Peak District Walks for Families

Blog by the Wild & Woolly Walker

With the summer months now upon us, many of us turn our attention to taking advantage of the warmer weather and sunshine. What many of us struggle with though is planning a walk that is long enough to be classed as a good walk, but short enough so that we don’t end up carrying the little one who insist their legs are falling off! Here then are some of my favourite Peak District walks for families. Some are more strenuous than others, but all of them can be enjoyed with the whole family!

1. Burbage Edge Circular

This is a walk that offers some fantastic views. You can easily park on the Longshaw Estate (which is a National Trust car park), cross the road and find your footpath behind the Fox House pub. This footpath will take you to the main footpath which runs along Burbage edge. From here, the footpath is easily followed; approximately halfway across, you will meet a cross roads. Carry straight on to stay close to the edge. All along this route, the kids will have plenty of rocks to jump on and climb to keep them entertained. This footpath will bring you to Upper Burbage Bridge. This is a great to stop, grab some pictures and the kids can have a little paddle too! Usually, there is a van selling some refreshments and food too. 

From here, you can meet the wider recreational route (which we call ‘the yellow path’) under Burbage Rocks. This is an easy route, offers more fantastic views into the valley and you can also watch the rock climbers practising climbing the edge. This path will take you back to the main road (A6187) where you can cross over and go into the woods. Turn left in the woods and this path will take you back to the Longshaw Estate where the children can either play in the fields or you can enjoy refreshments at the cafe. Your car is only a short two minute walk from here. 

2. Longshaw Estate & White Edge Circular

The Longshaw Estate offers some fantastic Peak District walks for families, here is my favourite. From the Longshaw car park, walk past the small visitors lodge and towards the cafe. After you have crossed the stone bridge, and before you reach the cafe, turn left to walk through the woods. They’ll be plenty of tress for your little ones to climb around here and plenty of places to hide too for a game of hide and seek. The woods will bring you out to a path which runs at the top of the Longshaw Estate (great views from here over towards Castleton and Mam Tor) and will take you to White Edge. At the end of this path, there is a main road to cross, be careful here and take your time crossing as it can get a little busy. 

Once you’ve crossed the road, you can continue along the Bridleway towards the house. Once you have passed the house, this footpath will take you down the field and towards the A625 where you can cross and meet the main footpath back to the Longshaw Estate close to the cafe. If you want to make this walk little longer, rather than carrying along the bridleway towards the house, you can go through the gate and up onto White Edge (a high chance of seeing stags and deer around here in September time). Walk across the Edge until you reach a brick wall, here you can turn right to follow the footpath down to the Grouse Inn. Once you meet the main road and the Grouse Inn, it’s a short walk up the main road until you meet the footpath taking back onto the Longshaw Estate. 

3. The Stanage Edge Short Circular

Stanage Edge is an iconic place in the Peaks and there are plenty of ways to incorporate it into your walk. For the family though, the round is my favourite. Park at the Stanage Edge ‘Popular’ car park (this is on road parking with plenty of spaces). Walk down the narrow road, when you get the bottom of the road, turn right and follow the road around until you reach the toilet block (which will be on your left). Opposite the toilet block, you will find a footpath going up the towards The Plantation. This footpath takes you up through the woods and winds all the way up onto Stanage Edge. On this route, there are plenty of trees and rocks for kids to climb so the walk doesn’t get too dull for them. 

Once you reach the top of Stanage Edge, turn right and continue walking along the edge. There are plenty of places to stop for a picnic along here and admire the views. Along this footpath, you will walk past Robin Hoods cave (good fun for the kids) and the famous spot where Keira Knightley stood in Pride and Prejudice. Before the path starts to bend towards the left, there is an easy footpath down back to the car park on the right hand side. 

4. Mam Tor

The “Mother Hill”, Mam Tor isn’t only famous because of it’s land slide but also because of the Great Ridge, its very popular with families and offers both some great views of the Peak District and fantastic walks. For this walk, you can park on the road near the Blue John cavern (there are toilet facilities here and a cafe if you need anything before your walk). From here, it’s just a short walk up the road and you’ll find a gate leading you up onto Mam Tor. This is an easy and short walk, so perfect for most families. The view from the top is marvellous and one of of my favourite spots. 

From here, you can either decent Mam Tor the way you came, or you can make this walk longer if you wish. To make the walk longer, you can follow the path along the Great Ridge to Hollins Cross. From here, you can turn right and go through the gate to go down the path to and then through the woods. This path will take you past a farm and then to the old road (which is now a dead end). Follow the old road up (you will notice here that you are climbing the old road which is now closed due to the land slip). This road is interesting for younger ones and they can explore the unique surroundings of Mam Tor and this road also take you back to where you have parked. 

5. Ladybower Reservoir 

Another iconic place in the peaks and somewhere that I have recently become very fond of! You can simply park along the road on the A57 (make sure you park in the allotted car parking spaces which are easy to find, rather than just the solid white line). From here, walk down the road, across the bridge and find the public footpath through the wooden gate. From here, you can follow this path through the woods and take in the beauty of this landscape from several beaches and viewing spots. This path will take you all the way up to the visitors centre where you can then follow the path right to Derwent Dam. Little ones will likely be interested in the still functioning dam and there is a field in front if you wanted to stop here for a break and a picnic. 

From the dam, you can continue along the path to cross over to the other side of the reservoir. Make sure you always follow the path to stay beside the reservoir and it’s impossible to get lost! Be sure to stop at the sign telling you about the old village of Derwent which is now fully submerged! On a good day though, you might be able to see the top of the old church spire! 

This route will take you back to the A57 where you have parked and is a relatively flat walk (which a few ups and downs here and there). 

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about my favourite Peak District Walks for Families and enjoy the walks too! It would be great to see you out on some of the route we love! Please comment below!