Solomon’s Temple

Grin Low Tower, or Solomon’s Temple as it is locally known, is a distinctive landmark crowning the skyline above Buxton and stands at 437m (1,434ft) above sea level. Built in 1896 (and restored in 1988), this Grade II-listed, 20ft-high Victorian folly replaced the ruins of a previous tower which was built by Solomon Mycock, a local farmer and landowner, and after whom it is still named.

It sits atop Grin Low (low is an old word for a hill) on a Bronze Age barrow (burial chamber) which was excavated in 1894 during the tower’s construction. It contained several skeletons from the ‘Beaker’ period, along with later Roman items.

Surrounded by the Grin Low plantation, now Buxton Country Park, which hides remnants of the lime-burning and quarrying activities which once took place on the hill, the tower affords splendid views across the town and, on a clear day, to the nearby heights of Mam Tor, the Shivering Mountain at the head of Hope Valley, Kinder Scout, which at 636m (2,088ft) is the highest point in Derbyshire, and also Axe Edge, Combs Moss and Chelmorton Low.

You can climb up the tower but the steps are quite small, steep and worn so please take care.

Reach it by walking through the woods from Poole’s Cavern Visitor Centre car park, Temple Fields (off Green Lane) or Buxton Caravan Park. It takes 20-40 minutes.