THREE HIKES IN THE PEAK DISTRICT

A Cocker in The Cotswolds
Feb 6, 2022
4 min read

We recently spent a long weekend in The Peak District, near Holmfirth. You can read more about where we stayed here.

It can be nerve wracking taking your dog on a long walk somewhere you know nothing about and that’s why I’m sharing my top three dog friendly walks during our time there.

When exploring new places, we always use the app ‘AllTrails’ which is great as there are hundreds of walks to choose from and you can use the app‘s built-in GPS to navigate your walk.

WESSENDEN RESERVOIR CIRCULAR

Length: 8.0km

Time: Approx. 2.5 hrs

Difficulty: Moderate

Elevation gain: 333m

Chutney Rates (/5): 🐶🐶🐶🐶

Wessenden Reservoir Circular was one of the easier walks we undertook during our time in The Peaks. It was also the least busy, although we did start the loop fairly late in the day. There was ample parking on the street.

The views are exceptional and the track is well maintained, mostly flat and easy to follow. There are occasional steep parts but these are few and far between and relatively short stretches.

There were several stunning waterfalls en route, one of which is quite fast flowing and you do have to cross it via some stepping stones which made us feel like true, intrepid adventurers!

The route was very dog friendly - Chutney was off lead for the majority of the walk and there were plenty of beautiful moorland and rivers for her to explore. However, I believe that during bird nesting season dogs are required to be kept on lead.

There is no livestock on this trail which is a dog owner’s heaven!

WESSENDEN MOOR AND BUTTERLEY RESERVOIR CIRCULAR

Length: 9.8km

Time: Approx. 2.5 hrs

Difficulty: Moderate

Elevation gain: 328m

Chutney Rates (/5): 🐶🐶🐶

This walk did not disappoint with views, walking alongside Butterley reservoir, overlooking the beautiful valley and then heading up and over Wessenden Moors which boasts waterfalls and more reservoirs, including Black Moss Reservoir.

There is plenty of on street parking near Butterley Reservoir. It was quite busy at the start as you walk up the gravel track alongside the reservoir, however as you head on to the moors it was considerably less populated.

The walk was more challenging than we expected, it is a steady climb alongside the reservoir followed by an incredibly steep, muddy and unsteady decent into the valley. This is topped off by a challenging scramble up the other side on to the moorland.

The majority of the moorland has a paved track so finding your way is easy. It is worth noting that there is a small stream to cross on stepping stones and then a large set of steep steps!

During our hike, the fog came in thick and fast and conditions were not ideal, however I’m sure if I could see, the views would have been spectacular!

There is a small stretch of road walking to return back to the car which resulted in the lower dog friendly rating. Additionally, there are signs at Butterley reservoir stating that dogs must be kept on a lead. Once on the moors, Chutney was free to roam and there is no livestock to worry about.

I would think twice before taking an older or less mobile dog on this walk due to the steepness of the hills.

DOVESTONE, YEOMAN HEY AND GREENFIELD RESERVOIR CIRCULAR

Length: 12.27km

Time: Approx. 4 hrs

Difficulty: Difficult

Elevation gain: 497m

Chutney Rates (/5): 🐶🐶🐶🐶

This was by far the most difficult hike we did during our stay in The Peak District - one for the most adventurous of hikers - despite that it was probably the most fun!

The first thing to note is that the parking was absolutely horrific, there are two car parks near Dovestone Reservoir, both of which were absolutely packed full of cars with very little room to manoeuvre due to the sheer volume of traffic - get there early or don’t even attempt it.

We ended up parking on a side street about a mile away from the carpark which meant we had to alter the route from that on the AllTrails map, adding a hefty 4km on to the planned route!

Once we got going we were treated to tranquil reservoirs, stunning waterfalls and breathtaking vistas! Despite the busy car park, there is such a vast number of routes to take that the trail was relatively quiet for us.

There was a challenging hill climb of 497m which nearly killed me off but the views at the top were impressive! This route included visiting The Trinnacle, an instagrammable collection of rocks, which the brave among us like to climb!

From this view point, the app route continues to take you down Birchen Clough which involves an incredibly challenging scramble down the edge of a waterfall which you then have to cross at the bottom. I would recommend turning around and heading back on yourself if you’re not keen on climbing or if weather conditions are poor.

If we ever return to this route, I would do it in reverse and climb up the waterfalls as I feel like this would have been easier.

This trail, for the most part, was really dog friendly. There were no livestock to worry about and plenty of open space for Chutney to run around!

Walking along to The Trinnacle is quite narrow with a sheer drop into the valley, so we kept Chutney on the lead for this part.

Chutney coped incredibly well with the scramble down the waterfalls, we kept her off lead so she could find her own way down and often she showed us the best route! However, we did have to pass her down a 6ft drop - luckily she only weighs 12kg - but I have no clue how you would get a bigger dog down it!

I would avoid this route if you have an old dog or one that is not particularly agile.