Langsett to Margery Hill and High Stones
You start on an easy reservoir track through pine woods and end up on the remotest tops in the county, at High Stones and Margery Hill, with the Howden and Derwent moors rolling away empty in every direction.
An 18.3km loop from Langsett Barn along the reservoir and up onto the Howden Moors to Margery Hill at 546m, the highest ground in South Yorkshire. Reservoir track to start, wild moor to finish.
You start on an easy reservoir track through pine woods and end up on the remotest tops in the county, at High Stones and Margery Hill, with the Howden and Derwent moors rolling away empty in every direction.
The route
From Langsett Barn car park, drop to the reservoir and run the shoreline track beneath the pines, an easy, fast start that lets you settle in. Beyond the water the route climbs out onto the open Howden Moors, following moor paths and the peat edge up to Margery Hill at 546m and the nearby High Stones, the highest ground in South Yorkshire. This is the wild northern edge of the Peak District, a long way from any road. The return drops back off the moor to the reservoir and the woods, 18.3km with 343m of climb, most of it earned on the pull onto the tops.
The moor
The Howden Moors are among the emptiest in the Peak: blanket bog, gritstone edges and the sound of curlew in spring. Margery Hill and High Stones sit on the watershed between the Langsett and Derwent catchments, and on a clear day the view stretches across the whole northern Dark Peak.
Why it works
The reservoir section makes it approachable at both ends, but the middle is serious moor where the paths thin and the bog takes over, so it earns its grade. Go on a settled day - the tops are exposed and hard to read in cloud - and you get one of the best big-moor loops in the eastern Peak.
Good to know
Langsett Barn gives you a large car park, toilets and a cafe, and the 407 bus stops by the reservoir, so it is an easy start point. The reservoir woods ease you in and out, but the moor in the middle is remote and exposed, a long way from help, so carry food, layers and the means to navigate. Check for grouse shooting on the Howden Moors between August and December, when access can be restricted on shoot days, and pick a clear spell so you can read the featureless tops around Margery Hill and High Stones.
The moor beyond the reservoir is remote blanket bog with thin paths and serious navigation in cloud, a long way from help. Fully exposed on the tops. Grouse shooting on the Howden Moors from August to December, and access can be restricted on shoot days.
Safety on this route
- No signal? Text 999 — pre-register first: text register to 999
- Tell someone your route and expected return time before you head out
Leave No Trace
- Leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but memories.
- Please respect the countryside and all its inhabitants.
- Dogs on leads near livestock, and around ground-nesting birds from March to July.
- Gates as you find them — open or closed, leave it that way for the farmer and the next runner.
- Take it all home — wrappers, peel, tissue, the lot. It doesn't count as biodegradable if you can still see it.
- Stick to the path where the ground either side is wet, planted, or nesting habitat.
Common questions
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