The Dove flows on through the tiny hamlet of Crowdecote and past Pilsbury and Sheen to reach Hartington and begin the section which has made it famous.
Below Hartington is Beresford Dale, where the river enters the narrow gorge where Walton and Cotton fished. This is the most intimate stretch of the Dove, with the river hemmed in by steep cliffs and heavily wooded slopes which tower over it, while the stream glides lazily through turbid pools.
At the two cliffs known as the Celestial Twins you enter Wolfscote Dale, which continues down to Lode Mill, about four kilometres distant. All the way you are in a fine deep valley, often flanked by steep cliffs and accompanied always by the river.
At Lode Mill you meet the first road bridge since Hartington, and the path takes a small road to the charming hamlet of Milldale, before crossing Viator's bridge to enter Dovedale itself. This is the most magnificent and most popular stretch of the river.
First you pass Raven's Crag, then the caves of Dove Holes (named from the Saxon word 'Dubh', meaning black), and then the leaning pinnacle of Ilam Rock. The valley here is heavily wooded and the ash woods of the Dove are one of the few surviving woodlands of their type in the country - so they have been designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Below Ilam Rock the valley narrows, and the path even has a short stretch where duck-boards have been erected to save walkers from having to wade the river. Then it opens out again and high on the left lies Reynard's Cave, a large cave with a natural arch in front. Just downstream there are more crags - Tissington Spires - which are almost like blades or fins of rock alongside the river.
The next stretch of the river is again narrow and craggy, so the path climbs up the hillside above Lover's Leap to pass Sharplow Point and then down to emerge at the famous stepping-stones where Dovedale meets Lindale, overlooked by the conical mass of Thorpe Cloud, which is well worth climbing for the view it gives of the area.
Just below here the gorge ends and Dove meets the Manifold to flow south to Burton. This is a popular spot for tourists and not a place to come on a summer Sunday unless you like crowds!
