The summer holiday walk is fairly short and geared to families.
The walk proposed is a circular walk of about 6 miles including a couple of miles of the Monsal Trail in Miller's Dale, which follows the route of a disused railway and gives the opportunity to walk through two of the 4 tunnels which were only re-opened to the public a few years ago. There are also great views from the viaduct at Monsal Head spanning the river Wye.
Start:
We plan to start from Lees Bottom (I don't know who Lee is) which is on the south side of the A6 about 2 miles west of Ashford in the Water at GR 170706 Outdoor Leisure 24. It will take about 90 mins to drive to the start depending on which route you choose, and I suggest we meet at 10am ready for a 10.15 start. The car park which is pay and display, is quite small but has toilets.
Route:
After crossing the A6, we walk north west, through the forest and up a hill towards Brushfield High Field passing through a farm before reaching a finger post where we turn left towards Brushfield. Further details of the walk are available on the following link http://www.hikideas.co.uk/unitedkingdom/England/Derbyshire/taddington/
Brushfield, miller's Dale and monsal head. This site allows you to download and print a map and more detailed instructions for the walk.
After walking through Brushfield, we walk north, descending steeply to meet the Monsal Trail. Once on the trail, we turn east and have 3 options. First, you can descend north to the Wye valley, walking past the infamous Litton Mill, following the river and rejoining the Trail after passing near to another well preserved mill at Cressbrook.
Alternatively, you can climb the path adjacent to Litton Tunnel and contour the limestone hills overlooking the Wye rejoining the Trail at Water cum Jolly Dale (great name !). The third choice (and easiest on tired legs) is to walk east through the now lit Litton and Cressbrook tunnels.
After stopping for photos on Monsal Head Viaduct, we take the easy path along the river South west to the start.
It's quite possible that the walk could be finished by 3pm depending on weather (which is guaranteed) and time taken for lunch. For those adventurous souls then, there may be time for further merriment before departing for home. I can suggest 3 ideas:
1. Why not take bikes and cycle on some other parts of the Monsal Trail which runs for some 8.5 miles between Bakewell and Wyevale (near
Buxton)
2. About half a mile west of the Miller's Dale car park (GR136734) which also has toilets and refreshments, you can try your hand at abseiling from the railway bridge over the Wye on the Monsal Trail. This costs approx £20 per head and needs to be booked in advance. E.g. At http://www.abseilingderbyshire.co.uk/
3. Drive to Brierlow Bar where the A515 meets the B5053 just west of Buxton and you will find an amazing bookshop which has a great cafe attached. This closes at 5.30pm on a Saturday
That's all. Please let me know by e-mail Spreadbury[at]supanet.com if you intend to join the walk.
Best wishes
Alan
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