Stoodley Pike is the landmark that dominates the skyline east of Todmorden — a 120-foot obelisk perched at 1,300 feet on the open moorland of the South Pennines. The walk up from the town takes about an hour and a half each way, passing through the hamlet of Mankinholes and following the Pennine Way for part of the route. On clear days the views stretch across to the Lancashire lowlands one way and deep into Yorkshire the other.
The monument itself is a hollow tower, and you can climb the internal staircase to an observation gallery just below the top for a vertiginous panorama. The surrounding moorland is heather and rough grass, classic South Pennines landscape that feels genuinely remote despite being so close to the town.