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Pike Lowe direct from Langsett Barn

Start/Finish

Langsett Barn car park (free on 17/4/16) which is just off the A616 road from junction 35A of the M1 to the roundabout where it meets the A628, Woodhead Pass by the Flouch Inn. The car park is about a mile south east of the roundabout. At weekends, the car park can fill up very quickly leaving one to look around for parking. There are toilets by the car park.

Distance/Time

9 km.    About 3 hours.

Peaks

Pike Lowe, 478 m, SK 209 973.

OS 110: Sheffield & Huddersfield.    OS Outdoor Leisure 1: Dark Peak

Introduction

This is a short walk with good moorland views in clear weather. Some of the going is boggy and gaiters are recommended in a wet spell when progress will be slow. Some of the route is pathless and it is rough stony ground on Pike Lowe. There is plenty of time for this walk on a late-winter's day when the views are often at their best and the frozen ground is more pleasant to walk over. Snow and ice are not normally a problem. There are no really steep sections. Pike Lowe is the distinctive peak seen from Langsett Barn car park. This is the most direct route to the top from Langsett Barn. The area of this walk was part of a tank firing range during World War II so there is the potential to come across unexploded shells!

Route

(1) Exit the car park on the top end of the side by the buildings and make the short descent to the reservoir edge path. Turn left, towards the dam, and soon reach the road across the dam. Cross the dam and continue to just past the wood then take the bridleway on the right. Follow this until it splits then take either fork as they both go to the hamlet of Midhope. Look for an unsigned path between the houses in Midhope and follow it as it descends gently and reaches a road end SE of the hamlet. Those wanting an even quicker ascent could start from here. Follow the track which is a continuation of the road end. This leads to a track which enters the forest and reaches the reservoir at an obvious inlet where there are some information boards. Follow the path on the upper left side of the inlet until it joins a track. This is the track that comes from where the forest is entered and would be much shorter but it is marked as private so the public have to walk around two sides of a triangle! The joined track soon splits into three. Take the left hand fork which is a concrete road. When this goes left, with an obvious brow ahead (this is where the tanks fired from), look for a rough track forking right. This soon descends and gets quite boggy so leave it when a faint ATV track forks off left. Follow this ATV track up towards the N ridge of Pike Lowe. Further on, it becomes a path and passes a short section of broken wall then goes around the corner of a fenced enclosure before seeming to peter out so head up to the ridge and walk along it. The crest is rough and stony and fairly unpleasant in places with little sign of a path. Pass a shelter cairn then reach the very large cairn/shelter which marks the summit of Pike Lowe, 478 m although this may not be the highest point which could be a few metres to the S although the stony nature of the area makes it difficult to tell.

(2) There is one obvious path from the cairn and it goes W. Follow it then start drifting left, roughly WSW, to intersect a fairly obvious, but boggy, path heading towards Cut Gate. Follow this roughly W until it passes a low stone marker post. Continue about another 200 m then head N across rough ground before descending into the Sugden Clough basin. Lower down there are some grouse butts and these lead towards the track which descends towards Sugden Clough shooting cabin. From here follow the track down to reach the three track intersection passed earlier then take the footpath back to the inlet on Langsett Reservoir. Either retrace on the outward track (necessary if car parked at road end near Midhope) or follow the path, E, by the side of the reservoir. This leaves the reservoir well before the dam and ascends through the wood to reach the outward bridleway. Turn left to reach the road and retrace to the car park.

Notes

(a) This walk took place on 21^st January, 2017.