Coombes Edge and Cown Edge

Sitting back-to-back on the boundary of the Peak District National Park, Coombes Edge and Cown Edge provide stunning views of Greater Manchester and Kinder Scout.

Coombes Edge looks towards Stockport and Manchester beyond, while Cown Edge looks towards the hills and plateaus of the Peak District. Two great vistas within ten minutes’ walk of each other.

The edges themselves are fairly flat, and if you’re driving, you don’t have to walk far from the road to get your classic sunset views. Drivers can park in various lay-bys on Monk’s Road – there are a couple as it climbs to the summit just beyond Charlesworth, and another down a side road, also confusingly called Monk’s Road, near Back Rowarth.

No car? You can get there by train if you’re up for a longer hike (about four hours there and back). There are routes online that will show you how to get up to the edges from Broadbottom station, which is on the Manchester Piccadilly to Hadfield line. Or get OS Map OL1 and find your own route.

In winter, Coombes Edge and Cown Edge are wild and windy places to blow away the cobwebs. Go in spring and you might hear curlews and lapwings over the grasslands and heather. If you want a challenge, Charlesworth Carnival has an annual fell race that takes runners up and round ‘the Edge’. Fastest time: 19 minutes, 45 seconds.