Search Results for: fernilee reservoir

Weekend Dog Walk – Fernilee Reservoir (Goyt Valley)

Dog walk in the Goyt ValleyThe Goyt Valley provides a great mixture of places for your dog to have some exercise. However, you need to be aware of the Countryside Code and ensure that if you are entering Open access land between the 1st March and 31st July you must ensure that your dog is kept on a short lead to protect ground nesting birds.

One of our favourite gentle walks is around Fernilee reservoir. There is limited parking in this area, but I have indicated 3 places on the map below, where you can park. If you use the zoom control on the map, you will notice that there are two access points from the A5004 (Long Hill) to Fernilee reservoir (one to the south of the reservoir and one to the north of the reservoir – both on the right hand side as you look at the map).  At the southerly access there is only space for 3 or 4 cars, but at the northerly access point, there is space for a few more, as you can park along the access road itself.

The Walk

Basically you can start at either end of the reservoir and walk either clock wise or anti clockwise around the reservoir.  You will see from the map, that there is a wooded area on the left of the reservoir (as you look at the map) and this has a lovely waterside path that you can follow. Alternatively you can start at the top end of the reservoir and walk down the wide stoned path towards Errwood reservoir, which is the start of the water that you can see on the map.

Tip: On a rainy day, it is much more sheltered walking through the wooded section, so you could just do a linear walk there and back on that side of the reservoir, should you choose to do so.

This is a very popular walk for dog walkers and other walkers, so your dog will have lots of opportunities to socialise with dogs and other people.

Pub nearby

The Shady Oak (Fernilee) this is a little bit further along Long Hill and is very dog friendly.

 

Things to do in Buxton

Buxton Spa Hotel is pet friendly
Buxton Crescent Health Spa Hotel (Dog Friendly)

There are numerous things to do in Buxton with your dog. In this post we are going to look at places where you can eat, drink and enjoy with your dog.

About Buxton

Buxton is a thermal spa town situated in the Peak District, Derbyshire. It has a myriad of Georgian and Victorian architecture, with beautiful parklands to discover too.

There are plenty of dog friendly bars, pubs and cafes as well as some unusual attractions.

This post may contain affiliate links. This means that we may receive a small commission when you click on that link and subsequently order something. There is no additional cost to yourself, our commission just helps us maintain and run this website.

Dog walks in Buxton

Here are a few suggestions as to where you can walk your dog in and around Buxton.

Solomon’s Temple and Grinlow Woods

Buxton is home to the Buxton Country park, and Solomon’s Temple is a favourite place for dog walkers to head to.

Solomon’s Temple, is a Victorian folly which was built at the top of Grin Low (hill). You can climb to the top of it and experience stunning views across Buxton and beyond. I wouldn’t recommend that you take your dog up Solomon’s Temple as accidents can happen, and dogs have fallen from this in the past. However, they will love running around the surrounding woods and fields. I must also mention that Solomon’s Temple is situated in part of a working farm, so there might be cattle up there on occasion.

Solomons Temple

You can find out more about this walk, please read our Weekend Dog Walk – Solomon’s Temple

The Pavillion Gardens

Buxton Pavillion Gardens is a 23 acre magnificent Victorian park, containing a boating lake, bandstand, landscaped grassland and play areas. It is very popular with families and dog walkers.

You can while away many pleasant hours walking around the park. For instance you could sample the refreshments from the Pavilion itself or even just bring a picnic.

There is also a small scenic train that follows a short circular route inside the parkland. Not one for the dogs though, but small children love it!

Goyt Valley Walks

Just a short trip up the road (follow Long Hill out of Buxton), you will find the Goyt Valley.

This is a walkers paradise! We have spent many a long hour here with one of our dogs. There are moorland walks to explore, some woodland areas and also a reservoir that you can walk around.

Dogs enjoying a walk around Goyt Valley
Dogs trotting along from Shining Tor

For more details about Goyt Valley walks, you should try this website. Or for a specific dog walk you can try our Weekend Dog Walk – Fernilee Reservoir

Recommended dog walk books

More unusual dog friendly activities

Here are a couple of more unusual activities that you can do with your dog!

Buxton “Tram” Tour

Discover Buxton Tours – you can travel on the Wonder of the Peak (a newly converted Victorian “tram” – previously a milk float!) and spend a leisurely time being chauffeured around the sites of Buxton. Dogs are welcome.

The Wonder of the Peak - Buxton Tram
Tilly waiting to board the Buxton Tram

Buxton Family Treasure Hunt Trail

Here is a more unusual activity that you can do with your family and the dog! The family treasure hunt trail takes you around the trail hunting for pieces of code where you are seeking the magical realm of the Goddess Arnemetia.

