Ridgeway Hill

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Ridgeway Hill
Dorset
Ridgeway Hill from Povington Hill 2.JPG
Ridgeway Hill (right) on the Purbeck Ridge
Range: Purbeck Hills
Summit: 653 feet SY914817
50°38’9"N, 2°7’20"W

Ridgeway Hill, also referred to as Grange Hill[1][2] or Steeple Hill[3], is the third highest point of the Purbeck Hills[4] in the county of Dorset standing at 653 feet, is one of the only hills with a prominence of over a hundred metres, HuMPs, in the county.[4] Near the top of the hill is an 18th-century folly known as Grange Arch, built by the former owner of Creech Grange, Denis Bond.[5] On the eastern spur of the hill is Stonehill Down which is now a nature reserve. There are also good views of Swyre Head on the Jurassic Coast.

Location

The hill lies about two miles from Kimmeridge Bay on Dorset's Jurassic Coast and three miles west of Corfe Castle. The hamlet of Steeple stands at its southern foot. To the west is the better-known, but slightly lower, Povington Hill above the abandoned village of Tyneham. The Lulworth Ranges lies between Ridgeway Hill and the coast.

There is a free car park on the ridgeline west of the summit just off the Grange Hill road known as Steeple Hill Car Park, from where there are panoramic views of the area.

Pictures

References

  1. Burke, Sir Bernard (1852). A Visitation of the Seats and Arms of the Noblemen and Gentlemen of Great Britain, Volume 1, Colburn, London, p. 65.
  2. National Heritage List 1000532: Creech Grange
  3. Steeple Pit - Steeple Hill, Isle of Purbeck, Dorset - Places of Geologic Significance
  4. 4.0 4.1 Jackson, Mark (2009). More Relative Hills of Britain, Marilyn News Centre, UK, p. 168.
  5. National Heritage List 1120456: Grange Arch, Steeple