This is a trail using the remnants of the former Cromford and High Peak Railway which ran from Cromford Canal, south of Matlock, to Parsley Hey, where it meets the Tissington Trail heading north.
Although it looks bucolic, it’s actually a very industrialised landscape built for the Industrial Revolution and the transport of raw and finished goods. The whole area is pocked-marked by small ancient quarries and their huge modern equivalents.
It is a challenging walk at the beginning because of the inclines, some of them 1 in 8. For an unfit walker, it’s a gasp a minute!
The struggle upwards is worth it for the view…
Then onwards and upwards. I love the archway of the bridge over the trail.
Another lovely view…
And then back again to High Peak Junction…
The rock formations, blasted by explosives and hacked at by hand to create the train line are fascinating.
