The No-Scramble Route to The Trinnacle

If you’re looking for a route to visit The Trinnacle rock formation, but don’t fancy a hands-on scramble up a waterfall, this might be the route for you! Starting from Binn Green car park, the 3.5 mile out and back route follows the reservoir paths before climbing steeply up the hillside onto the moorland.

The Trinnacle rock formation with a view of Dove Stone Reservoir at sunset

This is a great route to take if you want to catch a sunset at The Trinnacle (which is what we did one August evening).

As mentioned, this route starts from Binn Green car park and heads through the woodland to a wooden gate. Turning left on the road, we followed it down to the reservoir embankment. We crossed this, and then turned right. After a short distance, crossing the stream/reservoir inlet, there’s a path leading up the hillside – it’s pretty steep!

A wooden signpost marked Dove Stone Reservoir

The path climbs up almost 200m in a very short space of time, but you’re soon on the path to The Trinnacle. Turning left, the route passes Ashway Cross, a memorial cross to a politician who was killed in a hunting accident.

The path can be VERY muddy on here, so don’t wear your best crocs!

After about 1km, The Trinnacle rock formation will come into view. It’s a long way down! The views are amazing though.

The Trinnacle rock formation at Dove Stone Reservoir at sunset — It wasn’t the most spectacular sunset, and there were 11,000 midges flying about, but it was still pretty!

The route then heads back the way it came, but instead of passing the memorial cross it heads downhill and right at the fork before re-joining the steep track down to the reservoir embankment. It’s then a case of retracing your steps back along the reservoir track and turning right through the woodland back to the car park.

A night time view of the moors around Dove Stone Reservoir — Looking back to the moors

Of course you can make the route even shorter by not visiting Ashway Cross, but it makes it more of a circular walk if you do.

Top Tips for Catching a Sunset at The Trinnacle:

Check the sunset times on a decent weather app (my watch gives me the times) and try to be there 20-30 minutes before it sets. The best colours are often on a clear evening but with some clouds in the sky.
Carry a head torch for the route back – you’ll have about 10 minutes of decent light after the sunset, but after that it gets really dark really quickly.
Take a snack, but take all your rubbish home with you. Don’t be the scruff who leaves bottles shoved behind rocks or dog poo bags – leave no trace.
It gets really muddy around The Trinnacle, so wear appropriate shoes/boots.

If you want to take on the scramble, you can find all the route details here: How to Find The Trinnacle at Dove Stone | 5 Miles