River Dove

The River Dove winds for about 72 kilometres through the southwestern Peak District in the Midlands. It begins on Axe Edge Moor near Buxton and flows south to join the River Trent at Newton Solney. Almost all of its course marks the boundary between Staffordshire to the west and Derbyshire to the east. The river passes quiet villages like Longnor and Hartington before carving deep limestone gorges. These include Beresford Dale, Wolfscote Dale, Milldale and Dovedale, where the water cuts through soft rock to form steep-sided valleys. The river is well known as a trout stream and inspired Charles Cotton’s Fishing House near Hartington. This small wooden building appears in Izaak Walton’s book The Compleat Angler. The name ‘Dove’ is now usually said to rhyme with ‘love’, though some older residents still use the old pronunciation rhyming with ‘rove’. Dovedale alone draws around a million visitors each year to walk its riverside paths. The National Trust owns much of the dale as part of its White Peak Estate, with additions made between 1934 and 1948. Walkers follow good riverside paths through Dovedale’s scenic limestone gorge. Landmarks include Ilam Rock, Viator’s Bridge, Lovers’ Leap and Reynard’s Cave. Below Dovedale the Dove widens near Thorpe and passes Mayfield’s medieval Hanging Bridge. It is joined by the Bentley Brook at Mapleton and the Henmore Brook at Church Mayfield. The river then turns south-west past Norbury and Ellastone to Rocester, where the River Churnet flows in as its largest tributary. Near Doveridge the Dove meets the River Tean before reaching Uttoxeter, the only town along its length.