Next walk

Next walk: May 5th Hartington -- Peak District

Details available as of 15th April

Number of places available on coach: 0
with no one on reserve list

[Local information to follow]

Walk Leader(s) Plan/recce report

A John Armstrong We start in the centre of Hartington at The Old Cheese Shop and head to Sheen, Brund & Knowle Farm. A mixture of dry paths and very wet & muddy fields. Through Revidge Wood and onto Clough Head & Warslow. Across Dale Bridge and along The Manifold Way into Hulme End towards Lower Hurst Farm. We have a couple of options at this point. On the recce, the public footpath back into Hartington was very well protected by a large herd of Cows with Calves; so the direct B road was needed. The Devonshire Arms was our choice at the end of a lovely walk. A total of 11 miles and 1280' of ascent.

B Liz and Louise We walk out of the village up to Hartington Hall and the Youth Hostel. We take the cycle route 548 along Highfield Lane to Biggin. We continue walking through the village passing cottages, Biggin Hall, the Wrens Nest and the Laurels till we get to the next Point of Interest: William Diorrice Barlow Bench (William provided jobs in the highway industry for 50 years). Once out of the village we take the footpath on the left under the railway bridge and join the Tissington trail. We will have a coffee stop 4 miles in, by the sidings. We walk past a quarry on our left hand side and come off the path at the bridge to Lees Barn. Just before the barn we take the path and stay by the wall. Go through a gate in the wall and continue down a muddy rocky path to Beresford House. At the end of the path is the River Dove which was flooded in the reccie. Waterproof boots and gaiters are highly recommended if you want to stay dry. We follow the path alongside the river through Wolfscote Dale. At Gypsy Bank bridge we stop for lunch and see the Iron Thor which was a pump to get water off the fields above. There is also a cave to explore. Following the path further round there is a broken wall which will be our lunch stop on the day. The path is under water for the most part but we continue to Beresford Dale going over footbridges to the Hartington path. We cross over the river and see a door in the wall and a pillar covered in ivy. We continue up and see a tower on on our left. We walk through Marsons wood and see 'Alan's Oak' going through a gate on to a marked path to Pennilow Hill. Crossing a very very muddy field on the day. We continue on the path to Lower Barn Farm untill we come back into Hartington via the toilet block. The coach should be able to park in the centre of the village. There are two pubs the Cotton Hotel and the Devonshire Arms which we frequented on the reccie.

Total ascent 1222ft and 9 miles. Scroll to end for additional history and PoI for this walk. Click here for B walk map

C Clair Lyons and Ray Webb Leaving the village we pass the site of the old cheese factory (1870-2009), before striking out across the fields. Crossing the River Dove by means of a metal footbridge, that on the day of the recce was underwater, we climb slowly but at a gentle pace to the hamlet of Sheen. Gargoyles are normally placed high on church towers but those at St Luke’s are gathered at its base. After a short distance on tarmac, a footpath ascends to the east of High Sheen Farm before an even shorter stretch of tarmac takes us to High Close Farm. Heading in a northerly direction we follow a footpath as it descends towards Pilsbury, a short distance after which lies the site of motte & baileys. Weather permitting, lunch will be taken here. Two options are then available for the return to Hartington: for the more energetic there is a short climb which then follows contours that pass to the west of Carder Low (one of the 95 ‘Ethels’ in the Peak District). This route offers fine views across the Derbyshire countryside. The alternative is a more leisurely stroll along the minor road below that runs past Ludwell Farm and Bank Top Farm and takes us back to Hartington.

Distance: 6½ miles; Ascent: 850 feet (or 830 feet for the ‘leisurely’ return leg)

B+ walk lunching by the river Manifold at Wetton Mill, on the way to Hartington - August 2013
Click here for more memories..

