The flat and easy way to explore the Peak District National Park

The Peak District National Park has four former railway lines which have been converted into trails for walkers and cyclists. They're mostly flat, so great for families and people beginning to explore the outdoors.

The Tissington Trail runs for 13 miles from Ashbourne in the south to Parsley Hay in the north.

It was built by the London and Northwestern railway in 1899 to connect Buxton and Ashbourne.  When it closed in 1967, the Peak District National Park bought it, removed the tracks and transformed it into a trail.

The remodelled signal box and car park is the only thing left at the former Hartington station.

The landscape along the railway line has to be preserved, using traditional techniques like dry stone walling and hedge laying.

"I love that it is a traditional craft, I like hedge laying as well, so the old traditional crafts that connect you with the land. 

I love that we are preserving this land for future generations. There is a knack to it, there are certain ways you have to lay the stone, making sure you get the faces in the right way. 

It's a learning curve and I'm still learning the ropes."

Fran Horsford, Ranger

Read more:

• What is a National Park? Why was it created and what does it do?

• 70 facts for 70 years of the Peak District National Park