Click for a pdf with stage-by-stage details of the route including photos and a map, as well as links to car parks and public transport. A walking app GPX file is also available.
Length: 8.1mls | Av. time: 3h 25m | Ascent: 886ft
Start: Bakewell Bridge car park | Google Map
Walk description, map & GPX | Download
An 8.1-mile circular walk from Bakewell, at the eastern end of the Monsal Trail, through some glorious White Peak countryside to the outskirts of Rowsley. It returns along the Derwent Valley Heritage Way past Calton Lees, near Chatsworth, before crossing open pastures back to town.
The walk starts from Bridge Street car park beside Bakewell’s ancient bridge. There are other car parks, including one at the old station on the route, and you can sometimes find free spaces at the far end of Coombs Road (point 3 on the pdf map).
Bakewell gets very busy at weekends and in school holidays, so Rowsley or Calton Lees make good alternative starts. The nearest railway stations are Matlock and Buxton, with regular buses from both – see getting there.
The route follows the Trail to its end beyond Bakewell Station, then crosses farmland beside Manners Wood. Manners is the family name of the Dukes of Rutland, who own nearby Haddon Hall.
Above: Rowsley Church has a rich history. The viaduct beyond the graveyard carried the same railway that the Monsal Trail follows – the Midland line between Manchester and Derby – on its way south towards Matlock (click to enlarge).
Just outside the side door is a poignant memorial to five local men (inset above), aged 16 to 45, who died in 1861 building the tunnel the Duke of Rutland insisted on, to keep trains out of view of Haddon Hall.
Rowsley and the return
The route turns off just before the centre of Rowsley, but the village is worth a visit. My favourite stop is Rowsley Post Office, opposite The Peacock, and there’s a shopping centre on the site of the old railway goods yard.
From Rowsley the walk follows the River Derwent on the Derwent Valley Heritage Way, a 51-mile route from Ladybower Reservoir to the River Trent. Calton Lees, near Chatsworth House, has a popular tearoom in its garden centre.
The return to Bakewell crosses wide open pastures and the edge of a golf course. The path down into town can get muddy, but it’s easy to avoid by staying on the lane from point 22.
Click for a pdf with stage-by-stage details of the route including photos and a map, as well as links to car parks and public transport. A walking app GPX file is also available.
Route photos
Stages 1-6 of the route. Click any to enlarge and scroll through.
Relive video
Click to play and use the expand option to view in full-screen. More Monsal Trail Relives.