The note below recently appeared in Meetstaff, but I have updated it slightly and attached the link to the original article in the 1927 RCJ.
The Outdoor Organiser, rather cunningly I thought, contacted me recently to enquire if I realised that the first ever Colne-Rowsley was completed sometime in 1926. I certainly did not, but immediately found myself reaching to the shelf for the relevant Journal, which strangely turns out to be the 1927 edition.
On page 113 under ‘Climbs and Excursions’ (link here) there is a wonderful account of the first crossing of this epic walk. It is well worth a read and therefore I don’t intend spoiling your pleasure by reciting many details here, but in summary a walk of this length had never been attempted by the Club before, so it was unknown territory. The maps of the time were basic and there were hardly any tracks or trails to follow across the moors. Due to work requirements on Saturday mornings they only managed to arrive by train in Colne at 4.15pm, therefore walking almost immediately into a long night. After a mixture of trials, tribulations, very sore feet, and one drop out at Hathersage, two of the party arrived in Rowsley at 7.45pm the following day just 15 minutes before the last train back to Manchester. They therefore completed the walk in just under 28hrs, which even now is an impressively fast pace. The 3 participants were Messrs Heardman, Gerrard and Burton.
The walk has appeared from time to time on the meets programme since 1926 (I think last time was in 2014), but what a great opportunity we have in 2026 to do it again 100 years later.
The article doesn’t actually provide a date for the walk, but rather delightfully says ‘The date chosen was the weekend after the March full moon’ which if we went on the same basis in 2026 would make it the Easter Meet weekend, which is not ideal. The full moon in 2026 is 3rd March which is perhaps a bit early, so instead I’ve decided to go half way between the two which makes it the weekend of March 21/22nd
Being modern day softies I feel a 4.15 pm kick off is a bit late, so the intention is to start early(ish) on Saturday morning, and possibly from Colne station, carrying on until we finish sometime on Sunday. Heardman, Gerrard and Burton didn’t have much ‘mobile’ support along the way (instead relying on cafes and hostelries that they passed) but hopefully I can find a small support team to meet us a couple of times to provide some appropriate fodder.
Advance notice therefore to one and all to join in and follow in the footsteps of those early Club grough hounds, almost 100 years to the day after they first tackled this superb walk. An expression of early interest from any modern day, or aspiring, grough hounds would be good to receive.
Andy Llewellyn (contact details as per handbook)