Walking in Staffordshire/ Derbyshire near Peake’s Retreats glampsite

One of the great things about the location of both our glampsite and Cyprus accommodation is that there are plenty of places to go walking nearby.

In Staffordshire at the glampsite we have lot’s of beautiful walks directly from our doorstep without the need to drive to get to them. Visit the Staffordshire county council website here to view a map of all of the footpaths

The local pub is just a 1.2 mile walk away and you can either walk over the fields or down the country lane (note there is no footpath). At a steady pace it should take you around 20 minutes to get there (a little longer if you have children with you) Just ask us to point you in the right direction.

Staying in the village there are some lovely routes which take you on a tour of the local area, it was during a random walking adventure a few years ago that I discovered Anslow had a woodland with over 28.5k trees. A lovely place to go and let your (well behaved) dog have a little lead free time. Our cockapoo Monty loves exploring here.

If you like a bit of history then you would probably find the Hanbury walks very interesting, two of which take you right past the famous Fauld crater; the site of the largest non-nuclear explosion in the world. From Hanbury you can also take the slightly longer route and find yourself in the historic small town of Tutbury. Visit the Castle or one of the independent shops on the high street, or if you time it right their farmer’s market is not to be missed; with live singers, Morris dancers and up to 60 stalls ranging from plants and crafts to locally produced food, it is a lovely day out.

If you like a flat steady walk then the Trent and Mersey canal can be accessed just 3 miles from us at Shobnall Marina, where you can take a nice stroll in either direction. Head south west and you come to the lovely Bridge Inn at Tatenhill, where you can enjoy a tasty Italian lunch al fresco in their beautiful beer garden or carry on another few minutes to Branston Waterpark. Depending on how far you want to walk you can carry on down the canal until you reach Barton Marina and The Waterfront. Here you will find a selection of shops, restaurants, cafe’s and even a small cinema.

We also have Jackson’s bank just a 3 mile drive away in the opposite direction to the canal. Heading further into the countryside, near Hoar Cross. Jackson’s bank is popular with nature enthusiasts as it is a replanted ancient woodland that still showcases lot’s of natural flora and fauna such as bluebells and wild garlic. Part of the Duchy of Lancaster’s Needwood estate Jackson’s bank can be enjoyed as a short walk around the woods or take the public footpaths which link this walk to other longer routes, such as Branston-Jackson’s bank. 
Again, if you are thinking of timing your walk with a spot of lunch,The Meynall Ingram Arms is just down the road from Jackson’s bank. One of our favourites we would highly recommend The Meynall even if you are not visiting Jackson’s bank.

If you don’t mind venturing a little further we are located just 12 miles from the quaint little market town of Ashbourne; the gateway to the Peak District. Just past Ashbourne you will find Dovedale and it’s famous stepping stones. Or carry on to Ilam and Bunster’s Hill or Thorpe cloud. The Tissington trail can also be accessed from Ashbourne. A disused rail line; this traffic free 13 mile route is popular with both cyclists and walkers.

If you want to team your walk with some entertainment for the children, then Rosliston Forestry centre has so much to do it is really easy to make a day out of it.

With a large outdoor park, indoor children’s soft play area and learning centre, cafe, forests to explore, pond’s to go pond dipping in, a tucked away obstacle course, evening bat walks, laser tag in the woods, falconry and much much more the forestry centre is free to enter and walk around, just pay for parking and the additional things such as orienteering and falconry, but do book these activities in advance to make sure you get a spot.

Are you a JCB fan? Well the JCB WORLD headquarters is only a 20 minute drive from us at Rocester. You can park up and walk around the beautifully landscaped JCB lakes situated within the grounds of the headquarters. One of the things I love about the JCB lakes is the unusual range of water fowl you can find here, from black swans to hooded merganser there are so many that you just wouldn’t see down at the local river. Since the path around the main lake is flat and paved it is also a lovely place to take your children if they are learning to ride their bikes, I also like to take my daughter for her to be able to easily push her ‘babies’ in their pushchair. Just 5 minutes further down the road you will find Denstone Hall Farm shop, where we get all of our sausage and bacon for the breakfast hampers we provide. Voted the UK’s best large farm shop in 2019 it is well worth a visit. Enjoy lunch in the cafe or just browse the shop for local produce as well as beautiful homeware, jewellery and a bottle of something a bit different to your standard supermarket wine/cider/beer/gin to enjoy when you get back to you yurt.

These are just a few of my favourite’s. There are so many more walking ideas local to us, so if you are staying in our luxury yurts and have something specific in mind do be sure to ask us if there is anywhere we would recommend. A day of walking followed by a relaxing evening in the hot tub, BBQ and curled up by the woodburner in your super comfy superkingsize bed is an ideal way to spend a day and night with loved ones.