News
All our latest news will be featured here, from new Greenway developments to special events.
Towpath and trail works
We are working to improve the towpath along the Chesterfield Canal over the next three months.
Wherever possible we will keep the towpath open and a banksman will guide you through the works if necessary.
We are aiming for minimum disruption and diversions will be well signposted along the route. Please download the latest news from the related documents below.
Chesterfield Canal, Staveley
The Trans Pennine Trail and canal towpath from Mill Green Bridge to Lowgates, Staveley is now open for walkers and cyclists following a long period where it was closed while the Staveley Town Basin was built.
The Public Footpath remains officially closed, but there is now a safe route on the ground for people to follow.
This is a temporary re-opening of the TPT in this specific area. Parts of the new route are fully surfaced, but a short 200m section remains a temporary surface. This section of the TPT is now being re-surfaced by the on-site contractors.
Any short term closures will be advertised in advance, or users will be guided around any smaller works on the ground by banks men.
Please be aware that this may become very muddy in wet weather. This situation arises from the ongoing restoration of the Chesterfield Canal in this area by the Chesterfield Canal Trust Work Party and Derbyshire County Council, but the outcome will be a new section of the TPT that is re-surfaced and fully open to use, hopefully by the end of January 2012.
Canal aqueduct reopens
A canal towpath and historic aqueduct has reopened after being closed while we carried out essential repairs.
Councillor Simon Spencer, Cabinet Member for Highways and Transport reopened the 163-year-old aqueduct which carries the Cromford Canal over the Derby to Matlock railway line. He was joined by members of the Cromford Canal Partnership.
Repairs were carried out to the cast iron straps that held the structure together, the metal trough has been cleaned and painted with a protective paint system and the old timber towpath has been replaced with a new freestanding steel towpath. Whilst water levels were low, silt was excavated from the canal bed, reeds removed and leaks repaired. The wettest December for 10 years brought the water table back up and has enabled the canal to be rewatered from Cromford to Ambergate.
The aqueduct is a scheduled monument and is thought to be the only surviving example of a suspension girder bridge left in the country. Repairs were needed to address corrosion to the aqueduct and concerns about its long term stability.
The aqueduct's status as a scheduled monument means the county council has a duty to maintain it and all repairs must be approved by English Heritage.
Councillor Simon Spencer said: "The Cromford Canal is enjoyed by over 100,000 people each year so I'm pleased that we have been able to re-open it on time. I'm confident that the aqueduct can be safely enjoyed by visitors to Derbyshire for years to come".
Cromford Canal - Recent events
The Cromford Canal hosted a variety of events and helped in making the 2011 Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site Discovery Days the most successful and popular yet with 130 activities and 12,000 participants. High Peak Junction workshops came to life with a working forge, Leawood Pump was again in steam.
Another notable event was the British Heart Foundation Winter Challenge that saw nearly 1,000 people take part in a sponsored walk on the High Peak Trail and Cromford Canal towpath, this event raised approx. £60,000 for the British Heart Foundation.
Canal towpath surfacing
Allroads, the County Council's highways team, have completed work to improve the surface along an 800m section of towpath from Crich Chase (near Ranch Corner and the Severn Trent Pumping works) northwards towards Whatstandwell station. Visitors can enjoy an uninterrupted walk along the towpath from Cromford to Ambergate.
Working with partners
At the beginning of October the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers cleared reed from the canal channel from Ambergate to Gratton's Bridge. They returned in November to clear the thick encroaching reed at Leashaw Farm and started the task at Cromford Meadows. In all, BTCV have carried out 72 volunteer days so far this winter. Work will continue in January.
Award that says we're the mane people
We've been given an award by the British Horse Society for our work in opening up routes for horse riders and providing safe, off-road parking for horse boxes.
Our rangers worked with local riders to plan access to traffic-free bridle paths and secure parking for horse boxes and trailers at country parks.
Our head ranger Steve Barringham and colleagues have made access to country parks and the wider countryside easier and safer for riders and horses.
Tour of Elvaston grounds and gardens
On Saturday 22 October around 40 members of the public joined Elvaston Castle's head gardener on a fundraising tour of the grounds and gardens around the castle.
The tour, which lasted three hours, started from the main car park and concluded in the Old English Garden where light refreshments were served. During the tour the group was taken back in time to the mid 1800s, when Elvaston's Gardens were probably at their most spectacular, whilst bringing the group up to date with what's happening in the grounds and gardens today.
The funds raised are aimed at inspiring local young people to learn about and get involved with nature; supporting the creation of a bog garden and a wild flower meadow at St. John Fisher School in Alvaston.
Thanks were given to the head gardener for volunteering his time and to the council for allowing the school to use Elvaston as a venue for the event.
Third success for top countryside site
A section of the restored Chesterfield Canal known as the Bluebank Pools has been given a boost by being declared a Local Nature Reserve (LNR).
This declaration follows hot on the heels of the Williamthorpe Ponds and Pleasley Pit Country Park sites in north east Derbyshire, which were declared as LNRs in June. We know have 13 local nature reserves across the county.
Terrific news for two top countryside sites
Related documents
The following document is in Portable Document Format (PDF). You can download the PDF software for free from the Adobe website (opens in a new window)