Above: Spot Joe’s clue! They’re never easy to find, even when you have a good idea of where they are.
There are quite a few posts on this website about Joe Brown, known as the ‘Human Fly’ and acknowledged to be one of the finest climbers of his generation. Joe worked at White Hall Outdoor Centre during the 1960s, close to the Goyt Valley, and it was here that he created an orienteering course known as ‘Joe Brown’s Numbers’.
It comprises of 20 sets of numbers carved on stones in various locations around the landscape, either showing a six-figure OS grid reference, or a distance and compass bearing. Find one and it points to the next, in a 20-mile circuit through the Goyt Valley and up to Combs Edge.
The challenge is way beyond my meagre navigational skills, but there’s the additional problem that many of the numbers have become very weathered and difficult to decipher since they were carved some 60 years ago.
Above: A good example of how difficult the stones are to decipher. Even when using snow to try and make sense of them!
Pic courtesy of Sue Watson who managed, with husband Tim, to complete the course with just map and compass.
Above: The first clue is on a gatepost at the rear of White Hall. For some reason, someone must have decided it was wrong and corrected it. But the small plate beneath the numbers shows that Joe got it right first time!
Spoiler alert!
For the purists who are happy with a paper map and compass, please don’t read any further. Simply start the course at the gates of White Hall. And I take my hat off to you if you manage to complete the challenge – even if you do take a few days doing it.
For the rest of us, I’ve devised an easier alternative by splitting the course into two sections – an 8.5-mile southern route of 9 clues, and a more challening 11-mile northern route of 11 clues.
Above: Click on either map to open the walk description – the southern on the left, or the northern on the right.
Click here for a more detailed explanation of how to navigate Joe’s course. I can provide gpx files of either route to follow on any walking app. And I’ve created a crib sheet with details on where the clues can be found, as well as What3Word coordinates.
I was in two minds about providing such details as I know that many people would see it as spoiling a good challenge. But on the other hand, both walks provide a wonderful way to explore the valley with the added bonus of tracking down Joe’s clues.
I like to think that Joe, who died in 2020, would have approved if it means more people get out and enjoy walking the Goyt Valley.
