It was touch and go as to whether I would make it north this month, what with the lingering effects of this damnable ‘flu. Then the weather forecast was dodgy. But, in spite of freak sleet storms and icy roads, make it I did… only to find that we could not cross the hills for the projected meeting because of the snow.
There had been little sign of snow until I passed Arbor Low… just a few miles from my destination… and then there was no more than the lightest powdering on the highest hills. By next morning, however, the pass we take to the meeting was closed and the snow in the high places was deep.
We tried rearranging the meeting place… but our friends could no more get to us than we to them. The higher we went in the Derbyshire hills, the worse the snow became. By Sunday morning, though, the roads seemed clear in the town, so we set off to look for a lost standing stone.
Now, this particular stone has proved elusive. My companion had found it many years ago and assures me it is one of the tallest he has ever seen. We have looked for it where he last saw it. Walked miles across the moors and through the woods in search of it. Encountered the Black Shade of Beeley and a fairy woman on our quest… all to no avail.
“I know exactly where it is,” said he as we donned our boots and set off in the now-falling snow. We were heading for the grounds of Chatsworth once again… and my scepticism may have been showing a tad.
“Exactly…” he repeated, leading the way across the bridge and down the little lane that borders Bar Brook and leads to the Kissing Gate. But when a buzzard took off very close to us, skimming the ground and landing in a nearby tree, we knew that this would not be a futile venture… even if we couldn’t find the stone.
“It must have gone for its mid-morning walk…” we concluded some time later… when the ever-elusive stone had foiled our attempts to locate it yet again.
But all was not lost. The pale green of the powdered ground was fast becoming white. A mountain hare surprised us, leaping up from the ground in a blur of movement and dashing off across the hillside at speed.
The snow was coming down thick and soft as we glimpsed the distant silhouette of a deer in the trees. Within the sheltered copse, tree creepers darted around our feet, losing themselves against the snow-kissed bark. Watching the stag and his fellows, we almost missed a second herd of deer, nearly invisible behind the veil of snow and just s few feet away.
We may not have found the stone, but the valley of dancing trees was just as magical in the snow as it had been in sunshine…and we had the rest of the day to explore. We headed into Bakewell to pay a visit to the church, finding the roads now difficult and the town deserted.
By the time we had done what we had come to do, it was mid-afternoon and the sun was already sinking close to the horizon. Parts of the moors were barely covered with snow… other areas were snugly blanketed in white…but everywhere was beautiful.
There is something about a fresh snowfall that lifts the heart and lightens the mind. The ‘unsuccessful’ ventures of the weekend became adventures. Our walk in the snow gave us the gift of beauty.
Sue Vincent's Daily Echo 
Pingback: A snowy weekend… – The Militant Negro™
I love Your photos. They are gorgeous. What animals were in one photo? They looked like reindeers, but not being reindeers. If You have not seen reindeers, then look at my newest post in which children have fun when pulled by reindeers.
Have a good day!
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Thank you. Tey are fallow deer.
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Thank You.
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I have the chills just reading about this adventure!
Some people would think you foolish for contemplating a walk in that weather, but when it snows like that, turning the world into another place entirely, you just have to go and be a part of it…
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I can never resist the snow… and would have been awfully disappoited had I not been able to go out to play 🙂
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Great post again Se. You are so right about fresh snow fall. We loved it in the woods as we felt we were explorers in new lands going between the trees rather than along the path. We’ve just had a deluge of rain/sleet/hail here, so glad we weren’t out in it walking the dog!
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There is something about a new snowfall that awakens the child in all of us, I think 🙂
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Sorry, Sue, your U is missing above!
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My fingers and keyboard between them keep missing letters…
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Thank you for sharing the journey. Spell binding photographs
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Thanks, Roger.
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The closest I can be there is right here!
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‘Here’ is always close enough 🙂
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I like ‘here’. 🙂
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🙂
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It sounds like such a magical adventure, even if your quest to find the stone was unsuccessful. Perhaps the stone is one of those things you can only find when you aren’t looking for them?
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I think it is a lure…we always find something unexpected when we search for it 🙂
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If you keep yourself open to finding more than just the object of your desire, that’s always the way, is it not?
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These photographs are amazing
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Thanks, Tom.
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How very gorgeous
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It really was, Michael 🙂
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Such tranquil beauty, Sue! Thanks so much for sharing. 🙂
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It was a beautiful day 🙂
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Gorgeous! What a day, with adventure and beauty.
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It was wonderful, Jennie 🙂
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What a wonderful day out. I love fresh snow but hate it when it goes all slushy and freezes again.
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This didn’t… the rain washed most of the roads clear a little while later, but it stayed white and cleanon the hills 🙂
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Gorgeous photos! That stone is certainly an elusive one! You found lots of lovely critters instead 🙂
Jo-Ann
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We find wonderful things, every time we look for that stone 🙂
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I love this! ❤
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Thank you.
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Fabulous Sue thanks for taking us with you.🌹
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My pleasure, Willow.
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🌹🌹🌹
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I think the snow is wonderful, Sue. I know it messes up travel arrangements and makes life hard but it is so beautiful.
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I agree, Robbie… I love the stuff. Just not on the roads!
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The trees, the trees – I just love the mysterious way they look in these pictures. Thanks Sue.
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There is a glade there where all the trees dance 🙂
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Gorgeous photos Sue and your usual brilliant words to go with them!
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It was a magical morning 🙂
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What a lovely excursion! I love walking in a snowfall – the quiet is pervasive and so peaceful. Hope you stopped for a good tea or something more powerful afterward
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There was mead waiting at home …perfect to warm up with 🙂
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Those trees in the snow! Gorgeous … I suspect that dastardly stone was hiding behind one of them, quietly chuckling. 😀
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We found one… but not ‘the’ one 🙂
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It’s nice to know there’s always ‘one’ more. 😀
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Yes… always something lurking, just waiting to be seen 😉
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Wow, like a dream, seeing the deer in the snow. Such beautiful land!
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It was… as magical as Bambi to a child 🙂
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I love that the deer and the sheep are just hanging out together in the snow. Grazing peacefully. Isn’t that have a message for all of us?
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None of them worried by the excited humans either. You’d think we could learn from that.
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Sue, what a lovely adventure. Nothing beats exploring in the snow and making fresh foot tracks. The world seems so peaceful when clad in a beautiful fresh coat of snow.
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It does, Michelle…it was incredibly beautiful that day.
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Reblogged this on Stuart France.
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Reblogged this on anita dawes and jaye marie.
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Thanks for sharing, Jaye x
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