In the Shadow of Stanage Edge

23.06.2026

In the shadow of Stanage Edge in the Derbyshire Peaks a barren plateau of moorland stretches north to south high above Ladybower reservoir. After a twenty minute woodland walk up from a congested car park beside the reservoir, the path ascends beside a stream to the curve of Hordron Edge. My friend and I were looking for a stone circle of the same name and one I’d missed on a previous visit here in 2023.

We scrambled up through the rocks to a ridge of gritstone crags that defines the edge of Bamford Moor. From here a flat primordial vista opened up in front of us. We had entered a treasured landscape for a few hours, where fellow walkers were spread thinly and only distant silhouettes. This was the domain of Kestrels, Red Grouse and the Ring Ouzel. The ground cover is dense with grass tussocks and heather, where sheep tracks can lead you astray and Ordinance Survey is all important. We nearly passed by the stone circle of Hordron Edge completely as the stones blend in with the tones of their surroundings. Many of them are only visible from close quatres while seven remain upright no more than a metre high. I counted nineteen of them but other sources have numbered them as more. We heard a cuckoo call on arriving at the centre and then a heavy but peaceful silence took over.