Last night’s patter of rain on the tent changed to the lighter patter of snow. By morning there was quite a bit of snow about and it was obvious that my planned route through the minor lanes to Derby wouldn’t be accessible. Reluctantly I had to change my plans and stick to the main roads which I hoped would still be open. The only thing to indicate the location of my bike was a large hump in the snow. Fortunately it was covered with a plastic sheet so once pulled off the bike was mostly clear. The tent was messy to pack away as I couldn’t get all the snow off and the field was horribly muddy. I headed back along the B5324 to the main A6.

Snowy camp

The road was certainly not suitable for a bike and even on the A6 I was only able to cycle where vehicles had been previously. My original plan was to cycle to and through Derby but now all I wanted to do was get round it as soon as possible and see if I could get to Buxton and the train. Through Kegworth I crossed over the M1 then followed the Derby sign which took me onto the A50 which didn’t seem much different than if I’d been cycling on a motorway. The roadside was covered in horrible slush and I just had to put up with it for many miles. On the outskirts of Derby I avoided the signs for ‘City Centre’ and continued heading for the A6 to the north on the town. The signs took me along the A61 and A38 but eventually I reached the A6 and continued north through Duffield. The snow continued and the road didn’t get any better. Approaching Matlock I stopped briefly in Matlock Bath to take a couple of photos to remind mw of the conditions and my slush splattered bike and panniers.

Matlock Bath, bike and snow

I continued on through Bakewell but was concerned about the long climb over to Buxton and if the road would be open. As I left Bakewell I kept an eye out for any vehicles coming the other way. Eventually I saw some, indicating they’d come from Buxton. The long steep climb of Taddington Dale was still open to vehicles but much narrower that normal due to snow. There was no footpath or cycle lane so I had to put up with speeding traffic travelling far too fast and close for the conditions. Over the summit the snow was drifting quite a lot and side roads were completely snowed up. The actual summit was down to one lane and the traffic was coming through in alternate mini convoys.

Matlock Bath and snow

For a while the road was compacted snow so I had to get off and push my bike through. Once through the conditions improved and I was able to descent towards Buxton with care. The final miles were a steady climb up Ashwood Dale into the town centre. There was plenty of snow in the Railway Car park and I was still unsure if there’d be any trains. I was delighted to see a train on the platform which was the delayed 12:35 and eventually left shortly after 13:00. I was just in time as the train left just as I got my bike on board. It was amusing watching all the large lumps of snow and slush that were stuck to the bike slowly melt and drop on to the carriage floor creating large puddles. At Piccadilly station I wheeled my bike to platform 14 and didn’t have too long to wait for the train to Chorley. There was no snow in Manchester but the platform was very cold and windy.