Chatsworth sits where three kinds of Peak District meet: the parkland and river of the Derwent valley, the gritstone edges of the Dark Peak to the north and east, and the limestone dales of the White Peak to the west. A weekend based in Baslow or Beeley gets all three on foot from the door.
Friday evening: the park
Arrive, drop the bags and walk. From Baslow the path through the north park to the house and back is three miles on the flat, or from Beeley the river path to Calton Lees and the west front. Either is an hour and a half of parkland and river with the light going, and both end at a pub.
Saturday: the edges
The classic. From Baslow climb to Baslow Edge for Wellington’s Monument and the Eagle Stone, then north along Curbar Edge and Froggatt Edge above the Derwent, with the climbers on the crags beside you and the whole valley below. Drop down to Grindleford (station cafe, or the pub) and return along the river through Calver and Curbar village, or take the bus. Twelve miles with the extensions; six if you turn at Curbar Gap. The Baslow Edge and Curbar Edge page covers the core.
For a shorter day, Birchen Edge and Gardom’s Edge from the Robin Hood: Nelson’s Monument, the Three Ships, a Bronze Age enclosure and the pub at the end.
Sunday: the estate circuits, or the moor
The estate’s own routes are the gentle option: the Bakewell circuit over Calton Pastures (ten kilometres, three hours, pudding in the middle) or the Pilsley circuit through the villages to the farm shop.
The harder option is east: from Beeley up onto Beeley Moor to Hob Hurst’s House, the Bronze Age barrow, and on across the heather to the Hunting Tower for the descent through Stand Wood to the house. Navigation needed in mist, nobody up there, grouse everywhere in August.
Practical
- Map: OS Explorer OL24 (White Peak), or a phone app with it downloaded; the moor has no signal to speak of.
- Parking: car parks at Calton Lees, Curbar Gap, the Robin Hood and in the villages; the estate car parks charge unless you have a ticket.
- Weather: the forecast page is for the house at 120 m; add wind and subtract three degrees for the edges.
- Dogs: on leads on the estate and near livestock; the edges are access land.
- Pubs: every walk above ends at one. The pubs page has them by village with what OpenStreetMap records about food and dogs.