Way of the Rings Bakewell/Matlock to Chipping Norton
Way of the Rings  - Matlock to Chipping Norton
This 132 mile (214km) is the third part of the Way of the Rings, a 500mile bike ride from Castlerigg stone Circle in the Lakes, to Stonehenge.  It takes the quiet back routes and National cycle routes.  Occasionally it takes tracks suitable for gravel bikes.  This route has been designed to link Neolithic stone circles, standing stones, caves and rock art.  This Neolithic route could have been the way in which ancient people travelled annually for the feasts and celebrations at Stonehenge.  Archaeological evidence indicates that cattle and pigs from the Lakes and Scotland were slaughtered at  Stonehenge to celebrate the Solstice. The route indicates points of historical and Neolithic interest .  They are not exact locations but representative.
This section can be ridden in 2-3 days stopping to take in many of the historic sites and towns. There are B&B and accommodation options throughout and enable the rider to tailor a fantastic ride including stops at some wonderful country pubs and cafes.  The route follows back roads generally with options on gravel tracks, avoiding  all main roads.  It passes through the following historic sites:
Matlock.   Following Matlock as the overnight stop the route passes through matlock Bath the unique village just south of Matlock, is set around the River Derwent in a steep and stunning gorge. Matlock Bath was developed as a spa town in the 19th century and as it became more fashionable and prosperous, visitors flocked for miles around to enjoy the spectacular scenery and visit the nearby spas in Matlock town.
Carsingston - The Stoop standing stone and Carsington Rock Shelter
Brassington.  The limestone outcrop of Harborough Rocks was home to both a Neolithic passage grave now destroyed and an Iron Age settlement. A cave in the rocks still has hinges to hang a door on. Neolithic (Peterborough ware), Beaker, Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age pottery; leaf-shaped arrowheads; flint and chert artefacts; Romano-British artefacts; animal bones. The route passes Bradbourne Standing Stone and Winksworth Standing Stone on Winkstone Moore and early Christian stones in the Church. In Whitwick there is the Alter Stone.
Tissington is known as the mother place of well dressing and visitors come from all over the world to witness the annual well dressing ceremony. This takes place on Ascension Day, when five attractive wells are dressed together with a children’s well. Dressing consists of erecting boards covered in clay, into which thousands of flower petals are pressed to create an elaborate tableaux of some biblical or topographical scene. It is probable that well dressing took place in 1350, in thanksgiving for the village’s escape from the Black Death, which was attributed to the purity of its water. Wells have been dressed ever since but not in unbroken succession. The precise origins of well dressing are unknown but may date from before the Romans.
From Tissington – the route takes 13 miles of cycle way on  disused railways to Ashbourne.  Tissington trail was opened in the year 1971, and since then, it has been included in the National Cycle Network of England.
Repton - Repton, also called Hreopedune in The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, is a village in Derbyshire, along the river Trent. Its history can be traced as far back as the Mesolithic and Neolithic, about 5,000 years ago. In the early Middle Ages, it is one of the first places to accept Christianity. By the seventh century, the Mercian royal family takes up residence here. When the family converts to Christianity, a church with a crypt for the royal family and a double abbey are built. The Vikings destroy the latter by 874. Though Repton has been a place of religious and political importance, it remains a quiet, quaint village today. From Repton take the road to Stanton by bridge to visit Anchor Church Rock Shelter in Derbyshire Four interconnected sandstone caves on a backwater previous portion of River Trent and said to have been the hermitage of St. Hardulph.
The route passes through the ruins of a 22 acre iron age hillfort on the southern and western side of Breedon on the Hill, Leicestershire. Most of the south and east sides have been destroyed by quarrying. A single bank and external ditch pass round the west side of Breedon Church churchyard.
At Thringstone , is the Grace Dieu Standing Stone Standing Stone in Leicestershire and Rutland. This nearly 3' high squat stone lies in a field adjacent to and on the west side of the Grace Dieu Priory.  It leans to the south and has a flat side aligned east-west. A notch in the top, possibly man-made, aligns north-south.
There is also a nice road through Kedleston Park with lovely historic views. The eastmost part of the route (from the house to Kedleston Road) is one way from east to west but this can be ignored by cyclists. Great views of the National Trust Kedleston Hall. Tea shop and ice cream shop available at the Hall. Entrance to the Hall and the gardens needs a fee or NT membership but the park can be visited for free. Charlecote House - Victorian House and garden is en route.
Belton has a Causewayed Enclosure in Leicestershire and Rutland The Banjo enclosure is almost hidden from view, but is 100m across. There is gated access, off Forest Lane south of Belton, along the handle portion, up onto rising ground. There are possible signs of hut circles near the centre.
The route passes near many standing stones with many of the villages having names which refer to ancient stones eg Denstone, Boylestone, Swarkestone.  There are many neolithic and mesolithic sites en route which have now been destroyed  for example curcsus near Warwick and burial mounds which have since been ploughed
The cycle route takes the ancient Roman Fosse Road passing numerous standing stones to arrive via Royal Lemmington Spa to Warwick.  Warwick Castle - Warwick Castle is a medieval castle developed from a wooden fort, originally built by William the Conqueror during 1068.  The original wooden motte-and-bailey castle was rebuilt in stone during the 12th century. During the Hundred Years War, the facade opposite the town was refortified, resulting in one of the most recognisable examples of 14th-century military architecture.
The route finishes at Chipping Norton but before reaching there are the The Rollright Stones - an ancient site located on the Oxfordshire & Warwickshire border in England. The complex consists of three main elements, The Kings Men stone circle, the King Stone, and the Whispering Knights.
This 132 mile (214km) is the third part of the Way of the Rings, a 444mile bike ride from Castlerigg stone Circle in the Lakes, to Stonehenge.  It takes the quiet back routes and National cycle routes.  Occasionally it takes tracks suitable for gravel bikes.  This route has been designed to link Neolithic stone circles, standing stones, caves and rock art.  This Neolithic route could have been the way in which ancient people travelled annually for the feasts and celebrations at Stonehenge.  Archaeological evidence indicates that cattle and pigs from the Lakes and Scotland were slaughtered at  Stonehenge to celebrate the Solstice. The route indicates points of historical and Neolithic interest .  They are not exact locations but representative.
Matlock Bath.   This is probably the overnight stop over from the last leg. The unique village just south of Matlock, is set around the River Derwent in a steep and stunning gorge. Matlock Bath was developed as a spa town in the 19th century and as it became more fashionable and prosperous, visitors flocked for miles around to enjoy the spectacular scenery and visit the nearby spas in Matlock town.
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