I would like to begin my report by wishing everyone a Happy New Year for 2025. If like me you had a hangover this morning my best advice would be to have a cooked breakfast and get outdoors to walk it off which was just what I did with Brad and Holly before getting saturated during an un-forecasted deluge which soaked me through to the boxers. As for Brad and Holly it's going to be a day or two until they'll speak to me again.

The forecast said it would brighten up for the last hour of the day and with that I drove the 9 miles or so to Wilderswood to walk my first walk of 2025. It had just stopped raining when I arrived and being exposed up here it was pretty windy too. It didn't look like the forecast had put anyone off grabbing the last parking space while watching dozens of families head over Wilders Moor, I'd soon be joining them.

I'd passed a dad and his two daughters who had just left the trig point which was nice to see because most folk don't walk beyond the transmitter station which leaves me wondering if they knew there was a summit trig point ten minutes away.

Anyway, as you can see the sun has sunk into more cloud but it's still pretty clear for now. Note the two rain showers either side of the trig point, some poor sod is looking up thinking why am I getting wet when there's blue skies over head. That's January for you.

By the time I left Two Lads I caught sight of the trio's head's just before they began their descent on Pike Cottage. The sun had officially set into a bank of cloud leaving an orangey afterglow reflecting in the clouds above, the light would not last bringing day one of 2025 to an end. It was still light enough to make the short walk across the moorland as lights that I hadn't noticed in the distance flicker in Horwich below. It was as if mother nature had thrown the duvet over her shoulders as the day came to an end. More cloud began to build and what once were clear skies began to fill as the cloud increased on all flanks.

I too descend on Pike Cottage where usually you'd see the odd couple enjoying hot chocolate but this evening the cottage snack shop was quiet. Gone too were the large crowds who had gathered on Rivington Pike's summit hopefully they weren't too disappointed with the sunset. I joined Belmont Road (track) and began to make my way back to Wilderswood as droplets of rain filled the air soon topping up the the puddles with a vertical downpour but it was too late and I couldn't reach my car in time and I'd taken my second drenching of the day. Cracking first sunset of 2025 though.