March 2017 | 75
The challenging gradients , bleak moorlands and fast roads of the Peak District are often associated with the world of competitive cycling . Tea rooms in villages throughout the region cashed in on the crowds lining the streets for last year ’ s Aviva Tour of Britain and the Tour of Yorkshire in 2014 , while gaggles of lycra-clad warriors are a common sight toiling up the dizzying heights of Winnat ’ s Pass from picturesque Edale , or relaxing in Hathersage or Castleton after a rapid moorland descent . But the county has gentler charms too . The striking landscape was once a thriving network of train and tram lines serving mills , quarries mines , most of which now lie as dormant museum relics of railway heritage , fading and crumbling back amongst the wildflowers , rocks and native woodlands . Several former railway lines have been resurrected as walking and cycle tracks , which at weekends buzz with throngs of families and daytrippers , gliding along linear , surfaced pathways . In 2015 two of these trails were voted by the charity Sustrans ’ supporters as their favourite routes . The Monsal Trail for the best path under 30 miles and the Transpennine Trail ( which includes a former railway track in the Peak District ) for top long distance route . While most people arrive at these traffic-free paths by car , both trails are close to railway lines between Manchester and Buxton or Manchester and Sheffield , so there are some great opportunities to make linear journeys by bicycle , and get a lift home at the end .
MONSAL TRAIL
On a quiet day there is something Tolkienesque and mystical about the Monsal Trail . Imposing limestone cliffs seem to glow in the sunlight , there are sweeping views , colourful wildflowers and monolithic remnants of a bygone industry . The railway caused outrage when it was first built in 1863 as part of the Midland Railway line to London . The Duke of Devonshire objected to this new-fangled transport method which would have gone through his grounds , which meant the route was redirected through the Wye Valley . His neighbour , the Duke of Rutland , demanded that the line went through a tunnel so his view was intact . The railway closed in 1968 and slowly went back to nature . Tunnels through the hills became derelict and four of them were closed to the public . But in 2011 they opened up as part of the route and a new tourist gateway to Bakewell was born . From Miller ’ s Dale car park near Bixton the eight and a half mile path follows the river Wye and then sweeps up to the old railway at the start of the Monsal Trail . The surfaced path makes for an easy ride , so there ’ s plenty of scope for relaxing and taking in the view . In spring the trail is peppered with wildflowers including orchids and wild thyme and sunlight shimmers through native trees on the hillside . A towering old limekiln on the side of the track sprouts grasses and flowers and now acts as a home for birds and bats , and the string of tunnels along the trail are a constant reminder of its industrial past . Chee Tor , Rusher Cutting , Litton , Cressbrook , Headstone : their names echo the epic task for Victorian railroad engineers hacking through the hillside . Now eerily quiet they are home to various species of bats , which roost amongst cracks of the brickwork . Each of the tunnels are around 400 metres long and have lights activated by sensors which operate during daylight hours . If you ' re travelling in the afternoon take some lights in case you get caught out . There ’ s a tea and coffee stall , toilets , and an overgrown platform halfway at the disused Millers Dale station , while the elegant old building that was once Hassop station is now a bustling cafe and bookstore dedicated to the needs of hungry cyclists and walkers . You will need to be a confident road
WYEDALE Blackwell Mill
To Buxton
A5270
Pennine Way Bridleway
Chee Dale
MILLERS DALE
Lime Kilns
Blackwell
Turn
CLOSED TUNNEL
B6049
Lime Kilns
A6 To Taddington
To Tideswell TIDESWELL DALE
Litton Mill
CLOSED TUNNEL
Monsal Dale
Cressbrook
Cressbrook Mill Upperdale
Little Longstone Great Longstone
MONSAL HEAD
CLOSED TUNNEL
TRAIL FOOTPATH ROAD PARKING TOILET INFORMATION CENTRE INFORMATION BOARD
WHITE LODGE
River Wye
B6465
Hassop
Ashford in the Water
A6
A6020
Bakewell
A619
BAKEWELL STATION
1 KILOMETRE
To Matlock
Coombs Road Viaduct