Errwood Hall Circular Walk
We visited the ruins of Errwood Hall as part of our walk around Shining Tor and Cats Tor. This Errwood Hall circular walk is just over 6 miles long and takes in the stunning Peak District scenery.
Errwood Hall was once a beautiful historic house set in the Goyt Valley. Built in 1874 for the Grimshawe family, the Hall was demolished in the 1930s following the construction of the Errwood Reservoir. In fact, the water treatment works is built using stone from the demolition of the hall. You can see photos of the Hall in its former glory here.
There isn’t much remaining of the Hall now, but there are some beautiful features that allow you to imagine what it must have been like in the Hall. The grand arched windows look out onto what would have been ornamental gardens, with steps leading up to the Grimshawe family’s hilltop cemetery.
The coat of arms, which was originally over the front door, has been moved. Although weathered and eroded you can just about make out some details.
So, where do you park to get to Errwood Hall? We parked at the Pym Chair car park (SK10 5XL)and walked along Foxlow Edge to get to the Hall.
On the way to Errwood Hall we had a little detour to St Joseph’s Shrine, hidden away in the woodland. This shrine features a beautiful tiled image of St Joseph and is a lovely place to ponder a while. St Joseph’s Shrine is accessed down a narrow path just off the main path.
Before reaching the Hall itself we explored the Errwood Hall graveyard where the remains of the Grimshawe family and their favourite servants are buried. There used to be a mausoleum on site but this has long since been removed. I think this would be a beautiful place to end up. There is said to be a ghost of a governess haunting the ruins, but we only saw lots of other visitors and some runners doing training.
Errwood Hall would have been spectacular in its day, and it’s such a shame it was demolished in the 1930s when the land was purchased to create the Errwood Reservoir and Fernilee Reservoir. The hamlet of Goyts Bridge was also left to rot, and the ruins now lie under Errwood Reservoir.
If you visit the ruins of Errwood Hall, be sure to explore the area around the Hall as well. You can have a wander around Errwood and Fernilee Reservoirs or wander through the woods near the Hall.
There are no facilities at the Hall, so be sure to take everything you need with you (and take it all away again afterwards – leave nothing but footprints!).
Here’s the route for the Foxlow Edge – Errwood Hall – Shining Tor – Cats Tor walk that we did, and you can read more about the Shining Tor circular walk here.
This was a lovely stop off on our Peak District Peak Bagging walk, and I would recommend you go for an explore around this Errwood Hall circular walk if you get chance.
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