Scotland
Affric Kintail Way
Coming soon
- On trail 12.5 mi 20.2 km
- Walking time 6–7 h
- Ascent 770 m 2,550 ft
- Descent 580 m 1,900 ft
- Difficulty Moderate
Black Hill and Wessenden: a shorter moor day of flagstones and reservoirs.
Section 2: Crowden to Standedge map
Example stay Standedge Foot Farm
Cross-check: Pennine Way route description on National Trails . The walk follows that page's sixteen days, checked 17 October 2026. Distance and climb are measured on our line between these ends, not taken from its mile figures.
The walk
After Kinder and Bleaklow, a gentler day. From Crowden the path climbs past the gritstone of Laddow Rocks to Black Hill, once a bog Wainwright dreaded and now mostly flagstones. It crosses the A635 at Wessenden Head, drops past the reservoirs of the Wessenden valley, and climbs again over the moor to the A62 at Standedge, high above Marsden and Diggle. Big skies and melancholy moorland; anyone who dislikes reservoirs is about to suffer.
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Start of section
Crowden
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Laddow Rocks
A gritstone edge above the valley on the climb out of Longdendale. The path runs below and along it toward Black Hill.
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Black Hill
The summit was once a sea of bare peat that Wainwright dreaded. Flagstones carry you across it now, and the moor is greening up around them.
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Snack van, sometimes
Wessenden Head
The path crosses the A635, then drops into the Wessenden valley past a chain of reservoirs before the last climb to Standedge.
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End of section
Standedge
Section 2: Crowden to Standedge overview
The ground
- Flagstones
- Moorland
- Reservoirs
A short moor day, mostly on flagstones. Not as tough, or as scenic, as the first day, in the official guide's words. Shorter, with easy route-finding.
Stops
Refreshments
- Almost nothing. A snack van is sometimes parked where the path crosses the A635 at Wessenden Head. Standedge has little: Standedge Foot Farm is the one bed on our line
Toilets
- No source used for this section names a public toilet
Before you go
Opposite direction
Standedge to Crowden
Walked north to south, you leave the A62 at Standedge, pass the Wessenden reservoirs and climb to Black Hill, then come down below Laddow Rocks into Longdendale. Crowden has a campsite and little else, so arrange the night before the hard day over Bleaklow and Kinder.
End of section
Crowden
Crowden to Standedge FAQ
Where do I stay at Standedge?
Standedge Foot Farm is the one bed on our line. Otherwise the official guide suggests Diggle or Marsden, below the moor; walkers arrange a lift down and back. Book it early.
Is Crowden to Standedge hard?
Not after the first day. It is shorter, mostly on flagstones, and easy to follow. There is almost nowhere to buy food, so carry it.
Can I download a GPX for Crowden to Standedge?
Yes. Use the GPX button at the top of this page. It is this section's line, for Garmin, Komoot, or your phone. Open the planner if you want a file built around your overnight stops.
Walk this as a day
Used as Day 2 on the 15-day. Open the planner on that preset, then export a full-trip or per-day GPX.
Open in planner Read the 15-day itinerary
Full-trip and per-day GPX files. Free, no account.
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