Above: Could this be an ancient waymarker stone that once guided travellers and traders across these windswept moors? Or did it perhaps mark a territorial boundary, or even the site of an ancient grave? It was comments from both James and Chris that prompted me to...
Above: One of the twin circles on the hillside below Foxlow Edge. Could they be the remains of a Stone Age settlement? Perhaps this east-facing gap in the wall may offer a clue. The ‘Beast from the East’ is supposed to be returning with a...
Above: The best place to see evidence of coal mining around Goyt’s Moss is from a lay-by beside the A54, heading west from Buxton, just before the junction to Congleton. There’s a sign beside a stile warning walkers to take care, but the...
Above: I’ve often wondered about these dark deposits on the exposed hillside beside the road from the Cat & Fiddle to Derbyshire Bridge. It certainly looks like coal, but if it is, why hasn’t anyone carted it away to warm their homes in this exposed...
Above: The photo was taken from the slopes surrounding Goytsclough Quarry, looking south along the road to Derbyshire Bridge.The River Goyt runs along the valley to the left. A mill lade flowing from the river along the hillside supplied water to the giant waterwheel....
Above: The circled area of the postcard includes the ruins of the paint mill, as well as Goytsclough Farm high on the hillside, and the paint mill cottages. Zooming into the ruins of the mill seems to show an area of stone walling which I think may have housed...
Above: I think these two ladies may have been servants at Errwood Hall, occupying a similar role to Irma. They both seem to be dressed in in funerial black. I wonder what the story is behind the photo. I would guess it would haver been taken around 1910 – some...
Above: The cottages at Goytsclough would probably have housed the mill manager’s family. I’ve just created a ‘then & now’ fade featuring one of my favourite views of the Goyt Valley (see below). The photo must have been taken around the end...
Above: The stone-edged circle on the right was fairly easy to spot from the Google Earth satellite image. But the one on the left has virtually vanished from the landscape. The OS co-ordinates are 005752. Any ideas on what they might once have been would be much...
I chose the 8-mile circular walk from Buxton to Errwood Reservoir to create this Google Earth test as it’s one of the most popular – and longest – on the site. Please let me know if you enjoy it, or have any suggestions for making improvements....
