Blake Mere (Mermaid’s Pool), Morridge

Beside the old drovers’ road over the Staffordshire moors lies Blake Mere, also known as the Mermaid’s Pool. Local legend tells of a beautiful but deadly spirit who appears at midnight to comb her hair before dragging travellers to their deaths in the dark, bottomless water. The nearby Mermaid Inn, once Blackmere House, keeps her legend alive with a verse warning visitors of her call. Some believe the tale echoes ancient rites of water sacrifice once performed on these desolate moorlands.