I feel like Britain is sometimes underrated when in actual fact it is home to some of the most beautiful and picturesque landscapes. There are so many great places to visit in England, Scotland and Wales – my list is as long as my arm! Especially with Covid being around nowadays, I feel like a lot of people will be opting for a ‘staycation’ holiday this summer, so what better time to start doing your research? Anyone who knows me, will know how much I rattle on about Cornwall being my absolute favourite place in the UK (see this post I did a while back on my top recommendations for Cornwall here). However in this blog post I want to focus on another gem which is in fact very close to home for me – The Peak District!

I feel incredibly lucky to have such stunning views so close to home. Surprisingly, I still have a large amount of the area to explore, however I am excited to share where I have been so far!

Last weekend I took a trip to Edale; I went on a 10 mile hike from Grindsbrook, along Kinder Scout and then down Jacob’s Ladder. 

Read on to find out more about the trail…

I would suggest parking up in Edale itself (there are toilet facilities and a few good cafes/ pubs) and then walking to Grindsbrook from there. At first it doesn’t feel as if the path is actually leading anywhere (although it is signposted) but make sure to stick with it. 

Be prepared for the hike up Grindsbrook to quickly turn into a steep scramble up the rocks. It’s definitely not one to do with small children. It is very hard work but once you reach the top, the incredible views are well worth the effort.

Once you’ve admired the view and are ready to move on, make sure that you go straight ahead across the moors – not left. This part of the trail can be misleading because it doesn’t look like a well trodden path, but keep to it because this will eventually lead you to the next part of the hike – the Kinder Scout trig point.

It’s a relatively flat walk along the top towards Kinder Scout and then after that point the trail starts to head downhill. Jacob’s Ladder is a particularly steep downward path.

Once you’ve reached the bottom of Jacob’s Ladder, you need to head towards Upper Booth. This is also another part of the trail that becomes misleading. You will at some point, come to a campsite which you need to actually go through. We made the mistake of not doing this and we ended up coming out on the road; it wasn’t a busy road but still not the most ideal path to follow!

All together it took around 4 and half hours for us to complete the hike, which was also including several short stops along the way. The All Trails app has rated the route as ‘hard’ which I have to agree with; there are some challenging aspects to it but overall it is a really fun hike to complete, with some incredible views to top it off!

I am definitely planning to return to Edale in the future to explore more of the area. Let me know if you’ve completed this trail or if you have any other recommendations for The Peak District!

Thanks for reading.
Chloe x