36. Paths Less Travelled, Stanage and Hathersage
- Map: Explorer OL1 The Peak District Dark Peak Area
- Time: 3 hours
- Distance: 9.7km/6.1 miles
- Ascent: 500m
- Inset. Top: Stanage Edge, below, Little John's grave, Hathersage.
An excellent walk in familiar territory but on less frequented paths. NB, some of the tracks taken on this circuit may not appear on earlier versions of OS maps but are nevertheless legal and well-defined.
Start at the car parking area for Stanage Edge at SK245829. From the road junction turn right towards Hathersage and after 100m take a path on the right over access land. Follow this over a slight rise then down to Leveret Croft. Turn left onto a surfaced track and after 300m take a path on the right opposite a well. The path drops down to the fine house at Moorseats, turn right and just before the gates take the rather vegitated path on the left. Follow this down through pleasant woodlands, through a gate and on towards Hathersage Church. Pass through the graveyard where there are handy lunchtime seats,
After the graveyard take a path right across a field down to a well-used lane in front of the cricket field., Turn right then left through an allotment. Cross the stream then follow the path as it crosses Baulk Lane, the drive to Brookfield Manor and up to Birley Farm. Pass to the right of the farm and zigzag up to a minor road. Turn left and at a road junction take the footpath on the right. This runs up fields roughly parallel with the road and eventually joins it. Keep right and at Outlane take a surfaced footpath on the right that passes in front of the house.
Follow this downhill to Green's House and turn left through a gate and start to head up towards Stanage Edge. After some 500m the path crosses the wall and continues in the same direction up to the minor road below Stanage. Turn left and at a T junction take the well-surfaced track on the right which is Long Causeway but known locally as The Roman Road, though it isn't. Follow this onto Stanage Edge but where the track heads off left across the moor keep right along the top of the Edge.
After about 2km, after the last of the rocks take a rough path down to the right to your starting point.