Derbyshire Heritage Walks (Adrian Brown) E-mail: enquiries@derbysheritagewalks.com |
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Dates & Times | Prices | How To Get There | What You Need | Accessibility | How To Book |
Rural Ramble 1: Edale to Castleton Circular |
Distance: 9.5 miles | Duration: 5 to 6 hours | Price: £15.00 per person |
View along the "Great Ridge" from Mam Tor (© Rachel Docherty) |
This family-friendly circular walk is a true Peak District classic, taking in some of the most famous hills and views in Derbyshire.
The walk begins in the village of Edale, and quickly ascends to Hollin's Cross on the famous "Great Ridge" that separates the Vale of Edale from the Hope Valley. Following the well-trodden footpath along the top of the ridge, the walk offers fine views across the Hope Valley on one side, and towards Kinder Scout on the other. From the end of the ridge at Lose Hill, it descends into the Hope Valley to pass through the village of Castleton, world-famous as the home of the unique Blue John stone. Leaving Castleton via a little-used and quiet footpath, the walk passes two of the Blue John mines before ascending one of the most famous closed roads in the UK. It then rejoins the "Great Ridge" at the ancient hill fort of Mam Tor to follow the ridge-top footpath back to Hollin's Cross before descending to finish back in the village of Edale.
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This walk is certainly one of our most popular, and with good reason. In 2018, a survey of thousands of walkers by the Ordnance Survey and The Ramblers for the TV programme Britain's Favourite Walks: Top 100 rated the walk along the "Great Ridge" as the tenth most popular walk in the whole of the UK.
This walk is easily accessible by train from Sheffield and Manchester, and by changing trains at Sheffield can also be easily accessed from Chesterfield, Derby, Nottingham and elsewhere. The start and end point of the walk is also adjacent to the main car park in Edale. While it does involve a total of 2,800 feet of ascent, this is still a very family-friendly walk. However, due to the exposed nature of the terrain on the "Great Ridge", the sometimes changeable weather and the significant erosion of some of the paths, you will need warm and waterproof clothing and a good pair of walking boots. Due to the current coronavirus regulations, we can only accept bookings from up to five individuals who must be from a single household, and we have regrettably been forced to temporarily increase the price of the walk as a result. However, once the regulations are relaxed further, we hope to be able to cater for larger groups from multiple households, and the price will then return to normal.
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Distance: | 9.5 miles. | |
Duration (approx): | 5 to 6 hours. | |
Start point: | Edale Car Park, Edale, Derbyshire. |
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Start time: | 10:30am. | |
End point: | Edale Car Park, Edale, Derbyshire. |
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Dates available: | July 1st, 12th, 15th, 20th, 25th. August 8th, 12th, 17th, 23rd. September 5th, 9th, 16th, 20th, 21st. October 4th, 7th, 14th, 19th, 24th, 28th. November onwards, dates TBC. Private bookings via a Personal Walking Guide are available now for any date from May 25th to November 30th 2020 - see here for details. |
When is this walk available?
This walk is available as a scheduled walk each month between the beginning of March and the end of November. It may also be booked privately on a date of your choice by booking a Personal Walking Guide.
We can accept private bookings via a Personal Walking Guide for this walk on most Mondays, Fridays and Saturdays and some Sundays. It is also available on most Bank Holidays. If you make a private booking for this walk, you can also request a different start time if desired. While we cannot guarantee this time, we will make every effort to accommodate your request.
Please note that, for bookings in late November and early March especially, there is the possibility that the walk may take place in snow or icy conditions. This can make conditions highly dangerous on top of the "Great Ridge", or make access to the start and finish point of the walk difficult as the roads are easily blocked by snow. There is also the possibility, at any time of year, of high winds or strong gusts on top of the "Great Ridge". Usually these are just an inconvenience, but experience has shown that winds or gusts over 45 miles per hour can be difficult to walk in and potentially hazardous. If we believe that the forecast weather conditions could be potentially hazardous, we will attempt to notify you at least 24 hours in advance to give you the option of cancelling or rescheduling your booking.
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Prices.
The following prices apply for this walk:
Discounted family tickets also available, giving cheaper prices for groups including children aged 15 and under. Please e-mail us for details. For more information on how to book places on this walk, and on private group bookings via a Personal Walking Guide, please see here. If you have any questions about the cost of this walk, please contact us via email at enquiries@derbysheritagewalks.com. |
Travel to and from the walk.
