Taking a peek at the Staffordshire Hills

The Staffordshire White Peaks is a lesser known area of the Peak District and, in the bleak winter months, one of the least populated areas of the UK. The towns of Macclesfield, Stoke-on-Trent, Buxton, Bakewell and Ashbourne are the main hubs of urban activities and the rest of the county is limited to a farm or homestead with no neighbours as far as the eye can see.

Beauty as far as the eye can see

So it was with some trepidation that a group of us decided to hire a house in the White Peaks, with the nearest pub three miles away and the closest source of shops in Leek - comprising a wine warehouse and a well-known food store.The gathered assortment ranged from Londonites, used to Michelin-starred restaurants and 24-hour shopping, Cambridge residents with no concept of driving on gradients of more than one percent and a yummy mummy from Stamford.

There was also a token Scot and two Welsh people. It began badly. Within half an hour of the first three people arriving a car ran into an electricity pylon and knocked all the electricity out in the area. True to the instructions left by the owner there were no candles in the house but luckily one of the party had ignored the mockery and brought a head torch. And there we sat - three of us with some wine, some champagne, some port and some... orange marmalade vodka. Needless to say the next day involved some sore heads and a general lethargy.However, the lights came on and as we saw the light the rains started.For the next five days the rains continued but that did not stop the household of intrepid explorers. Over the next few days the group explored: Buxton – quaint, contained and wet; Bakewell – great farm shop, nice pubs, pretty but with over-rated tarts; the banks of the River Dove – pretty and... wet; and the Roaches – spectacular, intriguing and… wet.

Every meal was a banquet

There were 11 of us, plus two dogs and the weather was atrocious. But we had one of the best 'night before New Year's Eve' nights and the actual night itself was memorable for many reasons. The party didn't start until 10pm when everyone had finished playing board games; the music was awesome (thanks to Jet's itunes) and to top it all the Londonites were able to see their city in all its glory at midnight as fireworks lit up the screen.We went to bed at 5am and, although every day was spent drying clothes, and the sun never shone, our New Year at Chelsworth Barn was one of the happiest.

Having a ball on New Year's Eve

Homage to Freddie (Scaramouche, scaramouche)