Lickpenny Caravan Park, Matlock, Derbyshire

The wettest weekend of the season found us aquagliding in our motorhome to Lickpenny Caravan Park, a family-owned and run Park near Matlock, Derbyshire. On the day that the whole of June’s rainfall fell in a few hours, it took us 2.5 hours to do 20 miles and we were well frazzled when we arrived. A quick call ahead assured us there was no problem at Lickpenny – all the pitches are well-drained, hardstanding, so once we got there we’d be home and dry – well – home and extremely wet actually.

There are two outstanding things about this site – it’s location, and it’s Wardens, Val and Brian. Lickpenny is situated on the edge of the Peak District, with Bakewell, Buxton and Chatsworth House, all within easy driving distance. The site is built on former nursery land and the landscaping is delightful for a relatively new site. The pitches are huge, laid out in tiers, and many of them are individual, with some doubles – brilliant for friends camping together, and all are surrounded by mature trees, shrubs and hedgerows, not spindly twigs masquerading as trees separating the pitches like on some sites.

As regards the Wardens - Val and Brian are just the best we have ever met. We knew them when they worked at Shardaroba, (now Camping and Caravanning Club Teversal site) and were delighted when we heard they were resident at Lickpenny. In between working extremely hard to keep the site and facilities pristine (you should see the toilet and shower blocks) they always have time for a chat, a cheery wave or a good roll-your sleeves-up gossip. And they can tell you where to get the very best fish and chips in the area.

This is a large site with around 120 pitches with hook-up for caravans and motorhomes. Tents are not accepted but children and dogs are made very welcome. There is a bus-stop a short walk down the lane but if you want to take the car or motorhome out, we found a huge car park clearly signposted just before Bakewell, with no height barriers.

The best pitches? Well – it’s a matter of opinion, but we loved the pitches right at the top of the site. Once the storm clouds cleared, we had sweeping distant views over the Derbyshire countryside towards Riber Castle. We were however very taken with Pitch 45, self-contained on its own in a halfway up the site with great views – a real “honeymoon” pitch, but it was sadly already occupied. Maybe we’ll put in a special request next time………..