The Monsal Trail – Family Scooter Days Out

The Monsal Trail is an 8.5-mile trail following what used to be the Midland Railway line. It stretches from Blackwell Mill to Bakewell and allows visitors to take in some of the best views the peak district has to offer!

The route is mostly used for cycling, horse riding and walking but as we found from our trip it’s also perfect for scooters!

SHOP OUR BIG WHEEL SCOOTERS

The Monsal Trail Map

Big Wheel Scooters Perfect for Exploring

For our trip, we took a SwiftyONE and a SwiftyAIR, while the kids were on bikes. The route is paved most of the way so all our kids and adult scooter models would be suitable to take.

Routes like this are where the large wheels of our models come into their own. They’re perfect for cruising longer distances without needing to kick as much as a small wheel scooter, meaning you can have a leisurely journey and spend your time taking in the views!

Scooting is a great way to explore somewhere new as it has you standing tall while you're on the move, meaning you're free to look at all the peak district scenery around as you go.

The geometry of a Swifty means riders of all heights can be comfortable on their journey. Our regular kick scooters are suitable for riders up to 6'1'' but if you're a bit taller we have TALL options available for all our adult scooter models that makes it suitable for riders up to 6'5''!

The pneumatic tyres of our adult scooters also gave an extra comfort when riding the trail. As it’s through the peak district there’s plenty of twigs and other bits and bobs that find their way onto the path, but that’s no issue for Swifty’s 16’’ inch tyres to comfortably go over. Things that would send you over the handlebars on a smaller scooter are completely smoothed out by our large wheels!

We put small vs big wheeled scooters to the test in a pothole challenge – see the results!

Let Your Scooter Carry the Bags!

We connected a KLICKfix Caddy Post Clamp Adapter to our SwiftyAIR so we could let our scooters carry our backpacks. Packing can sometimes be a pain for a day out with the family, you never know how much or little to take! But as our adult scooters all have a max load of 150kgs (330lbs) they can comfortably carry any extra packed sandwiches, drinks and whatever else you want without worry.

Thanks to the Rixen & Kaul Vario Rack the Swifty could do the heavy lifting and we could spend our time taking in the surroundings and some of the points of interest scattered around the trail.

We stock a range of different bags sizes depending on how much you're planning on taking with you on your trip!  

Plenty of Villages to Explore

The Monsal Trail boasts plenty of scenic spots you'll want to hop off your scooter and soak in the views. There are also several villages off the trail that you can explore on your Swifty's.

If you want to have a quick wander into some of the neighbouring villages and towns for some lunch, but don't fancy scooting around you can keep your Swifty safely locked up with one of our locks!

Scooting Through Former Railway Tunnels

One of the best bits of the trail is the six railway tunnels you travel through as you make your way along. They make for great atmospheric surroundings for you to scoot through, and haven't been open to the general public since the Midland Railway Line closed in 1968!

All the tunnels are lit up so you can see your way through comfortably but they're operated by a light sensor and as it states on the site for the trail 'If you are using the trail in the afternoon you are advised to take a torch or have bike lights in case you get caught out'.

If you're looking at heading there later in the day, or the winter when the daylight hours are shorter we have a range of scooter lights available in our store to make sure you can still light the way safely!