Carole's retirement adventures

County: Nottinghamshire

Name of high point: Silverhill 204m (670ft)

Date completed: 5th June 2025

I was camping at Silverhill Woodland Retreat close to the Silverhill Trail which would take me to the highest point in Nottinghamshire.

I left the campsite from the main entrance, crossed the road into the Country Park straightaway

The Silverhill Trail crosses in front of you as you enter the park with an information board at the bottom of the hill. I took the easy path to the top which is a good track where the Miners Statue is marking the county top of Nottinghamshire.

Silverhill is the tallest, artificial hill in Nottinghamshire. It was originally a spoil heap of the former Silverhill colliery which closed in 1990.In 2005, an extra 5m was added to the hilltop by landscapers.

From the top there are panoramic views over five counties and on a good day Lincoln Cathedral and Bolsover Castle can be seen. The bronze statue of a coal miner holding a Davy lamp is on a rock plinth at a viewpoint on the summit. It’s a tribute to all the miners of the Nottinghamshire coalfields.

As I’d reached the top early on in the day I decided to make it a longer walk. From the top I took the path going left downhill and followed it round.

I followed the Silverhill Trail making a detour through the woods to avoid a family of swans with a number of cygnets on the path. I wasn’t sure how they’d react to me walking through the middle of them as the cygnets were still quite young.

I eventually ended up at the ponds

I went left to follow the path to the Teversal Visitor Centre and had a look around before retracing my steps to get on the path to Pleasley Pits on the Teversal Trail.

I then came off the trails and used OS Maps to walk to Hardwick Hall, a National Trust property. I walked through the grounds to the Hall and Gardens and looked around the New and Old Hall.

I then retraced my steps back towards the Country Park but took a footpath on the right from the lane to go through fields back to the old railway line and back to Silverhill.

The walk ended up being around 9 miles in total but a very enjoyable one in good weather.