Dog Friendly Pubs

After a strenuous dog walk, you might be in need of some refreshments! We have listed below, some of the dog friendly pubs in Buxton.

The Railway – Bridge Street, SK17 6BS – you’ll find a dog friendly area in the bar.

53 Degrees North – 8a Hall Bank, SK17 6EW – people happily eat here with their dogs.

The Old Clubhouse – 3 Water Street, SK17 6XN – this is opposite Buxton Opera House.

Red Willow – 1 Cavendish Circus, Buxton SK17 6AT – This is a converted bank which is very dog friendly.

The Old Sun Inn – 33 High Street, SK17 6HA

Buxton Brewery Tap House – Old Court House, George Street, SK17 6AY – currently operating from Staden Lane

The Cheshire Cheese – 37-39 High Street, SK17 6HA – This is a great pub to eat with your dog.

The Duke – 123 St John’s Road, SK17 6UR – on the way out of town, near to Grinlow Woods for a dog walk after!

Dog Friendly Cafes in Buxton

If you would prefer to visit a dog friendly cafe rather than a dog friendly pub, then Buxton has plenty to choose from!

The Hydro Cafe: 75 Spring Gardens, SK17 6BP. They even have a special Doggy Menu!

Everything’s Rosy Vintage Tea Rooms: 4-8 Hardwick Street, SK17 6DH

Charlotte’s Chocolates: Unit 1 Cavendish Arcade, The Crescent, SK17 6BQ

Cafe at the Green Pavilion: 4 Terrace Road, SK17 6DR

High Peak Bookstore & Cafe: Ashbourne Road, SK17 9PY – Dogs are welcome throughout the bookstore!

Eat at No5 – 5 London Rd, SK17 9PA – there is outside seating provided, but it’s next to busy main road.

The Tradesman’s Entrance: 13 Scarsdale Place, SK17 6EF

Pooles Cavern Cafe: Green Lane Sk17 9DH – Whilst the cavern itself does not allow dogs, the cafe does.

Sacro Lounge: 22-23 Springs Shopping centre SK17 6DF

Carriages Restaurant: Newhaven, near Buxton SK17 0DU

As you can see, this is quite a list of dog friendly cafes in Buxton! Hopefully you will find one which suits your needs. 🙂

Dog Friendly Hotels

There are several dog friendly hotels that we have listed below.

The Palace Hotel: Palace Road SK17 6AG – dog friendly rooms are available.

Buxton Crescent Health Spa Hotel: A stunning recently refurbished 18th Century building.

The Old Hall Hotel: Sited next to the Buxton Crescent Hotel, The Old Hall is reputed to be the oldest hotel in England.

We hope that you enjoy your visit to Buxton with your dog. Please have a look at some of our other posts to discover more towns that you can visit in the Peak District with your dog.

Top 10 best Peak District dog walks

Here’s what we consider to be our top 10 best Peak District dog walks. They vary in distance and terrain, but all can be enjoyed with your dog.

Please note: There may be affiliate links on this website. This means that we earn a small commission when you click and subsequently order something. There is no additional cost to you, it simply helps us run this website.

1. The Bakewell Loop

The Bakewell Loop has to be the most popular Bakewell dog walk on our website. It starts from Bakewell town centre and follows part of the Monsal Trail before descending back into Bakewell through fields and footpaths.

This is a lovely Bakewell dog walk. It is a pleasant circular dog walk around Bakewell, which follows part of the Monsal Trail and includes a public bridleway and some roads. You’ll get some spectacular views of Bakewell as you make the return journey across the fields. Apart from the initial walk up the hill towards Bakewell Station, the rest of the walk is relatively flat and easy going.

There are plenty of dog friendly pubs and cafes that you can visit once you return to Bakewell, but there is also the Hassop Station on the Monsal Trail where you can get refreshments. There is a covered area outside where you can sit with your dog.

2. Dog walk around Fernilee reservoir

This is a lovely circular route around the Fernilee reservoir which can be found in the Goyt valley near Buxton.

If you type SK17 6SX into google maps, you’ll be able to see whereabouts it is situated within the Goyt Valley.

Basically you can walk around the entire reservoir. One side of the reservoir is a flat wide path which is suitable for pushchairs. On the other side of the reservoir you will walk along a woodland section, mainly tracks and narrow paths. The wooded section is not really suitable for pushchairs – It would be much easier to do a linear walk along the opposite side of the reservoir.

More details about the walk can be found here.

Some recommended dog walk books

3. Solomons Temple, Buxton

Postcode: SK17 9DH

This is a lovely woodland walk from the Pooles Cavern car park up through the woods to Solomons Temple. You can climb the temple and get spectacular views of Buxton. Although please be careful with dogs around the temple, we had a friend whose dog decided to jump and suffered nasty injuries as a result.

