When I was planning the route for this section, I faced a dilemma. Should my outward route take in the beautiful Shining Cliff Woods and the ancient St Margaret's Chapel at Alderwasley, on the west side of the river? Or should I explore the remains of some old tramways and make my way up to Crich, perched high above the east bank of the Derwent? I wanted to do both. But I also had to follow the Derwent Valley Heritage Way along the Cromford Canal.
I decided on the Shining Cliff option, and did that loop with Toby. Then, a few days later, I unexpectedly had the chance to do another walk by myself. So I returned to the car park in Ambergate and set off for Crich. All of this rambling only advanced me a couple of miles along the Derwent Valley Heritage Way, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Walk 1: Ambergate, Alderwasley, Cromford Canal
There's a large layby on Holly Lane, Ambergate, which is very convenient for Shining Cliff Woods. It gets busy, but Toby and I bagged a space and set off into the woods. We went up, and up, and up. Past a quirky garden, past a small reservoir, past the youth hostel car park where there were wheelbarrows for luggage tethered to the gate.
Finally we reached the top and came out into open fields. Heading down into Alderwasley, we spotted a cross which turned out to be a war memorial, then arrived at the parish church. I thought it said Muggle over the door, but it proved to be a date: MDCCCL. 1850, right? FH would be Francis Hurt, who lived at Alderwasley Hall. I would discover more about the Hurt family on my next walk.
Continuing through the village, we reached St Margaret's Chapel. Now the village hall, it has been restored numerous times, most recently in 2011. There were a few benches outside which gave us a beautiful view. Unfortunately we hadn't brought lunch.
We crossed some fields to a Peak and Northern Footpaths sign. Following the arrow to Whatstandwell took us down a steady descent to the A6 bridge over the Derwent.
From there it was a flat 2.5 miles along the canal towpath back to Ambergate. We spotted two families of ducklings scooting about among the reeds. They moved too fast to photograph!
Each successive navigation has been squeezed in next to the previous one. Canal, railway, road, and river all jostle for space. Eventually we left the canal, crossed the railway, road, and river, and arrived back at our car. We were more than ready for lunch.
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| All four in one photo |
6.8 miles / 11 km
14 April 2025
Walk 2: Bullbridge, Fritchley, Crich
It was a glorious Easter Sunday afternoon. We'd thought we might go out as a family, but the boys were happy playing with friends, and Graham said he was fine relaxing in the garden. "Go for it," he said when I raised the prospect of a walk. So I did.
The Hurt Arms pub had an event in its grounds, with an inflatable helter-skelter on the banks of the River Amber. The Hurts were the local gentry, living in Alderwasley Hall from 1690 until 1929, and marrying into such influential families as the Arkwrights (who made their fortune from cotton mills including Cromford Mill) and the Gells (who lived at Hopton Hall, now near Carsington Water).
The dandelions glowed in the sunshine as I joined the Cromford Canal and followed the last little bit of towpath. The canal once ran all the way to the Erewash Canal, but now comes to an abrupt end at an gas depot. A footpath skirts around the heaps of pipes and goes into some wooded open space. Following it, I crossed what looked like an old trackway, then descended some steps through a bluebell wood.
At the bottom was a modern housing estate which had been built on the site of a former dye works. A sign showed where the canal used to run. Across a road called Bullbridge Hill, there was still some water, but it was more of a stagnant puddle than a canal.
I dropped down to the railway and reached the lower end of the Butterley Gangroad. This was built to carry limestone from the quarries at Crich to a wharf on the Cromford Canal. The rails are long gone, but a surprising amount of the structure is still visible. I followed it up the hill to Fritchley, spotting bridges, retaining walls, and level crossings along the way.
Fritchley is a small village that somehow supports two non-conformist chapels: a congregational church and a Quaker meeting house. Neither was open, but both appear to be still occupied.
Apparently Fritchley also boasts the oldest railway tunnel in the world, where the Butterley Gangroad passed under a road in the centre of the village. There's rather a nice little section where the old route of the railway has been turned into a vegetable garden.
Continuing upwards (Crich really is on top of a hill!) I passed a horse dressed as a zebra. Finally I reached Hilts Quarry, the top end of the Butterley Gangroad. I was rather surprised to see a Rolls-Royce sign on the gate.
Crich felt quite large and bustling. People wandered around the market place and congregated outside a pretty half-timbered pub. A square solid Baptist Church dominated the market place.
Up a bit more to the parish church of St Mary's. There was a war memorial, an Easter garden (complete with folded gravecloths) and a path made of tombstones.
The views are impressive. In the distance I could see a line of hills which I think must include Beacon Hill in Leicestershire, 30 miles away.
I was thankful to start going downhill again. I soon stumbled across a different dismantled railway. This one ran to Crich Quarry, and the top end has been repurposed as Crich Tramway Museum. Here, someone had adopted it into their garden.
After a short stint through a housing estate, I was out into open countryside again. I do love these views of the Derwent Valley. The house in the middle of this photo (if you can see it!) was built in 1859 by three Hurt sisters, Emma, Elizabeth, and Selina, who became well-known for their generosity in the parish. It's called Chase Cliffe.
The woods of Crich Chase were stuffed with spring flowers and patterned with tumbledown stone walls. A steep path took me back to the canal and the A6. I belatedly realised that the church on the corner of Holly Lane was, in fact, still functioning. The sign announcing it as St Anne's faced the main road; I had only seen the side view, which looked somewhat overgrown.
I finished with a gorgeous view of the Amber meeting the Derwent. Both rivers were serene in the spring evening, reflecting their surroundings perfectly.
7.9 miles / 12.7 km
20 April 2025
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