The ‘Needs to Know’
Distance: 6.5 miles (10.5km)
Time to walk: Roughly a couple of hours, but you may wish to sit…wander…or just chill & explore so it might take all day. You could also extend the river stretch in the other direction through to beautiful Milldale
Difficulty: A variety of surface, some of which may be muddy in wet conditions
Dog Friendly?: Some stiles & dogs will also need to be on lead as there’s lots of sheep about
Parking: In the Pay & Display Car Park at Narlows Lane, Thorpe
Postcode: DE6 2AT
what3words: losing.resorts.spokes
Public toilets: Pub at the start & end
Map of the route:
Recently, as part of some hill-training walks I visited Derbyshire’s Dovedale area & the wonderful pyramid of Thorpe Cloud
The village of Thorpe sits on the Derbyshire/Staffordshire border, on the east bank of the River Dove, about four miles north of Ashbourne. It dates back centuries & was recorded as a 9th century Danish settlement, appearing later in the Domesday Book with a tiny recorded population of just under five households
The village is at the southern end of the Peak District National Park almost at the foot of Thorpe Cloud. The Limestone Way long-distance bridleway passes through it as does the Peak District Boundary Walk
It formerly had a railway station, Thorpe Cloud railway station, served by the LNWR Ashbourne to Buxton branch line, which linked with the Cromford & High Peak Railway at Parsley Hay
This former track now forms the long distance Tissington Trail cycle & footpath trail
Let’s Walk!
1. From the car park turn right & walk to the crossroads & continue straight across…
Walk down the hill. Through the gaps in the hedge you can see Thorpe Cloud
2. At the bottom, ahead’s a hotel, but look for the path on the right just before the entrance…
Walk across the paddock & through the gate & over the wall stile…
3. Now….there are some rather worrying signs about red flags…
Luckily today there were none so turn left & hug the wall
4. When the wall ends just head straight towards your challenge & isn’t it such a beautiful hill…
Walk through the gate & start climbing
5. The name “Cloud”, despite looking like a miniature mountain, doesn’t refer to the sky. It comes from the old dialect word ‘clud’, meaning a rocky hill or mass of rock
During the 19th century, visitors to the village green would find tethered donkeys waiting to carry tourists up the steep steps to the top
Today we need to walk
It may only stand at 942 feet high but this little ‘hill’ commands such a view so just take the time to stand & look at from all angles. And it will make you puff a little!
6. One of the best views though is down into Dovedale where you’re heading next…
The view in the opposite direction isn’t half bad either!
6. Facing Dovedale I took the steep path down on the right. Be careful in wet weather as limestone is slippery…
At the bottom you’ll reach the famous stepping stones.
Most people that visit beautiful Dovedale park at the Izaak Walton Hotel & walk the linear route to the village of Milldale. The land is owned by the National Trust and attracts a million visitors annually
Dovedale’s other attractions include rock pillars such as Ilam Rock, Viator’s Bridge & the limestone features Lovers’ Leap & Reynard’s Cave
The caves were used as shelters by hunters around 13,000 BCE, & Dovedale has seen continuous human activity since. Around 4,500 years ago Neolithic farmers used the caves as tombs. There is evidence from Reynard’s Cave of Bronze Age activity, & artifacts found there are displayed at Buxton Museum and Art Gallery
Vikings settled in the area in the 9th century CE. Local place names such as Thorpe are of Scandinavian origin. Viator’s Bridge, a packhorse bridge in Milldale, has been in use since the medieval period when silks & flax were transported from nearby Wetton & Alstonefield
In July 2014 it was announced that a hoard of Late Iron Age & Roman coins had been discovered in Reynard’s Kitchen Cave. The 26 coins discovered, which have been declared as “treasure”, included three Roman coins from before the Roman invasion of Britain, & gold & silver pieces of Late Iron Age date, which are believed to have come from the Corieltavi, a Celtic tribe based in the East Midlands
The River Dove is a famous trout stream, 45 miles in length. Charles Cotton’s Fishing House, the inspiration for Izaak Walton’s ‘The Compleat Angler’, stands in the woods by the river
7. Have fun crossing the famous stepping stones which, these days have been given safer & flatter tops…
On the other side turn left & follow the Dove…it really is beautiful
8. Eventually you’ll come to a wooden bridge…
Cross it & then turn immediately right over the stile
9. Bear right & follow the river. This next stretch of the walk is really lovely, but there are lots of sheep! At the corner pass through the gate
…& keep going along the river passing through several more gates until reaching a bridge
10. At the road bear left & then right through the small gate & follow the river once more…
Follow the river once more through a couple more gates
Beware you might meet the locals 😉
11. Continue to the old bridge & exit the path onto the lane…
Bear left & follow the track through the gate & up the hill out of the valley…
12. At the top look for the signpost & turn left through the ‘squeeze’ & past the cottages…
On reaching the lane turn left & then right…
13. Follow the track down to the church…
St Leonard’s Church houses a rare 1560 Geneva Bible known as the “Breeches Bible,” named because Adam & Eve are famously depicted wearing breeches made of fig leaves rather than simple apron. It also has a Rare Norman Tub Font which is noted as one of only three surviving examples of its specific type in Derbyshire
14. Don’t pass the church. Take the right track…
…crossing the bridge & bearing left up to the road
15. Now bear right along the footpath & follow it back up the hill to the car park & the start of this walk
Well…simply put…what a stunning walk & one you must do
So
Go Walk!