Black Hill

Introduction

After the pretty dales of the White Peak last week, it was time to tackle the rugged wilderness of a Dark Peak hill today.

Black Hill is the third highest point in the Peak District at 1908 feet, 582 m. It is the highest point (county top) of the historic county of Cheshire, lying at the tip of what was once known as the Cheshire Panhandle, a long projection of the county which lay to the north of the reservoir filled valley of Longdendale. It’s now on the border between Kirklees and Derbyshire High Peak.

The weather started off grey and misty. There were three options – the mist drops and you can’t see your nose, the mist clears as the sun burns it away, or nothing changes. Nothing really changed! There was little or no wind which must be rather uncommon here!

This walk was around 10.5 miles with a total ascent of 1600ft, 180m, a classic upland route. It took me around 3hours 45 minutes to complete the walk.

The drive is around 40 minutes each way, but the area around the end of the M67, and the Woodhead Pass can be unpredictable. It wasn’t too bad today.

For dog walkers, this is a great walk outside the breeding season. Much of the Access Land is free of sheep, so plenty of freedom from August to February.

Having said that, it’s a summer walk as the second half is across marsh and bog, not too bad today, but I imagine often you could sink up to your knees out there!

OS Explorer Map OL1. You will see from my route map below that the paths on the east side of the walk are only vaguely followed. The OS App on my phone was a big help in finding my way back! £25 of the best money I’ve spent in ages is that app – highly recommended!

There is a free car park and toilets at Crowden, not too busy on a Thursday morning, but probably more so at the weekends.

Crowden

Crossing the car park I had to negotiate a group of excited, but well mannered Primary School children from Abraham Moss Community School in North Manchester. Great to see these kids from the heart of the city out in the hills.

I took the path up past the toilet block and camp site, turning left at the camp entrance on a path signposted to the Pennine Way. Then I crossed the impressive Crowden Brook.

I soon reached the Pennine Way, and turned right to start my ascent of Black Hill.

The Ascent

Pretty soon, a look back saw Crowden far below me.

The view ahead was looking quite challenging.

The first half hour of the ascent was completed with the wonderful background of a cuckoo calling, the sound echoing all around the valley. I wish I’d seen it.

More height, and the view back down the valley got better, though the mist wasn’t helping!

Ahead there were two or three steep sections to negotiate, one of which was decorated by a pretty tumbling stream.

Here I passed a couple of foreign visitors, Spanish speaking I think, who were friendly and were enjoying the walk!

There were very few people up here, despite it being on one of the UK’s premier long distance footpaths. This part of the walk was across rubbly, uneven surfaces, and an ankle could easily be twisted. I’d decided to wear my new Black Country flag tee shirt, so that I wouldn’t be missed if I had to be rescued!

A short downhill section brought me to the level of the brook. Here, I watched a brilliantly coloured male stonechat for a few minutes.

However, if I thought that was going to be “bird of the day” I was mistaken. Half a mile or so further on, I looked across the bleak moorland when, from behind a hidden dip, about 25m away, rose a large almost yellowy brown bird that at first I thought was a buzzard, or some other hawk or harrier.

It flew about 0.5m above the ground twisting and turning with its massive wings as it scoured the heather moorland for prey. I was too transfixed to set the camera to work as it remained in sight for about 30 seconds, then returned down into the dip. So, here’s a library picture.

So that was a birding first for me, and I bounced along the last mile to the summit of Black Hill.

The Descent

The path down was not easy to find as I turned about 120 degrees right. A wooden post in the distance was spotted as a target, and a lovely meadow pipit was posing there when I arrived past the adjacent pool.

After traipsing across the boggy moor for a couple of miles I stopped for lunch at Westend Moss. Singing skylarks and whirring curlews flew close by for entertainment, and I shot a short video of the scene.

With the weather threatening rain, I elected to hurry on.

Nearing the end, the views across Torside Reservoir to Reaps Farm, where our friends’ daughter and family live, reminded me of past visits to the area.

The disused quarry provided a different scene, quite a dramatic spot!

Unexpectedly, I arrived back at the path into the car park at the same time as the kids from Abraham Moss School, so shared the enjoyment of the day with a couple of teachers who’d seen me on the way out!

A great experience was enjoyed by all!

And Finally…..

When I was having lunch at Westend Moss, I thought it couldn’t be further from the vibe generated by this classic song!