STEPPING STONES

Back to the walks. A two hour epic, almost reaching the Peak District before realising Derbyshire police would confiscate our coffee cups (Voluntary disclosure : James had a fudge brownie as well).

The walk takes you through the student houses of Crookesmoor to the student flats of Broomfield and thence to the student village of Endcliffe, home to a student pub that James failed to grace in his first year.

You can tell west Sheffield is a student stronghold from the allegiances to Princess Diana (twice) and, er, Burnley.

James walks at almost the same pace as me, and unlike Stafford Paul tends to stop at red lights, so we sprinted past the Endcliffe complex and reached Ranmoor 10 minutes ahead of schedule.

I love the way you get little patches of cobble outside the pub, just like in Halifax.

Ranmoor-cum-Fulwood is noticeably less strewn with litter than Burngreave and Pitsmoor. Posh people have more time to organise Friday morning litter picks, I guess, though it must take them longer to shave.

We headed aimlessly down through the dull streets of Hanging Water, and I thought about a diversion to the Abbeydale tap, but instead we suddenly crossed the brow of a hill and came across countryside.

A dramatic sweep of country parks leading via Porter Brook from the centre (well, the vegan knitting shops of Ecclesall Road) to the Peak, dotted with bubbling streams and stepping stones.

It was wonderful, our best day’s walk since we arrived last month (OK, bar the day we found the Pad Thai).

And it was full of life, hundreds of families out for a walk, or queueing for ice cream. A rare day of normality.

In the centre, there’s a bit of a dishevelled feel about the pubs, but Sharrow Vale felt ready to burst back into life at a moment’s notice (are there any great pubs down there ?).

I even found a shop selling Man United fanzines.

Tommy Docherty

The only problem with these increasing ambitious exploratory walks, which will surely reach Rotherham soon, is that there’s nowhere for a break.

I would have love to break the journey with an Abbeydale Moonshine in the student pub near Weston Park.

That last mile up the hill home is a killer.

Published by retiredmartin

Retired NHS, doing long walks around UK and the world to record the great bits. Focused on Good Beer Guide pubs and live music.

19 thoughts on “STEPPING STONES”

  1. “you get little patches of cobble outside the pub” to deter the mobility scooters that would make it look like one of Tim’s venues. ,

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  2. Had a conversation with a frightfully posh lady from Ranmoor in August 2019 about why we were ringing the bells on a Friday night when normally she’d hear them on a Tuesday. Sadly didn’t have time afterwards for a pint in the Ranmoor Inn as we had to hot foot it across to the Crow for some 12%ers on keg.

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  3. “almost reaching the Peak District before realising Derbyshire police would confiscate our coffee cups”

    From what I’ve been reading, they might have done just that!

    “James walks at almost the same pace as me”

    Mine are the same. Heck, even Rose is pretty good at keeping up.
    (but my brother outdoes us all)

    “Posh people have more time to organise Friday morning litter picks, I guess, though it must take them longer to shave.”

    Who shaves during a lockdown?
    (oh, ok, I do)

    “dotted with bubbling streams and stepping stones.”

    Are you sure that’s bubbling? Sounds more like splashing to me.

    “And it was full of life, hundreds of families out for a walk, or queueing for ice cream. A rare day of normality.”

    Two thumbs up!

    “I even found a shop selling Man United fanzines.”

    (checks the upper right corner) Blimey. Even back then they were leaning towards Brexit. 😉

    “I would have love to break the journey with an Abbeydale Moonshine in the student pub near Weston Park.”

    Sigh. None of the walks my wife and I take go anywhere near someplace to stop and have a beer.

    “That last mile up the hill home is a killer.”

    Shouldn’t be allowed if you haven’t had a pint to work off! 🙂

    Cheers

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      2. T’other Paul,
        The only time I’ve been confident that Cookie was being entirely serious was in the White Swan, Digbeth.

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  5. “That last mile up the hill home is a killer.”

    You can always abseil down and then bivouac on the way back up at the Red Deer, when pubs re-open, Martin.

    Watch the carpet with those crampons, mind.

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  6. There’s a tremendous walk along Porter Brook, the small river that flows through Endcliffe Park, past former cutlery workshops and their dams, eventually leading to the moors with a retrospective view of Sheffield, then through ever-changing scenery to finally reach Hathersage and the bus or train back to Sheffield. DO NOT attempt this walk until the pubs in Hathersage have reopened.

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    1. We’d walked back in to Endcliffe from Hanging Water, and thought that walk out to Hathersage was one for a nice day when we could stop for a drink. That’s true about a large number of potential walks though !

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    2. Sheffield Hatter,
      When staying in Hathersage for three nights in April 2019 I never thought of walking or the bus for to or from Sheffield.

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  7. I’ve reported your route to Derbyshire Police as the route plan appears to be giving them the finger (albeit slightly arthritic). Just because you’re in Sheffield won’t bother them. They regard the law as irrelevant to enforcement.

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