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In the Midland's upland region in northern England lies the Peak district. It was Great Britain's first national park and was established in the year 1951. It encircles parts of Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Yorkshire, and Cheshire.

Exploring the Peak District.

IIn the Midland's upland region in northern England lies the Peak district. It was Great Britain's first national park and was established in the year 1951. It encircles parts of Derbyshire, Staffordshire, Yorkshire, and Cheshire. This District is within 80 kilometers of half of the Great Britain's population. Stoke-on-Trent, Nottingham, Manchester, Derby, and Sheffield are closest to the Peak District. The Peak District is a hilly and mountainous region with steep slopes, rough terrain that is divided into boggy moors and dark grit stones in the north, and has green fields and pale limestone in the south. Over 35% of the parks' 1,438sq km has been designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

The breathtaking beauty of the Peak District has not been overlooked by the film industry with scenes from Pride and Prejudice filmed at Stanage Edge.

The Peak District is a beautiful part of the world,open to all, with events, walks and attractions to suit young and old, the able and less able alike.

Park Rangers conduct over 250 free guided tours ever year within the Peak District National Park, an ideal way to safely see one of the most visited national parks in the world.

Family Attractions.

The Peak National Park has a wealth of attractions for the visiting family, regardless of the great British weather.

Chatsworth Farmyard and Adventure Playground. Situated in the grounds of Chatsworth House, this is an excellent playground with a wide variety of activities for all ages.

Manor Park, Glossop. 60 acres of what was once Glossop Hall, you can enjoy Pooh sticks from bridges over the streams and feed the ducks. Crazy golf, childrens playground, miniture train and tennis.

New Mills Heritage Centre. An excellent model of the town of New Mills as it was in 1884 with guided tours daily.

Upper Derwent Valley Reservoirs. Including the Lady Bower reservoir, these 3 huge dams were used by the famous 617 'Dambuster' Squadron to practice dropping Barnes Wallis's bouncing bomb during WW2. There are high and low level walks, picnic areas, an information centre and ranger led activities.

Crich Tramway Village, Crich. This museum is home to the nation's collection of vintage trams. As well as the trams which run to and fro all day, many of the buildings have been saved and moved there brick by brick and really give a flavour of what it was like to live in the age of the tram. There is also an adventure playground with the 'Burma Bridge' for the older children with an indoor soft play area for the younger ones.

Gulliver's Kingdom, Matlock Bath. Gulliver's is a theme park with a wide variety of rides aimed at children aged 2 to 13 (although anyone over 10 is likely to find it a little 'tame' compared to other theme parks. For younger children it is a great day out.

Carsington Water, Carsington. This reservoir, maintained by Severn Water offers a wealth of activities for all ages. Walking, cycling, fishing, sailing, windsurfing and water skiing are just a few of the ways to pass your days here. There is also a very informative visitors centre, an adventure playground and picnic area as well as a 120 seater restaurant and outdoor cafes. Best of all, Carsington Water has free admittance.

Stately Homes and Great Houses.

The Peak National Park has an abundance of magnificent stately homes and houses. Many are now owned and maintained by the National Trust and so entrance is free for all National Trust members.

Hardwick Hall. This hall (or rather two of them) were built by the remarkable Bess of Hardwick who having been born as farmer's daughter rose, via 4 marriages, to become the 2nd richest woman in England, after Queen Elizabeth I. Breathtaking views and beautiful gardens make this place well worth a visit.

Chatsworth House, Chatsworth. Probably one of the most famous stately homes in the UK. A private house and still the for the Devonshire family. The house itself it well worth a tour, there are also extensive gardens, the highest gravity fed fountain in the UK, a farm park and an adventure playground. You can also simply park your car for a small fee, take a picnic and a ball and enjoy the grounds for free.

Haddon Hall, nr Bakewell. A beautiful fortified medieval manor house dating from the 12th Century and home to Lord and Lady Manners whose family have owned the house since the mid 1500's. Well worth a visit and some of you may recognise it from the films Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice.

Birthplace of the Industrial Revolution.

The Peak District can rightly claim to be the birthplace of the industrial revolution and where the factory system was invented.

The Derwent Valley World Heritage Site which stretches for 15 miles along the river from Matlock Bath to Derby was where in the 18th Century the power of water was first harnessed for the large scale production of textiles.

Masson Mills, Matlock Bath you can visit what used to be one of Richard Arkwright's mills where there is a working textile museum as well as a major shopping centre.

Cromford Mill, Cromford. This was the first water powered spinning mill, built by Richard Arkwright in the 18th Century and well worth a visit. As well as the mill site and exhibition you can also tour Cromford Village with its lock-up, workers housing and the mill water courses.

The Great Outdoors.

There is no better way to appreciate the beauty of the Peak District than by walking or cycling.

The Peak District and Derbyshire is prime walking country, most notably within the protected landscape of the Peak District National Park.

There is an enormous range of terrain with walks and trails for all abilities. There are even walks specifically aimed at families with young children with buggies and for those in wheelchairs.

There are hundreds of miles of waymarked and well managed paths as well as traffic free routes such as the Tissington Trail, High Peak Trail and Manifold Track which follow former railway tracks

In the historic Border Country you can walk part of the Trans-Pennine Trail which has a southern spur to Chesterfield from Rother Valley Country Park or if you prefer two wheels and are feeling energietic you could try the Pennine Cycleway.