If you want to visit Harthill Moor, you can make an excellent circular walk, from Elton, alternatively, just park on the B5056 (very busy at the weekend) and make your way up the main path (also the driveway to Cratcliff Cottage), towards Robin Hood’s Stride. It’s worth taking an aside here, to discuss the path you are walking. On the Ordnance Survey map you will see it marked as the Limestone Way. However, this is part of the most important ancient trackway in Derbyshire, the Portway. As far as it is able to be discovered, the Portway ran from Sneinton, in Nottingham, to Woodlands Valley, just beyond Edale. Along its route, it passes many ancient, sacred sites, as well as linking up many settlements of historical significance, on its path northwards through the Peak District. To find out more, try Stephen Bailey’s excellent book, ‘the Old Roads of Derbyshire’ (see my reference list), which outlines the route of the Portway, in depth, as well as other, important, Peak District trackways.
Upon arriving at Robin Hood’s Stride, you will find this pile of sandstone is of the same breed as the sandstone pillars we encountered on Stanton Moor, but on a much larger scale. Even up close, you can easily see how this could be mistaken for a man-made structure. This is a fantastic place for children and adults alike, to clamber over and discover all the little cave-like shelters, formed by the mighty slabs of sandstone. Another name for this site is Mock Beggar’s Hall and you can certainly see why, with its castle-like appearance and its nooks and crannies, you can easily imagine a traveller using it as shelter against the elements, in years gone by, when rooms for the night were less plentiful and less affordable.
You may well be wondering “Why Robin Hood’s Stride? Surely, he’s from Nottingham?” Tales of rebellious outlaws were quite common during the medieval period. These individuals, though no doubt as brutal and bloodthirsty as the age they lived in, were seen as heroes to the downtrodden peasantry of the time. Names such as Roger Godberd, Adam the Leper, Adam Bell and Clim of the Clough, as well as notorious outlaw families, the De Folvilles and the Coterels, would all have been well known through the ballads that surrounded them. Many of these figures have remarkably similar stories to that of Robin Hood. Roger Godberd, for example, was an ex-soldier and, to evade capture, fled to Sherwood Forest, where he gathered a band of a hundred men. Godberd and his men were captured and imprisoned in Nottingham Castle, before escaping and, eventually, being pardoned by the King (Edward I). This bears a striking resemblance to the tale of Robin Hood. However, over time, many of these outlaw exploits became associated with just one name, Robin Hood.
Of course, these outlaws all came from different parts of the country and, hence, we have references to Robin Hood all over the country too. Derbyshire is no exception to this, with its strong connection to the Robin Hood tales, through Little John of Hathersage; Robin’s stalwart right-hand-man, whose grave is to be found in the Churchyard at Hathersage. Also, the original Sheriff of Nottingham had jurisdiction over Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, as well as the Royal Forests of the area and stretching into South Yorkshire, as it is today. This all makes Derbyshire and its wild Peak District well within Robin Hood’s stomping ground. So why Robin Hood’s Stride? The first legend has Robin ‘striding’ from the top of one pillar to the other, an exceptional feat, as the two pillars are 15m apart! The second explanation and my personal favourite, is a folk tale that Has Robin and Little John enjoying an archery challenge, at Eastwood Rocks in Ashover. Both the outlaws take aim towards Harthill Moor, Robin’s arrow falls short, into the valley, while Little John’s arrow lands squarely in the middle of Robin Hood’s Stride - again, a remarkable feat, as Ashover is over nine miles away! This legend first appears in 1804, as a note, underneath a drawing of Robin Hood’s Stride, though this claims that Eastwood Rocks are only a mile and a half away.
Follow the footpath east, away from Robin Hood’s Stride and head towards Cratcliff Rocks. As soon as you pass through the wall boundary you will find the first of the defensive ring forts on our walk, in the field to your left. A lot of people associate ring forts with the Iron Age Celts, but, in common with the other monuments in the area, the ring forts here are all Bronze Age. These defensive settlements often, but not always, were built in prominent positions that would have afforded views of all the land around them. The hillfort on Cratcliff Rocks takes a little finding, because it makes use of the existing rocks as natural defenses. The whole thing is surrounded by a ditch, which acted as another boundary. Defended settlements like this are considered rare and, although the untrained eye may not see much here today, the hillfort here is well-preserved.
