Natural England - Derbyshire Dales NNR

Derbyshire Dales NNR

Lathkill Dale is a popular reserve and we recommend it for the casual visitor. The other dales are for more seasoned walkers.

Derbyshire Dales NNR

County: Derbyshire

Main habitats: Woodland, Lowland Grassland

Area: 335 Ha

Derbyshire Dales NNR lies within the Peak District National Park. The reserve consists of five separate limestone valleys Lathkill, Cressbrook, Monk's, Long and Hay. These five dales represent some of the best examples of wildlife and geology in the White Peak.

What to see

Lathkill Dale has its river with many dippers, spectacular views, fine woods and a great display of blue-flowered jacob's ladder in June.

Lathkill's top sights

  • The view down the dale from the top of Ricklow Quarry steps
  • The hay meadows in June
  • Lathkill Head Cave in full winter flood
  • Dippers-visitors can't fail to see them on the river
  • The deep, dark mineshaft under Bateman's House
  • 360 million year old fossils in Ricklow Quarry
  • The clearest water-try the top end of Carter's Millpond
  • The woods in early May

Dippers

Dipper nesting sites have become increasingly popular with photographers over recent years. Advice for nature photographers of Dipper nesting sites is available in a downloadable leaflet: (288kb)pdf document.

And how to see them:

  • There's a track running from the lane below Over Haddon to Carter's Mill. The track is suitable for wheelchairs and pushchairs (as is the gate by Over Haddon Mill) although the surfaced lane leading to it from the village is steep. The track follows the river upstream through the woods and towards Carter's Mill, passing Bateman's House and other lead mine remains along the way. Often walked as a there-and-back route from Over Haddon.

  • Easy walking in from the Monyash end of the Dale (where there are toilets) with a spring and summer option of taking a detour through the hay meadows. The route gets a little trickier in Ricklow Quarry before the main Dale is reached, with jacob’s ladder to be found and the Head Cave several hundred metres further on.

  • Take a detour through Ricklow Quarry from one of the nearby paths. See the fossils and take in the view from the top of the steep flight of steps.

  • Cross the Dale from north to south by crossing Cales Dale footbridge, climbing up to One Ash Grange and following the paths round to Monyash.

  • The reserve can be traversed west to east (or vice versa) in about an hour and a half at a fast pace.

  • Most of the open dalesides in the reserve are Access Land where one can walk freely, but please cross boundaries carefully, preferably at stiles or gates.

  • Dogs should be kept under close control at all times - especially when there are sheep grazing - and should never be encouraged to enter the river.

Caves

Information for cavers interested in the White Peaks District is available in a downloadable leaflet Do You Dig Caves? (on SSSIs): (472kb)pdf document, produced in partnership with the Derbyshire Caving Association.

Cressbrook Dale has steeper paths, leading you from ash woods to a turf landscape dotted with rockrose and alive with butterflies and moths, broken by rocky outcrops and screes. Monk's Dale is a wilder prospect, needing more effort to reach its inner sanctum, but well worth that exertion. Hay and Long Dales are small and make a great trip for naturalists looking for limestone flowers and insects.