Following on from our recent feature looking at Stagecoach’s Peak Sightseer, David Jordan takes a ride and shares his thoughts from a passenger’s perspective
Whilst being based in Norfolk brings with it the privilege of being able to enjoy coast and countryside in equal measure, one thing that is noticeably lacking are hills of any significance. In fact, Norfolk’s highest point, Beeston Bump near Sheringham, can be scaled in under five minutes by anyone of average fitness. This being the case, my desire to enjoy the great outdoors in an environment that varies in height by more than a few metres is one shared by my partner and our two girls and is thankfully satisfied by a number of trips to the glorious Peak District each year.
Having had the chance to sample a ride on the Peak Sightseer service in July 2023 it was instantly impressive in terms of the route taken and the apparent popularity of this brand new, BSIP-funded service. The figure of eight route around the Chatsworth and Bakewell area seemed an obvious choice to show off some fabulous Peak District scenery as well as appearing to strike the right balance of holidaymakers and day-trippers to bring success and on our ride we weren’t at all disappointed.
However, as those familiar with the area will know, probably the most spectacular scenery that can be accessed by bus is to be found in the area around Bamford, Hope and Castleton; a fact that had clearly also been appreciated by Hulley’s of Baslow which had also introduced an open top service for the 2023 season, branded as ‘Breezer,’ from Baslow to Castleton. In the event, this service appeared beset with difficulties from the outset, with driver and vehicle availability issues (when we attempted a trip in May 2023 a standard Enviro400 was in use, running empty) as well as an extremely challenging timetable with a round trip timed at an hour; something that would be almost impossible in a car.
2024 opportunities
This service didn’t return for 2024, leaving Stagecoach with the opportunity to take us for a ride from Chatsworth House, not just to Castleton, but to the foot of Mam Tor, probably the most well known and accessible ‘peak’ in the area. So, on Saturday 1 June we set out on what turned out to be a fabulous day riding on both of the Peak Sightseer services for the 2024 season.
We started our day boarding the ‘red’ route, a shortened version of 2023’s service, at Hassop station where there is ample car parking, and an excellent café. The bus arrived at the time shown on the highly informative wayside display, and treated us to a spirited ride first to Bakewell, then northwards along the A6 to the chocolate-box village of Ashford-in-the-Water, and then back towards Chatsworth where we’d planned to catch the ‘blue’ route to Castleton 40 minutes later.
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