Pennine Bridleway - Cromford to Buxton (★★★★★)

I have recently started ticking off sections of the Pennine Bridleway - and today I was heading off not just to tick off sections of this National Trail, but to also do a walk I had wanted to do for some time - along the High Peak Trail.

Last year I had walked the Derwent Valley Heritage Trail, and one of the highlights of that walk was the stretch spent walking along the Cromford Canal (whilst walking between Matlock and Derby).

The Cromford Canal is no longer connected to the canal network, but used to run down into the Erewash Canal, and then on to the River Trent - and the purpose of this canal, was to connect Cromford Mil (the world's first water-powered cotton spinning mill) to the wider world.

The far end of Cromford Canal (opposite from Cromford Mill)

The countryside on view facing the other way

But whilst that previous walk took us on down the canal, passing a lot of the industrial heritage that lines the canal (it is well worth an explore either on foot or by the trip boat) - today we will only be going down the canal as far as High Peak Junction.

And so today, we make our way to Cromford by train, head down to the mill, and along this stretch of canal - enjoying the walk in the sunshine along the way. And it is a lovely part of the world to walk through.

Walking the canal

It isn't a long walk, however, before we find ourselves at that junction - and he were meet up with the former route of the Cromford and High Peak Railway.

This was a fairly unusual railway (as it has a lot of steep hills), that used to run from this junction on the Cromford Canal, across to the Peak Forest Canal at Whaley Bridge.

And with the route facing a number of steep inclines, it was broken up by rope-worked inclines, before it ultimately closed in 1967.

Before the construction of this railway, the fastest route between Cromford and Manchester was to head down the Cromford (and then Erewash) Canal to the River Trent, on via the Trent & Mersey Canal, before cutting up the Macclesfield Canal to the Peak Forest Canal - and on towards Manchester.

This was a long diversion - and whilst we were in the peak of the canal building era, it didn't seem that there was a viable route for a canal.

But this was the 1820s, and a new era was dawning in Britain - with the world's first railway opening between Stockton and Darlington in 1825 (again as an alternative to a more costly canal).

And so in that same year, permission was granted via the Cromford and High Peak Railway Act 1825, to put in such a tramway, between Cromford and Whaley Bridge.

The first section opened by 1830, and by 1832 - only seven years after the opening of that first railway - the line had been completed to Whaley Bridge. 

And it's completion marked a key milestone in UK industrial history - that helped bring an to an end the Golden Age of the Canals (which is thought to run between the 1770s and the 1830s - after which railways started to take over).

High Peak Junction

Part of the incline mechanism

But here we can forget about all the history, for we have a hill to climb - and our walk along the High Peak Trail kicks off with a 1 in 9 climb, that will be followed by a second 1 in 8 climb.

Passing under the road

A section to divert runaway carts into

The engine house for the first half of the incline (second half lies ahead)

Horses going down the second half of the incline

The view out from the top

And across to Cromford (with Matlock Bath sitting behind in the distance)

Here we find ourselves not far away from the centre of Cromford - having walked south-east out along the canal, and then west along the incline - but whilst we continue to head west from here, we also bend slightly to the south, as we head on towards Steeple Grange.

At Steeple Grange we pass the narrow-gauge heritage railway (i.e. tiny trains) - and from here it isn't long before we take on our next incline along this trail that takes us up to Middleton Top, and the start of the Pennine Bridleway.

Heading up Middleton Incline

Middleton Top

From here we briefly head through a short tunnel - before we start on a flatter section of this trail (most of the climbing is now done - with only smaller inclines to follow).

Through a tunnel

From here what we find is a lot of green and fertile countryside - and a landscape that is more similar to the Dales than the Pennines or Moors.

And this landscape has much to do with geology - with this southern end of the Peak District being part of an area known as the White Peak (a limestone plateau), whilst the northern end of the Peak District is the Dark Peak (featuring Grit sandstones and softer shale, that result in a boggy moorland).

Some wind farms

And lots of green countryside

And here the association with the Dales solidifies beyond the lush green fields - as we pass Harborough Rocks - a dolomitic limestone hill, which features a number of natural caverns in the rock (with evidence of human occupation from the Ice Age having been found in these caves).

