Posted on
A pictorial alphabet of favourite places around England – R for the Roaches
A pictorial alphabet of favourite places I've sketched and painted around England
![Hen Cloud from the Roaches v2 auto sml Hen Cloud from the Roaches v2 auto sml](https://azure.wgp-cdn.co.uk/app-painters-online/posts/HenCloudfromtheRoachesv2autosml.jpg?&width=350&height=350&bgcolor=ffffff&mode=crop&format=webp&webp.quality=85&scale=down)
I’ve said before that the Staffordshire Moorlands are perhaps the most overlooked part of the Peak District. For me their most dramatic feature is the Roaches, a rocky, gritstone ridge near Leek, rising to 500 metres above sea level and containing some strangely weathered rock formations. The Roaches are the most prominent part of a curving ridge which extends for several miles from Hen Cloud to the Hanging Stone in the Dane Valley (see under D). On a clear day the views from the Roaches extend over Cheshire to Lancashire and Wales. This view of Hen Cloud from the Roaches is a bit clichéd but the two upright stones just cry out to be painted, framing Hen Cloud as they do. I can find no history for them and assume they’ve been used as gateposts in the past. But why there should have been a gate on an uncultivated, windswept escarpment is a mystery.
Comments
Login or register to add a comment
No comments