Monsal Trail
Head along the spectacular Monsal Trail over viaducts and through well-lit tunnels calling at the former stations along the way. Cycle hire and traffic-free. A great wet-weather option.
Access for All
Distance: 11.5 km to Chee Dale
Nearest Facilities: Hassop Station and Miller's Dale Station
Directions
- Access the trail at the rear of Hassop Station, turning right to pass in front of the building and under the road bridge.
- Continue past Longstone Station, Headstone Tunnel, the Monsal Viaduct, and then two shorter tunnels before reaching Miller’s Dale Station and viaduct.
- Continue along viaducts and tunnels, keeping left with the towering cliffs of Chee Tor above, to the end of the trail.
Alternatives
Start at Miller’s Dale Station for a shorter route to Chee Dale (2.7 km) or for reversing the route to Hassop Station.
Monsal Trail Route Map (1MB) 
Getting there
Start at Hassop Station, north of Bakewell via the B6001 or A619 and A6020 from Baslow.
Ordnance Survey grid reference: SK 2175 7053
Postcode: DE45 1NW
Or
Miller’s Dale Station. Via the B4049, from the A6 Buxton to Bakewell Road or South from Tideswell.
Ordnance Survey grid reference: SK 1384 7325
Postcode: SK17 8SN
Do you know?
- ‘The valley is gone and the gods with it..’ wrote John Ruskin when in 1863 the Midland Railway Company completed its London to Manchester line through ‘Little Switzerland’. The five-arched Monsal Viaduct now forms an integral part of the scenery.
- The lime kilns at Miller’s Dale burned limestone at temperatures above 900°C to create quicklime for the chemical and steel industries and to improve soils for farming.
- The five tunnels are lit until dusk and create great echoes.