Derbyshire Heritage Walks - The Monsal Trail

	Derbyshire Heritage Walks (Adrian Brown) E-mail: enquiries@derbysheritagewalks.com

Rails Through The Peaks 1 - The Monsal Trail

Distance: 9.3 miles Duration: 4 - 6 hours Price: £20.00 per person

Headstone Viaduct, Monsal Dale
Winding its way through the heart of the Peak District National Park, the Monsal Trail follows the route of the former Midland Railway main line linking London, Derby and Manchester. Built in the 1860s through spectacular terrain, the line moved noted Victorian railway author F.S. Williams to write:
"The scenery through which we now have to pass, and the engineering works by which the journey is accomplished, must be seen to be appreciated - they cannot be described at length."
As a result of the cuts in the network first initiated by the infamous Dr Richard Beeching, the line lost all of its local services in June 1967, and then closed completely north of Matlock in July 1968. In the early 1980s, the Peak District National Park Authority purchased a section of the former trackbed from British Rail and used it to create the Monsal Trail.

For many years, the route of the Monsal Trail had to divert away from the railway in places as several of the tunnels that the line passed through had to be closed on safety grounds. Work to stabilise and restore these tunnels has recently been completed, and users of the Trail can now follow the route of the railway all the way from Bakewell to the end of the trail at Blackwell Mill.
This walk begins at the main northern access point of the Monsal Trail at Wyedale car park next to the A6, just south of Buxton. It then joins the Trail at Blackwell Mill and follows it southwards, stopping to look at the history of each of the former stations along the Trail, plus other points of interest such as the picturesque Headstone Viaduct in Monsal Dale. The walk finishes at the site of the old Bakewell Station, from where it is just a short walk down into the town. There, you can sample one of the town's famous Puddings, do a little shopping, or simply spend time enjoying the pretty riverside walk while you wait for your bus home.
Easily reached by bus, and with excellent parking at the north end of the Trail, this walk is perfect for those looking for things to do in or near Buxton and Bakewell. And, with no hills, only one set of steps, and hard surfaces all the way, this walk is perfect for those looking for an easy hill-free (and mud-free) walk.
Please note that, although now nominally open, the tunnels along the trail can be closed on safety grounds during periods of severe weather. It may therefore be necessary to divert back onto the original route of the Monsal Trail in order to bypass the closed tunnels. This diversion will increase both the distance covered and the time required to complete the walk.
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, at that point, the price will be reduced back to its normal amount.

Distance: 9.3 miles.

Duration (approx): 4 - 6 hours (including lunch).

Start point: Wyedale Car Park (On the A6 Buxton Road),
Topley Pike,
Near Buxton,
Derbyshire.
(OS grid Ref: SK10327249)

Start time: 11:30am.*

End point: The former Bakewell Railway Station,
Station Road,
Bakewell,
Derbyshire.

Dates available: July 11th, 15th, 22nd.
August 3rd, 12th, 22nd.
September 2nd, 7th, 16th, 26th, 28th.
October 5th, 12th, 21st, 26th, 31st.
November onwards, dates TBC.

Private bookings for this walk are also available - see here for details.

When is this walk available?
This walk is available between the beginning of March and the end of October. Scheduled walks will normally take place at least twice per month during this period, on the dates listed above. It may also be booked privately via a Personal Walking Guide on a date of your choice between early March and late October.
If you book a Personal Walking Guide for this walk, you can also request a different start time if desired. We are currently able to offer alternative start times of 10:30am and 1:00pm for this walk (Sunday and Bank Holiday times may vary).
Please note that, like all of our other walks that use the southern section of the Monsal Trail, we cannot accept any private bookings for this walk for the first week in August. This is due to that section of the Trail being closed to walkers so that it can be used by the park-and-ride service for Bakewell Show.

Prices.
The following prices apply for this walk:

Ticket Price Deposit
(Included in overall price) Private Upgrade Cost

Adult or Child aged 16 and over
(Up to 8 people in group) £20.00 per person £5.00 per person Not currently available

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.
In normal times, this walk is easily accessible by both car and public transport, and we would usually recommend the use of public transport as the best option. However, in order to minimise the use of public transport at a time when spaces are severely limited and needed by key workers, we currently recommend that you get someone from your own household to drop you off at the start of the walk, and pick you up at the end. Full details of how to get to and from the walk will be included in the walk information sheet you will be sent along with your booking confirmation, but detailed information on the various public transport options is also available on our travel information page, which we try to keep as up to date as possible.
Wyedale Car Park is easy to access via the A6 between Bakewell and Buxton, and can be used as a drop-off point if someone is giving you a lift there. There is a similar pick-up point at Bakewell Station at the far end of the walk.

Is there anything special I need to bring?
Yes - a torch. Although the tunnels along the Monsal Trail have electric lighting installed, this can sometimes fail and leave you literally in the dark. It is therefore a good idea to make sure you pack a torch and spare batteries, just in case.
We also recommend that you bring plenty of water to drink, plus something to eat, as there are few facilities along the way for you to purchase food and drink apart from the new cafe at Miller's Dale Station, or from the cafe at Hassop Station close to the end of the walk. Given the length of the walk and the time involved, we recommend that you bring at least one litre of water per person with you, and seriously think about increasing this to two litres in very hot weather.
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.

Are there any disabled access issues?
Unfortunately, there are a few issues regarding wheelchair access on this walk as there is no easy wheelchair access onto the Trail at Blackwell Mill. It is possible for wheelchair users to access the Trail at Blackwell Mill, but the car park is some distance from the end of the Trail along a single-track private road that lacks pavements, with a steep ramp up onto the Trail. The only easy wheelchair access onto the Trail at the northern end is at Miller's Dale Station, which gives level access directly onto the Trail from the road past the station.
For this reason, if you are looking for a wheelchair-friendly walk on the Monsal Trail, we usually recommend our shorter Miller's Dale to Bakewell walk, which has level access onto the Trail at either end.

Is this walk suitable for dogs?
This is an ideal walk for dogs, if you think they can handle the rather long distance involved. If you would like to bring your dog with you, we do ask that you inform us at the time of booking. We also ask that, due to the large number of cyclists and horses using the Trail, you keep your dog under close control on a short non-extendible lead at all times and do not allow it to run free under any circumstances.

Latest booking news

Due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, places on each walk are limited to a maximum of five people, who MUST all be from the same household.
Bookings are open for all dates listed, and close at 11:30am two days prior to the date of the walk.
We are now accepting Personal Walking Guide bookings for this walk for 2020. Personal Walking Guide bookings may be made for Mondays, some Tuesdays, Wednesdays, some Thursdays, most Saturdays and some Sundays between the beginning of March and the end of October 2020.

How to book

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:

Name of walk.

Date required.

Number of places required.

Contact name and postal address.

Preferred e-mail address for contact.

Telephone number (mobile preferred) that can be used as an emergency contact in the event of issues on the day of the walk.

Once we have received your e-mail, we will e-mail you back within 24 to 48 hours with confirmation of if we can accommodate your booking, and the relevant payment details.

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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