If you’re looking for a nice relaxing walk in the Derbyshire Dales, this is a 3½ mile there-and-back walk from Shirley to Osmaston through the grounds of the now-extinct Osmaston Hall. You could just as easily do the walk the other way around: in fact, parking is probably easier in Osmaston than Shirley, if that sways your decision.

Location

This walk is to the south-east of Ashbourne:

For more map details, see this location on Google Maps.

Here’s the OS 1:25000 version. Click on the map to open a larger version:

Images produced from the Ordnance Survey Get-a-map service. Images reproduced with kind permission of Ordnance Survey and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland.

Route

Links within the instructions take you to photo pages on Flickr, often with more description.

1. Park up in Shirley, near the church and the Saracen’s Head pub. Be considerate, as parking is limited. Don’t take up a space in the pub car park whilst you do the walk!
2. Walk northwest out of the village, bearing left onto Park Lane when the “main” road turns right.
3. Walk all the way up Park Lane, passing the village playing field on your right at the top.
4. Continue on the track through the woods. This can get a bit muddy after rain, so wear suitable footwear. The track passes Shirleypark Farm before descending down to the lake.
5. Make sure you stop at the lake at the bottom of the hill to enjoy the view. Note the old waterwheel-powered sawmill.
6. Continue up the hill past Home Farm. Before you go back into the woods, turn for a good look at the view of the East Deer Park (which is the header picture on this blog at the time of writing). You’ll get another view on the way back, so don’t use up all the tranquillity!
7. Keep going straight on (seriously, it’s virtually impossible to get lost on this walk) out of the woods and across the field into Osmaston.
8. Admire the duck pond, then bear right to the Shoulder Of Mutton pub, which has a good garden for children to play in.
9. When you’re rested, simply retrace your steps!

Enjoy! If you do the walk, please leave comments below!