Harborough Rocks - could easily be in the Dales here

And from the far side

From here we pass on through the small village of Longcliffe, after which we will be mostly just passing small farms along the rest of the trail.

Heading over a road just past Longcliffe

But not far out from Longcliffe, we encounter our first embankment - and along this trail these are very pretty affairs, with limestone used to support the embankment on the sides.

Our first (small) embankment

From here we soon head past Daisy Bank - and to the west of a tree lined mound known as Minninglow Hill.

Minninglow Hill

The other side of the trail near the same spot

Minninglow Hill is a site of note in terms of ancient human history - featuring a Neolithic chambered tomb (Derbyshire's largest) and two Bronze Age bowl barrows.

From here all we can see is a bunch of trees - and indeed for us there is more to be seen coming up, through a series of embankments - that once again feature some fairly impressive stone sides.

A rather impressive stone embankment

View out from the same embankment

From here things do quieten down a bit - although it continues to be a very pleasant and enjoyable walk through pretty countryside.

Some of that pleasant countryside

Before long we pass Friden - where they continue to manufacture refractory products (whatever they are) at the site of Friden Brickworks (bricks are used to build houses) - but this site is only a brief interruption to what remains a quiet stroll across fairly quiet and empty countryside (aside from lots of fields).

This starts to change as we start to close in on Parsley Hay - and before reaching Parsley Hay we pass through some cuttings, and meet up with the Tissington Trail, before arriving at a very busy visitor centre.

The Tissington Trail is another ex-railway path - on the former Buxton to Ashbourne railway line. From here that line looks quite inviting, and after looking up more details, I realise that I'm going to have to walk that trail as well at some point.

But since I will likely walk that trail at some point as well - we can for now focus on our route as we pass by the visitor centre, and soon have things quieten down again on the far side.

A gift from Croatia

This next section of the trail is very good - with views out across the surrounding countryside - before the landscape starts to flatten, as we head on past Sparklow - and on towards Buxton.

The views in the section following Parsley Hay

But here our journey along the High Peak Trail comes to an end - because up ahead we have Dowlow Limestone Works - and trains continue to run between Buxton and that site, taking away our opportunity to continue on into Buxton along the railway.

The far end of the trail

But whilst the High Peak Trail comes to a halt, the Pennine Bridleway does not - and this now cuts up to the north towards Chelmorton along farm tracks.

Here, as the Pennine Bridleway gets ready to bypass Chelmorton, it is time for us to turn off - and now follow the Midshires Way, which will take us to our overnight stop in Buxton.

Initially this involves heading downhill into Chelmorton on the roads - but we head out the village along farm tracks.

Dropping into Chelmorton

Before long we start approaching Deep Dale (a steep-sided valley that blocks our path) - and before reaching this valley we start cutting across the fields, before it is time to head down and then back up the valley sides.

From the far side of Deep Dale

The climbs on either side of the valley are fairly steep, but it is a nice path down and back up again - and so the valley presents very little trouble (it might be harder on a wet day though).

From here we continue on across the fields, passing Cowdale and Staden, before we eventually arrive on the edge of Buxton - where there is a handy Premier Inn on this side of town that I am now using for the second time this year.

On the way to Staden, with Buxton in the valley below

Passing under the railway (the one we were walking along)

And here we will stop overnight - ready to head back to the Pennine Bridleway on the following day.

Total Distance: 25.0 miles (16.6 miles on the Pennine Bridleway)

Total Ascent: 2,523 feet (1,194 feet on the Pennine Bridleway)

 

(Note that the Pennine Bridleway does not start until Middleton Top)

Enjoyment Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ / 5

Click to read the writeup of the following day along the Pennine Bridleway, walking from Buxton to Edale.

Click for a connecting writeup that followed the Monsal Trail from Grindleford to Buxton.

Disclaimer: This writeup provides a narrative of what to expect rather than a route guide to follow. The route is covered by the 119 OS Landranger map - while there is also a Pennine Bridleway guidebook which includes OS mapping (links redirect to Amazon). The route is in general well way-marked