Trail Running Planet · South Pennines · Rombalds Moor
Burley Moor Stone Circles from the Cow and Calf
Four thousand years of prehistory in one loop. Rombalds Moor carries over 400 cup-and-ring marked stones, and this route strings the best of them together before dropping you onto two kilometres of Burley Moor that almost nobody runs.
Distance
11.6 km
Ascent
320 m
Descent
316 m
Max elevation
402 m
Route type
Loop
Est. time
1h 30m – 2h 5m
Grade
Hard
Navigation
map_skills
Parking
LS29 8BT
Dogs
Welcome
Best seasons
spring, summer, autumn, winter
About this route
An 11.6km circuit from the Cow and Calf linking the Badger Stone, the 402m Rombalds Moor trig, the Twelve Apostles and the Grubstones circle, with a long open crossing of Burley Moor before the run back along the edge.
Hazards & notes
The Burley Moor section between the Grubstones and Coldstone Beck is blanket bog with faint paths and nothing to navigate by in poor visibility, and it is a long way from a road. Ilkley Moor itself stopped hosting grouse shooting in April 2018, but the neighbouring moors still shoot between 12 August and December, so check access restrictions if you extend east. No fires of any kind: the moor burned badly in 2006 and again in 2019.
Emergency
Call 999 or 112 → ask for Police → request Mountain Rescue. Register Emergency SMS: text "register" to 999.
Full route, GPX download & live conditions:
https://trailrunningplanet.com/routes/england/south-pennines/rombalds-moor/burley-moor-stone-circles-cow-and-calf
trailrunningplanet.com