North Pennines
Horse Head Moor
609M
1999FT
About Horse Head Moor
Situated on the high, grassy ridge separating Langstrothdale from Littondale, this broad plateau offers some of the finest perspectives of the Three Peaks. The terrain is often boggy, but the crossing via the old packhorse route provides a classic Dales experience, marked by a lonely trig pillar at the summit.
Key Statistics
Rank
91st Highest in Region
Parent Range
Yorkshire Dales
Prominence
?
31.4m
Nearest Town
North Yorkshire
Geology
You are walking across sturdy layers of limestone, mudstone, and sandstone. These stacked rocks form the solid foundation of Horse Head Moor beneath your boots.
Find It
OS Grid Reference
SD894769
Latitude
54.1878°N
Longitude
2.1639°W
Did You Know?
- •The name likely stems from the Old English 'hross' and 'heafod', referring to the distinct shape of the ridge’s profile when viewed from the valley floor near Hubberholme.
- •The summit is crossed by the 'Horse Head Pass', an ancient packhorse track that served as a crucial medieval link for farmers and monks travelling between the remote settlements of Halton Gill and Hubberholme.
- •The vista from the trig point is exceptional for its clarity; on a fine day, the limestone plateaus of Ingleborough and Whernside are clearly visible to the west, silhouetted against the Forest of Bowland.
- •Classified as a Tump, the hill has a drop of at least 30 metres on all sides, though it remains physically connected to the higher ground of Birks Fell to the south by a long, undulating moorland spine.
- •At exactly 1,999 feet, the hill is a minor masterpiece of frustration for traditionalists, sitting just one foot shy of the 2,000-foot mark required to be a 'mountain' in old money.