Crowden Camping and Caravanning Club Site 2019

After our fabulous trip to West Runton. We travelled further afield last week to the Peak District to camp at the Crowden Camping and Caravanning Club Site

Where Is The Campsite ?

Crowden Camping and Caravanning Club Site can be found at Woodhead Road, Glossop, SK13 1HZ

Map ref: 110/072992 Latitude: 53.4895 / Longitude: -1.8930

Travelling along the busy A628 the site is signposted from the road but is on a sharp bend, so take care on approach. Once you have navigated the turning from the main road it is a short distance to the site.

A small part of the road is very narrow but there is good visibility, the site is located opposite a small holding and next to an outdoor pursuits centre. When you arrive at the entrance there is parking to the side of the barrier so just pull up and head to the reception.

What Type Of Pitches Are Available ?

Crowden has a choice of four pitch types, grass only pitch with no electric hook up (our pitch), hard standing with electric hook up, Ready Camp Tents and Seasonal Pitches. Some grass with electric pitches are available directly through the site. If you’re backpacking along the Pennine Way, and arriving on foot carrying equipment, they will always find a way to pitch you for the night.

We certainly saw lots of people for just one night! There are no specific jumbo size pitches at Crowden, but we spoke directly with the site and as we were visiting during the week. They had room for us, but weekends are usually fully booked. So its always worth checking beforehand.

How Do I Check In ?

Check in is from 1pm onwards. It is recommended not to arrive prior to this time due to other occupants vacating their pitches up until 12.

On arrival there was a clearly marked area to park your car whilst you booked in at the reception/shop. The site team for 2019 are Graham and Roy, both of her were amazingly helpful and chatty, and a wealth of knowledge. Once we had checked in Graham walked over to the grassed area and told us to take our pick of the three pitches.

The children chose the one with the chickens behind (felt like being at home) and Asa chose the pitch with a view. Luckily they were both in roughly the same area, and with such a large tent, everyone was happy!

What Facilities Are On Site at Crowden Camping and Caravanning Club?

The facilities on this site were more than ample, although much less than the West Runton site. However there were much less pitches and people, so it was perfect.

Washing/Laundry Facilities.

The toilet and shower block consisted of 3 toilets, 3 sinks and 2 showers in both the male and female parts of the block. To access each of the doors you had to put in a code, which is given to you on arrival.

The block also had a laundry/ Drying room, (£3.50 per wash cycle and £1 per 20 minutes for the dryer). We didn’t require the laundry room, but after seeing just how many wet raincoats were drying in there, it was definitely a well used room! The dishwashing area had four large sinks and very hot water.

Within that room there were various leaflets and information about local attractions, which was very useful. You could also buy a map of local walking routes at the reception for 50p, which went towards the flowers. Each day the block is closed for cleaning between 11 and 12.30. During that time the family room is open for anyone needing the toilet (which my children usually seemed to!)

Reception/Shop

The reception/shop is open from 9am Monday to Friday and from 8.30am Sat & Sun. It is open almost all day, only shutting briefly for lunch. But even then if you are in desperate need of anything, there is a bell to ring and someone is there almost immediately to serve you. It really is an amazing service they provide. The shop operates a cash only basis.

The older children were very impressed with their choice of Pot Noodles and the fact that they were happy to provide hot water for them, instead of waiting for me to boil some water. Graham also came to my rescue with a needle and thread. One of the children jumped a little too hard in my sleeping area of the tent and ripped off one of the elastics, thankfully a two minute repair job and all was well again!

Water/Rubbish Disposal

There are two areas to get fresh water, one just near the entrance and the other over by the toilet block. The rubbish bins on site are located near the facility block and also large bins are just outside the entrance. There are also a couple of dog poo bins which were really handy. Especially as Bree seemed to know exactly where they were. Meaning I didn’t require a long trip to dispose of her waste!

Points To Note

This campsite has limited mobile phone coverage and no TV reception but satellite hire is available from reception. It costs £3 per night or £15 for the week.

Although we didn’t really notice a problem with our mobile phone coverage, or maybe that was because it was a good excuse to switch off from work! It was lovely to be able to sit and read a book in the evening without the constant sound of youtube!

How Dog Friendly Is the Crowden Camping Site ?

Bree met a few other dogs on site, and there were two that lived on the small holding behind our pitch which she had a conversation with every now and again! As previously mentioned dog bins were easy to locate and with so many walks directly from the door. I’s a great place to take your dog.

What Did We Think Of Crowden Camping and Caravanning Club Site?

We specifically chose Crowden for it’s location, we haven’t visited the Peak District for a number of years, so the plan was to show the children where Asa grew up, and to get a couple of mountain climbs in, the plan was to take them all up Mam Tor, unfortunately the weather had other ideas! Although we did have a very wet visit to Buxton! Asa did manage to climb Westend Moss with Xene, Eowyn and Kaide, before the beautiful sunshine turned into heavy rain! Not deterred by bad weather they also managed to walk a small part of the Pennine Way.

We loved the little site, it was very well taken care of and the staff could not have been more helpful. The children loved hearing the sheepdogs next door as it meant they were off to collect some more sheep, which they loved watching. If you are looking for a small site, with stunning views and a break from civilisation, then this one is definitely for you!

Nearby Attractions to Crowden Camping

I am sure one of the main reasons people choose this site is for the easy access to the Pennine Way. There are numerous walks directly from the door, but if you are looking for a different type of attraction, you may enjoy :