Derwent Edge is a

Millstone Grit Millstone Grit is any of a number of coarse-grained sandstones of Carboniferous age which occur in the British Isles. The name derives from its use in earlier times as a source of millstones for use principally in watermills. Geologists refer to ...

escarpment An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations. Due to the similarity, the term '' scarp'' may mistakenly be incorrectly used inte ...

that lies above the Upper Derwent Valley in the

Peak District The Peak District is an Highland, upland area in central-northern England, at the southern end of the Pennines. Mostly in Derbyshire, it extends into Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Staffordshire, West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire. It is subdivi ...

National Park A national park is a nature park designated for conservation (ethic), conservation purposes because of unparalleled national natural, historic, or cultural significance. It is an area of natural, semi-natural, or developed land that is protecte ...

in the English county of

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 ...

. An

Ordnance Survey The Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see Artillery, ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of ...

column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member ...

marks the highest point of the Edge at Back Tor (538 metres, 1765 feet). North of Back Tor the edge extends into Howden Edge and enters the county of

South Yorkshire South Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the north, the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north-east, Lincolnshire ...

Geography and geology

The

forms the edge of the high peat

moorland Moorland or moor is a type of Habitat (ecology), habitat found in upland (geology), upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and the biomes of montane grasslands and shrublands, characterised by low-growing vegetation on So ...

plateau on the eastern side of the valley above Ladybower Reservoir, the edges being the last remains of the gritstone which originally covered all of the Peak District, most of which was scraped off by glaciers in the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages, and g ...

. The Edge itself is notable for its unusual gritstone tors and its views of the Derwent Valley and the Dark Peak landscape; these features along with its proximity to

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, situated south of Leeds and east of Manchester. The city is the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire and some of its so ...

have made it a popular venue for walkers. Its popularity has led to substantial path erosion and the most affected parts of the edge between The Salt Cellar and Lost Lad Hillend have been paved with natural stone slabs to reduce further damage as part of the Lottery Paths Project.

Tors

Derwent Edge has several examples of unusually shaped gritstone tors that have been formed by the actions of wind, rain, and frost over many centuries. These tors have been named over the years by local residents and have now been officially titled on Ordnance Survey maps. These include the Cakes of Bread, the Coach and Horses, and the Salt Cellar. The Coach and Horses (also known as the Wheel Stones and thus named on Ordnance Survey maps) resemble a coach and horses on the horizon when viewed from the

A57 road The A57 is a major road in England. It runs east from Liverpool to Lincoln, England, Lincoln via Warrington, Salford, Greater Manchester, Salford and Manchester, and then through the Pennines over the Snake Pass (between the high moorlands of ...

to the south. Lost Lad Hillend is worth visiting as it has a stone-built topographic indicator to aid in identifying landmarks in the extensive view.

Walking

Derwent Edge is popular with walkers and is described in many walking guides. Mark Richards describes a 10.5-mile walk in his book “High Peak Walks” (), starting at the Fairholmes car park in the Upper Derwent Valley (Grid Reference ) at the northern end of Ladybower Reservoir; it is also possible to access the edge from Cutthroat Bridge (lay by parking) on the A57 () or from Strines Reservoir car park () near the Strines public house. The outcrops along Derwent Edge are popular with rock climbers, particularly the largest, Dovestone Tor, which has about 50 different routes ranging from difficult to Extremely Severe; however, it is not as well used as the nearby Stanage Edge.

Conservation

Much of the moorland around Derwent Edge has been declared a

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

(SSSI) because of its special vegetation and rare birds and animals, such as the

Eurasian golden plover The European golden plover (''Pluvialis apricaria''), also known as the Eurasian golden plover, or just the golden plover within Europe, is a relatively large species of plover. This species is similar to two other golden plovers, the American g ...

red grouse The red grouse (''Lagopus scotica'') is a medium-sized bird of the grouse family which is found in Calluna, heather moorland in Great Britain and Ireland. It was formerly classified as a subspecies of the willow ptarmigan (''Lagopus lagopus'') ...

, ring ouzel and

mountain hare The mountain hare (''Lepus timidus''), also known as blue hare, tundra hare, variable hare, white hare, snow hare, alpine hare, and Irish hare, is a species of Palearctic hare that is largely adapted to polar and mountainous habitats. Evolution ...

. Rare species of plants such as

common cottongrass ''Eriophorum angustifolium'', commonly known as common cottongrass or common cottonsedge, is a species of flowering plant in the sedge family, Cyperaceae. Native to North America, North Asia, and Europe, it grows on peat or acidic soils, in op ...

, mountain strawberry, and crowberry grow in the area. It has been proposed as a

Special Protection Area A special protection area (SPA) is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union (EU) have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and cer ...

for birds under the European Directive on the conservation of wild birds. The edge is part of the National Trust's

High Peak Estate The High Peak Estate is an area of Pennines, Pennine moorland in the ownership of the National Trust in the Dark Peak area of Derbyshire, England. The National Trust High Peak Estate is to be known as the 'Dark Peak Area' from summer 2010 which ...

and visitors are free to roam at will but are urged to keep to established routes to avoid disturbing breeding birds. There are occasional times when the moors are closed for management purposes and grouse shooting – signs are posted at these times.

Gallery

File:Cakes of Bread 1 (2).JPG, The Cakes of Bread, about high File:Coach and Horses 2 (2).JPG, The Coach and Horse or Wheel Stones, about high File:Derwent Salt Cellar.JPG, Salt Cellar with the edge visible in the background

References

Bibliography

External links

National Trust page on Derwent / Howden Moors
{{Peaks of the Peak District Hills and edges of South Yorkshire Mountains and hills of the Peak District Mountains and hills of Derbyshire Climbing areas of England Escarpments of England