Pule Hill and Butterley Reservoir Circular | 6 Miles
This walk explores the iconic Pule Hill and loops around Butterley Reservoir, with panoramic moorland views and waterfalls galore. At just over 6 miles this is a great afternoon hike.
Pule Hill in Marsden has panoramic views of the surrounding moorland. It stands at 437m above sea level and its iconic triangular shape means it’s recognisable from miles around. It’s the site of Pule Hill Quarry, a former busy industrial site producing paving stone, setts and building stone. Now all that remains are the site of the loading bay used to send stone down to the road, and the nearby spoil heaps from the construction of the Standedge Tunnel. There is also one of the Stanza Stones, a series of water themed poems by local poet Simon Armitage. It’s a short detour from this route.
Our walk started in Marsden, outside St Bartholomew’s Church. We headed north to skirt around the church and passed over Mellors Bridge, a bridge on the old moorland packhorse trail. We turned left and then followed the public footpath uphill to join the road near the canal.
We followed the canal towpath to Standedge Tunnel visitor centre and went across the grassed area to join the road. Turning left and following the road up past a couple of cottages, we joined Manchester Road. Crossing Manchester Road we headed up a very rough, brick-strewn track and over a wooden stile onto the moors.
From here it’s a climb up to the war memorial cross on Pule Hill, which has stunning views back down over Marsden. We carried on south-west, climbing gently, passing the air shafts for the Standedge tunnel until we reached the site of Pule Hill quarry. The path takes us along the top edge of the quarry, from where you can see the remains of the loading bay. A short distance further along is the stunning Pule Arch, a natural arch in the rock face. To get to the arch you need to drop carefully down from the top path.
After we’d had a look through the arch we set off to the summit of Pule Hill and admired the 360º views before heading down the south face to join the road. We followed the road back into Marsden, passing the golf club and cricket club, before picking up the public footpath running behind the playground to Butterly Clough. Here the path runs through a woodland then down to the ford/crossing of the Clough where there is a beautiful waterfall.
We crossed the clough and climbed up the hillside, then followed the path around through to the woodland areas which were packed with rhododendrons in bloom. They were so pretty!
The path runs around the head of the reservoir and joins the main track running back to the road. From here we followed the road back into Marsden centre, back to the car. There are plenty of pubs, shops and cafes in Marsden.
Pule Hill and Butterley Reservoir Walk Details:
Walk Route in OS Maps: Pule Hill and Butterley Reservoir Walk Map
Parking: We parked on street outside St Bartholomew’s Church, Church Ln, Marsden, Huddersfield HD7 6DJ W3W:///dried.quicksand.blizzard. There is also free parking at Standedge Car Park next to Marsden Train Station W3W:///fortunate.reaction.tabs.
Facilities: There are shops, pubs and cafes in Marsden.
Walk Time: 3-4 hours
Difficulty: ▲▲
Distance: 6.3 miles (10.2km)
Elevation: 1275ft (388m)
Trig Points Bagged: None
Peak District Peaks Bagged: None
Peak District Ethels Bagged: None
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