Bakewell | Peak District Towns and Villages | Staffordshire | Derbyshire | England | UK

Baslow is the largest of the Derwent villages downstream of Hathersage but still within the boundary of the Peak Park. It owes its current size and importance to its location close to the northern entrance to Chatsworth Park and as the starting point for the main route over the moors to Chesterfield.

The village divides into three main sections. Bridge End is the original settlement, clustered around the church and the ancient bridge and ford across the River Derwent. The church has a Saxon coffin lid in the porch entrance but the oldest part of the current building (the north aisle) dates from about 1200. The tower was constructed in the 13th century but the rest of the church is newer and it was heavily 'restored' (i.e. rebuilt) in the 19th century. Clustered around the church are several shops, plus the Rutland Arms and 'Rowleys' (was the Prince of Wales Inn).

Just behind the church lies the old bridge, also known as Bubnell Bridge, which is probably more interesting. Built in 1603, this is the only bridge across the Derwent which has never been destroyed by floods and a path leading down beside it allows you to examine the fine workmanship beneath the arches. For about two centuries after its construction there were no bridges over the river downstream of this before Derby. The hamlet on the west side of the river is known as Bubnell and at the east end of the bridge there is a dog-kennel-like watchman's hut - perhaps intended to keep a check on the Bubnell folk, to prevent people carrying too-heavy loads across the precious bridge or maybe to collect tolls.

The modern centre of the village is the eastern end, called Nether End, around the entrance to Chatsworth Park. It provides a number of tourist services with hotels, restaurants, tea rooms, caravan site and the pedestrian entrance to Chatsworth Park. The largest and oldest hotel is the Cavendish Hotel. An 18th century building, it now belongs to the Duke of Devonshire and sports his crest but once belonged to the Duke of Rutland and was called the Peacock Hotel, which is his symbol. Continuing out of the village you come to the so-called Golden Gates, built by Paxton as the main entrance to the Chatsworth Estate but now rarely used.

The third area of Baslow is called Over End and is a residential area on the hillside to the north of the rest of the village. It contains Baslow Hall, which was once occupied by Sebastian de Ferranti, the radio and electrical pioneer and inventor. There was once a large Hydropathic Hotel here too, but this was demolished in 1936.

The edges around Baslow offer fine walking with splendid views over the Derwent valley. Baslow Edge to the north of the village was once quarried for gritstone and features the Eagle Rock, an isolated 6 metre high block of gritstone. Tradition has it that the local men had to climb this rock before they were worthy of marriage! It is not a particularly easy ascent so there must have been quite a few bachelors around. Just behind it there is a monument to Wellington, raised in 1866 by a local worthy, Dr Wrench.

Gardoms Edge and Birchens Edge lie to the east of Baslow. Gardoms is heavily wooded and somewhat inaccessible. It was once the site of an Iron Age fort and cup and ring marked stones and hut circles have been discovered around here. It is also a fine edge for rock climbing. Birchens is more rounded and easily accessible from the Robin Hood Inn on the Chesterfield road. On the top of the edge is a monument raised to Nelson on the occasion of the battle of Trafalgar. Nearby, three large erratic boulders on have the names 'Victory', 'Defiance' and 'Royal Soverin'(sic) carved into them in honour of the three vessels of the same name involved in the battle. They are collectively known as the 'Three Ships'.

Chatsworth Edge and Dobb Edge lie to the south of the Chesterfield road and a walk from Baslow going into Chatsworth Park and then heading east will take you along these to emerge near the Robin Hood. On the way you pass the Jubilee Stone where the village celebrated Queen Victoria's Jubilee.

Beeley is one of the Chatsworth estate villages. Now bypassed by the road into Chatsworth, until the late 1700s it was a through route for traffic traveling to and from the estate. Following the construction of the new road it exists as a tranquil, set-back village with a group of cul-de-sacs with cottages constructed of honey-coloured gritstone, quarried from Fallinge Edge above. There is a nice pub, which is unsurprisingly called the Devonshire Arms, a free public car park opposite. The church has a Norman doorway and a 16th century tower but was over-restored by zealous Victorians. The church also has a fine, ancient specimen yew in the churchyard, thought to predate the church itself. There is also an excellent cafe and wholefoods shop called The Old Smithy located just up from the pub.

