Why this ride
An 84 km round trip from Keswick - roughly 1 h 24 in the saddle. It goes by way of Brownrigg North tower 21b, Swarthy Hill North tower 20b, Low Mire and Swarthy Hill milefortlet 21.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Keswick afternoon · Swarthy Hill milefortlet 21
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 84 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 1 h 24
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Keswick
Keswick is a slate-grey market town at the northern end of Derwentwater, and everything about it is shaped by the fells. Skiddaw rises to the north in a vast smooth dome, Blencathra's ridges lie to the east, and the lake spreads out to the south toward the jaws of Borrowdale, with small wooded islands scattered across it. About four thousand people live here, but the numbers multiply in summer, and the main street is full of walkers in damp coats peering into the windows of outdoor shops.
Read the complete Keswick write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Keswick is where the day begins. Next is Brownrigg North tower 21b.
2. Brownrigg North tower 21b
Most people think Hadrian's Wall stops at the Solway, but the Roman frontier did not simply end at the water's edge. Beyond Bowness a chain of milefortlets and towers ran on down the Cumbrian coast, watching the sea and the hills of Scotland across the firth, and Brownrigg North, tower 21b in the archaeologists' numbering, was one of them. There is little to see on the ground now, often just a gentle swelling in a field, but stand here and look west and you understand why it was put there: the Solway opens out, and on a clear day the Galloway hills and the Isle of Man line the horizon.
Read the complete Brownrigg North tower 21b write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Brownrigg North tower 21b comes up about 40 km into the recorded legs. Next is Swarthy Hill North tower 20b.
3. Swarthy Hill North tower 20b
Along the Cumbrian coast between Silloth and Maryport, the Roman frontier did not end when Hadrian's stone Wall reached Bowness. A chain of milefortlets and towers continued down the shore, watching the Solway for raiders arriving by boat, and Tower 20b near Swarthy Hill is one of them. It was a small stone watchtower, probably manned by a handful of soldiers, and what remains is a low outline in the turf above the beach. You come for the context and the view across the water rather than for the masonry.
Read the complete Swarthy Hill North tower 20b write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
At least about 42 km into the recorded legs you reach Swarthy Hill North tower 20b. Next is Low Mire.
4. Low Mire
Low Mire lies in the quiet farmland behind the Cumbrian coast, near Dearham and Maryport, where the land slopes gently down to the Solway Firth and the hills of southern Scotland rise across the water. It is an area of small fields, hedges and scattered farms, with the Lake District fells visible to the south-east on clear days.
Read the complete Low Mire write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Low Mire, about halfway. Next is Swarthy Hill milefortlet 21.
5. Swarthy Hill milefortlet 21
Milefortlets are the small, easily overlooked members of the Roman frontier family. On Hadrian's Wall itself they stood every Roman mile, with a gate through the wall and a tiny garrison, and when the Romans extended the system along the Cumbrian coast, to guard against landings from across the Solway, they built milefortlets and watchtowers all the way down the shore. Number 21 stood at Swarthy Hill, on a low rise by the sea north of Maryport, and excavations here showed a small rectangular fortlet with timber buildings inside and a ditch around.
Read the complete Swarthy Hill milefortlet 21 write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Swarthy Hill milefortlet 21 sits at 41 km, about halfway. Next is back through Low Mire.
6. back through Low Mire
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Low Mire write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Low Mire comes up about 46 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Swarthy Hill North tower 20b.
7. back through Swarthy Hill North tower 20b
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Swarthy Hill North tower 20b write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 47 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Swarthy Hill North tower 20b. Next is back through Brownrigg North tower 21b.
8. back through Brownrigg North tower 21b
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Brownrigg North tower 21b write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Brownrigg North tower 21b, late in the day. Next is Keswick.
9. Keswick
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Keswick write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 84 km.
Leg by leg
Keswick to Brownrigg North tower 21b
Keswick → Brownrigg North tower 21b is 40 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Brownrigg North tower 21b to Keswick
back through Brownrigg North tower 21b → Keswick is 38 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.