayfield below Kinder Scout, offer some of the most spectacular views in the Peak District. There are dismantled railway lines, that have now been converted into flat, level walking paths, such as the Monsal Trail and in the Goyt Valley, which provide access for easy walking and wheelchair users to enjoy the scenic views of the Peak District.

Looking towards Mam Tor from Rushup Edge

The River Wye, Bakewell

View from the dismantled railway, Goyt Valley

Kinder Scout and Kinder Reservoir

A guide to our carer-assisted walks and places of interest – Canals

Posted on November 9, 2015 by ocadmin

Canals in the Stockport area include the Peak Forest and Macclesfield Canals, both providing level paths for easy walking with a few stretches having more of a gradient where the canal locks are located. The Peak Forest Canal can be easily accessed in Romiley and Marple with pcituresque views along the way. A walk past the Marple lock flight, which includes sixteen locks, can encompass a walk in Brabyn’s Park and the higher end of the locks is where the Peak Forest Canal joins the Macclesfield Canal. A circular walk can include both of these canals with a stretch through Hawk Green to link them up. Further along the Macclesfield Canal takes you through Bollington, a picturesque village amid rolling hills, and past old cotton mills. Whaley Bridge is where one end of the Peak Forest Canal starts with an offshoot of the canal going to the Bugsworth Canal Basin, once a place of much activity transporting rock and lime and now a much quieter place to enjoy a walk, with information boards revealing the interesting history of the area.

Bugsworth Canal Basin

Macclesfield Canal near Bollington

Where the Peak Forest and Macclesfield Canals meet at Marple

Peak Forest Canal at Romiley in the snow

Peak Forest Canal at Romiley in autumn

A guide to our carer-assisted walks and places of interest – Hayfield

Posted on October 5, 2015 by ocadmin

Hayfield is a picturesque Derbyshire village situated in the ‘Dark Peak’ area of the Peak District National Park, surrounded by beautiful countryside and offering a variety of walks to suit walkers of different abilities. Although Hayfield is at the foot of the Peak District’s highest peak, Kinder Scout, and surrounded by hills, fairly easy walking can be enjoyed along the Sett Valley Trail, with a very good level path towards New Mills. Walking in the opposite direction takes you through the beautiful wooded valley of the River Kinder. Walking steeper paths from here lead past Kinder Reservoir and Kinder Scout or onto the Snake Path with stunning views across the heather moorlands and Kinder Scout. Hayfield is a great place to start a walk to enjoy the beautiful woodland and hills of the dramatic Dark Peak scenery or to enjoy a stroll around the village itself with its old stone cottages.

Looking towards Kinder Scout from the Pennine Bridleway

Hayfield valley

Kinder Valley Woodland

Kinder Scout and Reservoir

Kinder Scout from the Pennine Bridleway

A guide to our carer-assisted walks and places of interest – The Goyt Valley

Posted on July 13, 2015 by ocadmin

The area of the Goyt Valley, situated between Whaley Bridge and Buxton, has a great variety of walks suitable for all abilities. It is an area of moorland, wooded valleys, reservoirs and the river Goyt. Quite high up on one side of the valley there is a dismantled railway line, which is now a level path with a gentle gradient, giving the opportunity for easy walking and wheelchair access to open moorland and stunning views across the valley. Alongside Errwood and Fernilee reservoirs there are also good level paths with Fernilee having a woodland walk with gentle to more demanding walking. For those wanting more challenging walks, there is plenty of choice around the valley and surrounding hills; the ruins of Errwood Hall in the wooded valley and the paceful little shrine below Pym Chair are interesting places to visit. Between Fernilee Reservoir and Whaley Bridge there is some lovely walking alongside the River Goyt, this area also being a nature reserve.

Goyt Valley

The Shrine

Errwood Reservoir

A guide to our carer-assisted walks and places of interest – Lyme Park

Posted on June 29, 2015 by ocadmin

Lyme Park is a large area of parkland, woods and moorland with the large historic house Lyme Hall and it’s formal gardens. Fallow deer can easily be seen in the area behind Lyme Hall and Red Deer freely roam much of the park and can occasionally even be seen near the car park and cafeteria. In the autumn rutting season the stags can sometimes be heard bellowing. Lyme Park is managed by the National Trust and it is also part of the Peak District National Park. Relatively easy walking can be found around the Millpond and Crow Wood with the Cafeteria, shop, public conveniences and car park nearby. There is parking and a toilet with disabled access. Outside of these areas the ground is hillier, with some routes involving climbing stiles, but there are a great variety of routes to choose from and most are easy to follow. There are some stunning views to be enjoyed from Lyme Park and, for the more adventurous, a climb up to Bowstones is well worth the effort. From here you have an almost 360 degree view of the surrounding countryside with views across to Kinder Scout, Shutlingsloe and the Cheshire Plain. Bowstones can also be reached by car from Disley so these amazing views can be enjoyed by people of all abilities.

Fallow Deer

Red Deer

Lyme Hall

Red Deer

Lyme Hall in the snow

View from Bowstones in the snow

A guide to our carer-assisted walks and places of interest

Posted on June 15, 2015 by ocadmin

Outdoor Companionship is a service to help people, that need some assistance, to experience the great outdoors for walking and for visiting places of interest, for exercise, fresh air and well-being. We are fortunate to have many parks and beautiful and varied countryside to enjoy in the surrounding area. Here we give you a brief introduction to some of the many places that we take people to experience the many benefits of being in these lovely places.

Etherow Country Park

Etherow Country Park and Nature Reserve
Etherow Country Park and Nature Reserve in Compstall, Stockport is one of the first established country parks in England. It has level paths for gentle, easy walking with plenty of benches to sit and rest or to watch the birds and admire the beautiful surroundings from. These level paths also make it an ideal place for wheelchair users. There are also paths, for more physically demanding walks, leading up through the wooded areas and further on towards Keg Pool. Etherow was once the site of cotton mills so some of the water was diverted from the River Etherow, along a canal and into the lake to provide water for the mills. Coal was also mined in the valley and was transported along the canal. The lake and canal are now places to enjoy seeing the abundance of birds, such as different species of ducks and geese, and are lined by trees and other plant life. There is a cafeteria and visitor centre at the entrance to the park and in front of the lake, with public conveniences next to the cafe (including a disabled access toilet) and also further along the valley, close to the weir. Etherow Country Park is a beautiful place to enjoy nature whatever your walking ability.