Beeley Moor, high to the east of the village, is a fine open, wild area with good walking and occasional views of Chatsworth Park. This area was heavily populated in the Bronze Age and the moor is dotted with hut circles and tumuli, the most celebrated of which is Hob Hurst's House - an unusual square tumulus which is a scheduled national monument. At one time Beeley grit was famous for being especially hard and was used to make grindstones, but this trade has long ceased.

Travelling north, you soon arrive at the boundary of Chatsworth Park. The road crosses the Derwent into the park on Beeley Bridge, which was constructed in 1761 and is a fine example of an 18th century bridge.

Edensor is a very pretty and very unusual village. It is located within the Chatsworth Park boundaries. The modern village of Edensor is a relatively recent creation - the former village was deemed to be too close to Chatsworth House and was moved to the edge of Chatsworth park in the early 19th Century, so the modern village dates mainly from the 1830s and later.

The original village stood several hundred meters closer to the main House and one of the original houses remains and can still be seen. The sixth Duke had the village moved to it's new and current position so that it could not be seen from the House and legend has it that many designs for the houses of the new village were submitted to the Duke but he couldn't decide which one he wanted so had a house built in each of the proposed styles, making each house in Edensor unique and the village a very curious place indeed.

Hassop has an imposing look, due to the splendour of the architecture left behind by the Eyre family, the local landlords and builders of Hassop Hall. The Hall is now a private hotel but it retains the fine buildings and classical park (with lake) that the Eyres erected. The Eyres were devout Catholics and so the large Classical style church which draws your eye as you pass through the village is a Catholic one. As well as being landowners, the family made much money from lead-mining and it is said that there are two large manholes in the floor of the cellar of the Hall which lead to a former lead-mine.

The village has a pub called, not surprisingly, the Eyre Arms.

Longstone is made up of two small villages, Great and Little Longstone. The villages have many fine 18th century cottages, built during an era of prosperity from lead-mining and shoemaking. There is a village green in Great Longstone, with an ancient cross and a nearby manor house which has medieval origins. Across the road is Longstone Hall, originally built during the 14th century, but rebuilt in the mid 18th, with a prominent brick facade. There is a rather nice church hidden round the back of the village.

There is a shop and two pubs in Great Longstone, the Crispin (patron saint of shoemakers) and The White Lion, while Little Longstone has the Packhorse.

Great Longstone and Little Longstone have well-dressings in late July.

Just along the road, to the west of Little Longstone, is Monsal Head, a famous beauty spot and viewpoint. There is a small car park with a fine view down the valley, and a much larger car park, with public toilets, 100m away. A few hundred metres towards Ashford there is an old Quaker burial ground.

To the north of Longstone lies Longstone Edge, a fine viewpoint for the surrounding countryside. Unfortunately the top of the edge has been intensively quarried for lead and, more recently fluorspar, which has left some impressive holes in the ground but rather detracts from its scenic value.

Middleton by Youlgreave is a quiet, leafy place built above the River Bradford, upstream of its larger neighbour. There was once a castle here, a fact commemorated in the name of Castle Farm, but the modern village was mostly constructed in the 19th century around the hall, which is hidden behind trees at the southern end of the village.

The most notable feature of the village is the grave of Thomas Bateman (1820-61), an important local archaeologist and excavator of some 500 local barrows. Though he took some care to record and analyse his finds, his methods were unfortunately not nearly as scientific as modern techniques, and he was known to have excavated as many as five barrows in one day. Many of his finds are now in Sheffield Museum, and some in the British Museum. He is buried in a field behind the former Congregational chapel, in a small enclosure surrounded by cast-iron railings. A barrow would perhaps have been more appropriate.

On the village green there is a playground and public toilets, and alongside there is a more recent memorial to the crew of a Lancaster bomber which crashed at nearby Smerrill in 1944.

The walking around Middleton is excellent. Bradford Dale is beautiful and the high, limestone pasturelands around the village harbour much archaeology, both ancient and industrial.

Over Haddon is a picturesque former lead-mining village clinging to the top of the steep side of Lathkill Dale to the south of Bakewell. It is a popular stopping point for weekend walkers in the Lathkill valley and has a useful car park, though using this does involve a steep descent (and thus ascent) into (and out of) Lathkill Dale below. The village has a pub called The Lathkill.

