White Hill

About White Hill

Rising above the M62 corridor in the Dark Peak, this expansive peat-covered moorland is a mandatory milestone for Pennine Way walkers. Known for its challenging, boggy terrain and distinctive trig pillar, the summit offers a stark beauty with wide-ranging views across the Lancashire and Yorkshire borderlands.

Key Statistics

Find It

Did You Know?

• •The name likely derives from the presence of Matgrass or Cotton-grass, which gives the moor a pale appearance in certain seasons, contrasting with the 'black' peat-heavy character of neighboring hills.
• •The summit is a key navigation point on the Pennine Way; before the introduction of flagstone paving, this section was infamous among long-distance walkers for its treacherous and often waist-deep peat hags.
• •From the trig pillar, walkers can look down on the M62 at its highest point in England, with the concrete arch of Scammonden Bridge and the radio masts on Windy Hill clearly visible to the north.
• •Its status as a Marilyn—a hill with at least 150 metres of prominence—is earned because the deep valleys of the River Colne and the River Roch isolate it from the higher ground of the northern Pennines.
• •It is perhaps the only summit in the Peak District where you can experience a profound sense of wilderness while simultaneously tracking the progress of a traffic jam on the trans-Pennine motorway.