Alport Height is a hill near
Wirksworth
Wirksworth is a market town and civil parish in the Derbyshire Dales district of Derbyshire, England. Its population was 4,902 in the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census.Area E04002820 (Wirksworth parish) in Table PP002 - Sex, from Wirkswor ...
in
Derbyshire
Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...
. It is a popular picnic site, since it has extensive views to the South, and is the first hill over within easy reach of the
Derby
Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...
area. Like
Shining Cliff Woods, 2 km to the east, it is in the care of the
National Trust
The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...
. It was one of their first acquisitions in Derbyshire, acquired in 1930.
It is possible to see Derby city centre from the summit, as well as
The Wrekin
The Wrekin ( ) is a hill in east Shropshire, England. It is located some west of Telford, on the border between the unitary authorities of Shropshire Council, Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin. Rising above the Shropshire Plain to a height of ...
, the
Long Mynd
The Long Mynd is a heath and moorland plateau that forms part of the Shropshire Hills in Shropshire, England. The high ground, which is common land and designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, lies between the Stiperstones range t ...
, and the
Clee Hill. It is also possible to see the
Sutton Coldfield
Sutton Coldfield or the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield ( ), is a town and civil parish in the city of Birmingham, West Midlands County, West Midlands, England. The town lies around 8 miles northeast of Birmingham city centre, 9 miles south of L ...
and
Lichfield
Lichfield () is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated south-east of the county town of Stafford, north-east of Walsall, north-west of ...
masts, and the
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
city centre skyline, and also the
Lickey Hills
The Lickey Hills (known locally as simply ''The Lickeys'') are a range of hills in Worcestershire, England, to the south-west of the centre of Birmingham near the villages of Lickey, Cofton Hackett and Barnt Green. The hills are a popular coun ...
just beyond Birmingham. The
Pye Green BT Tower
Pye Green BT Tower is a tall telecommunication tower built of reinforced concrete at Pye Green, Staffordshire, England. Standing on the far southern edge of Cannock Chase, it is one of 14 telecommunication towers in the United Kingdom built of ...
on
Cannock Chase
Cannock Chase, often referred to locally as The Chase, is a mixed area of countryside in the county of Staffordshire, England. The area has been designated as the Cannock Chase National Landscape, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and muc ...
can also be seen.
There are eight radio masts and associated buildings in a compound on the summit (not on Trust land).
The hill is sometimes known as Alport Stone after the name of the conspicuous pillar of quarried
gritstone
Gritstone or grit is a hard, coarse-grained, siliceous sandstone. This term is especially applied to such sandstones that are quarried for building material. British gritstone was used for millstones to mill flour, to grind wood into pulp for ...
, some high, near its summit. The boulder has 3 or 4 recognised climbing routes up it, one being an 8 m route of
climbing-grade E5.
John Gill's bouldering
Bouldering is a form of rock climbing that is performed on small rock formations or Climbing wall, artificial rock walls without the use of ropes or Climbing harness, harnesses. While bouldering can be done without any equipment, most climbers ...
website has early photographs of pioneer climbers in action on the Stone.
See also
*
Alport Castles
The Alport Castles are a landslip feature in the Peak District National Park in Derbyshire. At over half a mile long, it is thought to be the largest landslide in the United Kingdom. The name "castles" comes from the debris from the landslide, w ...
in the High Peak area
*
Alport
Alport is a hamlet in the White Peak area of Derbyshire, England. It lies east of Youlgreave, at the confluence of the River Bradford and the River Lathkill. The oldest house in the hamlet is Monks Hall. There also used to be a pub, which was d ...
, a hamlet in the White Peak area
References
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Mountains and hills of the Peak District
Mountains and hills of Derbyshire