Peak District – Heathersage Circular
A circular hike from Hathersage, a pretty village on the edge of the peak district. The route will lead you to North Lees Hall, picturesque moorland, beautiful views of and from Stanage Edge, Higger Tor and stepping stones across the River Derwent.
Where: A 15.9km (9.8 mile) route from Hathersage Station, across Stanage Edge and Higger Tor, before heading back to Hathersage. Route & GPX available here.
What: A number of beautiful spots along the way, including North Lees Hall, picturesque moorland, beautiful views of and from Stanage Edge, Higger Tor, a country pub, and some fun stepping stones across the River Derwent.
How: I walked this with my ever obliging pal and beautiful model, @msfluffbottom. We actually stayed the night at the Millstone Country Inn and then walked the last 5km or so back to Hathersage the next day.
Transport: On the way there, I travelled from London St. Pancras International to Sheffield, and then changed at Sheffield Station to a train that went to Hathersage. All up, it took about 2 ½ hours of travel each way.
Food: Once you start this walk, there are no chances to stop for food around 11km into the walk. I’d suggest packing a picnic before you go, and having it on the tops of Stanage Edge, or stopping off in Hathersage, buying something to take away, and then starting the walk.
Dog friendly: Yes — although there are a few stiles, and I saw cows (although was easily able to avoid them). Just bear in mind that dogs must be on leads on farmland, as well as around Stanage Edge, as there are native birds they want to protect.
Animals Spotted: Lots of dogs, squirrels, sheep, cows & horses.
Pram/Wheelchair Friendly: No — unfortunately, this route has uneven and steep terrain, as well as stiles and kissing gates.
Stop & See:
North Lees Hall (2.8km) - the inspiration for Thornfield Hall in Charlotte Bronte’s Jane Eyre
Stanage Edge (4km) - cliffs with views over the peak district moors and Hope Valley
Higger Tor (7.5km) - a rocky hillside rising from the smooth moorland around it. Apparently this tor was in the background of scenes from The Princess Bride.
Stepping Stones (13.8km) - some fun stepping stones to cross, leading back into the town of Hathersage.
Route Report:
After getting off the train at Hathersage station, I followed a path out of that station before walking past some of the houses forming the village. Instead of going to the main street with its three outdoor stores and various cafes and pubs, I followed a path with houses on the left side and fields on the right. I actually found out the next day, that if I’d turned right after the first field and walked up the hill, I would have come across Little John’s grave in the churchyard of Saint Michael’s.
Eventually the path I followed led to open green fields, with lovely views of the surrounding hillsides. I continued to follow the path, crossing the fields until I reached a small gate with a narrow path beyond, bordered by shrubs and greenery on each side.
Following this path led to a road, where you turn right, away from the clear footpath sign in front of you. This road had no footpath, so I was careful to keep to the right of the road so oncoming traffic could see me, and so I could see the traffic and manoeuvre myself and my corgi out of the way of the cars. Luckily, there was just one car we saw that was travelling at a reasonable speed.
Not far up the road, you turn left, pass through a gate, and start a slow, steady climb up to North Lees Hall, the building which served as inspiration for Charlotte Bronte’s Thornfield Hall in her novel ‘Jane Eyre’.
Just after the hall, I turned right, up some stairs and then passed through a gate into a field, with a path that eventually led to lovely green woodland, filled with pines and bunches of ferns. As I followed the path slowly up a hill, I caught my first sight of Stanage Edge.
Eventually I reached the edge of the woods, crossed a road and enter the moorlands below. We met a lovely family part way up who showered my corgi Tilly with love and adoration, which she much appreciated – in part because it gave her a rest from climbing up hills, one of her most disliked forms of walking.
As we climbed, we started to pass more and more interesting rock formations, and we got closer and closer to the cliffs of Stanage Edge. Eventually the path led up to the tops of the cliffs (not a difficult climb, despite what it sounds like), and Tilly and I took our first break, eating a delicious tomato and mozzarella baguette, and taking in the views from the top.
During my break, there were two groups of hikers who got a little confused about where the path down to Hathersage was, and I was able to help point them in the right direction. Maybe something to note if you choose to do this walk in the opposite direction, as you’ll need to keep a keen eye out for the path.
