Bardon Hill

Bardon Hill rises 278 metres above Leicestershire, a grassy summit visible for many kilometres across the East Midlands. The hill is the county’s highest point and a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest covering 13.1 hectares. It is the surviving fragment of the ancient Charnwood Forest, where oak, pine and heath still grow on its slopes. A trig point and a radio mast stand at the top, while the lower slopes hold a mixture of woodland and acid grassland. The hill is also part of an eroded volcano formed 600 million years ago from Neoproterozoic volcanic rocks. Nearby Bardon Hill Quarry, another geological SSSI, adjoins the eastern edge of the site. The hill’s wide views have long drawn visitors and writers. In the 1830s John Curtis described a prospect covering over 13,000 square kilometres, one-twelfth of England and Wales. Potter later wrote that the outlook may include nearly one-quarter of the country, calling it one of the most extraordinary points of view in nature. In 1840 Queen Adelaide climbed the hill for a picnic, and the spot where she dined became known as Adelaide’s Bower. The hill also served as a principal triangulation point for Britain’s early geodetic survey, helping to draw precise maps. Large masts now occupy parts of the summit once used for summer houses and viewpoints. A path leads up through mature oak woodland to the open heath at the top. The hill supports 133 spider species, including the rare Tetrilus macrophthalmus, and hosts breeding pairs of buzzard, peregrine and barn owl. Within the surrounding Bardon Park, deer, foxes and badgers still roam the former medieval deer park. The park’s southern boundary runs close to the A511 road, and the landscape retains traces of its past as a managed hunting ground. The summit offers long views across Leicestershire and into the National Forest, where the hill’s volcanic rocks form a prominent landmark.