Moving along the path, we travel down the wooded side of Cratcliff Rocks, to the Hermit’s Cave. The Hermitage delves into the side of the rocks and is bordered by Yew trees, which are otherwise rare in natural settings, in the area. However, Yew trees have a long and venerable history in folklore. Traditionally, you will often find Yew trees in old Churchyards. In many cases, the Yew trees here predate the churches, as the Yew can live for - quite literally - thousands of years. For example, the Yew tree in St Helens Churchyard, in nearby Darley Dale, is at least 2000 years old and one of the biggest (girth) in England. We can only surmise that the Yew tree’s association with Churchyards and, hence, the dead, is down to this seeming immortality.
The practice of becoming a Hermit; a kind of priest, who opted for a simpler, isolated life, started to become popular in the 12th century. This came about as a reaction to the corruption and excesses of the Catholic Church and the established monastic orders of the time. During the medieval period, the nobility would often give their patronage to hermits living on their estates. In return, these solitary priests would say prayers for the noble and their family. The Hermit would also provide services to travellers, such as guiding them on their way and, sometimes, providing shelter. Although we don’t know exactly when the hermitage was created here, it has a stone bas relief crucifix on the wall, which has been dated to some time in the 13th - 14th centuries. There are also many grooves and sockets in the rock, which show that the cave also had structures built on to it. Most hermitages fell out of use during the reign of Henry VIII, but we know this one was still in use until at least 1550, when the steward of nearby Haddon Hall noted the delivery of five brace of coneys (10 rabbits) to the hermit.
Moving on, we return back towards Robin Hood’s Stride and take the main path northwest, towards Cliff Lane. About halfway to the road, split off right, across the field to the stone circle, Nine Stone Close. The more mathematically inclined amongst you will immediately notice that Nine Stone Close only has four stones, the remaining five were removed during the 18th - 19th century, with one being used as a gatepost in a field wall, about 70m to the south. The stone in the southwest position of the circle also has Bronze Age cup marks carved into it, which some have recently theorised might be symbols to mark significant points along contemporary routes, in this case, the Portway. There are two legends behind Nine Stone Close: the first is that nine local maidens were turned to stone, for dancing on the sabbath - as with the nearby Nine Ladies stone circle; the second is that of a giant, who straddled Robin Hood’s Stride and proceed to take a pee, thus petrifying the dancing maidens into stone!
It’s interesting to note here that, again, we have a circle of nine stones (originally), just as we do with the Nine Ladies, less than two miles away. We still know very little for certain about stone circles and why they were built, including the choices that were made about the number of stones to be included in any given circle. To my mind, in a Bronze Age landscape, the likes of which we have here, it’s inconceivable that the Nine Ladies and Nine Stone Close weren’t linked in some way. That said, it is the kind of mystery that makes areas like this so fascinating.
© Simon Unsworth 2025
Upon arriving at Robin Hood’s Stride, you will find this pile of sandstone is of the same breed as the sandstone pillars we encountered on Stanton Moor, but on a much larger scale. Even up close, you can easily see how this could be mistaken for a man-made structure. This is a fantastic place for children and adults alike, to clamber over and discover all the little cave-like shelters, formed by the mighty slabs of sandstone. Another name for this site is Mock Beggar’s Hall and you can certainly see why, with its castle-like appearance and its nooks and crannies, you can easily imagine a traveller using it as shelter against the elements, in years gone by, when rooms for the night were less plentiful and less affordable.
You may well be wondering “Why Robin Hood’s Stride? Surely, he’s from Nottingham?” Tales of rebellious outlaws were quite common during the medieval period. These individuals, though no doubt as brutal and bloodthirsty as the age they lived in, were seen as heroes to the downtrodden peasantry of the time. Names such as Roger Godberd, Adam the Leper, Adam Bell and Clim of the Clough, as well as notorious outlaw families, the De Folvilles and the Coterels, would all have been well known through the ballads that surrounded them. Many of these figures have remarkably similar stories to that of Robin Hood. Roger Godberd, for example, was an ex-soldier and, to evade capture, fled to Sherwood Forest, where he gathered a band of a hundred men. Godberd and his men were captured and imprisoned in Nottingham Castle, before escaping and, eventually, being pardoned by the King (Edward I). This bears a striking resemblance to the tale of Robin Hood. However, over time, many of these outlaw exploits became associated with just one name, Robin Hood.