Due to the current situation regarding the use of public transport, we recommend that the best way to get to this walk is to drive. However, parking is quite limited and very popular. This means that it can sometimes be difficult to find a parking space unless you are prepared to arrive early, especially at weekends. Edale has one main pay-and-display car park by the entrance to the village, plus a much smaller 20-space pay-and-display car park at Edale Station. While it is possible to drive into Edale from the west, this is not really recommended as the road is definitely not suited to modern traffic. It is therefore much better to approach the village from the east, via the nearby village of Hope, as the roads along this route are much better. Details of our recommended driving route will be included with your walk information sheet. |
Is there anything special I need to bring?
Given the nature of this walk, and the fact that some short sections of the route can be quite muddy if the weather has been wet, a good pair of walking boots is essential. The weather around Edale and Castleton can be quite variable and there is little shelter along much of the route, so it is important to also have a good set of waterproof clothing, just in case. As the walk takes place in all weathers, and the section along the "Great Ridge" is very exposed, you may need warm clothing too - even on an otherwise warm and sunny day, the winds on the top of the ridge can be surprisingly cold. It is also recommended that you bring sufficient food and water with you as there are few opportunities to purchase either along the route of the walk, apart from a couple of small shops in Castleton. If you have a reusable water bottle, this can now be refilled for free at the Castleton Visitor Centre. (Please note that, due to the coronavirus crisis, the visitor centre may not be open.)
While the coronavirus crisis is still ongoing, we also ask that you bring your own facemask or similar face covering, plus your own hand sanitiser. While we endevour to maintain proper social distancing at all times on the walks, there are some occasions where it is necessary to use narrow paths. As it would be impossible in most cases to maintain proper social distancing if we were to encounter someone coming the other way along the path, the recommended advice in such a situation is to use a mask or other face covering while passing the other person. There is also the need to touch gates and stiles to pass from field to field or from fields onto roads. In these situations it is advised to use hand sanitiser before and immediately after touching the gate or stile. As we are not able to supply them for you, due to the high costs currently involved in obtaining supplies, it is your responsibility to provide your own, and failure to do so may result in cancellation of the walk.
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Are there any disabled access issues?
Unfortunately, this walk is not suitable for wheelchairs due to the terrain involved. Those with other mobility issues may also find difficulty with sections of the route where the ground is very rocky and uneven. For this reason, this walk is not recommended for those with mobility issues. |
Is this walk suitable for dogs?
Yes, this walk is suitable for dogs. However, we do ask that you keep your dog under close control at all times. This is especially important on the sections of the walk that pass through fields where there may be livestock present. If you wish to bring your dog with you, please notify us beforehand. |
Booking
Scheduled Walks
Ordinarily, we use PayPal buttons to handle booking and payment for all of our walks. However, due to the current situation, we have suspended that system, and so now if you wish to book a walk, you need to e-mail us with the details of the walk and date that you wish to book. We will then send you a PayPal invoice, which you can pay either using a PayPal account or, if you don't have access to one of those, you can pay using any debit or credit card. Other payment options are available on request - Please e-mail us for details if required.
The cost of this walk is £15.00 per person, including a £5.00 per person non-refundable deposit.
We also have discounted family tickets available for this walk - please e-mail us for details. All family tickets include a 25% non-refundable deposit.
Private Bookings
Private upgrades of scheduled walks are not currently available.
Personal Walking Guides
You can make a private booking for this walk on dates other than those on which it is normally scheduled by booking a Personal Walking Guide. This allows you to do the walk when you want to, not when we have it scheduled. We have Personal Walking Gudes available most days, except for those listed as either "unavailable" or "unavailable for private bookings" on the calendar here. Please see the table below for the days of the week on which we are able to offer Personal Walking Guide bookings for this walk.
The cost of a Personal Walking Guide for this walk is £100.00 per group. Please note that we cannot take a Personal Walking Guide booking for this walk on the same date as we are also running it as a scheduled walk. Please e-mail us for more information if you would like to make a Personal Walking Guide booking for this walk. Bookings can be made at any time up to 48 hours before the intended date of your walk (72 hours for Personal Walking Guides), but the earlier you book, the more chance you have of getting the date you would like. We regret that we cannot accept bookings made less than 48 hours prior to the planned start time of the walk. Please ensure before booking that you have read and agree to our terms and conditions.
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Important: Before booking, please make sure that the date you wish to book is not listed as already being fully booked in the "Latest booking news" section above.
To book this walk, please e-mail us, using the walk name and date as the message subject. In the body of your e-mail, please include the following information:
By booking a walk with us, you are confirming that all persons in your group reside in the same household, and agreeing to take full legal responsibility in the event that a request from the police or other relevant authorities for identification and residence information should prove otherwise. You are also agreeing that all persons in your group, or their legal guardians, accept full personal responsibility for following all other applicable coronavirus-related regulations and guidelines in force at the time of the walk.
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