Summer turned up late and a bonus superb weather forecast on a midweek morning meant heading over to the Peak District (close to home) after the school run for an impromptu hike!
Starting in the small village of Earl Sterndale, I hiked a circular route encompassing Chrome Hill and Parkhouse Hill along its beutiful and unique looking Dragon’s Back ridge line. Here’s how it went.
| Hike date | 16th September 2024 |
| Weather conditions | A clear day. Warm and sunny |
| Distance hiked | 9.99km (as measured on Apple Watch. Longer than All Trails estimate but partly because I did my usual bit of wandering off path and so forth |
| Walking time | 3 hours 20 minutes (including all the photo stops) |
| Elevation gain total | 469m |
| Terrain | Easy to follow route. Grassy and muddy at the beginning with rocky low grade scrambles up to the hills. |
Dragon’s Park Circular Route – Peak District
The circular I followed from Earl Sterndale takes you around the other side of the hills. So while you can see both from your starting point, you’re actually looking at the route you will come back down and don’t get a view from here of the Dragon’s Back ridge line in all its glory. But the ridge line is a great way to finish off a beautiful circular.
I took this route:
It was a lovely circular. I went midweek term time and was able to park in the village of Earl Sterndale just fine. However, I imagine this would be busier on a weekend.
The route starts with a descent through fields onto Buxton Road. You cross the road and head through the farm onto a public footpath which takes is easy to follow. You follow it to Dowel Dale, a beautiful valley with a single track road running through it:
From here you follow the track up the road for another kilometre or so until you turn off into a field which requires a descent on grass.
This is where you get your first proper views from this side of the hill of the ridge line that gives the Dragon’s Back its name:
It looks like a sleeping dragon from this viewpoint.
The ascent to the summit of Chrome Hill is rocky with some light touch scrambling required.
Once on the summit of Chrome Hill, you can look back along the Dragon’s Back and enjoy genuinely magnificent views.
From here, it’s a grassy descent to the road, across the road and a steep ascent up Parkhouse Hill.
The way this route takes you will see you scrambling up a steep rocky hillside. It’s a grade 1 I believe but actually is, for anyone with scrambling experience, will be very straightforward to go up. Some people were coming down that way and personally I wouldn’t fancy that!
Yesterday it was a very sunny, lovely day. However, the day before had seen all day long rain! So the ground was saturdated and the rock was greasy. It required extra care for sure.
It wasn’t complex but it was a fun scramble for sure.
Is the Route Suitable for Children?
I would personally take my eldest two (now aged 7 and 9) on this route. It’s fun scrambling and lots of the exposed areas can be avoided. But this would be very dependent on the children of course.
Would I do it again?
Yes. If you’ve only got 3 or 4 hours to spare and you want views, a bit of scrambling and some epic scenery, this one really a great hike.
