The old Ashbourne to Buxton railway was opened in 1899 but regular passenger services ceased in 1954 and in 1971 it became a cycle trail – The Tissington Trail. The trail is named after the village of Tissington which is on the route.

We drove to the car park close to the start of the trail at Ashbourne and cycled towards Buxton. Whilst we hadn’t planned which direction to take, we were pleased to have selected this way as the entire 13.5 miles was uphill – a steady grind for the entire length of the trail. Plenty of unspoilt scenery on the route to Parsley Hay.

We stopped for a coffee at Parsley Hay, which is just past the point where the Tissington Trail and High Peak trails converge.

The return journey was predominantly downhill and required little effort whatsoever to complete. Still the entire journey had taken some 4 or 5 hours.

In the evening, we ate at the Chinese restaurant in Ashbourne.