Walking the Peak District’s Great Ridge. The Great Ridge is an iconic symbol of the Peak District National Park. It gives some of the best views of the Edale and Hope Valleys either side of it.

When: 4th August 2019

Start/ Finish: Castleton Visitor Centre Car Park

Route

A 13 mile clockwise route up through Cave Dale along the Limestone Way then across to Windy Knoll, up Mam Tor to Hollins Cross and then to Loose Hill before making our way back down across fields and tracks into Castleton.

The weather was threatening light rain from 11am turning to thunder showers later in the afternoon, so waterproofs were at the ready. It was humid, so glad I had only worn shorts and vest.

We didn’t see a sole through Cave Dale, only the local sheep, finches and field birds (which I still need to find out the name of!). Up at the top, we caught sight of paragliders, launching themselves off Rushup Edge.

  • Looking up Cave Dale with it's limestone outcrops and sheep grazed embankements
  • Looking down Cave Dale with Peveril Castle in the midground and Lose Hill in the background
  • Looking at Rushup Edge from near Eldon Hill

Friendly sheep and cows

Through a friendly sheep field and then a friendly cow field to Windy Knoll. Last time through here, the cows had taken an interest to Lance dog and started trotting up to him. This time, we took a wide berth around them and he was off lead. Everyone was chilled and they didn’t bother us. Winner.

“This was where everyone had been hiding”

Up to Mam Tor, this was where everyone had been hiding! It was the first sight of people and it was quite busy. Walking part of the Great Ridge from Mam Tor is so accessible from the road and there’s a perfect picnic stop at the top, so you get all sorts of people taking their oldies (that was me the other week), kiddies and babies up to the trig point at the top. It’s a nice atmosphere and I knew it would be fairly quiet going along the Great Ridge as not many people actually go the full length along it!

The views were stunning as always, which is it one of my favorite places to take people new to the area; it’s different every time I go through different weather and seasons.

  • Looking along The Great Great at the top of Mam Tor on a partially cloudy day

Once at Lose Hill, we snaked our way back down grassy paths, turning to tracks, turning to farm tracks then to roads as we entered Castleton, Just in time for a coffee and an ice cream! There’s a theme building to my walks lately…

If you don’t want the hassle of route planning and navigation but still want to see some of the most iconic and best walks in the Peak District, I provide Open Walks monthly where anyone can come and join in a set walk. Check out my Open Guided Walks and start planning your next adventure!