| Black Down | |
|---|---|
 A view across Black Down from Beacon Batch in the Mendip Hills | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 325 m (1,066 ft) |
| Prominence | c. 241 m |
| Parent peak | The Wrekin[1][2] |
| Listing | Marilyn |
| Geography | |
| Location | Mendip Hills, England |
| OS grid | ST484572 |
| Topo map | OS Landranger 141 |
Black Down is the highest hill in the Mendip Hills, Somerset, in south-western England. Black Down lies just a few miles eastward of the Bristol Channel at Weston-super-Mare, and provides a view over the Chew Valley. The summit is marked with an Ordnance Survey trig point, the base of which has been rebuilt by the Mendip Hills AONB authority.
The shortest route of ascent goes from the Burrington Combe car park and is approximately 1 km long.
Black Down is an open-access area mostly consisting of moors, with dense cover of associated vegetation such as heather and bracken. According to a local organization's newsletter, the name "Black Down" comes from the Saxon word 'Blac' or 'Bloec' meaning bleak, 'Dun' meaning down or fort.[3]
- ^ "More Relative Hills of Britain" (PDF). Retrieved 27 May 2020.
- ^ "Key Col for Beacon Batch". Retrieved 27 May 2020.
- ^ "Autumn newsletter 2007" (PDF). Mendip Hills AONB. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 November 2007. Retrieved 25 September 2007.