Alton to Knightsfields Farm

This fourth section was completed on Friday, 7th January, 2005. We started from the Royal Oak public house at 10.45am and passed the Wild Duck Inn with a steep climb alongside it. It started to rain as forecast and myself and Pete stopped to don our waterproof leggings. After a few minutes the rain ceased and it remained dry for the rest of the walk. Must remember that one! We crossed a couple of muddy fields, (seem to be a feature of this walk) and then turned left along Saltersford Lane an ancient green lane so called because it was part of a network of lanes used to transport salt for preserving thoughout the country. Unusually part of the lane was paved which made a pleasant change from the mud. The lane continued for three quarters of a mile until a stile was reached. A number of fields were now traversed until the road bridge at Denstone was reached. We turned left to Quixhill Bridge where we turned right into a field and followed the Churnet for a while. At this location there were some quite impressive gates which may have been an entrance to Alton Towers.

The Staffordshire Way continued south now with the strong wind right in our faces. The Churnet meanders south towards the Dove and the scenery becomes pastoral in contrast to the scenery further north. Barrowhill Wood is then passed through followed by the descent to the by-pass near to the impressive JCB World Headquarters. From here it is a short walk into the village of Rocester where two thirds of us wanted to stop to have lunch but were over ruled by Peter. We walked out of the village past Tutbury Mill built by Richard Arkwright between 1781 and 1782, and turned south again to cross farmland past the derelict Sedsall Farm and the working Eaton Dovedale Farm. We had lunch prior to this seated on a fallen elm. Somewhere between the two farms is the confluence of the Churnet and the Dove which we didn't see. Perhaps it isn't visible from the path but we would have liked to have seen it.

We were now approaching the A50 trunk road which links Derby to Stoke on Trent via Uttoxeter. We went slightly wrong here although there is an amendent in the guide. We carried straight on along an unmettled road instead of following the course of the river Dove. We crossed the noisy (and dangerous) A50 and re-discovered the path which crossed more muddy fields until the Uttoxeter National Hunt racecourse was reached. Dr Johnson's father used to run a bookstall in the town and it is said that one day young Sam refused to help his dad out on the stall. Many years later he stood in poor weather, bareheaded, in penitence for disobeying his father at the location.

We left the town by way of a path between some new houses and crossed a stile into Field Head Farm. The friendly farmer came out complaining of the strong wind and the fact that it had blown down his TV aerial. He enquired about the walk that we were on, and we then continued across his land and past his sheep to a short (muddy) lane between to hedges and back to the car parked off the road at Knightsfields Farm, at about 3.15pm. The distance according to the guide book was about 9.5 miles but the GPSV said 11.2 miles. The GPS consistently calculates a longer distance than that shown in the book. This walk although fairly level was made quite hard by the claggy mud which we encountered and the headwind we had to face for most of the walk.