Stanage Edge & Burbage Rocks

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Route: Hathersage, Baulk Lane, Bronte Cottage, North Lees, Stanage Plantation, Stanage Edge, Cowper Stone, Upper Burbage Bridge, Burbage Rocks, Burbage Bridge, Burbage Brook, Owler Tor, Over Owler Tor, High Lees, Hathersage

Date: 10/11/2012
From: Hathersage

Parking: Large public car park in Hathersage
Start Point: Bus stop in the centre of Hathersage
Region: Dark Peak

Route length: 9.3 miles (14.9km)
Time taken: 04:42
Average speed: 1.9mph
Ascent: 512m
Descent: 656m

Points of interest: Stanage Edge, Burbage Rocks, Higger Tor, Carl Wark, Over Owler Tor, Mother Cap

Forming the boundary between the High Peak of Derbyshire and Yorkshire, the giant gritstone edge situated to the west of Sheffield is a magnet to outdoor enthusiasts of all types, climbers in particular; drawing them in from the nearby cities and providing a spectacular vista that is accessible to almost anybody. I am of course referring to Stanage Edge (popularly referred to as just Stanage), one of a number of rugged edges that can be found throughout the District and probably the best known and the most visited. Our walk, starting in Hathersage, would climb up to Stanage before walking the ridge to Burbage Rocks and returning via Mother Cap and Over Owler Tor, making the most of some fine autumn weather. This is a retrospective write up so some detail may be a bit vague.

Starting in the wonderful village of Hathersage, we began our walk along Baulk Lane, a pleasant farm track that runs alongside Hood Brook. This gradual start allowed me to get to grips with some new OS mapping on the GPS while giving my relatively new boots another decent wearing-in. After reaching Bronte Cottage, a short section of road led us back onto the path and up towards North Lees at the foot of Stanage Edge. The autumn weather was certainly on our side, with the low sun picking out a vast array of colours across the landscape.

Baulk Lane leads from Hathersage towards to foot of Stanage

The autumn colours were in fine form

A tarmac lane leads up to North Lees Hall

Stanage Edge looms on the not-too-far distance

Shatton Moor

North Lees Hall was built in the late 16th century and is attributed to Robert Smythson, the architect behind the renowned Hardwick Hall in Derbyshire. It is widely believed to be the inspiration for Thornfield Hall in Jane Eyre, following Charlotte Brontë’s stay in the area in 1845.

North Lees Hall and Shatton Moor

After a brief climb through Stanage Plantation, the path winds onto Stanage Edge via a natural depression in the rocks. This point sits just below the Long Causeway (or Long Causey), a medieval packhorse route that linked Sheffield to Hathersage. While some debate exists over its potential Roman origins, the Causeway survives here as an unsurfaced track. Formerly a byway for all traffic, it was recently reclassified to ban motorised vehicles. Small sections remain paved, with the most extensive stretch being a 20-metre span just west of Stanedge Pole—an ancient waymarker at 438 metres that defines the border between Derbyshire and South Yorkshire and can be seen for miles.

The path leads through Stanage Plantation

The path runs up along the foot of Stanage

Eventually the path reaches a depression in the rocks where you can climb onto the top of the ridge

High Neb can clearly be seen in the distance

Standing atop Stanage Edge, it is easy to see both the appeal of the landscape and why it is so popular with climbers and walkers. There are numerous spots where solitary rocks jut out, offering a perfect perch to admire the sweeping curve of the escarpment. The edge runs four miles north from the Cowper Stone to Stanage End and is the northernmost of an almost continuous line of cliffs, including Burbage Rocks, Froggatt Edge, Curbar Edge, Baslow Edge, and Birchen Edge. Although the gritstone faces reach only 30 metres in height, they form one of the most famous climbing venues in the UK. The highest point, High Neb, sits at an altitude of 458 metres.

Stanage Edge looking north-west towards High Neb

Walkers, climbers and paragliders share the ridge on a typical day

A view down the valley of Hood Brook

Another claim to fame for Stanage is its popularity as a filming location; most notably, it featured in the 2005 remake of Pride & Prejudice. It truly is an international superstar. Access to the edge, however, was not always as open as it is today. Stanage and the North Lees Estate used to be a private grouse moor, and in the 19th century, rock climbers often had to bribe gamekeepers just to gain access to the cliffs.

A route along the top of Stanage is easy to follow, even in poor weather. A wide path guides you between Stanage End and the Cowper Stone, which mark the northern and southern limits of the edge. Part of this trail forms the Sheffield Country Walk, a 53-mile long-distance route encircling the city. Halfway between the Long Causeway and the Cowper Stone lies Robin Hood's Cave, a natural shelter hidden among the rocks. When exploring, care should be taken not to interfere with any climbing hardware—and, of course, to avoid the ultimate faux pas of falling off the edge itself.

Stanage Edge looking north-west

The Cowper Stone

After crossing a slight depression at the head of Burbage Brook, the gritstone wall continues, turning south-east and taking on the guise of Burbage Rocks. To the east, these cliffs—and the equally impressive Higger Tor and Carl Wark to the west—frame the picturesque Burbage Valley, which leads down from Hallam Moor until it reaches the start of Froggatt Edge.

The path runs by the car park between Stanage and Burbage Rocks

The sweeping curve of Burbage Rocks

Upon Carl Wark (sometimes referred to as Carl's Wark) sits a scheduled ancient monument: an Iron Age hillfort, identified by its surviving earth embankments. While the exact purpose of these ramparts remains debated, the site is thought to have served as a place of refuge for nearby settlements, as there is no evidence of permanent shelters within the walls. Our route took us along the opposite side of the valley via the ridge of Burbage Rocks; however, you can also walk beneath the rock face along the Sheffield Country Way for a ground-up view of the gritstone escarpment and a closer look at Carl Wark. Both paths are easy to navigate thanks to wide, well-trodden tracks.

Upper Burbage Bridge between Stanage and Burbage Rocks

Carl Wark and Higger Tor

A long-abandoned millstone quarry

Carl Wak and Higger Tor

Crossing the top of a large gouge in the rock face—the site of a long-abandoned millstone quarry—the path slopes gently down to Burbage Bridge, where we joined the trail leading into the woods. After a brief walk alongside Burbage Brook, the path turns west and begins to climb toward Owler Tor and, eventually, Over Owler Tor, another collection of impressively stacked gritstone. Of particular interest is the singular Mother Cap, a photogenic tor that stands alone beside the path.

Burbage Beck

The southern end of Burbage Rocks

The climb up to Over Owler Tor

Mother Cap

Mother Cap

Over Owler Tor

Beyond Over Owler Tor, the path drops down to Whim Plantation before crossing a field and heading towards High Lees and back into Hathersage. Before entering the woods, there is one last view of Over Owler Tor towering over the landscape below—classic Dark Peak scenery at its very best.

Crossing the stone stile at Whim Plantation

Over Owler Tor

An obvious path crosses the field after Whim Plantation

After a brief downhill stroll through the woods, we returned to Hathersage, the starting point of the day's adventure. This is a fantastic, if highly popular, walk that takes in some of the Dark Peak’s most iconic scenery. In addition to the natural spectacle, there is a wealth of history to discover if you know where to look, providing more than enough to keep you entertained for an entire day. No two walks in this area need to be the same, as the network of paths crisscrossing the moorland ensures there is always something new to see—and it's certainly enough to keep me coming back again and again.

That and the fantastic Outside in Hathersage.