Off Grid in the Peak District

 

I have been “off-grid” in the Peak District for a few days. Earlier this year I agreed to meet up with cousins who are hard-core caravaners. I was looking forward to it but also dreading it. Nella and I took 6 hours to get as far as Lockerbie, partly because I took an unnecessary detour. We stayed overnight in a farmer’s field and I was relieved that I did not have to unhitch. One of the most stressful aspects of towing a caravan is stopping - whether it is for fuel or the loo because you don’t know how tight the parking area will be unless you have been before. It took another 6 hours the next day to reach our hill top field  without electricity in Ilam. I do not drive above 50 mph when towing, the traffic was slow and the satnav took me on the most convoluted cross-country route up steep hills and around twisty bends on single-track roads. 

The Peak District is beautiful! The landscape is hilly and green because it seems to rain a lot. We had a lovely time with our cousins and went on a big walk around Hartington with them plus Freya, her boyfriend, George, and his family who are from the area. 

We visited a National Trust property called Quarrybank which is an 18th century cotton mill. It was a vast site and grimly fascinating. Two thirds of the workforce were unpaid children from the age of 8-21. They were recruited from far away workhouses (so they could not run away easily) and were fed and clothed minimally. The “apprentices” could earn a penny an hour if they worked beyond their 12 hour day. 60 girls slept in one dormitory and they bathed once a year. The factory owners were considered to be fairer than most from that time but really those children were treated like slaves. Of course, another reason that the factory owner was one of the richest men in England was that he was a slave owner with cotton and sugar plantations in the Caribbean. It was such an interesting place to visit and we spent the whole day immersed in the factory and its surrounding landscaped gardens. 

We decided to make for home in one long day as we needed a whole day to unpack and repack the car before driving down to Norfolk for Nella to start her 2nd year at Uni. Twelve hours towing a caravan is not ideal but I’m glad I did it before doing another 500 miles only 36 hours later!