Lathkill Dale is a beautiful and fascinating place. An alternative perspective can be achieved by following the gorge top access land from the access point to the south of Haddon Grove Farm, one mile to the west of Over Haddon.

Pilsley is one of the villages of the Chatsworth Estate and is built of a mellow local sandstone. There is a public house (the Devonshire Arms, naturally) and on the other side of the road there is the Chatsworth Farm Shop, housed in the former Shire Horse Stud building.

Pilsley has a well-dressing in mid-July.

Rowsley lies at the junction of the Wye and Derwent rivers and is bisected by the main road, the A6. The village is in two sections - the original village lies in the 'Y' between the two rivers while to the east is the so-called 'railway village' constructed around the former Midland railway station. The two sections form an interesting contrast - the old part is made of gritstone cottages and farmhouses and has connections with nearby Haddon and Chatsworth, while the newer part is more utilitarian.

Two buildings in Rowsley are of interest. One is the Peacock Hotel on the main road. Built in 1652 by a John Stevenson who was agent to Grace, Lady Manners, this was at one time a dower house of Haddon Hall and is a very fine building. Above the entrance there is a magnificent ceramic peacock (the emblem of the Manners family), made by Mintons of Stoke-on-Trent. The second interesting building is Caudwell's mill, which lies off the A6 to the south, and is a fine example of a working 19th century mill. The outbuildings in the grounds of the mill house a number of different art and artisan workshops as well as an excellent cafe.

In the old village there is a Victorian church just to the north of the old railway line. Over the bridge across the Derwent there is a second pub and a small 'shopping village' behind it.

Sheldon is a small farming hamlet perched high above the River Wye, South of Ashford. From just outside the village there are fine views of the Wye and the lower part of Monsal Dale.

Lead mining flourished around here in the 18th and 19th centuries and most of Sheldon dates from this period. One of the most famous and certainly the best-preserved Peak District mine, the Magpie Mine, lies just 1km south of here.

Sheldon has a pub, the Cock and Pullet, popular with hikers.

Stanton-in-the-Peak is an estate village mostly constructed by the Thornhill family during the 18th and 19th centuries. Stanton Hall lies well hidden just to the south of the village, much of which is pleasingly built around stone courtyards and alleyways. The village faces west and catches the afternoon and evening sun all year. It is a fine vantage point from which to view the Wye valley, with Haddon Hall in clear view.

The church is an imposing building dating from the 1830s. The village pub is called The Flying Childers, named after an otherwise long-forgotten race-horse. The main interest around here lies above the village on Stanton Moor, with its stone circles, standing stones and Bronze Age enclosures plus fine views across the Derwent valley.

Stanton Lees is a small hamlet on the east side of Stanton Moor with a spectacular view across Darley Dale and the Derwent Valley.

Youlgrave (or Youlgreave as the Ordnance Survey persist in calling it) is a sleepy village. Now mainly devoted to farming it was once one of the centres of the Derbyshire lead-mining industry. Though lead is no longer mined some of the old mines are still used for the extraction of fluorspar and calcite but this is low-level and unobtrusive.

The village was built on a ridge between the rivers Bradford and Lathkill, and is a fine centre for exploring both of these beautiful valleys. The village spills down the slope to the Bradford to the south in a topsy-turvy fashion. The river is often dry here in summer, having found an underground course to the Derwent at Darley Dale in 1881, but the dale upstream is very pretty.

At the crossroads at the eastern end of the village lie the George Hotel and the church and from here the main road goes westwards past rows of old cottages. There are several shops and a second pub before you reach the former Market Place where the main feature is the Conduit Head, a large circular tank which was once an integral part of the village's water supply. Opposite, the former Co-op building now houses the Youth Hostel.

The church is one of the most interesting in the Peak, and the village contains many rows of lovely old cottages. Behind the Market Place is the original Hall, now Old Hall Farm, a grand building dated 1630, and there are some fine buildings along the main street.

Downstream of Youlgreave the hamlet of Alport lies at the junction of the Lathkill and Bradford rivers. It is a pretty spot and a good place to start a circular walk of the two valleys.