Black Hill Loop from Crowden

Black Hill Loop from Crowden is a 10-mile loop to the broad summit of Black Hill, returning over the Pennine Way and Laddow Rocks. Allow about six hours for roughly 500 metres of ascent. The route suits walkers who are happy to navigate on open moor: the approach crosses peat and heather, and some upper paths become hard to see. If you want a waymarked stroll, this is the wrong choice; if you want a full high-moorland day with a rocky edge on the return, it earns the effort.

Leave Crowden car park by its north side and take the mapped footpath east of Brockholes Wood, past the old quarries, to meet the brook route above the sheepfolds. It avoids the pathless brook approach, but still leads into rough ground. Beyond the sheepfolds, a narrow contour path crosses Hey Moss beside Little Crowden Brook, with small falls in the valley below. The line then heads through Whitelow Slack to White Low, a broad moorland top. A dip to a wide col leads onto Tooleyshaw Moor and the climb to Black Hill’s trig point. Flagstones help near the summit, but the top is wide and peat-stained; its appeal is the big, open moor rather than a dramatic peak or far-reaching view.

From Black Hill, the route turns southwest on the Pennine Way. Flagged sections make the descent easier to follow; the surrounding peat stays boggy, and visibility can fall quickly in cloud. Laddow Rocks is the payoff: a long gritstone edge above Crowden with the valley dropping away below. At the fork, stay on the upper path for the views or take the lower path along the crags for an easier, less exposed line. For a photo, keep a section of gritstone in the foreground and frame the valley below; that gives the cliffs their scale.

Crowden car park is just north of Torside Reservoir on the A628, with toilets at the lot. There is no dependable food stop along the route, so bring what you need. The open moor is exposed to wind, low cloud and winter snow, and parts of the approach are rough or indistinct; carry a map and compass and be able to use them. Dogs are allowed. On open access land, dogs must be on a fixed lead no longer than 2 metres from 1 March through 31 July, and around livestock at all times.