The new Steel Cotton Rail Trail is a 62-mile “choose your own adventure” for hikers. This 14-section route through the Peak District lets walkers “choose your challenge and altitude” and “decide whether you want trees or moors, towns or fields.”
This incredible flexibility is thanks to its “rail-pegged” design. Each of the 14 day-length walks starts and ends at a train station, so you can pick the exact experience you want, from a “metropolitan mooch” to a “summit-fiend” climb.
Want a gentle, flat day? “Opt for canal and riverside walks,” like the “mellow, easy walk” along the River Goyt or the historic Peak Forest Tramway Trail, with its “crunch of dry acorns.”
Want a challenge? Head for the “middle hill and moor sections” for “bursting lungs” and “suddenly much bigger views.” Want drama and history? Head for the “magnificent bridges” of New Mills.
This new, fully waymarked trail is an “almost perfect” way to explore the “magical moods” of the Peak District. It’s a route that truly has “something for everyone.”