Bamford Edge and Bamford Village

Introduction

For several months during lockdown, my wife Caroline has been saying she’s heard great things about the views from Bamford Edge, above the village of Bamford and the south end of Ladybower Reservoir, and that we must go there when lockdown ends and the weather is on our side. Travel via the M67 and Snake Pass or via the A6 and Castleton.

So, with those conditions met we decided to take a picnic, pick up our son Adam, and make a day of it.

Travel time – 55 minutes each way. Walk time – with it being a weekend we were taking our time and making a day of it, but if stepping out on my own I reckon 3.25 – 3.5 hours would be sufficient.

The weather was perfect, 14 degrees C, no wind, and just occasional high cloud, and plenty of sunshine . As with my walk on Thursday, ideal walking weather.

This walk was 6.5 miles, rising 1060 feet, 325m.

Those parts of the walk on open moors, and near a busy road require dogs to be kept on a lead due to sheep grazing and rare moorland birds nesting at this time of year. However, the walk along approximately 2 miles of disused railway would be ideal for dogs to get a free run.

OS Explorer Map OL1.

I parked for free on the roadside, at New Road, but you could be lucky to find a space in the pay and display car park, near the south end of Ladybower Reservoir, where there are public toilets (as there are in the village of Bamford.

Parking on the road meant that half of the uphill section was at the start of the walk, and half at the end of the walk (after the pub stop!)

The Ascent To The Edge

It’s a simple walk up the road to where the paths go through the fence. We then headed diagonally left up the hill towards the obvious edge above. To our left, the view across the valley to Win Hill on the right , the scar of Hope Quarry on the left, and the rise of Mam Tor in the centre are immediately spectacular.

Adam is soon at the top of the steep section, followed by Caroline, whilst I’m lagging behind!

What A Bird!

For me, the highlight of the day came as I was joining Adam and Caroline at the top of the steep section. A bird landed about 30 yards ahead of us. It was immediately identifiable as a ring ouzel, the rare upland cousin of the blackbird.

Bamford Edge

Once on the Edge, the views are breathtaking. The pictures say it all!

Ladybower Reservoir

It’s massive. Over 6 billion gallons of water, serving much of the East Midlands.

After making our way down the hillside on a fairly distinct path, and taking a brief detour to the toilets at the car park, we headed over to the reservoir dam from which the River Derwent flows south to Matlock and Chatsworth House.

After crossing the dam, and taking our picnic lunch, we headed along the disused railway path south towards Bamford, taking in the views up to Bamford Edge as we went.

Bamford

We left this track to cross fields towards the village, whereupon we reached a very pretty weir and bridge at Bamford Mill.

When we saw The Angler’s Rest, initially we weren’t hopeful of refreshment, but wandering round to the side we were pleasantly surprised to find hearty meals, and some fine ales on sale, and refreshment was gladly consumed. We’d enjoyed our picnic, but the Sunday roasts looked great!

To return to the car, the track known as The Clough was the obvious route, but it was closed for some ongoing cable works, so we had the slightly longer but more gradual rise of the path across fields and up New Road, from where we looked fondly back down to the village before heading for home. A great day out!

And Finally….

It was breathtaking on that edge, so this seems appropriate.