Rivelin Rocks are a gritstone

Gritstone

Gritstone or Grit is a hard, coarse-grained, siliceous sandstone. This term is especially applied to such sandstones that are quarried for building material. British gritstone was used for millstones to mill flour, to grind wood into pulp for paper and for grindstones to sharpen blades. "Grit" is...

 edge or escarpment that are situated in the upper Rivelin Valley at grid reference , 9 km west of Sheffield

Sheffield

Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...

 just off the A57 road

A57 road

The A57 is a major road in England. It runs east from Liverpool to Lincoln, via Warrington, Cadishead, Irlam, Patricroft, Eccles, Salford and Manchester, then through the Pennines over the Snake Pass , around the Ladybower Reservoir, through Sheffield and past Worksop...

 in the county of South Yorkshire

South Yorkshire

South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It has a population of 1.29 million. It consists of four metropolitan boroughs: Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, and City of Sheffield...

, England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

.

Overview

The rocks reach a height above sea level of approximately 270 m and are popular with rock climbers

Climbing

Climbing is the activity of using one's hands and feet to ascend a steep object. It is done both for recreation and professionally, as part of activities such as maintenance of a structure, or military operations.Climbing activities include:* Bouldering: Ascending boulders or small...

 and to a lesser extent with walkers, although never overcrowded. The land on which the rocks lie is private and the landowner has protested in the past about damage which has been done to trees and footpaths and has threatened to bar access for visitors. The edge has many trees growing close to it although a good view of parts of the edge can be obtained from the A57 road 0.5 km to the south. Sheep grazing fields stand immediately north of the edge and these are fenced off leaving room for only a narrow path quite close to the edge. The summit of the rocks gives good views of the lower of the Rivelin Dams

Rivelin Dams

Rivelin Dams are a pair of water storage reservoirs situated in the upper part of the Rivelin Valley, eight km west of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. The dams are owned by Yorkshire Water and provide water to 319,000 people as well as compensation water for the River Rivelin...

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Rock Climbing

The rock climbing fraternity tend to refer to the rocks as Rivelin Edge. Many rock climbers are drawn to the area because of the fine obelisk of Rivelin Needle, a 20 metre high free standing gritstone pinnacle which stands in front of the main edge. There are no less than eight recognised routes up the needle with “Croton Oil” graded at Hard Very Severe (HVS 5A) being regarded as a classic climb and one of the best routes on the eastern edges of the Peak District

Peak District

The Peak District is an upland area in central and northern England, lying mainly in northern Derbyshire, but also covering parts of Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Staffordshire, and South and West Yorkshire....

. The rocks in fact just fall inside the boundary of the national park. Additional attractions for the climber is that the rocks are south facing and are often bathed in sunlight and warmer than some of the neighbouring climbing edges, the quality of the rock is also good, being extremely grippy.

The first recorded ascent of the Needle was in 1950 by Don Wooller using the 28 metre long Spiral Route. Famous British climber Joe Brown

Joe Brown (climber)

Joseph Brown, CBE is an English climber, born the seventh and last child of a family in the Manchester suburb of Ardwick. He became famous for climbing during the 1950s, and was a member of the Valkyrie climbing club and founding member of the Rock and Ice climbing club. An early climbing partner...

 climbed the Needle in 1954 by the Original Route. The main face of the rocks also has some excellent climbs with The Brush Off, Blizzard Ridge and Auto da Fe all being highly rated routes. Descent from the Needle is by abseiling

Abseiling

Abseiling , rappelling in American English, is the controlled descent down a rock face using a rope; climbers use this technique when a cliff or slope is too steep and/or dangerous to descend without protection.- Slang terms :...

 from a metal chain at the top. The isolated western part of the crag is named White House Buttress after a house situated just below the edge, it formerly belonged to Arthur Balfour, 1st Baron Riverdale

Arthur Balfour, 1st Baron Riverdale

Arthur Balfour, 1st Baron Riverdale GBE , known as Sir Arthur Balfour, 1st Baronet, from 1929 to 1935, was a British steel manufacturer.Balfour was the son of Herbert Balfour...

 and has become a care home in recent years.

Access

Rivelin Rocks are reached by following a muddy public footpath which leaves the A57 road opposite the dam wall of the lower Rivelin Reservoir, the path goes through bracken

Bracken

Bracken are several species of large, coarse ferns of the genus Pteridium. Ferns are vascular plants that have alternating generations, large plants that produce spores and small plants that produce sex cells . Brackens are in the family Dennstaedtiaceae, which are noted for their large, highly...

 and then enters a dense Silver Birch

Silver Birch

Betula pendula is a widespread European birch, though in southern Europe it is only found at higher altitudes. Its range extends into southwest Asia in the mountains of northern Turkey and the Caucasus...

wood passing a sign that says you are entering a conservation area. The path forks in the wood, the left hand branch is taken going gently uphill towards the rocks until the base of the crags are reached, then it is a short steep scramble up to the top of the rocks, finding an accessible gap in the crags. The view from the top give a good prospect of the lower Rivelin Reservoir. The area of the main edge just behind the needle has been quarried at some time in the past.