This easy Dovedale walk is one of the best in the Peak District, with beautiful scenery and lots to see along the way. You’ll stroll alongside the gorgeous River Dove, past towering limestone cliffs and secret caves, before arriving in the beautiful village of Milldale. You’ll also cross the famous Stepping Stones and have the chance to take in the stunning views from Thorpe Cloud - if you don’t mind adding in a little bit of a climb.
It’s a special walk, with great paths that make for a leisurely stroll which is perfect when you want to see stunning scenery without putting in too much effort.
The Dovedale to Milldale Walk
The stats
Distance: 6.8 miles (11km) total including the side trail to Thorpe Cloud
Elevation gain: 140m or 300m with Thorpe Cloud
Difficulty: Easy
The only part of this walk that has anything more than a staircase or two to climb, is if you decide to head up to Thorpe Cloud - which we’d recommend for the great views. Otherwise, it’s a leisurely stroll with great paths.
The side trail up to the cave (which is not signposted) has some slippery terrain, but we’ll share the easiest route up in the notes below.
Starting the trail at Dovedale Car Park
The walk begins by heading left from the Dovedale car park coming to a small bridge 100m later. This is where you need to decide whether or not you want to climb Thorpe Cloud.
If you do, you’ll head right over the bridge, and if not, you’ll carry on straight.
If you’re avoiding Thorpe Cloud, you’ll continue straight and arrive at the Stepping Stones after less than a 10 minute flat stroll.
The routes meet again at the Stepping Stones, so if you aren’t interested in reading about the Thorpe Cloud climb, you can skip over the next section and pick the walk up again from the Stepping Stones section.
Climbing Thorpe Cloud
After heading right over the bridge, you’ll be walking alongside the base of Thorpe Cloud. Due to erosion, you now have to walk all the way round to the back of the hill in order to climb it. There are blue markers which take you all the way to the top.
You’ll begin following the first marker uphill roughly 130m after the bridge. The narrow gravel path is quite easy to ascend on when dry, although it’s uneven for the most part.
The trail is uphill for almost the entire way, except for a short flat section roughly half way up.
Atter you’ve been climbing for 600m you’ll be at the back of the hill and turn left up the much steeper path. It’s a bit rougher here, but again it’s not slippery when dry.
You’ll reach the top of Thorpe Cloud approximately 300m from the turn off (just over 1.1km from the car park).
If you veer left near the top the last bit is an easy scramble, if you veer right it’s a normal trail. The top of Thorpe Cloud is flat and rocky and there’s plenty of room to sit and admire the views. It’s a great sunset spot, so you could always choose to climb it at the end of your walk if preferred.
When you’re ready to head down, you need to use the same track back to the junction and then follow the trail around the base of the hill on the other side.
We actually cut down somewhere else, not realising that the trails on the other side of Thorpe Cloud are also closed due to erosion (you’ll see the signpost at the bottom). The trail we took was not in great shape and we’d definitely recommend using the official route instead.
Even on the official path, it’s going to be a bit steep at first and the uneven terrain makes descending harder than ascending.
Once you’re at the bottom of Thorpe Cloud you’ll round the corner and see the famous Stepping Stones.
The Stepping Stones to Reynard's Cave
The Dovedale Stepping Stones are an iconic feature in the Peak District and many people visit Dovedale for the stepping stones alone.
If you’ve walked up Thorpe Cloud, you won’t cross the stepping stones now, but you will at the end of the walk. If you skip Thorpe Cloud, you’ll cross them twice.
The next part of the walk is really easy, yet it doesn’t compromise on great views.
The wide gravel path is almost entirely flat, with just one set of stone stairs to climb up and down close to Lovers Leap (a small pile of rocks which you can climb to offer a somewhat obscured view over the cliffs).
You’ll be walking alongside the emerald green river which is incredibly picturesque. The limestone cliffs make it much more dramatic and the rock formations get more impressive the further you go.
Just over 1.5km from the Stepping Stones you’ll see a path heading uphill on the right. If you weren’t looking out for it you probably wouldn’t think anything of it, but if you are then you can’t miss it. This path will take you up to Reynard's Cave.
