[1] From the front of the YHA walk down the gravel path along the left edge of the lawns passing left of the church. Until the 1820s the church was surrounded by cottages, but these were demolished and replaced by the modern Ilam village ahead in the distance, to improve the view from the hall. Turn right through a gate into the corner of the churchyard and follow the path clockwise around the church to the main entrance. Look out for the shafts of two 1000 year old Saxon crosses in the churchyard.
(A) The church is a really interesting building and well worth a look inside. As soon as you enter, take a close look at the amazing carvings on the ancient Saxon font just ahead. The room to the left of the altar is an incredible mausoleum with an extremely well carved marble statue of a man on his deathbed giving instruction to his daughter and her three children. The man is David Pike Watts, Jessie Watts Russell's father in law. The daughter is Jessie's wife, Mary.
To the right of the altar is another small chapel containing the tomb of Saint Bertram. This is still an important place of pilgrimage today. There will often be prayer papers left on the tomb, some of which are used in services here.
The story goes that Saint Bertram was a 7th Century Mercian prince who went to Ireland. He fell in love with a local princess, and married her. When bringing her back to Mercia she was heavily pregnant and whilst passing here she went into labour and gave birth. Bertram left her to get food, but whilst he was gone a pack of Wolves descended on his wife and devoured her and the baby.
A distraught Bertram vowed to give up all his worldly titles and possessions and devote himself to God. He spent the rest of his life as a holy man, living as a hermit in the Ilam area.
[2] Just to the right of the church porch, a metal kissing gate leads back on to the terraced lawns. Go through and turn left. Go past the stone enclosure that contains Saint Bertram's well, and carry on ahead to Saint Bertram's bridge.
(B) The well is one of two Saint Bertram's wells in the area. The other is high up on Bunster Hill behind Ilam village. Both are associated with unverifiable stories about Bertram performing baptisms and healings.
The hump backed bridge was built in the 18th Century. It is a grade II listed structure. It carried the main road into the area until the 1820s when a new bridge was built to serve the new village a little further downstream.
[3] Cross over the bridge and turn right, following the river upstream. The path goes up a flight of steps (which can be slippery when wet) then meanders through the woods before descending to cross a wooden bridge back over the river.
(C) The river Manifold runs for 12 miles south from its source on Axe Edge, near Buxton, until it joins the river Dove, a short distance beyond Ilam. As it flows over a limestone area, the river often seems to disappear after a dry spell. In fact, the water is seeping through cracks in the limestone and running underground. Depending on recent weather, the river may well be dry, or just a few stagnant ponds, along this stretch. Just after crossing Saint Bertrams bridge, look across the river to where a path on the opposite bank goes between a cliff and a metal fence. The water is often bubbling here, as water comes back up from underground fissures. This spot is known as the boiling holes.
[4] Go across the field and climb a stile opposite.Turn left along the gravel path. Go through a wooden kissing gate and ahead towards a metal gate until you are almost level with a footbridge on the left.
[5] Go sharp right on a small footpath going steeply up the bank. When the bank levels off the path disappears, but go straight ahead across the field, keeping parallel to the ridges and furrows that indicate this field was ploughed in medieval times.
Over the field, a grassy track comes down from the right and makes a 90 degree right turn to go downhill. You should reach the track very close to this bend. Continue ahead down this track, which carries on in pretty much the same direction you have been going. The track reaches a low wall and swings left to reach a gate and stile onto the road.
(D) This is the new Ilam village, built to replace the old one by the church in the 1820s. Many of the buildings are built in a Swiss chalet style.If you have time, it is worth walking down to the remarkable gothic Ilam Cross for a closer look. It was built in 1840 by Jessie Watts Russell in memory of his wife Mary, who we have already seen kneeling at her father's deathbead in the marble statue in the church.
[6] Turn right, not along the road, but keeping close to the hedge and wall on the right across a grassy green almost surrounded by a metal chain. At the far side, cross two driveways to a white field gate. Go through the pedestrian gate just to the left of it and follow the tarmac path back to the church. Retrace your steps along the gravel path to the right of the church and back up to the Youth Hostel.