As a few members of my brood have a nought at the end of their birthdates this year, we decided to celebrate by holding a family get-together. The venue decided upon was the Mermaid Inn, an old drovers’ pub high on Morridge Ridge above Leek. Due to the change in drinking habits following the ‘drink/drive’ regulations, the pub was fast losing its traditional clientele and either had to close, or change to something better than simply being a supplier of alcoholic drinks. The scheme a developer came up with was to improve the place by changing it into a high class self-service guest house, something that was perfect to our requirements as it easily covered the demands of a family group whose ages ranged from a few months to ninety. By some miracle of organisation, everyone was free for the chosen weekend and travelled safely from points north, south, east and west without too much difficulty. The Mermaid by the way, takes its name from a nearby moorland pool, the haunt of a mermaid who is supposed to snare unwary travellers. Overlooking the head waters of the River Trent’s highest tributaries and on high ground opposite the long ridge known as the Roaches, it makes an ideal base for anyone wishing to explore both the Roaches and Dane Valley as well as the little known areas above the headwaters of the Manifold Valley. It was the Roaches which attracted me most strongly. As an area I have neglected as of late, I decided to take time off and re-explore this long sinuous arm of gritstone, the last fling of that rough stone marking the southern end of the Pennines. The name ‘Roaches’ is supposed to have been conjured up by French monks based on their now ruined Dieulacress Cistercian Abbey...
