Event Report: Bakewell to the Monsal Trail and Hassops

Event: Bakewell to the Monsal Trail and Hassops

We are delighted to share an event report from our Trustee and Walk Leader, Dave Miller.
The group enjoyed Bakewell to Mosal Trail and Hassops on Thursday, 9th May 2024.

Event Report

We had a slightly late start for the walk today due to the unreliability of the bus service from Sheffield. However, the sun was shining, there was a beautiful blue sky and we had a group of 10 people. In today’s group we had three new walkers plus Conrad Gordon, who is one of our trainee walk leaders. The walk was led by Dave Miller with Steve Bates providing back up and unlimited conversations.

We walked out across Bakewell Bridge, which was constructed in the 1300 century and is a grade1 listed structure. We entered the park, which was on our left, and walked through it until we reached Holme Lane. Walking along Holme Lane we reached the magnificent building that is Holme Hall. This is another Grade1 listed building built in the early 1600 century, and one of 180 listed building in Bakewell.

Holme Hall has a dark secret, which I uncovered in researching for the walk. The original owners daughter, Mary Wells, married Henry Bradshaw, whose brother John was the President of the High Court of Justice for the trial of King Charles I. As the first Lord President of the Council of State of the English Commonwealth John Bradshaw passed down the death sentence for Charles 1st and for his execution.

John Bradshaw died in 1659 and was buried in Westminster Abbey, but on the return of Charles 2nd, in 1660 Bradshaw’s body was exhumed, along with Henry Ireton and Oliver Cromwell, and were hung outside Westminster Hall and then beheaded with their heads left on pikes.

There is folk law that says that Bradshaw’s son James had already exhumed the body of his father and reburied him in Jamaica. It is said that the body was reburied on Gun Hill 2.5 miles SW of the northern city of Falmouth, in the parish of Trelawny. 

The walk continued along the side of Holme Hall, climbing out of Bakewell to the open aspects above the town, offering amazing views across the county. We passed Ewe Farm with cattle and young bullocks in the fields, either side of the walkway. The route made for easy walking for everyone, following the fairly steep climb out of Bakewell.

Bakewell to the Monsal Trail and Hassops

As we headed out to join the Monsal trail we passed fields covered in Dandelions and Daises. Steve Bates asked if any of the group had heard of the Bakewell Nutter! As none had he told the story of someone who walks our route, and for reason best known to themself, removes the nuts off of the  bolts holding the gates together. A true nutter!

We finally joined the Monsal trail and walked along it towards Hassops Station, where we stopped for coffee and cake, as well as some shade from the sun.  We met up with a large group of DofE (Duke of Edinburgh) students from Manchester who were at the start of a three day adventure in the Peak District.

The route from Hassops took us back towards Bakewell where we left it at the old Bakewell railway station. We then walked down from the station back into town, finishing at the visitors centre. The walk had taken us two and three quarters hours to complete and happily for our walkers, a bus arrived within a few minutes for the journey back to Sheffield. An excellent walk that all enjoyed.

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Peak District Mosaic is a charity who creates and sustains engagement between the Peak District National Park and new audiences.

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