Chee Dale Adventure
Having driven alongside this valley many times when I worked in the Peaks, I’ve never visited until this weekend. I was seeing photos almost weekly on Instagram of those infamous Chee Dale stepping stones. It was time to explore it for ourselves! It was well worth the drive and even though the weather was fairly cold and damp, it worked out well in the end. The dale is both fascinating and beautiful, especially as the spring flowers of celandine and wood anemones are beginning to carpet the surrounding woodland. It was fantastically quiet and peaceful walk. Our boys are now 7 and 5 (almost 6, very important!) and luckily for us are keen to explore and love to get outdoors. This walk was very muddy in places, with some slightly scary drops too! But it all adds to the adventure. 
We parked at the car park opposite Topley Pike Quarry, there is a charge, but it’s for the Peak Park so I’m happy with that. We followed the river heading towards Bakewell, for about 4ish km, until the sign for Blackwell. The path then crossed the river, up the hill to join the Monsal Trail. This was nice easy walking, with the excitement of tunnels, just watch out for cyclists. Overall about 6-7km walk, just right for our legs and finished with a well deserved ice cream.