There is a cafe at Pooles cavern which is dog friendly. There is seating outside for dogs, but they are also allowed inside.

The nearby pub The Duke is also a great place to get a bar snack or quick drink after your dog walk around Solomon’s Temple.

4. Padley Gorge, Grindleford

Postcode: S32 2JA

Directions: Take the B6521 towards Calver. From A623 turn onto B6001 at Calver and then B6521 in Grindleford towards the station. Park at the station.

There is a great circular walk from Grindleford Station- walk along the river cross the wooden footbridge to the open country above the woodland and cross down to the other side of the gorge – taking in the contrast between open moorland and shady woodland. There are refreshments at the cafe close to the station. You’ll find a large seating area outside. Perfect for muddy paws and boots.

5. Monyash Meander

Post code: DE45 1JJ – there is a small car park or you can find a space on Chapel Street.

This is a circular walk from the village of Monyash. The Bulls Head in Monyash is a very dog friendly pub and the Old Smithy Tea rooms next door is a dog friendly cafe. This gives you a choice of refreshment stops once you’ve finished the walk.

Part of the walk follows the Limestone Way which is a pleasant walled track that you follow heading towards Lathkill Dale. For details of the walk, click here.

6. The Wild Rhubarb Walk, Millers Dale/Chee Dale

Postcode: SK17 8SN

This is a more adventurous walk which begins at Millers Dale car park and then follows part of the Monsal Trail including walking through some of the tunnels on the trail. It then drops down to the waterside and you follow a rather rocky path through Chee Dale towards the end of the trail. Sturdy boots are required for this trail and it is quite tricky in places underfoot. A bit of rock scrambling is required, so the kids might enjoy it.

It’s spectacularly beautiful too! You’ll feel at one with nature.

Details of the dog walk can be found here.

7. A dog walk from Cromford Mill

Postcode: DE4 3RQ

Another circular walk where you will enjoy some canal side walking before heading up a steep incline towards Black Rocks. It starts and finishes at Cromford Wharf car park and you will find plenty of refreshments stops in and around the Mill.

For more details of the Cromford Mill dog walk, click here.

8. A dog walk around Ladybower Reservoir

Post code: S33 0AQ

Time: Approx 2 hours if walking at moderate pace and stopping for photographs along the way!

If you fancy a weekend walk, then try the Ladybower Reservoir circular dog walk. It is a lovely scenic walk in the Derwent Valley, and part of the walk includes the Derwent Dam, which was the scene of practice flights for the Dambusters raids during World War 2.

It is easiest to start the walk from the Fairholmes Visitor centre, where there are toilets and refreshments. There is a car park which can be used for a small charge. Alternatively you can try and find free spaces on the approach road, but these often fill up very quickly.

If you start from the Visitor Centre, simply head to the top right corner of the car park and find the well marked path that eventually will run alongside the waters edge. You’ll be heading towards Ashopton viaduct, which you will probably have driven across to get here. You’ll walk across the viaduct and then shortly after, look for the footpath sign that leads you back down the other side of the water. At this stage it is quite a wide tarmac road that you will walk along. You will be able to walk as far as the Derwent Dam, and you’ll see signs for the East Tower where you can get spectacular views of the dam.

Once you’ve viewed the dam, you can follow a well marked path back to the Fairholmes Visitor centre which marks the end of the walk.

9. A dog walk from Chatsworth House

Postcode: DE45 1PP

A visit to the Peak District can’t be complete without visiting the beautiful Chatsworth House home to the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire. There is some spectacular parkland to walk around with your dog and they are very dog friendly. You will find bowls of water available near the toilets and also the Stable yard area.

The Carriage House cafe, which is located in the 18th century stable block, is dog friendly, and has a designated dog friendly area where you can sit with your dog (when government restrictions allow).

There is also plenty of outdoor seating available in the stables courtyard. A limited section of this is undercover, and there are also patio heaters for when it gets a little chillier.

Whilst dogs are not allowed in Chatsworth House itself, they are allowed in the gardens and also the gift shop.

For more details about the Chatsworth dog walk, check this post.

10. A dog walk from Eyam

Postcode: S32 5QW

This is an interesting village to visit – as it is also known as the “plague village”.

During the Plague, the village of Eyam suffered dreadfully, as did many of the Peak District villages. However, the locals attempted to stop the disease being spread further, by putting themselves in quarantine. Apparently the plague virus had been brought into the village by a local tailor on some infected cloth which he had bought whilst in London. The tailor himself died quickly, and 250 other villagers also died, including the rectors wife (the rector himself had instigated the quarantine).  

There is a pleasant walk that you can do which features a little bit of woodland walk before descending back into the village to enjoy one of several dog friendly cafes or perhaps one of the pubs.

For details of the Eyam walk, click here.

