Brampton Old Church Roman fort and the med and Twice Brewed Roman temporary camp

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Brampton Old Church Roman fort and the med

   Brampton is the sort of small Cumbrian market town that makes a good place to stop for lunch without any plan to do so. A few miles east of Carlisle, in the green valley of the River Irthing, it has an octagonal Moot Hall in the market place, built in the early nineteenth century, and a main street of sandstone houses and tea rooms. Market day brings stalls to the square, and the town has the unhurried feel of a place that knows where it is. The old church that gives this stop its name stands outside the town, on a rise by the river, with the grass mounds of a Roman fort beside it.

   Read the complete Brampton Old Church Roman fort and the med write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Brampton Old Church Roman fort and the med is where the day begins. Next is Willowford Roman temporary camp.

2. 2. 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

   Willowford Roman temporary camp comes up about 15 km into the recorded legs. Next is Twice Brewed Roman temporary camp.

3. 3. Twice Brewed Roman temporary camp

   The Twice Brewed inn gives its name to a stretch of Northumberland where the Roman frontier is at its most dramatic. Here the Great Whin Sill, a hard sheet of dark volcanic rock, breaks in a long line of cliffs facing north, and the Wall runs along the very edge of it, rising and falling like a stone roller-coaster. Haltwhistle, five kilometres off, is the nearest town, and Hexham lies a good deal further east.

   Read the complete Twice Brewed 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 28 km into the recorded legs you reach Twice Brewed Roman temporary camp. Next is back through Willowford Roman temporary camp.

4. 4. 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

   back through Willowford Roman temporary camp, late in the day. Next is Brampton Old Church Roman fort and the med.

5. 5. Brampton Old Church Roman fort and the med

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Brampton Old Church Roman fort and the med write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Back at Brampton Old Church Roman fort and the med. That is the ride.