Hartington is a village in the centre of the White Peak area of the Derbyshire Peak district lying in the river Dove which is also the Staffordshire border. It's known for it's cheese making and the mining of ironstone, limestone and lead. There are numerous Points Of Interests in the village but by far the most interesting is the Victorian Penfold pillar box from 1866 made by JW Penfold. The hexagonal post box is decorated with acanthus leaves, buds and balls and is extremely rare. The village of Biggin was first mentioned in 1223 and used to house a monastic settlement. The main occupation was farming, lead mining and quarrying. Biggin used to be a big centre for sheep sales. There is a POI telephone box which is full of the history of the village. The Tissington Trail was originally the railway line from Buxton to Ashbourne built in 1899 and decommissioned in 1964. It was used to transport milk to London. We follow this trail which hopefully will have many wild flowers for us to see.


[Local information to follow]
Walk	Leader(s)	Plan/recce report
A	John Armstrong	We start in the centre of Hartington at The Old Cheese Shop and head to Sheen, Brund & Knowle Farm. A mixture of dry paths and very wet & muddy fields. Through Revidge Wood and onto Clough Head & Warslow. Across Dale Bridge and along The Manifold Way into Hulme End towards Lower Hurst Farm. We have a couple of options at this point. On the recce, the public footpath back into Hartington was very well protected by a large herd of Cows with Calves; so the direct B road was needed. The Devonshire Arms was our choice at the end of a lovely walk. A total of 11 miles and 1280' of ascent.
B	Liz and Louise	We walk out of the village up to Hartington Hall and the Youth Hostel. We take the cycle route 548 along Highfield Lane to Biggin. We continue walking through the village passing cottages, Biggin Hall, the Wrens Nest and the Laurels till we get to the next Point of Interest: William Diorrice Barlow Bench (William provided jobs in the highway industry for 50 years). Once out of the village we take the footpath on the left under the railway bridge and join the Tissington trail. We will have a coffee stop 4 miles in, by the sidings. We walk past a quarry on our left hand side and come off the path at the bridge to Lees Barn. Just before the barn we take the path and stay by the wall. Go through a gate in the wall and continue down a muddy rocky path to Beresford House. At the end of the path is the River Dove which was flooded in the reccie. Waterproof boots and gaiters are highly recommended if you want to stay dry. We follow the path alongside the river through Wolfscote Dale. At Gypsy Bank bridge we stop for lunch and see the Iron Thor which was a pump to get water off the fields above. There is also a cave to explore. Following the path further round there is a broken wall which will be our lunch stop on the day. The path is under water for the most part but we continue to Beresford Dale going over footbridges to the Hartington path. We cross over the river and see a door in the wall and a pillar covered in ivy. We continue up and see a tower on on our left. We walk through Marsons wood and see 'Alan's Oak' going through a gate on to a marked path to Pennilow Hill. Crossing a very very muddy field on the day. We continue on the path to Lower Barn Farm untill we come back into Hartington via the toilet block. The coach should be able to park in the centre of the village. There are two pubs the Cotton Hotel and the Devonshire Arms which we frequented on the reccie. Total ascent 1222ft and 9 miles. Scroll to end for additional history and PoI for this walk. Click here for B walk map
C	Clair Lyons and Ray Webb	Leaving the village we pass the site of the old cheese factory (1870-2009), before striking out across the fields. Crossing the River Dove by means of a metal footbridge, that on the day of the recce was underwater, we climb slowly but at a gentle pace to the hamlet of Sheen. Gargoyles are normally placed high on church towers but those at St Luke’s are gathered at its base. After a short distance on tarmac, a footpath ascends to the east of High Sheen Farm before an even shorter stretch of tarmac takes us to High Close Farm. Heading in a northerly direction we follow a footpath as it descends towards Pilsbury, a short distance after which lies the site of motte & baileys. Weather permitting, lunch will be taken here. Two options are then available for the return to Hartington: for the more energetic there is a short climb which then follows contours that pass to the west of Carder Low (one of the 95 ‘Ethels’ in the Peak District). This route offers fine views across the Derbyshire countryside. The alternative is a more leisurely stroll along the minor road below that runs past Ludwell Farm and Bank Top Farm and takes us back to Hartington. Distance: 6½ miles; Ascent: 850 feet (or 830 feet for the ‘leisurely’ return leg)