The Peaks – perhaps one of the best-connected National Parks in the UK, and certainly the best of those north of London. The nothern half of the park, the Dark Peak, features stunning hills and rugged rocky outcrops. The southern half, the White Peak, brings gentler rolling hills with luscious green dales and dramatic gorges.

The jewell in the Peak District’s easy-access crown is the Hope Valley Line, running through one of the most beautiful parts of the park, with opportunities to explore all kinds of landscapes. It connects Manchester in the west, with Sheffield in the east, and has five stations inside the park. Trains generally run at least once an hour, so you can get from London to the heart of the Peaks in under three hours.

A little further south, the Buxton line leaves Manchester Piccadilly and under an hour later calls at Chapel-en-le-Frith and Dove Holes, before terminating in Buxton. Buxton is one of the larger towns in the Peaks (although isn’t technically part of the National Park), so makes a great base to explore the surrounding area over a few days (whether by bike, bus or foot).

As if two lines out of Manchester Piccadilly into the Peaks wasn’t enough, the Manchester – Glossop line serves the towns of Glossop and Hadfield, just outside the boundary of the National Park.

At the opposite end of the Peak District, in the White Peak, is the town of Matlock. Sat right on the border of the National Park, Matlock is the northern end of the Derwent Valley Line (running north from Derby) and the southern end of Peak Rail – a heritage railway running a little way north to just south of Rowsley.

Adventures in the Peaks…