Why this ride
From Keswick it runs 182 km to Keswick; allow about 2 h 51 of riding. The stops in between: Frontiers of the Roman Empire, Willowford Roman temporary camp, Throp Roman fortlet and Crooks Roman temporary camp.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Keswick long day · Crooks Roman temporary camp
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 182 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 51
- 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 Frontiers of the Roman Empire.
2. Frontiers of the Roman Empire
The Wall comes into its own here, at the Irthing gorge, where the line runs along a high shelf above the river and you can see why the Romans picked it. Birdoswald fort, known to them as Banna, sits right on that edge, with a long view down the valley and the ground falling away to the water.
Read the complete Frontiers of the Roman Empire write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Frontiers of the Roman Empire comes up about 80 km into the recorded legs. Next is Willowford Roman temporary camp.
3. Willowford Roman temporary camp
Rivers move, and the Irthing at Willowford proves it. When the Romans built the Wall here, they carried it across the river on a bridge, and the massive stone abutment of that bridge survives on the east bank, now well away from the water, because the river has shifted west over the centuries. Nearby, the earthwork outline of a Roman temporary camp, one of many marching camps built by units on campaign or on construction duty, lies in the fields. Temporary camps were ramparts of turf and ditches thrown up for a few nights or weeks, and their faint shapes are often best seen from the air or in low winter light.
Read the complete Willowford Roman temporary camp write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
At least about 83 km into the recorded legs you reach Willowford Roman temporary camp. Next is Throp Roman fortlet.
4. Throp Roman fortlet
Throp is a farm name on the edge of Gilsland, in the narrow gap where the River Irthing slips between the northern Pennines and the moors that roll north towards the Scottish border. A small Roman fortlet stood here, close to the Stanegate, the road that ran along the valley before the Wall was built, and it is one of the many features that make up the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage site. Not much remains to see, but the setting is classic Wall country.
Read the complete Throp Roman fortlet write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Throp Roman fortlet, about halfway. Next is Crooks Roman temporary camp.
5. Crooks Roman temporary camp
The Roman army on the march built a camp every night: a rectangle of ditch and rampart, with tents inside, defended by sentries. These temporary camps, often used only once or for a short campaign, left faint traces in the landscape, and many have been found from the air in the north of England. Crooks, near Haltwhistle and Greenhead, in the area where Northumberland meets Cumbria, is one of several temporary camps along the line of Hadrian's Wall, probably used by the soldiers who built the Wall in the second century.
Read the complete Crooks Roman temporary camp write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Crooks Roman temporary camp sits at 78 km, about halfway. Next is back through Throp Roman fortlet.
6. back through Throp Roman fortlet
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Throp Roman fortlet write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Throp Roman fortlet comes up about 95 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Willowford Roman temporary camp.
7. back through Willowford Roman temporary camp
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Willowford Roman temporary camp write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 96 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Willowford Roman temporary camp. Next is back through Frontiers of the Roman Empire.
8. back through Frontiers of the Roman Empire
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Frontiers of the Roman Empire write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Frontiers of the Roman Empire, 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 182 km.
Leg by leg
Keswick to Frontiers of the Roman Empire
Keswick → Frontiers of the Roman Empire is 80 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Frontiers of the Roman Empire to Keswick
back through Frontiers of the Roman Empire → Keswick is 80 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.