Parking at Ambergate Train station was cheap enough, just £2.20 for the day. We always aim to set off on our walks about 10am and at that point the car park was virtually empty, by time we returned it was almost full. So if you're thinking of doing this walk on a nice Summers day get their early to ensure you can park up. From this station it's just a short ride to Matlock Bath so it's a popular little station.
This walk is a 7.4 miles (12km) walk setting off up to Crich from Ambergate before a nice decent back to the Cromford Canal and back to Ambergate. It's not a simple walk as the climbs to start are into woodland so it's very uneven underfoot especially in Winter. We had brilliant weather for the walk so it wasn't too muddy as we ventured up, however a couple of cyclists we saw on their way down looked caked in mud. The views from the top were amazing. Yes it was windy but that didn't matter at all. The one bad view from this point was how far away Crich Stand was and that was our aim for picnics.
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| Crich Stand in the distance. |
Once we got to Crich we took a little detour in a field but ended up in the right place in the end. it was only a single field detour which for us isn't bad. At this point you're at the front of Crich Tramway Village. I haven't been in there for years, but I do remember when I went it was for a Teddy Bears picnic and I had a brilliant time. From this point it's a steep climb up to Crich Stand, the views were amazing and on such a clear day we could see for miles. According to Wikipedia "eight counties can be seen, including landmarks such as the Humber Bridge" - Wiki.
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| Crich Stand |
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| Time to learn about the War. |
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| Crich Stand
The joy of these walks we don't just walk some times we learn something new as well. This was one of those times as we all spent time to read the information on the various plaques with the history of the monument and The Sherwood Foresters.
Once we set off walking again it was a good job we had all had light lunches as we didn't need extra momentum pulling us down the hills. Some had lighter lunches than others with the strong winds blowing couscous all over the place. Once we got past the back of the Tramway Village we entered back into some woods, after Googleing it was Oxhay Wood. It felt like we had gone into a magical forgotten woodland. Obviously it had been quarried years ago but now nature had claimed it back!
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We all had in our own minds different films/shows we could imagine being filmed there from Robin Hood, Star Wars, or Game of Thrones. But the best thing that could happen is it is kept as a brilliant little secret for walkers to stumble across on this walk. The woodland not only had clear little streams, trees growing out of the rocks but it also had a sweet smell of wild garlic growing. I imagine in Winter it could get very boggy in there but we get out without any magical creatures capturing us.
From here it's back to the Cromford Canal and a really nice flat walk all the way back to the car park at Ambergate. The Canal is currently being renovated and they are doing a brilliant job. The water is clear and wildlife is thriving. This is the one flat section of the walk, if you've got a young family or you're heavily pregnant this is part I would recommend. The paths are in really good condition and the views are really nice not only of the canal but over the railway line to the River Derwent and Shining Cliff Wood too.
Overall this has been the most enjoyable walk of them all. It had everything you could ask for, a mixture of terrains, amazing views, magical little places you didn't expect and some history too. The fact Mark went back the following weekend to walk it again with his wife as he was that impressed and I'm planning on going back in Summer shows there's something about the walk pulling us back for more.
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