Wolf Stones

The Trig Point on Wolf Stones

Location: SD 971 394

Getting there: Parking at the bottom of Combe Hill to the west, or at the road at the start of the Millennium Way to the South. Limited parking in the layby at the head of Newsholme Dean

Height (at trig point on Little Wolf Stones): 443m

Prominence: 100m

Map: OS Explorer OL21 South Pennines)

Sitting at the meeting point of three counties, highest point on a largely desolate moor, Little Wolf Stones, is a peaceful place with great views towards the Aire Gap and Pendle Hill in the distance.

A snowy Pendle Hill, viewed from Wolf Stones

As much as I enjoy epic walks into our National Parks, sometimes you can find little delights sitting on your doorstep. Firmly on the boundary of Lancashire and Yorkshire, and nestled in a triangle between Colne, Keighley and Haworth, lie a number of small and lesser-trodden moors.

Wolf Stones represents the highest point of these moors. It’s likely that the name was derived from the shapes of the stones that are strewn around the summit, rather than the presence of actual wolves.

The one area of high traffic on the moors is the Pennine Way, which passes within about 500 metres of the trig point

The higher ground of these moors is largely covered in bog, and the short hop to the nearby child summit of Maw Stones Hill (standing only one metre lower) is more difficult than it appears.

The Maw Stones, near Wolf Stones

Human activity on the moors has been confined mainly to grouse shooting, and the Keighley Moor Reservoir to the east of the summit.

Keighley Moor Reservoir, on the approach to Wolf Stones

The easiest approach to the summit is probably following the Pennine Way from the south, but a much more interesting route would be to combine with a walk from Newsholme Dean to the west, visiting Keighley Moor Reservoir and the Maw Stones, before walking the shallow ridge to the Wolf Stones. Then, return along the Millennium Way for a circular walk.