We hope that you have enjoyed our Top 10 best Peak District dog walks and hope that you will find a new favourite walk to do with your dog.

Little Happy Hounds Favourite Dog Walk

Little Happy Hounds

Little Happy Hounds favourite dog walk

One of our favourite dog walks in Fernilee Reservoir, part of the Goyt Valley and just in the beginnings of the national park.

Just after Whaley Bridge Derbyshire you head through the village of Fernilee and into Peak District National Park, eventually on the right is a track that leads to reservoir and car park.

Then there are so many dog friendly options, an easy circuit around the reservoir and back, or you could branch of to Errwood Reservoir and higher Goyt Valley, or if you branched off right  it takes towards the village of Taxal.

One side the reservoir is wooded and you can explore the many paths and eventually at the top there is a quiet logging road.

Fernilee reservoir

Fernilee reservoir

I have never had any issues with any of my dogs running off or anything at all.

So many options, your rarely have to keep your dogs on leads, except when going through farm yards, it so dog friendly, very scenic, beautiful blue water against the back drop the trees… stunning place I have lots more pics!

Weekly roundup – dog friendly news in the Peak District

Challenging weather for dog walks

Snow tipped Peaks view from the Monsal Trail

Snow tipped Peaks view from the Monsal Trail

This week has been a bit challenging from a weather perspective. I don’t mean huge snow drifts and difficult driving conditions – we’ve already had all that. I mean how quickly the weather changes. To demonstrate what I mean, I thought I’d show you some pictures of a dog walk that I did earlier in the week.

I decided to walk along the Monsal Trail before doing the school pickup, and was enjoying a pleasant winter sunshine walk. It was so cold, I had resorted to wearing cycling shorts underneath my jeans and I had no less than 5 layers on my top half! The sun was out and the dusting of snow that we’d had was sparkling, so I decided to take a picture.

Beautiful blue skies on the Monsal Trail

Beautiful blue skies on the Monsal Trail

Shortly afterwards, I met one of my usual doggie walking friends and we remarked on how lovely the weather was. I don’t think I’d walked much further, when the first snow flakes started to waft around. I looked up, and noticed that the sky had gone from bright blue to light grey and foggy looking. It had been no more than 10 minutes from taking the first picture, and now look at the weather…….

10 minutes later, a snow storm

They say the weather in the Peak District changes fast, but this is ridiculous.

Not sunny in the South

A couple of days later, after watching in amazement the media pictures from the South, showing traffic chaos in what seemed like less than an inch of slush, I decided to take a picture of some of the snow spectacles up here. I couldn’t resist taking a picture of this beautiful snow drift. This had appeared after a day of very light snow and strong winds. Amazing the force of nature.

Pretty snowdrift on my dogwalk

Pretty snowdrift on my dogwalk

 Discovering new dog walks

During a particularly nice day this week, I decided to go to the Goyt Valley for a dog walk. I parked at The Street car park, which lies almost in between Errwood and Fernilee reservoir.

I walked to the top of the carpark (uphill) and followed the roughly trodden footpath which runs parallel with the road. After a short walk, the path naturally crosses towards the road and you will notice a five bar gate on the right hand side with a signpost to the Midshires Way. The post is signed Hoo Moor and Fernilee Reservoir.

This path is actually a wide stoned track which goes through the centre of some woodland. It was such a beautiful day, I took a photo.

Crisp Winters morning on the Midshires Way in the Goyt Valley

Crisp Winters morning on the Midshires Way in the Goyt Valley

There are signs indicating that there is forestry work being undertaken, so care would be needed if you heard vehicles moving around. There was plenty of evidence that tree felling actuvities had taken place!

Neatly piled logs on the Midshires Way

Neatly piled logs on the Midshires Way

I continued along the track until I reached the gate at the end. At this point, you have an opportunity to turn right and go towards Fernilee reservoir or carry straight on towards a farm and head to Taxal. I chose the latter option, but in hindsight  it would have been far better to turn back and follow the signs to Fernilee, since the walk was not particularly stunning and Tilly had to negotiate a nasty stile, where the local farmer had decided to fence all around the stile and not allow any animals under or around it. The only resort was to jump over it. Thankfully Tilly is pretty athletic and managed it without any problems.

By the time I had negotiated my way round the various footpaths and stiles I arrived back at Fernilee reservoir and walked through the woodland back towards Errwood reservoir and The Street car park, where I had begun the walk.

Looking forward to the weekend

I don’t think the weather is going to be very nice. It’s given rain and light snow during the weekend. There are the usual Craft fairs on in Bakewell, but I think it will be a case of donning the waterproofs having a swift march around with the dog (or at least my husband will..) and then off for a bit of Retail Therapy in the “big smoke” (aka Sheffield!)

Enjoy!