England's topography is notably varied despite its modest size. The landscape generally slopes downward from the north and west to the south and east.
* **Highest Point:** Scafell Pike, located in the Cumbrian Mountains of the Lake District, stands at 978 meters (3,209 feet). * **Lowest Point:** Holme Fen in Cambridgeshire, part of the drained marshlands known as the Fens, sits at 2.75 meters (9 feet) below sea level. * **Mountains and Hills:** The Pennines, often called the "backbone of England," run down the center of northern England. Other significant uplands include the Lake District, the Cheviot Hills on the Scottish border, the Yorkshire Dales, and the Peak District. * **Moors and Plateaus:** The southwest features the granite plateaus of Dartmoor and Exmoor, characterized by wild, heather-covered moorland. * **Lowlands:** The southern and eastern regions are dominated by rolling hills such as the Cotswolds, the Chilterns, and the North and South Downs, interspersed with wide, fertile flood plains like the Somerset Levels and the Fens. * **Coastal Areas:** The coastline is diverse, ranging from the dramatic white chalk cliffs of Dover in the southeast to the rugged, rocky coves of Cornwall in the southwest, and the expansive sandy beaches of Norfolk.
