15 Peaks Training Walk

I managed to get up to Kinder Scout last Tuesday and completed a good "Serious Hills" walk in preparation for the 15 Peaks Challenge in June.  The walk starts at the Snake Inn and takes around 3 hours.  It has quite an arduous start  with an almost 900ft climb most of which is going straight up.  There then follows a 3 mile ridge walk where you are continually having to climb up and over quite big boulders.
As you meet the Pennine way track there is a plunge down a 400ft almost vertical slope where at the bottom you see the waymark sign back to the Snake Inn.  The 3 mile walk back to the Inn is not exactly a cake walk being quite wet and demanding some concentration of where to place your feet.
Having said all that the views are stunning if its a good day which Tuesday was, you will be guaranteed to see,  grouse, skylark, mountain hare, and at least hear the cry of the curlew and buzzard.
Cut and paste the link below this pic to your browser  to see pics of the whole route.

https://picasaweb.google.com/hakuraman/2012050815PeaksTrainingFirstKinderScoutWalk?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCOHz2rbjxtnoKQ&feat=directlink

Note added Friday 11 May.  Completed the walk again this morning in the most atrocious weather.  Very high winds freezing cold and snow turning to icy rain the whole way round!