It’s quite steep and a little slippery, as it’s loose soil (more on the descent than ascent), but if you head up on the right side and hug the edge, there are rocks and patches of grass to help make it more stable.
The walk up to the first cave is 100m long, but before you reach the cave you’ll see an impressive natural arch.
Between the arch and the cave the terrain becomes a bit steeper, and there are quite a few rocks to negotiate, which could be slippery when wet.
The arch is really pretty and we preferred it to the cave. The cave opening behind the arch looked cool, but there’s not much to see inside.
There’s a second cave a couple of minutes to the left of the first one. Again there’s not much to see, but the entrances viewed from inside the caves are picturesque.
To Ilam Rock and the Dove Holes
Once you’re back on the main trail you keep following the river and pass some pretty boardwalked sections.
There’s even a tiny little cave beside the end of one of the boardwalks which has crystal clear water running through it. Just 650m from the junction with Reynard's Cave you’ll reach Ilam Rock.
You’ll come first to a path on the right, which heads uphill for a few seconds, and comes out a couple of tiny caves - more like holes in the rock.
Just a minute away over the bridge from the main trail you’ll come to Ilam Rock. It’s an unusual shaped limestone formation which has a larger cave at the base. Again there’s not much to see inside, but kids would love having a poke around.
The view from the bridge is also fantastic as you can see the unusual rock formations on both sides of the river.
From Ilam Rock, it’s just 750m of flat easy walking before you reach the Dove Holes (walking back on the side of the river you’ve been on the whole time, don’t follow the path beyond the bridge by Ilam Rock).
The Dove Holes are some large caves in the side of the cliff which are right beside the trail. You can climb up into them very easily - it takes less than a minute.
There are lots of smaller holes inside and even a few plants growing, including some lovely wildflowers when we visited in early summer!
Continuing on to Milldale
The next part of the route takes you into the charming village of Milldale, which is 1.5km from the Dove Holes.
You’ll continue following the river before it veers away slightly and you’ll start getting some lovely views out to the hills on the right.
It’s all very picturesque and the trail continues to be flat and leisurely. You’ll soon arrive at the old stone bridge which takes you into Milldale.
Just beside the bridge you’ll see the Milldale Information Barn which has some displays on the local area, including details on its geology and daily village life.
You can then head into the village, which is as tiny as it is picturesque. All the cottages are utterly gorgeous and there’s even a hole in the wall cafe - Polly's Cottage.
You can grab a cup of tea or cold drink and then sit on the bench by the water.
Heading back to Dovedale
You can make this walk a circuit, but it adds on some extra hills to climb - and to be honest - we just fancied a relaxing stroll back along the river again. It’s pretty enough that it’s no hardship to walk back the same way, and in fact, we’ve done it several times and still see something new each time.
If you return the same way, it’s all flat but for a couple of short staircases. If you climbed Thorpe Cloud you’ll also get to hop over the Stepping Stones for the first time.
The Stepping Stones are best photographed from the angle you’ll see when you are walking back from Milldale, as you have Thorpe Cloud looming behind them, which you don’t see from the other direction.
It’s a classic Peak District photography spot and the stones are always fun to cross. It’s easy and grippy when dry, but they can get a touch slippery if lots of wet feet have been over them!
The final 10 minutes from the Stepping Stones to the car park is flat, with lovely views of the river and Thorpe Cloud.
All in all, it might be easy, and for the most part a gravel path, but it’s one of the prettiest walks in the Peaks and definitely one of our favourites.
Parking for the Dovedale Walk
The car park for the walk is owned by the National Trust. It’s free for members, or £4.50 for up to 4 hours parking and £6 for over 4 hours. Note that although you can’t enter the car park after 7.30pm, you can still exit after this time. The bollards will just go down as you drive up to them.
Although the car park is huge, it can fill up on weekends and school holidays. You might want to avoid the middle of the day to make sure you can find a space.
There are toilets at the car park, but nowhere else along the trail.
The Dovedale car park is located a 15 minute drive from Ashbourne, 35 minutes from Bakewell and 1 hour 15 from Sheffield.
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