Boomby Lane 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps and Parton Roman fort

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Boomby Lane 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps

   Carlisle is where the Roman frontier met the border of two kingdoms, and the city holds all of that history in a compact space. The Romans built a fort here called Luguvalium, beside the River Eden, and it was an important base for the western end of the Wall. In the Middle Ages the red sandstone castle was the stronghold of the English border, and Mary, Queen of Scots, was held there for two months in 1568 after fleeing across the Solway. The cathedral, one of the smallest in England, has a huge east window and a painted ceiling of gold stars on blue. Tullie House Museum tells the story from the Romans to the border reivers, the raiding families of the borderland.

   Read the complete Boomby Lane 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Boomby Lane 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps is where the day begins. Next is Campfield.

2. 2. Campfield

   Out on the Solway coast west of Carlisle, the land flattens into salt marsh, peat bog and wide tidal sands, and the sky takes over. Campfield Marsh, near Bowness-on-Solway, is a nature reserve run by the RSPB, a mix of salt marsh, wet grassland and raised bog, and in winter it fills with tens of thousands of geese, barnacle and pink-footed, arriving from the Arctic, along with waders that feed on the mud at low tide. Across the firth, the town of Annan and the Scottish hills are visible on a clear day.

   Read the complete Campfield write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Campfield comes up about 25 km into the recorded legs. Next is Mawbray Sandpit tower 16b.

3. 3. Mawbray Sandpit tower 16b

   When people talk about Hadrian's Wall they usually mean the stone barrier across the neck of England, but the system continued down the Cumbrian coast for dozens of kilometres, as a chain of small forts, called milefortlets, and watchtowers facing the Irish Sea. Tower 16b, at Mawbray, was one of those lookouts, standing on the low, windswept coast between Silloth and Maryport. The Romans feared raids by sea, and a line of towers gave warning along the coast, with signals passing from one to the next.

   Read the complete Mawbray Sandpit tower 16b write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 62 km into the recorded legs you reach Mawbray Sandpit tower 16b. Next is Parton Roman fort.

4. 4. Parton Roman fort

   Hadrian's Wall stopped at Bowness-on-Solway, but the Roman frontier did not. Down the Cumbrian coast, the army built a chain of forts, milefortlets and towers to watch the sea and stop raiders slipping round the end of the Wall, and Parton, just north of Whitehaven, was one of them. The fort is known from excavations and records rather than standing remains, and the coastal defences as a whole are included in the UNESCO Frontiers of the Roman Empire. Standing on the cliffs above the sea, you can see why the Romans worried: across the water lie the Isle of Man and, on clear days, the hills of Scotland.

   Read the complete Parton Roman fort write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Parton Roman fort, about halfway. Next is back through Mawbray Sandpit tower 16b.

5. 5. back through Mawbray Sandpit tower 16b

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Mawbray Sandpit tower 16b write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Mawbray Sandpit tower 16b sits at 115 km, about halfway. Next is back through Campfield.

6. 6. back through Campfield

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Campfield write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Campfield comes up about 161 km into the recorded legs. Next is Boomby Lane 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps.

7. 7. Boomby Lane 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Boomby Lane 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Boomby Lane 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps closes the day.