Here are the guided walks, field meets, and underground mine visits we currently have planned for the next few months in the Derbyshire Peak District. Do keep checking back here, as more walks and underground trips will be added to the list. Walks/meets are organised by the Society, the Museum, and by the Underground Exploration group, with slightly different logistical arrangements: see below.

If you want to find out more information about any of our guided mining and industrial heritage walks, contact Adam at meets@pdmhs.com.

The schedules will usually be updated quarterly, when each newsletter is published.

Online calendars are now available:
https://tinyurl.com/pdmhs-meets-webcal
https://tinyurl.com/pdmhs-meets-ical

Mining Museum Heritage Walks

Sturdy footwear and waterproofs recommended. A charge of £3 is made (both for PDMHS members and non-members) which goes towards the running costs of the museum. Walks are open for anyone to join, well behaved dogs on leads welcome.

Please refer to the mining museum website and facebook page.

Longer walks with Tony Wood (usually 2-3 hours)

Wednesday 15^th November – Winster Mine.
Meet at 11am at the Miners’ Standard pub.

Wednesday 13^th December – Old Millclose.
Meet at 11am at the Three Stags, Darley Dale.

Wednesday 17^th January 2024 – Winster Village & people.
Meet at 11am at the Miners’ Standard pub.

Wednesday 21^st February 2024 – Old Matlock Town & over High Tor.
Meet 11am Artists’ Corner car park.

Festive walks (60-90 minutes), led by Tony Wood (TW) or Lynn Willies (LW).

Wednesday 27^th December – The NSC to Black Rocks.
Meet at 11am outside the NSC (TW)

Saturday 30^th December – The industrial past of the NSC site.
Meet 11am outside the NSC. (LW)

Monday 1^st January 2024 – The NSC to Middleton Top.
Meet 11am outside the NSC. (TW)

Sunday 7^th January 2024 – The quarries of Wirksworth town.
Meet at 11am outside the Limekiln Pub. (LW)

PDMHS members Field Meetings

PDMHS events are usually free to members. Members do need to pay to join Heritage Walks organised by the Museum.

Many walks/meets organised by PDMHS are free, and are open to all (not just PDMHS members, although you might like to join PDMHS.). However, pre-booking is required when walks are limited to a certain number of people, and contacting us in advance is recommended.

The format of some Society Field Meetings will sometimes be very similar to Museum Heritage Walks, but we might spend a little longer discussing interpretation, and participants other than the leader are likely to chip in their knowledge, as well as asking questions. Society Field Meetings are definitely not “just for experts”, and any meets which involve more than walking around on the surface looking at the remaining features and learning about the history will be clearly indicated as such.

As the walks are weather-dependent, changes due to weather conditions will also be posted on the website; it is advisable to check back here before you set out.

Underground Exploration Group

Our underground mine trips are organised by the PDMHS UEG (Underground Exploration Group), which is free to join for PDMHS members. Insurance is compulsory for those going on underground trips, but the UEG can arrange this if you don’t already hold BCA insurance. Meeting times/places for UEG meets may be found in the members’ newsletter or by contacting the UEG.

You can contact the UEG here.

Middleton Dale Mine Levels, Stoney Middleton

Wednesday 15^th November.
Leader: Shirley Burtonshaw

Meet 7pm at the Lover’s Leap layby, grid ref SK 2265 7560

An easy furtle around the many small mine levels in this area, suitable for novices.

Hoo Valley Mines, Wetton Mill

Wednesday 6^th December. Leader: Martin Long

Meet 7pm near wetton Mill, grid ref SK 0947 5608

Three small mines will be visited, one having knee-deep water and extensive floor calcification. Suitable for novices.

Updated: Adam Cooper, November 1st 2023

The Peak District Lead Mining Museum (part of PDMHS) hosts Derbyshire Heritage Events and offers Guided Heritage Walks in Derbyshire – for dates, times, costs and other details please check the Museum Web Site news page or their Facebook page.

The guided heritage walks are led by local expert Tony Wood and others. Tickets must be purchased in advance from the Peak District Lead Mining Museum in Matlock Bath. Not only does Tony have an extensive knowledge of local lead mining history, but also the people and places. His walks have usually been sold out and attract many “repeat visitors”. You can buy tickets in person at the Museum (check the Museum web site for opening times) or you can email here or phone 01629 583834. Card payments can be taken over the phone for a minimum of 2 or more tickets.

Evening walks usually begin at 7.00pm and aim to finish by 9.00pm. The starting point will be given when you purchase your tickets. 

In addition to walks organised by the Museum, PDMHS also operates a series of free heritage walks and underground trips. For underground trips, BCA public liability insurance is mandatory – this can be arranged for PDMHS members by the Society’s Underground Exploration Group.

Derbyshire Heritage Talks are hosted at the Museum in Matlock Bath. Talks are on Tuesday evenings at 7:30 and cover a wide range of historical aspects of the area, including the mining heritage but also industrial archaeology, folk-lore and social history in Derbyshire. These heritage events are well attended and tickets should be purchased in advance (at the museum or by phone to 01629 583834) to avoid disappointment. For ticket prices see the museum web site.