Golden Morning Overlooking Hope Valley Cement

Hope Valley Cement works in some swirling golden morning mists, Peak District National Park.

The cement works is the Hope Valley’s biggest source of contention, many see it as a blot on the landscape but the fact is the cement works was there before the Peak District gained national park status and it has provided hundreds of jobs for the local population. The town of Castleton in particular owes a lot of its success to the cement works. Regardless of opinions the works have become an iconic landmark and the subject of many photographers work.

Mam Tor is a 517m hill near Castleton, in the High Peak area of the Peak District National Park. The hill gets its nickname ‘The Shivering Mountain’ from the frequent landslips that occur on the eastern face of the hill, caused by unstable layers of shale. At the base of Mam Tor and at nearby Winnats Pass are four famous caverns where semi precious minerals such as Blue John were once mined. These caverns are known as; the Blue John Cavern, the Peak Cavern, the Speedwell Cavern, and the Treak Cliff Cavern.