Yettanother Local Walk - Stanley Moss

 No, Stanley Moss isn't Crook's local famiss racing car driver, it's a lowland moss nature reserve near Stanley Crook (not a local criminal). Having said that it's lowland, it's reasonably high at about 800 feet above sea level (sea level being quite close at Hartlepool). In fact, it's a lovely spot and a trundle up there from Pietowers, or even the nearby Hope Street Car Park (free) in Crook and back again is about 5 miles with 600 feet of up. This puts it in the "relatively easy" category.

 As me and LTD approached the reserve, there was a kestrel just in front of us, doing a bit of a hover, in exactly the way that kestrels do, and, as we got nearer he  just moved up a  bit, so for half an  hour or so he was about 100 metres ahead of us. But up in the sky, obviously. Stanley Moss is quite tussocky and, I should imagine, a bit heavenly for yer average small rodent, apart from the gentle attentions of the local kestrel and, maybe an owl or two, obviously. And then there's the local pussycats I suppose. And maybe a fox or two....  Actually, now I think about it, if I were a vole, I'd be on me guard most of the time....

 Anyway, me and LTD completed the walk in about 3 hours, which is not rushing. If your map shows an open-cast mine ("workings") on the route, it's been filled-in and is now green and smooth and walkable. There is no mine. What there is, though is new woodland and wildlife ponds and gates for access and no obvious objection to people wandering in. Rights of way have been re-established. Everything is fine. Calm down. The coal is now all burned away and used to make steel (cos it's good stuff)