Padley Gorge + Bolehill Quarry | 3.5 Mile Circular

Know Before You Go: Padley Gorge + Bolehill Quarry At A Glance

The Peak District offers an abundance of fantastic walks, especially in the White Peaks area. This beautiful short circular walk is a family and dog friendly route that takes you past Padley Chapel, the remains of Bolehill Quarry and then Padley Gorge. It is worth noting however, that the route is not suitable for pushchairs due to the terrain. If you like this walk, and fancy a longer route then I highly recommend checking out the Bolehill Quarry + Higger Tor and Padley Gorge walk.

We completed this walk in summer and the weather was warm and sunny — a good thing about this route is there is plenty of woodland and shaded areas. It would be a great walk to do in the autumn — one of my favourite seasons for walking.

The route also has some historic significance. Near the start you pass Padley Chapel and the ruins of Padley Manor, before heading up to where Bolehill Quarry was. Bolehill was a huge quarry employing hundred of people back in its day. The coarse gritstone found in this area of The Peak District was valuable for making millstones, which were used to grind grain into flour and power mills across Britain. Today you can see the unfinished and discarded millstones, following the demise in the industry due to changing milling technology and economics. You can read more here on what Peak District Millstones are and why they are so important to the Peak District’s history.

Padley Gorge + Bolehill Quarry Route Description

Stage 1

We parked up along the Station Road and used the RingGo app to pay for our parking before heading down past the Grindleford Station Café. Continue walking straight ahead and you reach a signed footpath for Padley Gorge on your right. Ignore that and follow the road around past the cottages and continue all the way along passing some houses to your left. The road bends to the right where you will see Padley Chapel and the remains of Padley Manor.

We continued along the road and took a right after crossing the cattlegrid and through the gate to start the climb up towards Bolehill Quarry. This initial section at the time of our visit was vastly overgrown so it was a bit of a fight to get through the overgrown vegetation. Then once through we took the path to the left for a short distance before there is a path off to your right leading straight up. This is the steepest section of the walk. Head straight up and the path leading through the trees towards the right.

Stage 2

There are a couple more short inclines, at the top of the second incline, take a left and enjoy walking through the woodland. You will soon hit the impressive rock face at Bolehill Quarry, there are also millstones discarded around the area. This section of the walk is a great spot to stop for lunch or just to explore the different paths. Follow the grassy path around and you will head towards the road (it is around here where cows are often grazing so be sure to keep your distance and keep dogs on the lead). Here you reach a gate onto the main road, through the gate turn back on yourself and keep along the narrow footpath towards Surprise View. Before you reach the bend, look over the road and there will be a footpath sign. Cross over the road here and follow the narrow footpath (back on yourself slightly) but the path winds up to a seated area (more stunning views to be had here).

Stage 3

From the seated area there is a path leading around to a gate. Go through the gate and take a right and follow the path down. In a short while you will emerge into a car park, go through the car park and cross over the road at the entrance. There is a narrow footpath along the road for a shot distance. Take a right and head through the gate (there is a note on the gate saying Bull in field) so again take care, especially with young children and dogs. Follow the narrow path down and you arrive at a stream with a footbridge. Don’t cross over, insetad keep the stream to your left and follow it around past a second footbridge. Again don’t cross the bridge, head into the woodland.

Stage 4

Follow the path through the woodland, shortly you will reach a section where there are steps up in front of you or a path turning to your left. Take the path left and follow it down, eventually crossing a footbridge. Here there is an incline in front of you or a path to the right — take the path to the right and follow this back to the road where you started the walk. There is a tight squeeze stile to go through to get back onto the road.

Got the OS Map App? Follow the route by clicking the link below.

Where To Eat And Drink After Walking Padley Gorge + Bolehill Quarry

Depending on the time you arrive back the Grindleford Station Café is a great place to grab something to eat and a drink. It is dog friendly and has seating both inside and outside — and they take card payments. Their menu offers an impressive selection of hot and cold food. A full breakfast will cost you £10, toasties start at £5.65 and jacket potatoes start at £7.30.

For those looking for something slightly bigger, there are burgers available from £5.90, a selection of set main meals including meat and potato pie served with chips, mushy peas and gravy (£11.10). The mains section also has a homemade chilli con carne and a number of Yorkshire pudding options. The specials are certainly worth a look at. Choose from homemade stew, Yorkshire pudding and chips (£12.25), homemade soup (£7) or homemade chicken curry, naan bread and chips (£12.25).

Pics from the peaks: more from Padley Gorge + Bolehill Quarry