Crook Peak

Part of a Special Site of Scientific Interest, Crook Peak is a hill in the Mendip Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Open common with a rocky terrain, the summit offers fantastic views in every direction. Look south across the River Axe and the Somerset Levels, west to the Bristol Channel, east to the bulk of the AONB and north to over patchwork land to Bristol.

Crook Peak and the surrounding area is a geological and biological Site of Special Scientific Interest near the western end of the Mendip Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Somerset.

As part of the nature reserve management there are wild ponies and sheep grazing to protect the rare plants and flowers that the grassland supports. It is important to keep your dog under close control and on a lead at all times on Wavering Down and Crook Peak.

The summit of Crook Peak is a tilting series of miniature limestone escarpments forms the distinctive crag at the top of the hill, which dominates the stretch of the M5 seen below.

Most of the site is owned by the National Trust who bought 725 acres (293 ha) in 1985, and much of it has been designated as common land. It was notified as an SSSI by Natural England in 1952. The ecology of the area includes ancient woodland and calcareous grassland which supports nationally rare species including the Cheddar pink. The underlying rocks are Carboniferous Limestone containing phreatic caves at Shute Shelve Cavern and Picken's Hole from which fossils dating from the Middle Devensian have been recovered.

Sticking out from the end from the ridge of rock that runs from the Mendips Crook Peak offers views over from Exmoor too Wales. A particularly great ride from Wavering down back along the ridge.