1 Peak District Hills and dales
Visit England’s Peak District National Park and you’ll have a full 555 square miles of hills, dales, rivers and streams, rugged gritstone escarpments, dramatic limestone gorges, windswept plateaux, picturesque towns, hardy little villages and uninhabited moorland to roam about in.
At 636m, the region’s highest point is Kinder Scout in Derbyshire, scene of the famous mass trespass of 1932, which helped bring about greater public access to the countryside. If you like a hike, you can cross Kinder Scout and head out over the Peak District on the Pennine Way, the UK’s first ever long-distance footpath. The area really is a walker’s must-visit, with numerous other trails such as the Peak Way Walk and Peak District Boundary Walk inviting visitors to pull on their boots and try out a section or two. There are paths for wheelchair-users, buggy-pushers and cyclists too, including the High Peak, Monsal, Tissington and Longdendale trails, all of which are on disused railway lines.
And after all that, a cup of tea and something sweet would definitely be in order. Make for Bakewell and you can sample an authentic Bakewell pudding (be careful not to call it a tart).
The YHA has a host of hostels in the park – most with a mixture of dorms and private rooms – making them an excellent means of exploring the area. They occupy an
