Longshaw Estate provides a stunning backdrop for an adventure in the great outdoors. It’s a great hub to start from before you explore Burbage and the Eastern Moors, where you can enjoy the view from Duke's Seat or take a walk through Padley Gorge. Find out what family-friendly events are coming up and how best to plan your day out.
Summer of Play at Longshaw
18 July - 6 September
Have lots of fun at our action-packed Summer of Play. From 18 July to 6 September, families will be spoilt for choice – with games, crafts, sports and so much more. Challenge friends to a game of leaf bingo, have a go at gully racing or follow the barefoot path in the Kitchen Garden. Why not enjoy an ice cream, relaxing in front of Longshaw’s café or find a shady picnic spot within the estate? Put your sun hat on and come and make the most of being outdoors this summer.
Each Tuesday and Wednesday throughout the summer holidays, the Moorland Discovery Centre will host games, activities or crafting sessions. Check the website for details for when sessions are running. All ages are very welcome, but as a guide, Moorland Discovery Centre activity sessions are designed for children aged 5-10.
Family walks at Longshaw, Burbage and the Eastern Moors
If you're looking for a short wander or a big adventure, Longshaw's a great place to come for a family walk. The estate is a good hub to start from, before you explore Burbage and the Eastern Moors, where you can enjoy the view from Duke's Seat or take a walk through Padley Gorge.
Longshaw is covered with a maze of footpaths, so let us help you find your way. We have three waymarked walks, all starting from outside the Longshaw Lodge – simply follow the coloured arrows. Take a photo of the map on the outside of the Welcome Building in the Woodcroft car park so you have a map with you at all times.
Short walk
For a short family wander follow the pink arrows from nearby the Longshaw Lodge to the pond. This route includes steps and goes across terrain that varies with the weather. There are fences in this area to keep the cattle separate from the pathway.
Longer walk
Want to venture further? Follow the pink arrows on a 1.5-mile circular walk to Padley Gorge, where paddling and picnics are popular, but please remember to take all your litter home with you. The circuit continues along the brook and back through twisting woods on a stone track, past boulders that you can picnic and play on.
Waymarked walks
There are two other waymarked walks, both starting from near the Longshaw Lodge. The orange walk is about 1 mile, and depending on the time of year can be accessible with a buggy or wheelchair.
Our rangers work hard to maintain this path but sometimes after heavy rainfall the path can present a challenging terrain for buggies and wheelchairs, so please bear this in mind when planning your trip.
For those wanting a little more of a challenge, the blue walk is a little longer and takes you on a 3-mile walk. This route includes kissing gates and a main road crossing.
Help look after the places you love to visit by taking only photographs and leaving only footprints (or pawprints) behind.
Challenge yourself to tick off the list of 50 outdoor adventures, from rock clambering to watching a sunset. How many can you do at Longshaw? Here's a few suggestions to get you started:
Red deer like to roam at across the Longshaw, Burbage and Eastern Moors estate.
The red deer are familiar faces here. They roam freely but you can often see them in the meadows and woodlands. Please make sure you admire them from afar so you don't disturb them.
Meet some of the smallest residents of Longhsaw Estate. The northern hairy wood ant is a protected species. It depends on the honeydew produced by aphids which live in the canopy of oak, birch and pine trees. In return for the honeydew the ants protect the aphids from other predators. Spring and summer are perfect times to spot their trails from tree to nest across the estate. It is fascinating to watch them at work as they bring materials for the nest or go back and forth to bring home a meal.
Listen and look out for the woodpeckers who like the woodlands around the estate. You can hear them as they get busy, and you might be able to spot them high up in the branches.
This colourful collection of wildlife was spotted enjoying the wet flushes, undisturbed river sections and bog habitat over on the Eastern Moors part of the Peak District.
Broad bodied chasers, damselfly and marsh orchids are just a few of the species which benefit from the work the team Eastern Moors Partnership are doing to look after the landscape and make sure it stays wet for wildlife.
Keep an eye out for pied flycatchers in the woodlands. These birds return from Africa to nest around Longshaw every April. Rangers and volunteers look after nest boxes for them and check them throughout spring and summer. The nest boxes are reserved for these special bird visitors. You might see them darting from tree to tree.
A curlew is identifiable by its long, slender, downcurved bill (perfect for probing for prey) and mottled brown plumage. Listen out for its very recognisable eerie, 'cur-lee' call that can often be heard from February through to July on its breeding grounds. They spend winter in coastal areas and arrive in upland areas where they nest on rough grasslands, bogs and moorlands in spring.
You might spot a heron near the pond at Longshaw, probably looking for a meal.
We’re not sure what the catch of the day was when this photograph was taken, but as well as fish, herons are known to be partial to frogs and small mammals which is probably what it was looking for here.
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Discover more at Longshaw, Burbage and the Eastern Moors
Find out how to get to Longshaw, Burbage and the Eastern Moors, where to park, the things to see and do and more.
Enjoy a brew with a view at the Longshaw Café where you’ll find a range of sandwiches, snacks and drinks, or pop to the second-hand bookshop to discover your next read.
