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On Friday the 4th of August 2024 Mel and I drove up to the Peak District where we were spending the weekend. Before we drove to the campsite we drove over to Wetton so we could walk to Thor’s Cave that I had wanted to see for some years.
Wetton is a village in the Peak District National Park, North Staffordshire, at the top of the east side of the Manifold Valley.
We arrived and managed to get the last parking space at the Wetton Car Park and toilets that is free parking on Carr Lane.
We pulled on our walking boots and rucksack and headed out up Carr Lane.
At the end of this road junction with Leek Road, we take a footpath known as Thor’s lane on our left to head towards Thor’s Cave.
As we walk along this path we have just the most amazing views over the Manifold Valley.
We reach a stile where we see the hillside which makes up Thor’s Cave. The path is relatively easy to follow. Through the gate we have the choice of heading up onto the top of Thor’s Cave to admire the views across the valley, or heading down the steps to the entrance of Thor’s Cave.
We head uphill first to catch amazing views over the valley.
We head back down hill and back to the path and take the steps down to Thor’s Cave.
It wasn’t long before we reach the cave and what a sight it is!
There are some steps leading to the entrance of the cave, but these don’t go all the way and there is a slippery limestone scramble to access the cave itself. The floor of the cave is very slippery in places and can be wet so please take care when you go in.
Thor's Cave is a natural cavern located in the Manifold Valley of the White Peak in Staffordshire, England. It is classified as a karst cave. Located in a steep limestone crag, the cave entrance, a symmetrical arch 7.5 metres wide and 10 metres high, is prominently visible from the valley bottom, around 80 metres (260 feet) below. Reached by an easy stepped path from the Manifold Way, the cave is a popular tourist spot, with views over the Manifold Valley. The second entrance is known as the "West Window", below which is a second cave, Thor's Fissure Cavern.
Thor's Cave was served by a railway station on the Leek and Manifold Valley Light Railway from 1904 to 1934; the disused line now forms the Manifold Way.
The origin of the name is uncertain, possibly from the word "tor". Links with the Norse god Thor and the Germanic paganism of the early Anglo-Saxons in general have been suggested, but evidence is lacking. Other hypotheses have included lost ancient dialectal terms, and obscure English saints.
Excavations in 1864–65 and 1927–35 found human and animal remains, stone tools, pottery, amber beads, and bronze items within Thor's Cave and the adjacent Thor's Fissure Cavern. The caves are estimated to have contained the burial sites of at least seven people. The finds suggest the cavern was occupied from the end of the Palaeolithic period, with more intensive use during the Iron Age and Roman periods.
The cave was used to represent the entrance to the Dark Wizard's lair in the 1980 film Hawk the Slayer, directed by Terry Marcel, and was a location in The Lair of the White Worm (1988), directed by Ken Russell and starring Hugh Grant.
It was used in the filming of The Verve's 1993 video for their single "Blue", and is also pictured on the front cover of the band's first album, A Storm in Heaven. The cave also acts as the backdrop for Winterfylleth's band photo for their 2020 album The Reckoning Dawn.
We leave the cave carefully it is very slippery and walk back down the path and take a lot more steps down into the Manifold Valley.
We are now walking down a path to a gate where a signpost indicates right for Wetton Mill we take the left turn and follow the River Manifold. However there is no delightful sight and sounds of a lovely river as the riverbed is dry! Where’s the river gone?
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| A dry River Manifold! |
We walk on some distance along a path. Then through a campsite and towards Beeston Tor Farm. We take a footpath on our left and cross the dry riverbed of the Manifold and sit and have a drink and a rest while we look at Beeston Tor above us and contemplating the climb up.
We start the climb up and typically the sun comes out full blast to add that bit extra to the climb.
It is certainly hot as we climb, stopping a few times to rest watching the buzzards and red kites soar over the valley.
We cross over Larkstone Lane for the final steep climb up.
Up top we follow Carr Lane back to the Car Park after a 4 mile walk.
We drive to Poplars Farm Caravanning, Camping,Glamping and Holiday Cottage in Hulland Ward.
What a great Adult only campsite. The owners were very friendly, site very quiet for immaculate showers and toilets with views across the valley.
After we were set up and had a coffee we walked the short way up to the Black Horse Inn for dinner and drinks before walking back to sleep at the site.