| Tegg's Nose | |
|---|---|
 Tegg's Nose from Ridgegate Reservoir | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 380 m (1,250 ft) |
| Geography | |
 | |
| Location | Cheshire, England |
| Parent range | Peak District |
| OS grid | SJ947725 |
| Topo map | OSOutdoor Leisure 24 |
Tegg's Nose is a hill east ofMacclesfield inCheshire, England. It has a short ridge with a high point of 380 metres (1,250 ft) atSJ947725, terminating in apromontory at the southern end.[1][2] It lies on the western edge of thePeak District, although outside the boundary of the national park.[1] Much of the hill's area falls within theTegg's Nose Country Park, managed byCheshire East Council Countryside Management Service; Tegg's Nose is also part of theEnvironmentally Sensitive Area Scheme.[2]
Historically quarried formillstone grit, Tegg's Nose now includes a range of environments includingmoorland,meadow, farmland, broadleaved woodland and is rich in wildlife. Recreational uses of the area includewalking,orienteering,horse riding,fell running,cycling,mountain biking,rock climbing,sledging andfishing.
Originally called "Tegge's Naze", "Tegge" might have been the name of an early Norse settler or might refer to a sheep ("teg"), while "nose" probably refers to the southern promontory.[2] The area is believed to have been occupied during theBronze Age, and there is a Bronze Agebarrow near High Low Farm south of Tegg's Nose.[3][4] After the Norman Conquest it formed part of the Royal Forest of Macclesfield, a hunting reserve owned by theEarls of Chester.[3]
The hill was quarried formillstone grit from the 16th century until 1955.[2] There were two quarries, one by the northern viewpoint at Windyway producing a blue stone, and the other near the Tegg's Nose summit producing Tegg's Nose Pink.[2] Quarrying was originally by hand, giving a high-quality product used for buildings, gravestones,kerbs,flagstones andcobbles, which was used as far afield as theIsle of Man.[4][5][6] Blasting was introduced in the 1930s, producing crushed stone for roads and airfields, and during theSecond World War, rock for runways was extracted usingpneumatic drills.[2][5] A collection of historical quarrying equipment is preserved within the country park, including ajaw crusher,crane and astone saw, which was powered by asteam engine.[2][5] There is evidence of a railway track around the disused summit quarry.[5] There is also evidence of a bomb crater at the bottom of Tegg's Nose, caused by a German bomber during WW2, which can be seen from the summit.
The Bottoms and Teggsnose reservoirs were constructed in 1850 and 1871, respectively, to regulate the flow of theRiver Bollin feeding the textile mills ofMacclesfield andLangley, which once had five water-powered silk mills.[3][7] The nearbyRidgegate Reservoir to the east was constructed at a similar time to provide drinking water for Macclesfield, withTrentabank Reservoir following in the 1920s.[3]
Much of the area is a mixture ofmoorland andmeadows.[2][3] The moorland is dominated bywood sage,heather andbilberry, while the meadows support a range of wild flowers includingmountain pansy,tormentil andharebell. At lower elevations,gorse,bramble andhawthorn appear.[2] The broadleaved Teggsnose Wood covers the southern part of the hill, withoak,beech,hornbeam,holly andmountain ash.[1][2]
Birds observed in the area includewoodpeckers,nuthatches,flycatchers,tree creepers,thrushes,tits,warblers,buzzards andravens, as well as various waterfowl on the reservoirs includinggrebes andtufted ducks.[3] The area is grazed in summer byAngus Cross cattle from a farm in Langley.[citation needed]
At the base of the hill to the south lie the small Bottoms Reservoir (34 million gallons) and Teggsnose Reservoir (24.5 million gallons), with the Walker Barn stream feeding the latter.[1][2][4]
The Tegg's Nose ridge has three viewpoints. On clear days the views across theCheshire Plain to the west take inLiverpool and the Welsh hills. To the east can be seenMacclesfield Forest and the distinctive hill ofShutlingsloe.[1][2]
Several public footpaths, concessionary paths andbridleways cross the area. The Tegg's Nose Trail is a circular waymarked trail of 4 km (2.5 mi) around the area; part of the trail is a bridleway.[2] The waymarkers for this trail take the form of circular plaques depicting the view towards Shutlingsloe. The "Walk to the Forest" is another waymarked circular trail of 11 km (6.8 mi) linking Tegg's Nose and the plantation of Macclesfield Forest.[8] Saddlers Way, which forms part of both of these trails, was a formerpackhorse track.[2] Tegg's Nose lies on theGritstone Traillong-distance footpath, forming the end of the northern stage and the start of the central stage.[9] ThePeak District Boundary Walk follows the same route through the country park.[10] It also forms an access point for ascending Shutlingsloe via Macclesfield Forest.[3]
The area is used fororienteering, with several permanent courses available.[11] The Tegg's Nose Fell Race is run annually in August.[12]
Three cycling routes start at Tegg's Nose. "Grit and Gears" is a 19 km (12 mi) partly off-road circular trail suitable formountain bikes; "Riding the Ridges" is a 28 km (17 mi) circular route on minor roads with optional off-road sections; andRegional Cycle Route 71 is a long-distance linear road route.[13][14][15] The Cheshire Cycleway (route 70) also passes just to the south and east of the country park.[16]
There are tentraditionalclimbing routes on the quarriedgritstone, ranging ingrade from Difficult to Mild Very Severe.[17]Sledging is popular in winter, with fields set aside for the activity.[2] Privatecoarse fishing is available at Teggsnose and Bottoms Reservoirs, withmirror andcommon carp andbream.[18][19]
At the northern viewpoint is a visitors' centre off the Buxton Old Road, which provides car and horse box parking, information, public toilets, picnic tables and a telescope. As of spring 2016 there is a tea room, open seven days a week.[1][3][19] Several open-air sculptures stand near the visitors' centre; these include a stone sheep, a bench with an abstract tree and a set of carved wooden benches surrounding the viewpoint.[20][21][22] Car parking is also available by Teggsnose Reservoir and at the Trentabank ranger station inMacclesfield Forest.[2][19] Nearby public houses are the Leather's Smithy byRidgegate Reservoir and the St Dunstan in the village ofLangley.[19]
The area can be reached by bus fromMacclesfield orBuxton.[3][19] Wheelchair access is limited owing to the nature of the terrain, and there are unfenced vertical drops.[2][23] Local tourist accommodation is very limited.[19]
The summit of Tegg's Nose provides a 360° view over the nearby town of Macclesfield and the Cheshire Plain.
53°14′58″N2°04′51″W / 53.24949°N 2.08089°W /53.24949; -2.08089
