Welcome to Derbyshire Dales The story begins… solidified forming mineral veins. One Nature Reserve of the most common minerals found The rocks in the Reserve were formed within Lathkill dale today is lead ore or Galena (lead sulphide), which has been The Derbyshire Dales National Nature around 350 million years ago when the extensively mined. Reserve is made up of five superb Peak District lay near to the equator, under dales: Lathkill; Cressbrook; Hay; Long; a tropical ocean which supported a vast During the last Ice Age, 20,000 years ago, and Monk’s Dale. Carefully managed array of marine life. Shells, corals and mud the ground in Derbyshire was frozen by Natural England, they form one of built up on the ocean floor in layers, until (known as permafrost). At the end of the Ice England’s finest sites for wildlife and the weight of the sediment compressed Age the ice sheets began to melt, forming geology, providing an opportunity to these layers, eventually forming the fast-flowing rivers which wore away experience nature at its very best. You limestone of the White Peak. Some shells the cracks and fissures in the limestone, can access the dales all year. Come in survived and are preserved today as fossils. creating the deep valleys we see today. early spring to see woodland, wildflowers Since the glaciers have melted, water levels and birds, or in early summer to see the 100 million years ago, volcanic activity across the area have dropped and many internationally-renowned grassland forced hot solutions carrying minerals ancient river valleys are now dry, such as in flowers and insects. Guided walks and through the cracks and joints within the Long dale. events run throughout the year, see our limestone. As the solutions cooled, crystals website www.naturalengland.org.uk for details. Lathkill is the most accessible dale for casual visitors. A mix of wildflower-rich grassland, scrub and ancient woodland make it a treasure trove of wildlife. From spring through to late summer you can find more than 40 species of wildflowers, making this habitat one of the dale’s most important natural assets. For further information on the other four dales please visit our website for a full downloadable guide. National Nature Reserve Nature National Please remember to follow the Derbyshire Dales Derbyshire Countryside Code at all times − these sites are working Nature Reserves. Wildlife conservation and peaceful enjoyment of England © Natural nature are our goals. Dry River Valley, Long Dale Mandale Arch The influence of human hands Soughs were intended to drain water from Getting to the Derbyshire Dales the ore fields to allow deeper mining, but Thousands of years of human influence eventually the miners dug so deep that the By foot: Several long distance paths run are evident throughout Lathkill, in the soughs were no longer capable of keeping through or close to the Reserve, including remains of medieval corn mills and sheep- the mines dry. the Limestone Way and the Monsal washes. During the 18th and 19th centuries Trail. Youth Hostels, camping barns and the dale was prized for its ‘grey marble’. A victim of this intensive mining, Lathkill campsites are located close by. This was actually a form of limestone, Mine was forced to shut its doors, until extracted from Ricklow Quarry, and can be advancements in pumping technology By rail: The nearest rail stations are located seen today in many of Derbyshire’s finest made it possible for it to reopen in 1825. at Matlock, Buxton and Hope. © Natural England © Natural Its agent, James Bateman, bought in a houses, including Chatsworth. By bus: Bus stops are marked on the map. revolutionary pumping engine to help Lathkill was also the scene of a lead rush, and solve the problem of underground By car: There are direct routes from the M1 even a small gold rush, and remains of old flooding. This was installed in a shaft under and M6 into the Derbyshire Dales. mines and works are scattered among the the building, which later became his home Lathkill Dale is situated two miles south- woods and slopes. Although they are now – Bateman’s house. In 1836, Bateman also west of Bakewell, between the villages of absorbed into the landscape of the dale, they installed a 15.6-metre waterwheel, reputed Over Haddon, Monyash and Youlgreave. form part of its essential character. to be the second largest in the country, which could pump over 18,000 litres of There are car parks at Over Haddon and Moor Lane, Youlgreave. There are toilets at Local farmers and smallholders have water per minute. This powerful machinery Over Haddon and Monyash. The eastern mined the land from shallow shafts since allowed huge amounts of ore to be mined, end of the Reserve offers an easier route, Roman and Saxon times. The Industrial but the costs were never recovered and the the western end of the footpath can be Front cover photograph: Lovely Lathkill © Natural England Revolution at the end of the 18th century, mine closed in 1842, with financial losses. narrow