Who was this man standing next to the empty gallows?

In the latest in his series about memorable pathways and places, Will Gore calls to mind an other-worldly encounter

Peter’s Stone rises like an island towards the head of Cressbrook Dale (Alamy)

I don’t believe in ghosts. Well, probably not.

We’d seen the rocky outcrop from the car, an island of stone rising from the valley floor close to the village of Litton in the Peak District.

“That’s where we’re going to walk tomorrow,” said my dad. My brother and I, and my friend Ed, peered closely from the back seats, wondering if the rock was climbable.