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Peak District walk down Cheedale, DerbyshireThis spectacular walk follows the course of the River Wye through the gorges of Cheedale and then returns by another route. This is not a walk for anyone who is not fairly nimble - the route is often rocky and slippery, with the possibility of getting your feet wet! |
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 )  | This spectacular walk follows the course of the River Wye through the gorges of Cheedale and then returns by another route. Although the distance is not great, this is not a walk for anyone who is not fairly nimble - the going underfoot is often difficult, rocky and slippery, and there is always the possibility of getting your feet wet!) Plum Buttress Cheedale The route described here takes the track of the former railway for the next 1.5 kilometres, but it is worth mentioning that as an alternative it is also possible to follow the bank of the river. The views are better from the railway track, but down at river level you can see a variety of river-life, such as ducks, waders and, if you are lucky (or early) perhaps a heron or even a kingfisher. The railway passes through a cutting and emerges into the grandeur of Cheedale, with its huge limestone cliffs which are so popular with rock-climbers. The first is Plum Buttress which is just on the right. Follow the railway on, past Moving Buttress (so called because the local signalman always swore it moved) and through a short tunnel. Continue along another open section with Two Tier Buttress opposite, and through another tunnel to emerge on a bridge which spans the river in a spectacular position and leads to a third tunnel which is now sealed off for safety reasons. Take a stile in the right wall and descend in an upstream direction till the path forks, and double back downstream to pass beneath the railway bridge you have just crossed. There is a small footbridge spanning the river - cross to the opposite bank. This leads to the most interesting section of the walk, where the path hugs the bank of the river under an overhanging wall of rock and then, when the pathway runs out, continues on a series of stepping-stones beneath the rockface. If the river is in flood these stepping stones are quite often submerged, and the alternatives are to turn back or get your feet wet! ) Steeping Stones opposite Chee Tor From this point there are several alternatives. The Monsal Trail continues easily along the north bank of the Wye to Miller's Dale, where there is a car park (you could start the walk from there) and a cafe. A second track crosses the bridge and heads up across the fields to Blackwell, from whence it is a very pleasant walk back to the start. The third alternative doubles back up the north bank and heads up to the village of Wormhill. The return route via Blackwell is quite straightforward. Follow the path across the fields from the bridge, heading approximately south until you reach a farm track and follow this past a large farm to the road. On the way you pass the relics of a Britano-Roman field system and there are excellent views across the valley behind you. Turn right onto the road and follow it to a sharp left turn, where you take another farm track which continues straight on. When this peters out a footpath continues across the fields and into a dale which descends to the railway track close to the piont where you originally joined it. To return via Wormhill take the path which doubles back on your left at the bridge and heads diagonally up the side of the valley. You reach the road just before Hassop Farm - take the stile in the wall leading into the farm and continue through the farmyard. Just through this there is a stile in the left wall, signposted to Flag Dale. Take this path and cross the fields diagonally, until a steep little descent leads into the secluded little valley of Flag Dale. Climb out of the dale and continue across the fields in the same direction until you reach a farm track. Turn left and follow this, which leads to the tiny hamlet of Meadow, perched high above Chee Dale. Pass though the hamlet onto the start of a road and take a left turn onto a track which winds down the hillside. This gives splendid views of the upper part of Cheedale before it descends to pass beneath the railway and reach the river. A few metres upstream are the cottages of Blackwell Mill, which have long outlasted the mill which once stood here. They are placed in a strange, isolated position beneath a triangle of railway tracks with no vehicular access to the cottages themselves while on the railway above there was Britain's smallest railway station, a tiny halt where the main-line trains dropped passengers for connections to Buxton. Cross the footbridge over the river and join the track which leads directly back to Wyedale carpark. Cheedale Photo Gallery - click on the images to enlarge- Click Here for a slide show
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