Tag Archives: county tops

Dec 27 2025
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Daily Post, Landscape, Transport

50-mile view, with plane

Friday 26th December 2025, 12.25pm (day 5,237)

Culter Fell with plane, 26/12/25

Boxing Day was spent walking in the Ochil Hills. Grey skies above us were contrasted with the sight of sun shining on hills to the south. This shot, from the summit of Innerdouny Hill, was taken with a very long zoom, and I am prepared to state that what is seen here is Culter Fell, the 2,454-feet high summit of South Lanarkshire — it’s in the right direction, and it certainly looks like it (see the second image down on the page as linked). Which means that here we have a view of just under 50 miles. That’s impressive — but in the end, I pick the shot because of also capturing the aeroplane, which is just cute. (More pictures from the walk will appear on my other blog in due course….)

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Jun 14 2025
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Daily Post, Landscape

The last climb, for now

Friday 13th June 2025, 1.50pm (day 5,041)

Clare on last climb, 13/6/25

As part of the contract that is Being Married to Drew, Clare occasionally gets dragged up remote moorlands, like Meikle Says Law in the Lammermuir Hills — the top of this (a County Top) being somewhere in the vague brown moorland to top right. This was the final stage back to the car. I call it the ‘last climb for now’ because I assume she might be motivated to do another one or two in the future before one of us dies…. though who knows for sure?

This is the last of the shots from the current road trip in Scotland, a passage of time which has seen it overtake Australia as the second-most depicted country on here after England.

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Nov 12 2024
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Daily Post, Landscape, Transport

Train at Blea Moor

Monday 11th November 2024, 9.45am (day 4,827)

Train at Blea Moor, 11/11/24

The 09:47 service from Ribblehead (ex Carlisle) to Leeds is more or less on time. This is the Settle-Carlisle railway, one of the country’s finest. In the background, Ingleborough, definitely the best-looking English mountain outside the Lake District — it’s 3,730 days (or 10 years, 2 months and 16 days) since it made its first appearance on here, on my 45th birthday day out (26/8/2014). And as it’s a good place to come for a day out, on the first appearance of sunshine for about two weeks — it was worth coming back.

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Aug 04 2024
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Daily Post, Landscape

The Top of Yorkshire

Saturday 3rd August 2024, 10.35am (day 4,727)

Ruin on Mickle Fell, 3/8/24

By British standards, Yorkshire has always been a big county. Chopped around with a bit since 1974, nevertheless, in terms of its historic boundaries it was the largest in the country. And Mickle Fell, at 2,585 feet/788m above sea level, was its highest point. Truly, therefore, between about 10.30 and 11.00 am, I was Top Yorkshireman — geographically, at least.

Of course, since 1974 this territory was allocated to County Durham instead — but let’s gloss over that little detail. If you want to find out more about my walk today, please do have a look at my other blog.

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Nov 18 2023
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Daily Post, Landscape

The old mine, above Blaenavon

Friday 17th November 2023, 2.50pm (day 4,467)

Old mine, 17/11/23

Sometimes you just stumble across places. This old, ruined mine sits above Blaenavon in the south Wales valleys; I found it while bagging my latest County Top. I would argue it was not only the most interesting but also the most attractive thing about the day. There have been points of time in the past where something like a quarter of the iron and steel production of the entire world was based around south Wales. Believable as that stat is, this is what’s left.

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Aug 18 2023
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Daily Post, Landscape

North from Helvellyn

Thursday 17th August 2023, 2.00pm (day 4,375)

North from Helvellyn, 17/8/23

I established today that over the last two years I have made frequent promises, on both my walking blogs, that I would soon be going back up Helvellyn, which at 3,117 feet above sea level is the third-highest mountain in England, and which first featured on here in December 2011. Today, finally, I made it and it was well worth it. This was the first walk to count as both a Wainwright and County Top walk; so including this picture, three blogs for the price of one. Am I overdoing it? No, I don’t think so.

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Mar 12 2023
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Daily Post, Transport, Urban scene

Hugh Town, Isles of Scilly

Friday 10th March 2023, 10.45am (day 4,215)

Hugh Town, 10/3/23

A trip out to the furthest south-western extremity of the British Isles (assuming we treat Ireland as separate) — namely the Isles of Scilly, a hundred or so lumps of granite stuck thirty miles off Land’s End, of which five are inhabited. The ‘capital’, Hugh Town, is located on St Mary’s island, and built on a narrow isthmus, which is apparent here thanks to the houses having blue sea behind them as well as in front, which is why I chose this picture — that, and the profusion of coloured things (buoys?) in the sea.

That’s one of the harder-to-reach County Tops bagged as well. There were lots of photos from the day I could have chosen to give an impression of this distant part of my country, but see the other blog for more.

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Jul 03 2022
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Daily Post, Landscape

Pistyll Rhaeadr

Friday 1st July 2022, 9.45am (day 3,963)

Pistyll Rhaeadr, 1/7/22

Pistyll Rhaeadr may or may not be the highest waterfall across both Wales and England — the award depends whether you are troubled by the fact that it does not fall in a single drop. Either way it’s an impressive water feature, set off very well by the natural arch in the middle (seen here), through which the water threads like a curtain through a ring. Well worth seeing, despite being ripped off £5 for the car park. (For more pictures from today see my County Tops blog.)

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