Country diary: cabin fever on the moors

Oyster Clough, Derbyshire: A decade ago, I wouldn't have mentioned it in print, but now the number of visitors has soaredThe true start of winter is often debated, but none of the definitions I know include mid-November. That didn't stop a razor-edged northerly blowing off the moors from knifing me in the ribs. I stopped to put on my spare jacket, but it seemed hopelessly unequal to the job. "Is that all you brought?" my companion asked. Luckily for me, by the time we emerged from the woods above the Snake Inn into bright sunshine, the wind had moderated. But the sky above was still cold-forged with that intense blue of winter, tinged pink in places in the low-angled light. Continue reading...