Hoar Stone 514m and Robin Hood’s Picking Rods 327m. (Barnsley and Stockport County/UA top).
Anchor Links - Robin Hood Picking Rods
Hoar Stone Summary
Heck this was a barren place, a boggy heather walk on a plateau to get to a small pole stuck in the bog. I went to nearby Horse Stone too, which was just a big rock but at least it broke the skyline.
Parking was in a small lay-by at the start point off the A628. Go straight dow the road South and cross over the road to go through a gate and follow the track until you get to a stone wall. Turn left here and follow the Long Grough river gently uphill on indistinct paths/over heather. At the top you will get to a small cairn where you turn left or East. The going is not too bad to here.
The next stretch across the wide ridge/plateau is okay too but a bit boggy in places. You follow a bit of a path that is marked by meshed bog ‘sleepers.’ After about a kilometre you will see a small pole stuck in the ground. This roughly marks the top, whether it is supposed to I don’t know?
To add a bit more to the walk I headed directly south to Horse Stone, a big solitary stone on the skyline. It is quite rough in places to get there but out and back is only a kilometer. I then simply retraced my steps to the small cairn and dropped down to the finish a slightly different way. There was no difference underfoot really.
Parking: Small lay-by at the start point,
Route: Indistinct paths, boggy in places, will be very wet in winter. Open rugged moorland views.
Route Statistics: A 10km bog trot with 165m of height gain done in 2hrs 10mins.
Robin Hood’s Picking Rods Summary
A short amble in the country along some tracks to get to a couple of big stones/spot height. The stones being medieval remnants of wayside crosses. Helped a farmer move some sheep as well, proper Welsh sheepdog!
Parking was in a surprisingly long lay-by at the start point on Sandhill Lane, a back road by Ludworth Lakes. You can park a bit closer but at the km 3 marker on the map but in reality you would be obstructing a gate/not make it a bit tight for road traffic.
From here head North up the road and go South down Gun Road and turn off left at the km 3 marker. Basically you just go straight up this track until you see the two wayside stones on your right. You will see my track diverge North but I stopped to give a local farmer a hand to move some stock. Anyway, the stones are interesting and nearby is spot height 332 just to cover all bases.
To get back to the start retrace your steps to km 3. Here there is a path on the other side of the road. It does not follow the marked footpath on the map which as far as I could see does not exist. This other path takes you all the way down to Sandhill Lane again where you turn right to go back to your car.
Parking: Nice long lay-by.
Route: Road and track, okay views. Interesting stones.
Route Statistics: 4km and a surprising 100m of height gain done in 45min flat.
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