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About Stannage Edge | Parking Location | OS Map | Current Weather
Heading up to the Dark Peak during a wet day isn’t always the best move. However, for the most part, it’s to be expected! We had been in Sheffield for the morning so decided to head over to Stannage edge.
Parking at the main Stannage edge car park, we headed directly up onto the edge. This is very easy to see and navigate as it’s a popular route, it’s not too steep either so most people will be fine. Once at the top, the plateau opens out and you get wonderful views out across Bamford to Mam Tor. You find yourself standing on an expansive plateau which carries on into the distance, for as long as you can see. The views were gorgeous, and naturally, where we found the most people. Only a few decided to carry on walking the length of the plateau.
Taking the ridge walk to the left, follow the main path along. We soon came to “Robin Hoods Cave”. This is a small hollow, carved into the side of the rock face. We popped down to have a look, there are great views out, before heading back onto the man path and carrying on. Once we reached the Stannage Edge plantation, we headed down towards it and had a wander through the woods. Finding a public toilet here at the bottom of the woodland is also noteworthy. The woodland area is particularly pleasant and compared to the crowds that had been on top of Stannage Edge was a nice break to find it so quiet.
We sat here and ate some lunch before heading back up through the woodland. Following a different path up, we got to see a bit more of the copse before carrying on up. We continued left across the top and soon started to pick up some pace. As you move across the ridge, you get some fantastic views and even on this wet day, while being so exposed it was a great walk across. Further along, there is a fork in the path, we took the left-hand path which soon forks again and taking this on the right swings you down alongside the rocky edge. It was nice to get a different view of the rocky face, that we had been stood on, but hardly seeing in its full glory until now. We soon came across many Millstones, the symbol of the Peak District, as we weaved our way back up to the main ridge walk.
If you want to know more about the Millstones of the Peak District:
https://letsgopeakdistrict.co.uk/intriguing-millstones-of-the-peak-district/
Following this along, you head into some typical peak district terrain. A dirt path, with rocky outcrops surrounded by ferns. It’s a great part of the walk that breaks up the high ridge that we had taken so far. Further along here are a few routes back up, as we wanted to head back along Stannage edge, we took this opportunity to get back some height and see some new views.
We continued across the edge until we reached a cairn. At which point we took a few more photos and then decided we would start making our way back. Navigating back was very easy, we just followed the ridge walk across. Some of this was new ground, as we had moved away from the ridge a few times, so it was still different enough. Unlike a lot of walks, this time we appreciated the different views you get when doing a straight line (rather than our usual looped walks which offer new views all the time).
Once on our way back, we were able to keep quite a good pace as it was starting to get quieter, and the weather was starting to get worse ensuring we walked that bit quicker! Again, even on a rainy day, the views were excellent, but we will head back on a sunny day to see it at its best. It's a great walk, and not too strenuous, with great views and is very accessible. Although, this does make it busy so it’s probably best to get here early. There’s plenty of parking, but again, it’s popular so may be difficult if left too late on a nice day.
