| Start : | Surprise View Car Park. Parking at the (paid) car park just east of Surprise View.[SK251800 304m ] |
| Summary : | Surprise View Parking - Mother Cap - Over Owler Tor - Millstone Edge - Lawrencefield Edge - Bole Hill - Padley Gorge - Owler Tor - Surprise View Parking. |
| distance : | 5.5km. |
| ascent : | 220m. |
| time : | 2hr. 10min. |
A short walk that works well in summer late afternoon / evening. Millstone, in particular, looks great in the late sun with the red tones of the rock being accentuated by the redenning sun. The route starts near to Surprise View with a walk up the moor past Mother Cap to the top of Millstone Edge. Then along the path below Millstone and onto Lawrencefield before continuing through the wood at Bole Hill. The final section walks up the river valley to reach the bridge at Padley Gorge.
| Overall : | broken clouds |
| Temperature : | 18degC. |
| Wind Speed : | 34km/hr. |
| Wind Direction : | W |
| Clouds : | broken clouds |
| Precipitation : | none |
| Sunrise : | 04:29:17 |
| Sunset : | 19:55:57 |
| : | Times are GMT add 1 hour for BST |
Data from openweathermap.org
Walk through the gate at the back of the car park taking the path to Mother Cap, a distinctive rock feature with views over the Hope Valley. Continue uphill to the rocks on the skyline, Over Owler Tor. From here follow the path that leads to the gate in the fence that overlooks Millstone Edge. Taking care, go through the gate and carefully look over the edge to see the steepness of the crags of Millstone Edge; then retreat back to the gate. Follow the path, beside the fence, north east along the line of the edge. When the fence turns left, downhill just by a small valley, follow the path alongside the fence as it descends. Take the second gate on the left, through the fence, and follow the path until it reaches some old disused buildings. Just after the building take the path sharp left that starts to climb up through a wood. Follow this track uphill, through the wood, and then around the bottom of the crags. The path is below the edge and the edge is often hidden with trees. It is well worth wandering off left to one or two of the bays to see the full splender of Millstone Edge. The bay with the "keyhole" is particularly spectacular. Some of the most difficult Peak District rock climbing routes are at Millstone, and you can see why! Continue following the path towards the road. Just before the final descent to the road, take the path uphill slightly to reach one of two benches. These benches overlook Surprise View and have great views especially south down the Derwent Valley. Continue along the path and get to the road, cross safely to the pavement on the other side of the road. Walk downhill to reach the public footpath that goes south along via Lawrencefield. (2.5kms. 80m. 1hrs. 0min.)
Cross over the wall at the gate, and then follow the wide path that runs along the bottom of Lawrencefield Edge. Again, as at Millstone, the path is a distance away from the edge and it is worth walking over to the edge itself. There is a "pool" at the bottom of one of the higher parts of Lawrencefield Edge. Continue along the path through the Lawrencefield birch woodland to a gate at the end of Lawrencefield. Through the gate is Bole Hill Wood. Follow the paths downhill towards Grindleford Station. By disused building a "paved" track comes in from the right. (1.5kms. 0m. 0hrs. 30min.)
Take the path, leftwards as it climbs along the direction of the river through Padley wood. In autumn this is particularly impressive with the colourful oak trees. Towards the top of the wood the path takes you nearer to the river. Once out of the forest views open out to Higgar Tor with Stanage beyond. Walk up the grass to the bridge over the stream. On the left is a path that goes past Owler Tor and to the road. Owler Tor is much more impressive from here than from the roadside, and worth a detour. All that is left is to walk over to the road and cross it to get to the car park. (1.5kms. 140m. 0hrs. 50min.)
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