DAY 3: CHATSWORTH HOUSE & EYAM

THE PALACE OF THE PEAK & THE PLAGUE VILLAGE

MORNING

Handsome CHATSWORTH HOUSE, 4.5 miles east of Bakewell, is the grandest of country piles, heavy in history and surrounded by vast grounds that are just ripe for running off some steam. Known as the Palace of the Peak, Chatsworth is home to the Duke and Duchess of Devonshire, and has been passed down through 16 generations of the Cavendish family since their ancestors bought the original manor in 1549. You could easily spend an hour or so in the Grade I-listed HOUSE itself [open daily from 10am | £24, under-17s £12.50, under-4s free, family ticket (2 adults, up to 3 children) £61], admiring the regal Painted Hall and the State Apartments, each one more magnificent than the last, but it’s Capability Brown’s delightful GARDENS [included with House ticket; Gardens only £14, under-17s £7.50, under-4s free, family ticket (2 adults, up to 3 children) £36] that are the real joy of a visit. The Little Explorers’ Trail links key sites like the Cascade, the Maze and the Emperor Fountain (which shoots water 250ft into the air), and loops around to the FARMYARD AND PLAYGROUND [£7, under-4s free, family ticket (2 adults, up to 3 children) £26], where you can pet donkeys, sheep and pygmy goats – there are handling sessions and milking demonstrations daily – or get stuck into a rope park, trampoline, slides, zip wire and sand play area.

AFTERNOON

From Chatsworth, you’re heading north to the attractive Hope Valley and the grey-stone village of Castleton. Along the way, the route up the A623 takes you past EYAM (pronounced “Eem”), a pretty hamlet 6.5 miles northwest of Chatsworth that is better – and more grimly – known as “The Plague Village”. In 1665, when infected cloth from London triggered an outbreak of the bubonic plague at the local tailor’s house, Eyam’s residents entered into a self-imposed quarantine to prevent the disease spreading beyond their boundary. It lasted 14 months, during which time over a third of the villagers perished. It’s a sombre visit but a fascinating one nonetheless – and, in 2021, all the more pertinent. EYAM MUSEUM [open daily until 4.30pm | £3.50, under-18s £2.50, family ticket (2 adults, 2 children) £10], opposite the (free) car park in the centre of the village, is a good starting point, charting the history of the plague and its impact in Eyam, which is all too evident on a walk round the village. Heading down the hill and turning left onto Church Street, you’ll pass the tailor’s house and several other “PLAGUE COTTAGES”, each signed by a plaque bearing the names of those who died. From the village square, further along the street, carrying on up New Road and taking the footpath on your left leads to the RILEY GRAVES, where Elizabeth Hancock buried her husband and six children, all of whom died within a week in August 1666. Turning right at the square instead, up Lydgate, you’ll pass the DARBY GRAVES before picking up the signed footpath to the BOUNDARY STONE, which marks the edge of Eyam and the start of Stoney Middleton. It was here that neighbouring villagers left provisions for the people of Eyam, in exchange for money that was placed in pools of vinegar (to prevent the spread of the disease) in the small holes that you can still see in the top of the stone.

It's around 9.5 miles from Eyam to Castleton, your picturesque base for the second half of your trip.

TOP TIP The crags and outcrops of the Peak District are some of the best places to try your hand at ROCK CLIMBING and ROCK SCRAMBLING, a great half-day alternative for children who are more suited to scaling slabs than wandering round stately homes. Several companies, such as Acclimbatize, offer taster sessions, which cover basic climbing techniques and will introduce you to a variety of styles such as chimneys, cracks and corner climbs. Rock scrambling involves hauling yourself through gullies, over boulders and under rocks and might be a better option for slightly younger children, or those without such a head for heights. Half-day sessions of either rock climbing or rock scrambling cost around £45 per person.

WHERE TO STAY

EASTRY COTTAGE