Millers Dale Car Park - Peak District NP - Buxton

Dame David Frith

Quite a large car park does get busy so u may have to wait to get a spot ,but has a nice cafe and toilets a good place to follow the monsal trail or other near by walking paths

Tim J

This is the only car park in the immediate area for the Monsul trail and it's pretty good. You can pay by Ringgo app or contactless payment at the machines and it's not too expensive.
There's a cafe and toilets in what was the old station building and then you are straight out onto the trail where you can walk or cycle.
There are several EV charging bays and an overflow area for busier days - however, even this can get full on good weather days in the summer.

Jeremy Peck

A large carpark but it does get busy at weekends and school holidays. It's not cheap but where is these days. You can pay by card or use Ringo app. The app is handy because you can extend your time so you're not rushing your walk. Lovely cafe there too.

Bekki Hughes

Absolutely beautiful spot. We did go for an organised abseil for fundraising but ended up having a beautiful time. Lovely place for dogs he went in the river and the kids loved it. Ended up having a lovely family day out

mark Prysor-Jones

Good size car park. Not overly expensive. Toilets and cafe in the old station building adjacent. Good place to join the Monsal Trail. Many, many cyclists, hard work if you are walking a dog.

Philip Wagstaff

Start of our walk of the monsal trail great place to start which ever way your going round. Cafe with toilets & car park, very busy bank holiday weekend.

Tomasz Zawadzki

Fantastyczne miejsce na spędzenie czasu z rodziną obowiązkowo porządne buty, dużo błotnistego i śliskiego terenu

tom mathew

Great.
The Monsal Trail is a cycling, horse riding and walking trail in the Derbyshire Peak District. It was constructed from a section of the former Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midland Junction Railway, which was built by the Midland Railway in 1863 to link Manchester with London and closed in 1968. The Monsal Trail is about 8.5 miles (13.7 km) in length and opened in 1981. It starts at the Topley Pike junction in Wye Dale, 3 miles (4.8 km) east of Buxton, and runs to Coombs Viaduct, 1 mile (1.6 km) south-east of Bakewell. It follows the valley of the River Wye. The trail passes through Blackwell Mill, Chee Dale, Millers Dale, Cressbrook, Monsal Dale, Great Longstone, Hassop and Bakewell. The trail has numerous landmarks including Headstone Viaduct, Cressbrook Mill, Litton Mill and Hassop railway station, and passes through six tunnels.

The Monsall Trail follows a section of the former Manchester, Buxton, Matlock and Midlands Junction Railway, built by the Midland Railway in 1863 to link Manchester with London. The line was closed in 1968 by the Labour Minister for Transport Barbara Castle, not by the Beeching Axe, and remained unused for twelve years before being taken over by the Peak District National Park.

The route through the Wye valley was necessitated by the Duke of Devonshire's objection to the railway passing through his land (which included not only Chatsworth House, but extensive grounds north of Rowsley). The route meant that the line had to pass above the town of Bakewell, rather than through it. The Duke of Rutland, of Haddon Hall, insisted on the construction of Haddon Tunnel to hide it from his view, but he used Bakewell railway station, which was built to a grander design than normal and carried his coat of arms. The Duke of Devonshire later realised the value of the railway, and his offer for the Midland Railway to run through Chatsworth came too late. He was the force behind the construction of Hassop railway station, which, although nearer to Bakewell than Hassop village, meant he did not have to share a railway station with his neighbour.[3] Great Longstone station (Longstone before 1913) served Thornbridge Hall, and the railway station design, with leaded glass windows, reflected the architecture of the hall.

For many years the trail could not follow the trackbed through the tunnels at Monsal Head and Cressbrook which been closed for safety reasons and the trail was diverted to avoid them. The tunnels were walked by Julia Bradbury in BBC TV's Railway Walks: The Peak Express.[4] Many access points and diversion paths were unsuitable for cyclists, wheelchairs or people with walking difficulties because of steep uneven stone steps or narrow paths. Plans to make the tunnels safe and re-open them to the public were given the go-ahead at a cost of £3.785 million.[5] The tunnels were formally opened on 25 May 2011 at a ceremony at the Headstone Viaduct after being used from 13 May 2011. The trail can be used by wheelchair users with level access at Bakewell, Hassop railway station (disabled toilets at Bakewell and Millers Dale railway stations) and Millers Dale.