Stanton Moor

About Stanton Moor

Rising above the Derwent Valley, this gritstone plateau offers a distinct landscape of heather moorland and ancient history. Unlike the limestone dales nearby, it is defined by wind-eroded sandstone pillars and extensive Bronze Age remains. It provides an easy, atmospheric walk with clear views across to Chatsworth House and the Eastern Moors.

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Did You Know?

• •The name is derived from the Old English 'stan' (stone) and 'tun' (settlement or farmstead), a literal description of a village built on or near the prominent gritstone outcrops found across the moor.
• •The moor is home to the Nine Ladies, a Bronze Age stone circle. Local folklore claims the stones were nine women turned to rock for dancing on the Sabbath, with the nearby King Stone representing the fiddler who played for them.
• •Prominent wind-eroded gritstone pillars dot the landscape, the most famous being the Cork Stone. Hand-cut steps allow walkers to scramble up its side, though the descent often proves more graceful in theory than in practice.
• •In the late 1990s, the moor was the site of a significant environmental protest. Activists established a long-running camp to successfully prevent the reopening of dormant gritstone quarries that threatened the integrity of the archaeological sites.
• •From the summit plateau, you can look north across the valley to see the sprawling estate of Chatsworth House, while to the east, the gritstone ramparts of Curbar and Froggatt Edge dominate the horizon.
• •While the Nine Ladies stone circle is a site of genuine archaeological importance, those expecting the scale of Stonehenge may find the 'ladies' rather vertically challenged; the site's power lies in its quiet atmosphere rather than its height.