The River Dove, Derbyshire is the principal river of the south-western Peak District, in the English Midlands. It rises on Axe Edge Moor near Buxton and flows generally south to its confluence with the River Trent, near Burton-upon-Trent. For most of its way it forms the boundary between the counties of Derbyshire and Staffordshire.
From Hartington to its confluence with the River Manifold at Ilam the river flows through a scenic limestone valley, usually known simply as Dovedale, and much the dale is in the ownership of the National Trust.
The river is a famous 'trout stream' - Charles Cotton's Fishing House, which was the inspiration for Izaak Walton's 'Compleat Angler', stands in the woods by the river near Hartington.
The river Dove cap is currently being put in place. The idea behind it is a sustainable flood management plan
Dovedale in Derbyshire, is owned by the National Trust and is farmed with many sheep on the rocky slopes and in the woods.
Upstream from the stepping stones the heights on the left are known as Dovedale castle and these are followed by the 12 apostles, best viewed from the grassy spur called lovers-leap, possibly named after a rejected maiden threw herself off the precipice but was saved by the bushes that broke her fall.
Though this marks the end of the gorge, dovedale continues for a further mile upstream to milldale where the river is crossed via viator bridge, a honey pot for tourists.
Dovedale is a limestone gorge, lightly but pleasantly wooded, the river gurgling pleasantly along its bed (unlike so many limestone gorges, in which the river has long since disappeared into the bedrock).
Dovedale is in the care of the National Trust, who have vastly improved the parking and visitor facilities and the quality of the path through the dale.
Dovedale doglegs to the east for about half a kilometre at Milldale and the straightforward route onwards is to follow the little motor road in this direction, but a more elegant hiking route takes a footpath up to Shining Tor, the lip of the high slopes just to the south.
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