Stanage Edge and Higger Tor
Once I’d finished my lunch, taken photos with my corgi, and given her a nice big drink of water, I continued on the path, sometimes on an easy dirt path, and sometimes needing to jump from rock to rock. Despite this being a Thursday around 1.30pm, when I expect fewer people to be around, there were a lot of climbers out enjoying the good weather and the climbing that Stanage Edge has to offer.
Eventually, we turned off from our path across the tops of Stanage Edge and walked down into moorland, across a road, and then across a field until we reached the edge of Higger Tor. Apparently a Tor is defined as a large, free-standing rock formation that rises abruptly from smooth slopes, which is exactly what Higger Tor is. I found out later that this particular tor had been in the background of a scene of The Princess Bride, one of my favourite movies of all time, which made it all the more special!
Climbing Higger Tor wasn’t particularly challenging, and there were some really amazing rock formations at the top. After stopping for our second break, and giving Tilly a much-needed drink of water, we followed a path down and off the tor, and across moorland.
We saw some cows in the distance here, but luckily our path turned off before them. I have an ongoing fear of being chased by a cow, particularly when I have my dog with me (as cows don’t tend to like dogs), so I try to give them a fair amount of space.
Towards the pub
Eventually I got to a bit of path that was very steep and technical. Even my dog was a little unsure at times (she tends to be much more confident than me!), so I ended up picking her up and helping her down some of the trickier, more technical parts. With perseverance, this path eventually led to what appeared to be a quarry (I took a slight detour to my right to see this). After a short stop and a few photos, I followed a woodland path down to a fast, main road.
There was a footpath on the other side (albeit, badly maintained), so I felt fairly comfortable walking my corgi slowly down the hill to the pub where we were going to be staying the night.
My original route actually led me up a footpath, past the pub, and down the road, and I had to backtrack up to the pub. Something my corgi was not pleased about, as she was already pretty tired. However, once we located the pub, we had a warm welcome from the owner and were given a modern, clean double room, perfect for both me and my dog. Instead of walking to Hathersage for dinner, I chose to eat there, and it was a good choice. The pub’s restaurant had clearly been recently refurbished, the food was delicious, and although quiet, the pub felt warm and comfortable.
NOTE: This walk could easily have been done in one day – I was deliberately looking for a bit more quiet, me-time. But there is no reason this couldn’t all be easily walked in one day.
The next morning, Tilly and I had our breakfasts, and then headed out of our leisurely stroll back to Hathersage. After turning right and walking briefly down the main road, I turned left, following a footpath sign down a driveway and then into farmland. It seemed the field’s old gate was broken, and they had put up temporary metal gates, which I had to pick up and put down, but the footpath sign was still clearly there, so I felt comfortable going ahead.
Next was a fairly steep downhill walk through green fields, which led to a path following alongside the River Derwent and a small green patch of grass. I stopped here briefly to play with my corgi, before continuing on, following the path as it wound alongside farmhouses, through fields, through woodlands, and along country paths.
At one point, we passed through a field filled with sheep. I always keep Tilly on a short lead when going through fields, and she knows not to interact with farm animals, but for some reason these sheep were particularly intrigued by her, and three of them ended up following us as we made our way along the edge of the field.
The path led us to a bunch of large stepping stones that you need to cross to get back to Hathersage. Initially, I was a little worried, as there was a man in front of us with walking poles, and I was concerned the rocks would be slimy and dangerous to cross. However, I found that the rocks weren’t too slimy, and because my shoes had pretty good grip, I felt comfortable crossing. Even my corgi was brave, choosing to jump carefully from stone to stone, as opposed to swimming across the river.
Once we reached the other side, we crossed through a field, across a road, through another field, and then up into the village of Hathersage. Turning right, we were able to follow the road along until we reached the main road, and even located some public toilets!
I stopped off at Coleman’s Deli for a brownie and a diet coke (their shop is dog friendly, which is always a plus in my book!), and also had a look around Alp Kit where I bought myself a lamb’s wool jumper. I then walked up to Little John’s Grave, before heading back to the station to catch my train.
All in all, I had a lovely time! The views, particularly of and from Stanage Edge were some of the best I’ve seen in England, and I was sad to head home. Definitely a place I’ll be wanting to head back to sometime soon!