Bamford – Hope Valley Line
Bamford is a peaceful country station on the Hope Valley Line between Manchester and Sheffield. It is best known as the stopping off point to visit the magnificent Ladybower Reservoir and the Derwent Dams.
Ladybower Reservoir and the Derwent Dams
Ladybower Reservoir is about 2½ miles from the station and if walking is your thing, then the most attractive route is via Thornhill and Yorkshire Bridge taking advantage of the Thornhill Trail, a disused railway line which carried the stone up to the dams when they were being built. This walk is described in detail in this pdf document > which was prepared by the Friends of Bamford Station, which you can view or print off. A simpler route to Ladybower is to walk up the hill through the village of Bamford and continue following the main road until you reach the reservoir.
There are fine country walks available in all directions from Bamford Station. Look for the maps displayed on the platforms when you get off the train.
Dambuster Raids
Besides its beautiful setting amongst the hills above Bamford, Ladybower Reservoir is famous for the special role it played during World War II as the training ground for the RAF “Dambuster Raids” over Germany. Indeed, on special occasions to commemorate those events, the sole remaining operational Lancaster bomber plane has been flown low over the Derwent Dams. A stunning recreation of a true life story.
Cycling Round Bamford
Bamford, and the Hope Valley in general, is a great area for cycling enthusiasts also. You could go mountain biking up on the hillsides, or use the cycle path which runs along part of the main A6187 road. This is the main road which links all the Hope Valley communities and stations – and it’s flat if you don’t fancy climbing those hills on your bike!
Conveniently, there is a bicycle hire and repair shop “Bike Garage” at the Hope Valley Garden Centre. It’s only 1/4 –mile from the station on the main A6187 road heading towards Hope and Castleton. (P.S. You can get a nice cup of tea or coffee at the garden centre cafe too, and there is also a gift shop where you can pick up a momento of your visit. The centre is open 7 days a week.)
Bamford Village
The centre of the village of Bamford is about 15 minutes’ walk from the station, the last stretch being uphill.
Pride of place in the village goes to The Anglers Rest. This rather special building is owned and managed by shareholders from the local community after being bought from the brewery who no longer wished to run it. The Anglers now provides a delightful pub, restaurant, café and Post Office all in one place for residents and visitors to enjoy. It makes a handy place to break your walk to/from Ladybower Reservoir.
Bamford Edge
Towering above the village on the skyline is a prominent gritstone cliff edge which offers tremendous views towards the Derwent Dams for ramblers, and is a worthy challenge for rock climbers too.
Yorkshire Bridge
At one time, this little spot near to Ladybower Reservoir marked the boundary between Derbyshire and Yorkshire but nowadays it’s firmly within Derbyshire. The Yorkshire Bridge Inn is a charming family-owned hotel serving great food sourced locally.
Near the large road bridges over the reservoir, thirsty travellers can also find excellent food and drink at the Ladybower Inn after the junction for the road towards Sheffield.
Further information on all of the above can be found in this pdf document Bamford places of interest > (also prepared by the Friends of Bamford Station.
Trains to Bamford Station
Bamford Station is on the Hope Valley Line between Manchester and Sheffield. It takes 50 minutes to get to Bamford from Manchester Piccadilly Station and 22 minutes from Sheffield Station.
Most of the trains which stop at the station are operated by Northern. There is one train per hour in each direction seven days of the week (apart from at 15.36 and 20.36 on Mondays – Fridays in the Manchester direction when there are gaps in the timetable).
On the Northern website look up “Route 23 Manchester to Sheffield The Hope Valley Line” for full details of the current timetable.
The next station heading West towards Manchester is at Hope – about 2½-miles away. Heading East towards Sheffield the next station is at Hathersage – about 2 miles away.
Passenger Facilities at Bamford Station
There is a covered waiting shelter on both platforms and other seats available outside. There are metal hoops to secure bicycles on both platforms.
Access to both platforms for wheelchair users and families with prams, buggies and luggage is step-free. The Sheffield-bound platform is accessed on the level from the approach road and car park, or by a flight of steps from the road bridge which passes over the station.
Step-free access to the Manchester-bound platform is via a long but flat pathway from the road which passes over the station. A flight of steps gives shorter, direct access to the platform from the road bridge. Wheelchair users can take advantage of a raised section of this platform which makes it easier to board the train on the level.
There are no toilets at the station. The nearest public toilets are in the village centre, about 15 minutes away, or at the café at the Hope Valley Garden Centre, about 5 minutes away on the main A6187 road to Hope and Castleton.
Bus and services at Bamford Station
The nearest bus stop to the station is only 100 yards away on the road which passes over the station. Turn left, downhill, when you get up to the road from both platforms.
There is an hourly service, number 272, which runs to Castleton in one direction and to Sheffield in the other. However, because the buses turn-round here on a little loop road, the same stop is used by all the buses in both directions. There is a less frequent bus service, numbers 273 and 275, to/from Sheffield via Bamford village and Ladybower Reservoir which also use the same bus stop in both directions.
Further information about bus services at Bamford can be found by calling Traveline on 0871 200 22 33 or visiting their website: www.traveline.info
Details of local taxi firms can be found on the Onward Travel posters displayed at the station.
Friends of Bamford Station
The Friends of Bamford Station are a small but enthusiastic group of community-spirited volunteers who care about Bamford Station and their village.
Formed in 2015, the group has strong support from local residents and regular users of the station. Their first thoughts were to brighten up the platforms with garden planters to reduce the rather open, bare look of the station, so do take a look around when you get off the train.
Also, the group have put up a detailed map of the Bamford area on each platform to help you get your bearings when you first arrive. The map gives directions to the village and shows where the shops, cafes and other facilities are located.
Take a look on the community noticeboards at the station where the volunteers put up information about entertainment and events coming up in the village. There is even a Welcome notice very thoughtfully written in Chinese for the benefit of the many Chinese students and visitors who come to the Peak District each year!
The Friends enjoy involving the village schoolchildren in projects at the station, so at various times you may see artwork by the pupils on display in the waiting shelters or on the platform fences.
Most recently, Northern have given the group a grant for a nature project at the station. The schoolchildren have worked with the volunteers on providing a large bird feeding table on each platform and putting up a bird identification display inside each shelter. Their reward has been the enjoyment of watching the birds come to feed and studying their behaviour from close by.
If you would like to find out more about the Friends of Bamford Station please contact the Chairman, John Stubbs, email: johnstubbs33@gmail.com
