The Roaches is a gritstone escarpment which marks the south-west of the Peak District, a few miles north of Leek in Staffordshire. The rock is a reddish, layered, sandstone. The rock was apparently laid down by rivers draining a mountainous landmass to the north [1] more then 300 million years ago. Some of the rocks visible at the surface have been shaped by the wind. [2] The area is very popular with walkers, bird-watchers, climbers and, apparently, wallabies. Apparently a number of wallabies were released from a private zoo in the 1940s and survived until the end of the 1990s. (The most recent sighting was in 2010 but it seems unlikely that a sustainable population continues to exist). I visited on a glorious sunny Saturday in April. The popularity of the Roaches means that walking the ridge is not a wilderness experience. This did not in fact lessen the attraction of the area; the view is still the same, the rocks are as interesting as they would be if enjoyed in windswept solitude. At first it was slightly disconcerting to have a climber pop up over the edge of the escarpment every now and again but this soon became normal. The sight of people enjoying perching themselves on the top of high rocks with a long vertical drop down adds something to the atmosphere for non-climbers. The presence of so many people then is part of the experience.
I climbed up the Southern end of the escarpment and walked along the ridge to the far end, where the path continues and descends into a valley. The walk to the end, and back, took about 3 1/2 hours at a leisurely pace. Carrying a heavy camera bag added enough ballast to make the climb at the start somewhat taxing. There seem to be two routes at the start; one can either climb up in between two ridges, or go around the back of the second, higher, tier. On the climb up I took the former route; it was interesting to watch dozens of climbers trying out their skills on the various climbing surfaces, on both sides of the gully. Just before entering the gully it is worth looking back to catch a view of Tittesworth resevoir in the valley below, about two miles away
The walk along the top of the escarpment is not demanding. The views are terrific. Alongside the West side of the escarpment is a wooded area; there is a path through this for those who like that kind of walking. But walking along the top of the escarpment must be the most rewarding; the reddish sandstone rock, the jagged crags and views combine to make an exhilarating experience.