One of the best ways to enjoy the beautiful countryside of the Peak District National Park is on two wheels by e-bike. Riding a bike has so many benefits for both yourself and the environment.
It’s great for your mental and physical health and helps reduce your carbon footprint by leaving the car at home.
| Press trip with Peaks and Dales |
Read on to find out where I stayed and where I cycled during my e-biking holiday in the Peak District.
What is an e-bike?
An e-bike, or electric bike, is a bicycle that has an electric bike motor that helps to assist you when you’re pedalling. An e-bike will help you power up hills where you may struggle on a standard bike, and trust me, you will probably need this in the Peak District!
You still need to do some of the work, though, so it’s a great low-impact exercise and an excellent way to get out and about exploring.
Peaks & Dales e-bike holiday hire
We borrowed our bikes from Peaks & Dales during our trip. They offer e-bike hire across Derbyshire, and they have a service where the team delivers the bikes to your accommodation, ready for you to use when you arrive.
The e-bike delivery service means you don’t have to drive anywhere to pick bikes up, and you can have them as soon as you get there, so you don’t waste any of your holiday time. There’s absolutely no messing about, and you can just enjoy your break.
Bikes are delivered with a how-to guide and all the equipment you need to take them out, including a helmet, charger, and bike lock. The bikes are one size fits all, and I am a little shorter than average at 4 ft 10, but I still found the bike comfortable to ride.
Once you’ve finished your holiday, Peaks & Dales will collect the bikes from your accommodation.
Renting a bike from Peaks & Dales isn’t just good for the environment. It’s good for the local community too. All the bike hire profits go to Rural Action Derbyshire, a charity whose mission is to make rural communities sustainable, vibrant, and accessible to everyone regardless of age, background, or income.
How to ride an e-bike
E-bikes are ridden just like regular bikes, but they give you a bit of a helping hand when you need one. You can ride it turned on or turn it off to ride just like a regular bike.
I did wonder what happens if the bike runs out of battery, but of course, you can ride it home like a non-electric bike.
When you are on an incline, simply switch between modes to give you more help. Eco mode is the lowest setting but still packs a punch, and then Sport mode really makes cycling uphill a breeze.
I used some of these modes while cycling, and it made such a difference. Even on the eco mode, I barely had to pedal, which helped me make it up hills that I might have had to have a break on if riding a normal bike.
Where to stay on an e-biking holiday in the Peak District
We stayed at the beautiful Manor House Farm Cottages during our e-biking trip. It’s the perfect location for an e-biking trip as it’s in the small Derbyshire village of Sheldon, just outside Bakewell.
The village is very quiet, so you’ve got plenty of time to get used to your bike without much traffic.
Now, let’s talk about the cottage. We stayed in The Milking Parlour, one of the cosiest cottages I’ve ever had the pleasure of staying in.
It has a double-sided log burner which you can enjoy from the living area and the bedroom.
There’s also an open-plan living area with a fully equipped kitchen where you can prepare and cook meals. The living area has a dining table, a comfy sofa and armchair, and a Smart TV.
The bedroom has a lovely comfortable double bed and an en-suite bathroom. The bathroom has a shower, sink, toilet, and an amazing freestanding bath.
I enjoyed a bubble bath here, just what the doctor ordered after a day of cycling.
The attention to detail in the cottage and the work that has been done is just perfect. It’s a wonderful place to stay, and I can’t recommend it enough.
It’s ideal for a romantic rural retreat for two.
The cottage is located on a working farm, and right next to our door was the goat pen where two gorgeous pygmy goats, Dotty and Daisy, live. It was lovely to be greeted by these two friendly goats each morning, and we gave them a good fuss each time we saw them.
There’s also a separate games room for all the cottages on-site. There are four cottages altogether, sleeping up to 22 people.
The games room has board games, table tennis, a pool table, a keyboard, and books, so you won’t get bored during your stay. There’s also a freezer here where you can store any frozen food you’ve brought with you and you can buy produce from the farm like bacon, eggs, sausages, burgers and lamb chops.
There’s an honesty box and a card machine to pay.
From the cottage, it’s a short walk into the village of Sheldon, which has a cosy pub serving food, if you don’t fancy cooking for yourself. It’s also 10 minutes drive from Bakewell, a larger town with bars, restaurants, and shops.
There are plenty of walks in the area, with a few routes starting right from the door.
Where to ride your e-bike in the Peak District
There are plenty of cycling trails in the Peak District to choose from. In fact, it is home to over 260 miles of traffic-free routes.
Choose from gentle trails, extreme mountain biking routes, and family bike rides.
Two of my favourite routes are the Monsal Trail and the Tissington Trail. Both of these are traffic-free trails that you can enjoy on your e-bike.
Monsal Trail
The Monsal Trail runs along the former Midland Railway line and offers 8.5 miles of traffic-free cycling. It’s an easy route with exciting features like cycling through the former railway tunnels and enjoying the fabulous views across Monsal Dale.
Monsal Trail is around 25 minutes by bike from Manor House Farm Cottages along quiet country roads. On the way back, there is a bit of uphill to contend with, but that’ll be a doddle if you’re on an e-bike.
Tissington Trail
Another traffic-free easy route is the Tissington Trail which runs for 13 miles from Ashbourne to Parsley Hay. Again, this is a former railway line, so it makes for nice, leisurely cycling along the flat for the most part.
It’s perfect for beginners (like me), families, and anyone who isn’t super confident on a bike yet.
Along the way, you’ll take in some of the stunning countryside around here, including the beautiful village of Tissington and Dovedale, a limestone ravine famous for its stepping stones.
I really enjoyed my e-biking break in the Peak District. Having an e-bike helped give me more confidence when cycling, and the ease of the Peaks & Dales hire scheme takes all the hassle out of renting a bike.
If e-biking isn’t your thing, don’t worry, there’s plenty more to do in the Peak District. Check out some of my favourite Peak District walks here.
