The Monsal Trail
About 5.4km from Bakewell station to Headstone Viaduct; 8.5 to 8.9 miles end to end · Gentle railway gradient elevation
About
The old Midland line out of Bakewell is now a traffic-free path for walkers, cyclists, horse riders and wheelchair users. Hassop Station, which hires the bikes, gives it as 8.5 miles between Coombs Road in Bakewell and Blackwell near Buxton; the Walk Wheel Cycle Trust (the charity formerly called Sustrans) gives 8.9 miles. From Bakewell the usual outing is north: the old Bakewell station is about 700 metres from the Square, Hassop Station is about 1.7km further on, then the line runs west past Great Longstone station to Headstone Tunnel and out onto Headstone Viaduct over Monsal Dale, about 5.4km from Bakewell station on the line mapped on OpenStreetMap. Beyond the viaduct are three more long tunnels, Cressbrook, Litton and Chee Tor. The Walk Wheel Cycle Trust says each of the four is about 400 metres long and lit in daylight hours on a sensor, so in winter the lights go off around 4.30pm; carry a light if you will be late. The trail follows the railway that closed in the late 1960s, says Hassop Station; there is step-free access by ramps at Bakewell station, per the Walk Wheel Cycle Trust.
Highlights
- ✓Headstone Viaduct over Monsal Dale
- ✓Lit railway tunnels
- ✓Hassop Station cafe and bike hire on the way
- ✓Step-free from Bakewell station
Tips
- →Tunnel lights switch off around 4.30pm on winter afternoons: carry a light.
- →Bikes can be hired at Hassop Station, about 2km north of the town.
- →The trail is shared with horse riders and wheelchair users: ring a bell and pass slowly.