Of course, these outlaws all came from different parts of the country and, hence, we have references to Robin Hood all over the country too. Derbyshire is no exception to this, with its strong connection to the Robin Hood tales, through Little John of Hathersage; Robin’s stalwart right-hand-man, whose grave is to be found in the Churchyard at Hathersage. Also, the original Sheriff of Nottingham had jurisdiction over Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, as well as the Royal Forests of the area and stretching into South Yorkshire, as it is today. This all makes Derbyshire and its wild Peak District well within Robin Hood’s stomping ground. So why Robin Hood’s Stride? The first legend has Robin ‘striding’ from the top of one pillar to the other, an exceptional feat, as the two pillars are 15m apart! The second explanation and my personal favourite, is a folk tale that Has Robin and Little John enjoying an archery challenge, at Eastwood Rocks in Ashover. Both the outlaws take aim towards Harthill Moor, Robin’s arrow falls short, into the valley, while Little John’s arrow lands squarely in the middle of Robin Hood’s Stride - again, a remarkable feat, as Ashover is over nine miles away! This legend first appears in 1804, as a note, underneath a drawing of Robin Hood’s Stride, though this claims that Eastwood Rocks are only a mile and a half away.
Follow the footpath east, away from Robin Hood’s Stride and head towards Cratcliff Rocks. As soon as you pass through the wall boundary you will find the first of the defensive ring forts on our walk, in the field to your left. A lot of people associate ring forts with the Iron Age Celts, but, in common with the other monuments in the area, the ring forts here are all Bronze Age. These defensive settlements often, but not always, were built in prominent positions that would have afforded views of all the land around them. The hillfort on Cratcliff Rocks takes a little finding, because it makes use of the existing rocks as natural defenses. The whole thing is surrounded by a ditch, which acted as another boundary. Defended settlements like this are considered rare and, although the untrained eye may not see much here today, the hillfort here is well-preserved.
Moving along the path, we travel down the wooded side of Cratcliff Rocks, to the Hermit’s Cave. The Hermitage delves into the side of the rocks and is bordered by Yew trees, which are otherwise rare in natural settings, in the area. However, Yew trees have a long and venerable history in folklore. Traditionally, you will often find Yew trees in old Churchyards. In many cases, the Yew trees here predate the churches, as the Yew can live for - quite literally - thousands of years. For example, the Yew tree in St Helens Churchyard, in nearby Darley Dale, is at least 2000 years old and one of the biggest (girth) in England. We can only surmise that the Yew tree’s association with Churchyards and, hence, the dead, is down to this seeming immortality.
The practice of becoming a Hermit; a kind of priest, who opted for a simpler, isolated life, started to become popular in the 12th century. This came about as a reaction to the corruption and excesses of the Catholic Church and the established monastic orders of the time. During the medieval period, the nobility would often give their patronage to hermits living on their estates. In return, these solitary priests would say prayers for the noble and their family. The Hermit would also provide services to travellers, such as guiding them on their way and, sometimes, providing shelter. Although we don’t know exactly when the hermitage was created here, it has a stone bas relief crucifix on the wall, which has been dated to some time in the 13th - 14th centuries. There are also many grooves and sockets in the rock, which show that the cave also had structures built on to it. Most hermitages fell out of use during the reign of Henry VIII, but we know this one was still in use until at least 1550, when the steward of nearby Haddon Hall noted the delivery of five brace of coneys (10 rabbits) to the hermit.
Moving on, we return back towards Robin Hood’s Stride and take the main path northwest, towards Cliff Lane. About halfway to the road, split off right, across the field to the stone circle, Nine Stone Close. The more mathematically inclined amongst you will immediately notice that Nine Stone Close only has four stones, the remaining five were removed during the 18th - 19th century, with one being used as a gatepost in a field wall, about 70m to the south. The stone in the southwest position of the circle also has Bronze Age cup marks carved into it, which some have recently theorised might be symbols to mark significant points along contemporary routes, in this case, the Portway. There are two legends behind Nine Stone Close: the first is that nine local maidens were turned to stone, for dancing on the sabbath - as with the nearby Nine Ladies stone circle; the second is that of a giant, who straddled Robin Hood’s Stride and proceed to take a pee, thus petrifying the dancing maidens into stone!
It’s interesting to note here that, again, we have a circle of nine stones (originally), just as we do with the Nine Ladies, less than two miles away. We still know very little for certain about stone circles and why they were built, including the choices that were made about the number of stones to be included in any given circle. To my mind, in a Bronze Age landscape, the likes of which we have here, it’s inconceivable that the Nine Ladies and Nine Stone Close weren’t linked in some way. That said, it is the kind of mystery that makes areas like this so fascinating.
© Simon Unsworth 2025
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