Rails Through The Peaks 3 - Bakewell to Buxton
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Distance: 13.5 miles
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Price: £30.00 per person
(Group & family rates available)
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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, a section of the former trackbed was used to create the Monsal Trail, which is now one of the most popular walking and cycling routes in the Peak District.
This walk begins at the main southern access point of the Monsal Trail at the former Bakewell Station. Following the Trail northwards, it looks 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. Reaching the Trail's northernmost point at Blackwell Mill, it then continues on for the final four miles into the spa town of Buxton. As the modern railway still occupies the trackbed along this section of route, the walk uses footpaths and roads to follow the route of the railway as closely as possible to reach the finish point at the remains of the former Midland Railway station in Buxton.
With good parking at the southern end of the Trail, and an easy return from Buxton by bus, this walk makes a great day out for those looking for interesting things to do in and around Bakewell, Buxton and the Peak District.
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As a result of the need to temporarily reroute some of our walks due to the extremely muddy conditions in parts of the Peak District, the final section of this walk temporarily follows a new road-based route of a slightly longer distance to the normal route. This has been made necessary by the extremely muddy conditions along part of the route between King Sterndale and Staden. The route across the fields at this point is therefore replaced by a temporary road-based route from King Sterndale to Staden, which increases the total distance of the walk by approximately two miles to 15.5 miles, and the time required by around an hour. As soon as the ground conditions improve sufficiently, this walk will return to using its normal route, although we cannot give any indication of when this will be as it is very dependent on the weather.
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Duration (approx): |
5 - 7 hours (including lunch). |
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Start point: |
The former Bakewell Railway Station,
Station Road,
Bakewell,
Derbyshire. |
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Start time: |
9:30am* (Monday - Saturday).
10:30am* (Sundays and Bank Holidays). |
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End point: |
Opposite Buxton Railway Station,
Station Road
Buxton,
Derbyshire. |
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Dates available: |
Available as an open walk March to October on a date of your choosing on Mondays, some Tuesdays, Wednesdays, some Thursdays, Fridays, most Saturdays and some Sundays.
Scheduled walks available on the following dates:
March 2nd, 4th, 10th, 11th, 16th, 18th, 20th, 23rd, 25th, 27th, 31st.
April 3rd, 6th, 8th, 14th, 17th, 20th, 22nd, 24th, 27th.
May 1st, 5th, 10th, 15th, 18th, 22nd, 25th, 29th.
June 2nd, 5th, 7th, 10th, 16th, 19th, 22nd, 26th, 30th.
July 3rd, 6th, 14th, 17th, 20th, 24th, 26th, 29th, 31st.
August 3rd, 7th, 9th, 12th, 17th, 21st, 23rd, 26th, 28th, 31st.
September 4th, 8th, 13th, 18th, 21st, 25th, 29th.
October 2nd, 5th, 13th, 16th, 19th, 23rd, 27th, 30th.
(Online pre-booking is essential for these walks.)
Private group bookings are also available on a date of your choosing from March to October via a Personal Walking Guide (subject to availability and Coronavirus restrictions). |
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(* = As your guide will be arriving by the "Transpeak" bus service, the actual start time may be slightly delayed if the buses are running late.)
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When is this walk available?
This walk is available on a date of your choosing between the beginning of March and the end of October. Scheduled walks take place approximately once per month during the same period. If you wish to have the exclusive services of one of our guides, it is also available year-round as a private booking on a date of your choice via a Personal Walking Guide.
All bookings are subject to the availability of a suitable guide - Please see our online calendar or e-mail us for availability of your chosen date.
Is this walk Covid-secure?
At Derbyshire Heritage Walks we follow all current government and industry guidelines, and all of our guides have been fully vaccinated. Therefore you can be confident that this walk is as Covid-secure as we can possibly make it. Details of how we do this can be found here.
Will we have the exclusive services of the guide?
All of our open and scheduled walks are open to all. If you book onto either of these types of walk, then there is a chance that there may well be other people on the walk with you. If you wish to have the exclusive services of the guide, you MUST book a Personal Walking Guide.
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Prices.
The following prices apply for this walk:
Ticket |
Price |
Deposit
(Included in overall price) |
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Adult or Child aged 16 and over
(Up to 8 people in group)
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£30.00 per person |
£5.00 per person |
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Personal Walking Guide
(Group of up to 10)
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£100.00 per group |
£25.00 per group |
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Personal Walking Guide
(Group of 11 or more)
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£150.00 per group |
£37.50 per group |
Discounted family tickets also available, giving cheaper prices for groups including children aged 15 and under. Please e-mail us for details.
Travel to and from the walk.
This walk is easily accessible by public transport from Derby, Nottingham, Chesterfield, Sheffield and Manchester.
There is a car park at the beginning of the walk at Bakewell Station, which can be used as a drop-off point, and there is a similar car park at the end of the walk which can be used as a pick-up point. If driving yourself to the walk, due to the limited parking in Buxton we recommend that you park in Bakewell and take the "Transpeak" bus from Buxton back to Bakewell at the end of the walk.
Information on how to get to and from this walk can be found on our travel information page.
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 off the Trail at Blackwell Mill. Also, the route onwards from Blackwell Mill to Buxton is unsuitable for wheelchairs and those of limited mobility as it is cross-country, involves a few steep climbs, and also a number of stiles. 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 and the fact the the later part of the walk crosses farm fields containing livestock, 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.
Booking
You can book places on any of our open or scheduled walks via the PayPal button below. Other payment options are available on request - Please e-mail us for details if required.
If you wish to make a Personal Walking Guide booking for this walk, please see our Personal Walking Guide booking page here.
Bookings for walks can be made at any time up to 48 hours before the intended date of your walk, or up to 72 hours beforehand for Personal Walking Guides. We regret that we cannot accept bookings made less than 48 hours prior to the planned start time of the walk (72 hours for Personal Walking Guide bookings).
Please ensure before booking that the date you require is not listed below and on our online calendar as unavailable or fully booked, and that you have read and agree to our terms and conditions.
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Latest Booking News
Bookings are open for all scheduled dates listed, and close at 11:30am two days prior to the date of the walk.
We are now accepting open walk and Personal Walking Guide bookings for this walk for Mondays, some Tuesdays, Wednesdays, some Thursdays, Fridays, most Saturdays and some Sundays between the beginning of March and the end of October 2024.
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Book An Open Or Scheduled Walk
Please select the number of places you would like to book and enter the date required.
Other payment options are available on request - Please e-mail us for details if required.
By placing a booking with us, you are accepting and agreeing to our terms and conditions.
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Book A Personal Walking Guide
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