Despite the rolling hills and ageless gritstone, it’s impossible not to associate the region with industry and what man has made of it. There’s been industry here long before the Romans set foot on these shores. Mining for lead has been one of the region’s oldest and most productive industries, as you’ll learn from excellent museums such as the Peak District Mining Museum in Matlock. More recently, the Industrial Revolution necessitated the movement of people and goods across the peaks via railways and canals. With these attractions, you should find out a little more about the kchallenges and the people behind them.

1 PEAK DISTRICT MINING MUSEUM
The museum is superbly run, right in the centre of Matlock Bath. Visitors can elect, almost right from the front door, to experience life as a miner. A series of almost pitch-black narrow, vertical ladders and low, narrow passageways are designed to give you a feel of what the constricted tunnels, nooks and crannies lead miners used to have to mine. Hint – if you’re a bit portly, better give this stage a miss. There are also lots of exhibits which tell the story of mining in the Peaks very well indeed. One of the exhibits is of an early water pumping engine, from 1819, extracted from metres of silt in the 1970s and lovingly restored. There are items which depict the personal lives of the miners, too, such as helmets, lamps, belts and tools.

2 CROMFORD MILL
Sir Richard Arkwright’s Cromford Mill is of great historical significance in understanding the Industrial Revolution. Most people know Arkwright, from their school history lessons, for his spinning machines. He was, in fact, a pioneer of the factory system. Born in 1732, the son of a tailor in Preston, he invented and perfected a spinning mill with John Kay. He then acquired a patent, in 1769, and set up a horse powered mill in Nottingham. Power was the limiting factor, with only water and horse power available – the rotary steam engine had not yet been invented. In August 1771, Arkwright began building a water-powered mill in Cromford, This was followed by a second in 1776, which housed machinery and spinning technology that he had more fully developed. Today, the buildings have been restored and you can take a tour with guides or wander around the shop.

3 CROMFORD CANAL AND CROMFORD AND HIGH PEAK RAILWAY
The Cromford Canal was completed in 1794, and served, at Cromford, the cotton mill of Sir Richard Arkwright. The canal was needed to link Manchester and the north-west to Langley Mill, on the Erewash Canal. The Cromford to Langley Mill part was to be the first section. The canal was built in two gauges, with a broad gauge section from Langley to Butterley tunnel, while the narrow gauge, lock-free section ran from Butterley Tunnel to Cromford. Butterley Tunnel was interesting because it was 3000 yards long with no towpath, and in 1900 it collapsed and closed. At High Peak Junction, you can see where the railway joined the canal. The railway was opened in 1831 and linked the Cromford Canal to Peak Forest Canal, at Whaley Bridge.
This railway consisted of a number of rope-worked inclines and the steepest railway incline anywhere in Britain: the astonishing 1-in-14 Hopton Incline. Right up until its closure in the 1960s, the railway was steam worked, with locomotives attempting that gradient, a deafening and visually impressive spectacle.
Today you can walk the entire trail. First, though, stop off at the museum at High Peak Junction, where you’ll learn all about the animals, birds, plants and sights to see on your way, as well as how men operated the railway. It’s a very neat little museum. At the top of the trail there is Middleton Top, where the restored winding engine can be seen working on occasions. You should also walk along the canal, where you can take in another working engine at Leawood Pump House. Operation days are limited, so check with the tourist board or Derbyshire council first.
You can do as much or as little walking along the canal as you want. From Cromford, it’s five miles to Bullbridge, and ten to Ironville.

4 Peak Rail
Not far from the Cromford and High Peak Railway is the Midland Railway’s route which originally connected London St Pancras and Manchester Central. Enthusiasts’ group Peak Rail aims to relink the Matlock end to Miller’s Dale, ultimately as far as Buxton. Although the rail journey, which ends in Rowsley, is short, there’s quite a bit to see, including the beautiful little station at Darley Dale. It promises to be a spectacular journey once the group eventually reaches Miller’s Dale.

5 CRICH TRAMWAY VILLAGE
You can’t talk about transport and not talk about Crich Tramway Museum. It’s a fabulous museum, whether you know much about trams or not – there’s simply so much colour and so many things to do. Among the attractions is a splendid viewing gallery where you can see work being completed on trams, and the Red Lion public house which was moved brick by brick from Stoke-on-Trent. It sits grandly in The Street, a very fine attempt at recreating a British street from times past. There’s an exhibition hall and, of course, the trams themselves, from almost every part of the UK, and many from around the world. There’s a No. 15 Sheffield tram from 1874, a Paisley and District No. 68, built in 1919, and a Leicester No. 76. A first-class museum.