and rocky in places. brought massive change to the dale, with Natural England is here to secure a healthy natural environment two mines leading the way in extracting A similar story occurred at Mandale Mine, for people to enjoy, where wildlife is protected and England’s where a water wheel was installed in 1840, traditional landscapes are safeguarded for future generations. lead ore. Investors, then known as ‘Quaker Adventurers’, started a mammoth project supplemented by a Cornish beam engine in ISBN 978-84754-123-2 Catalogue Code: NE154 at the Lathkill Mine in 1740, to construct an 1847. But the mine closed in 1852 having lost Should an alternative format of this publication be required, underground drainage channel, or ‘sough’. £36,000. please contact our enquiries line for more information: 0845 600 3078 or email [email protected] This sough became known as the Lathkill Sough, taking 30 years to complete and The end of the 19th century brought with www.naturalengland.org.uk costing £10,000, but resulting in just £6,500 it an end to mining and quarrying, and This publication is published by Natural England under nature slowly began to take back the land. the Open Government Licence - OGLv2.0 for public sector worth of ore. information. You are encouraged to use, and reuse, information The remains of mine machinery, as well subject to certain conditions. The other major mining operation was the as the aqueduct and leat which carried For details of the licence visit www.naturalengland.org.uk/copyright Mandale Mine. In 1797, miners began to water to power the pumps, can still be Natural England images are only available for non commercial drive the Mandale Sough into the north side seen and have now been given scheduled purposes. If any other information such as maps or data cannot be of Lathkill. It took 23 years to drive this sough monument status. used commercially this will be made clear within the publication. nearly two kilometres into the dale side. © Natural England 2014 Printed on stock comprising 75% recycled fibre. Welcome to Derbyshire Dales The story begins… solidified forming mineral veins. One Nature Reserve of the most common minerals found The rocks in the Reserve were formed within Lathkill dale today is lead ore or Galena (lead sulphide), which has been The Derbyshire Dales National Nature around 350 million years ago when the extensively mined. Reserve is made up of five superb Peak District lay near to the equator, under dales: Lathkill; Cressbrook; Hay; Long; a tropical ocean which supported a vast During the last Ice Age, 20,000 years ago, and Monk’s Dale. Carefully managed array of marine life. Shells, corals and mud the ground in Derbyshire was frozen by Natural England, they form one of built up on the ocean floor in layers, until (known as permafrost). At the end of the Ice England’s finest sites for wildlife and the weight of the sediment compressed Age the ice sheets began to melt, forming geology, providing an opportunity to these layers, eventually forming the fast-flowing rivers which wore away experience nature at its very best. You limestone of the White Peak. Some shells the cracks and fissures in the limestone, can access the dales all year. Come in survived and are preserved today as fossils. creating the deep valleys we see today. early spring to see woodland, wildflowers Since the glaciers have melted, water levels and birds, or in early summer to see the 100 million years ago, volcanic activity across the area have dropped and many internationally-renowned grassland forced hot solutions carrying minerals ancient river valleys are now dry, such as in flowers and insects. Guided walks and through the cracks and joints within the Long dale. events run throughout the year, see our limestone. As the solutions cooled, crystals website www.naturalengland.org.uk for details. Lathkill is the most accessible dale for casual visitors. A mix of wildflower-rich grassland, scrub and ancient woodland make it a treasure trove of wildlife. From spring through to late summer you can find more than 40 species of wildflowers, making this habitat one of the dale’s most important natural assets. For further information on the other four dales please visit our website for a full downloadable guide. National Nature Reserve Nature National Please remember to follow the Derbyshire Dales Derbyshire Countryside Code at all times − these sites are working Nature Reserves. Wildlife conservation and peaceful enjoyment of England © Natural nature are our goals. Dry River Valley, Long Dale Mandale Arch The influence of human hands Soughs were intended to drain water from Getting to the Derbyshire Dales the ore fields to allow deeper mining, but Thousands of years of human influence eventually the miners dug so deep that the By foot: Several long distance paths run are evident throughout Lathkill, in the soughs were no longer capable of keeping through or close to the Reserve, including remains of medieval corn mills and sheep- the mines dry.