Parlick (also known as Parlick Pike) is an approximately cone-shaped steep-sided hill at the extreme south of the main range of Bowland fells in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

, England. Its bog-free sides make it more popular with walkers than the shallow boggy hills to its north. Paths zigzag up this hill from the south, or for the more strenuous ascent a straight path can be chosen. This hill is usually green — different from the often thorny brown to red of the northern hills. A thin neck joins Parlick onto

Fair Snape Fell Fair Snape Fell is one of the larger hills in the Forest of Bowland in Lancashire, England. It occupies a position in the very south of the main range of fells, alongside and just to the north of Parlick, to which it is joined by a ridge. The m ...

with well-worn paths linking the two. Regarding the origin of the name, Professor Eilert Ekwall, in his 1922 ''The Place-names of Lancashire'', writes: :".. (caput de) Pirloc 1228 C1R, Perlak 1228 WhC 371, Pireloke 1338 LPR, Pyrelok pyke c 1350 ib. The name cannot mean " pear orchard " as Wyld suggests. But the etymology may be correct with a slight amendment. O.E. loc means " fold for sheep or goats." A sheep fold at which grew a peartree (O.E. pyrige) may very well have been at the foot of or on the slope of the hill ; this may have been called Parlick (Pirloc) and have given the hill its name. For a probable earlier name see under Core, p. 143." Parlick is a popular venue for foot-launched gliders, because it produces good ridge lift in an unusually wide variety of wind directions. The extensive west-facing bowl allows

paraglider Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a harness or lies supine in a cocoon-like ' ...

pilots to fly to Fair Snape Fell and beyond without leaving reliable ridge lift and as far forwards as Beacon Fell. Local pilots use this arena for club competitions, such as the 'Parlick Grid Challenge'

The summit consists of little more than a cairn, leaving the walker to look at the view, south to Preston and Winter Hill near Chorley, east toward

Pendle Hill Pendle Hill is in the east of Lancashire, England, near the towns of Burnley, Nelson, Colne, Brierfield, Clitheroe and Padiham. Its summit is above mean sea level. It gives its name to the Borough of Pendle. It is an isolated hill in the P ...

, and west towards Blackpool and the Irish Sea. The boundary between the boroughs of Wyre and

Ribble Valley Ribble Valley is a local government district with borough status within the non-metropolitan county of Lancashire, England. The total population of the non-metropolitan district at the 2011 Census was 57,132. Its council is based in Clitheroe. ...

passes very close to the summit, with half of the hill lying within each borough. " Parlick Fell" is the name of a cheese made in

Longridge Longridge is a market town and civil parish in the borough of Ribble Valley in Lancashire, England. It is situated north-east of the city of Preston, at the western end of Longridge Fell, a long ridge above the River Ribble. Its nearest neigh ...

from sheep's milk from the area. The hill and its environs are the location of the legend of the enormous Dun Cow, which was reputed to wander freely across the moorland, and to be in the habit of quenching its thirst at "Nick's Water-Pot", a well on the summit of Parlick.Harkand, J. and Wilkinson, T.T. (1837)
''Lancashire Legends: Traditions, Pageants, Sports, Etc.''
, pp.17-18

References

File:Parlick Fell (geograph 3344091).jpg, The summit of Parlick Image:Parlick from Fair Snape Fell 7948.jpg, Looking down on Parlick, from the lower summit marker on Fair Snape Fell {{Borough of Ribble Valley Hills of the Forest of Bowland Mountains and hills of Lancashire Geography of the Borough of Wyre Geography of Ribble Valley