Dartmoor & Exmoor
Cleeve Hill
330M
1083FT
About Cleeve Hill
As the highest point in the Cotswolds, this sprawling limestone massif offers a rugged alternative to the region's manicured valleys. The summit plateau, known as Cleeve Common, features distinctive wind-sculpted trees and dramatic limestone outcrops. It is a significant Marilyn, providing an expansive sense of scale high above the Severn Vale.
Key Statistics
Rank
1st Highest in Region
Parent Range
Exmoor
Prominence
?
237m
Nearest Town
Cleeve Hill
Geology
You are walking over layers of limestone, sandstone, and mudstone. These varied rocks stack together to form the sturdy foundation of the hill beneath your feet.
Nearby Fells
Find It
OS Grid Reference
SO996245
Latitude
51.9199°N
Longitude
2.0059°W
Did You Know?
- •The name Cleeve is derived from the Old English 'clif', meaning a steep slope or escarpment, while 'Cloud' (used for the summit rocks) comes from the Old English 'clud', meaning a mass of rock or hill.
- •The hill holds a unique geographical distinction as the highest point in the entire drainage basin of the River Thames; rain falling on its southern slopes eventually flows into the River Coln and down towards London.
- •On a clear day, the western view is exceptional, looking directly down onto Cheltenham Racecourse and across the Severn Vale to the Malvern Hills and the Black Mountains in Wales.
- •The common has a long history of quarrying for Cotswold stone, and many of the 'natural' looking depressions on the plateau are actually the remains of medieval and post-medieval workings.
- •The summit plateau is famously home to a golf course, meaning the greatest hazard to a hillwalker here isn't the terrain, but a stray ball slicing off the western edge.