Dovedale - am I remembering it wrong?

Looks like an Instagram magnet so it's bound to be packed and shit because it's packed!

Families go on far more days out than they used to so places are busier. A trip to an attraction used to be something done once or twice a year but now many families do a trip every weekend.

It’s the sort of place that people just go for a day out that aren’t the type to be delighted when they get thick walking socks as a gift. Social media is partly to blame and the rise of apps that show routes as it makes it easier. I miss the days of struggling with an OS map in the wind. But even back then places like Dovedale were always going to be busier as you don’t have to make an effort to find it. Now when walking I see the remnants of fires far more often and people that do not follow the country code. The last Peak District walk I did which was very recent as we live not far we saw very few people but it’s not a popular one, never seen it pop up on TikTok. We avoid walking anywhere well known at the weekend.

Found the info - it was storm Babet last winter
www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c722k2qp0xqo

I wouldn't worry, @summerlemons ! I'm sure you'll park respectfully. Also, it's just those places named upthread that are permanently rammed. I went out for a walk yesterday, holiday time, brilliant sunshine and I found an out of the way parking spot to have a walk in Miller's Dale.

Some of them got dislodged during a storm a while back and the water level hasn't dropped far enough for long enough for them to repair them safely yet.

I would recommend any part, if not all, of the Monsal Trail. There's usually somewhere to park, and the walk is just beautiful.

Come off it.There happens to be a Daily Mail report about the brawl and you coincidently decide to start Mumsnet thread? Read the daily mail comments and it stinks of racism, I strongly suspect you were aware of this and wanting to start a Mumsnet bunfight.

Parking at Dovedale has been a problem for at least 25 years, sadly. I went when DD v small, better part of 30 yrs ago and it was very crowded then. Far fewer people were walking the footpath though than sitting on the sunny bank. I would imagine it's now extremely busy.

I went last year, like you to revisit childhood memories.

It had changed, for sure, and the NT notice instructing ‘No BBQs, No Gas Stoves, No Campfires, No Shisha Pipes’ ways to dry weather indicated its popularity. But I went in early September, the first weekend after the schools went back, and it was fine even though it was v sunny. A few people enjoying it, a few picnics. Still as beautiful - quite magical.

It got busier by the time I had done my nostalgic walk over the top of Thorpe Cloud and had a good walk up the river and back, and picnickers were gathering , but I don’t remember queuing to go over the stones.

So go earlier in the day and not busy school hol times.

There is a big car park now.

Bakewell was quite busy, but parked in a pay and display right in the middle of town.

Can you go on a weekday in September?

Yes, lathkill is gorgeous. Used to visit often when I lived near there.

The population is much bigger, for a start. Therefore places are busier.

This gives a very bleak image of the area sadly. Parking is always an issue as well. However it does not put me off going but I’d avoid weekends and the summer months.

@summerlemons I think people don't just cross anymore, they stop in the middle for pictures and it causes problems.

Very many beauty spots have become vastly more popular over the past few years. Dovedale and Bakewell are just following an overall trend.

@IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads you're right about the green spaces. I'm out in the Peaks every weekend and every holiday (not Bakewell or the Dovedale Stones though!). I'm mindful that people went to prison for walking on Kinder Scout, and we have the Atlee government to thank for making it a space for everyone. I think the National Parks have a difficult task, really, to balance accessibility against damage etc.

We went about ten years ago an it was busy but manageable. We went again 3 years ago. We are really early morning people and got there about 7.30. We got parked and headed off. By the time we got back at 11 or so it was rammed with people at the stepping stones and car park.

With any of these things I’ve found that if you go early and move away from main attraction it tends to be quieter.

Is it because of the brawl (upthread)?

I'm 5 minutes away from Dovedale. We avoid unless it's 5am. Plus, there are a thousand more beautiful places and walks to be found in the peaks. As previously mentioned lathkill is superior to dovedale in every way.

Dovedale is busy, all of time. It's not peaceful. It's a traffic jam made up of people stopping in the middle of the stones to have their picture taken for the gram not even looking round at the beauty of the place they're in. Shame.

I love and adore the Peak District, DD is named after the valley we used to live in. We moved a bit further north 20 years ago, but are still lucky enough to live within easy reach of the northern boundary of the PDNP. I am mindful though, that the PD was the location of the first National Park because it was accessible to 1/3 of England FiL talks about how his parents and he used to get the bus out from Sheffield on weekends and holidays.

The national park is getting busier, without doubt, many people explored more locally during the pandemic, but that is not to say that they shouldn't enjoy it. I think everyone on this thread probably understands the benefits of immersing oneself in "green space". National
Parks don't just belong to people who visited as a child. Everyone should respect it though, litter; parking; bbqs; congregating in the same hotspots are need managing - dh and I have a running "joke" that you know it's summer when Marsden Moor is on fire ).