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The greatest concentration of celebrated gritstone edges in the Peak District lies along the eastern fringe of the national park, where bold escarpments rise to confine the moorland stretching west from Sheffield. Stanage, Froggatt and Curbar edges are among the most revered names in British climbing. Far to the southwest, in the Staffordshire Moorlands, the … Read more
Stob Bàn cuts a fine figure. Both on the map and on the ground, its soaring conical form, capped by a shattered crust of white quartzite, captures attention and ignites aspiration. For those embarking on the magnificent traverse of the complete Mamore range, Stob Bàn is of little more consequence than comprising the second Munro … Read more
Criffel is no mountain, although at 1867ft (569m) it is not that far off attaining official status. However, precise altitude is irrelevant, because it forms the highest ground for many miles around, with no serious competition coming for twenty-five miles, looking either due north to the Lowther Hills, or southeast, across the Solway Firth, to … Read more
Pick up a map of the Malvern Hills and they appear insignificant; even the Ordnance Survey sheet at 1:50k displays the topography as cluttered and too condensed for significant detail. However, if you jump into the car and drive along the M5 Motorway, the genially serrated ridgeline completely dominates the scene. Geologically, the rocks are … Read more
The Northwest Fells are arguably the most complex and integrated concentration of wonderfulness in the Lake District, a cluster of summits that combine to create a fellwalkers’ utopia, making the task of singling out Worthies particularly onerous. The natural divide of Whinlatter Pass does concentrate the quality to the south, and many would declare those … Read more
Creag Meagaidh is seen by many to be a mountain preserve for ice climbers, skiers and winter walkers, and indeed, under its customary white mantle, the mountain is undoubtedly at its finest. However, there is also much to recommend for the summer visitor, from the extraordinary natural regeneration of the landscape and the secluded splendour … Read more
The Mamores are one of the great ranges of the Highlands, a monumental group of ten Munros, with Binnein Mor being the mother mountain and highest summit at 3707ft (1130m). It’s name aptly translates as ‘big peak’ and many authorities regard Binnein Mor to be the finest of the range. The full traverse forms a magnificent … Read more
Cader Idris is not the name of a single mountain, but of a mountain range, which was once thought to be amongst the highest in Britain, a remarkable assertion considering that its neighbour Aran Fawddwy is taller, although neither even reaches three thousand feet in altitude. The misconception derives from the powerful, independent presence of … Read more
The Black Mountains comprise the most extensive upland range within the Brecon Beacons National Park, casting broad, grassy ridges projecting like the fingers of an arthritic hand. Collectively, the ridges stretch for fifty miles, with thirty miles of this above the 2,000ft contour. The culmination of these whale-backed elevations is at Waun Fach, an … Read more
Imagine a statuesque range of voluptuous hump-backed hills, cloaked in green velvet and rippled by an amplitude of homogeneous ridges sweeping gracefully down to a petticoat of bucolic pastures. Move in closer and a contrast emerges, for the ridges are separated by deeply riven gills, spouting lively streams that give vigour to an otherwise tranquil … Read more