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A short walk from Ashover south across fields, down lanes and alongside the river Amber. Add to this a haunted coffin, a headless spectre and a pipe smoking ghost; this walk could get interesting. The timing for this walk includes a chat with a local out walking his dog; one thing I have learned whilst walking over the years is to never discount local knowledge.

Getting There:

Ashover is just off of the A632 Matlock to Chesterfield Road. At Kelstedge (about three and a half miles from the junction with the A6 in the center of Matlock) take the B6036 sign posted Ashover and follow the road for three-quarters of a mile into the village. At the t-junction opposite The Old Poets Inn turn left into Church Street, continue up the hill past the Church and follow the car park signs (turn right in front of the Black Swan). The car park is to be found on the right just beyond the Black Swan public house. Parking is free, but spaces are limited.
 
Public transport access to Ashover is via the number 63 bus service; this service runs every two hours Monday to Saturday from Matlock and Chesterfield, please keep in mind there is no bus service on Sunday's or Bank Holiday's. A copy of the timetable for the No:63 bus service is available from Derby Bus Info;.

A view of Ashover fron the top of the walk.

The Walk:

Leave the car park by the vehicle entrance and turn left, follow the road as it curves left into Church Street and on past the Church of All Saints (See information panel opposite) to the road junction. Directly ahead is a pun the Old Poet's Corner, this was formerly the Red Lion, turn right and follow the road look for a large house on the left with a carving of a lion on it's frontage; this used to be the White Lion Public House. Continue to follow the road out of Ashover; ignoring the footpath on the left walk on towards a block of houses on the left. Just before reaching these houses turn left down an unmarked lane, walk the short distance to the end of the track then cross a stile beside a gate into a field. Keeping the field boundary to your right continue forward until the field boundary turns right, at this point continue forward along the path in the same direction down the field and through a gap in a hedge, the field then opens out on both sides. Walk to the right and the path in the far right corner of the field, through an area of woodland to a wooden squeeze stile. Go through the stile onto a concrete bridge over a drainage ditch, then almost immediately cross the single beam wooden bridge over Marsh Brook as it flows towards the River Amber off to the left.

 
Plank Footbridge

Continue on the path past the mouth of a diisused quarry being aware of the motocross course at all times, the path crosses the track twice before approaching a stone bridge over the River Amber, at this point the River looks rather like a well developed stream. According to the dog walker I chatted to about this route, this next section can become boggy after heavy rain. Cross the bridge and turn left and walk up the field keeping the wall/fence to your left continue in the same direction into a second field. Look ahead to the right for a open gateway with a stone squeeze stile next to it, pass through the stile/gate and continue through the next two fields via stiles keeping the field boundary to your right as you go. On entering the fifth field through a line of tall trees, the Elizabethan Goss Hall is on the right. Keep to the path and pass in front of the Hall to to a metal gate and a stile, go through the gate and the stile out onto a lane. Turn left and walk down the lane for approximately half a mile.

 
Goss Hall

As you walk down the lane you will pass a house/cottage on the left, and footpaths to both left and right. Ignore these paths and look for a wide track crossing the lane around a quarter of a mile after passing Greenend Farm (also on the left). At the crossing ahead along the lane lies Overton Hall, as with many of the sites in this area it too is considered to be haunted. Do not head towards Overton Hall instead take the track to the left and follow it up the hill. Views down onto Overton Hall are available through the trees to the right of the track. Some of my research suggests this may be an old packhorse trail, evidence for this becomes more evident when the route passes through a stile directly ahead and into a field. Follow the obvious path across the field, noting as you go that it is paved, although in places the paving is overgrown. Such paving was often put in place to allow the pack animals better grip and reduce erosion. As the path nears the end of the field the ground falls away sharply into a hollow, the paving turns into a set of steps.

Descend the steps and exit the field into the hollow. Follow the path down towards the River Amber, it is worth noting that where the ancient paving is absent there is quite noticeable erosion. After a short distance the path meets a disused railway line, the path now bears left along the old trackbed before going to the right and resuming it's course down to the river. Remnants of the paving are less evident along this stretch, but the small bridge that crosses the River Amber is of a type that lends weight to this once being a packhorse trail. Once over the river continue up the path towards Ashover. Note that the paving is being used as the foundation of an old drystone wall, and how the path has been affected by erosion. Continue up this path until it leads out alongside the Old Poets Corner into the centre of the village. From here it is a matter of retracing your route past the church and back to the car park and the end of the walk.