Why this ride
225 km from Durham to Durham, about 3 h 11 of riding. On the way it passes The Roman fort, Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps and back through The Roman fort. The line favours views over speed.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Durham Castle and Cathedral and Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 225 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 3 h 11
- 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.
Scenic road chapters
Durham Castle and Cathedral → The Roman fort
Speed drops and stays down. Park rather than crawl through. 62 km through ground somebody thought worth listing. The road passes it rather than bypassing it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 59 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Durham Castle and Cathedral
The river Wear loops around a rocky peninsula in a tight horseshoe, and on top of it, rising above the trees, stand Durham Cathedral and Durham Castle, one of the most impressive views in Britain. The Normans built both in the late eleventh and early twelfth centuries, soon after the Conquest, as a statement of power in the turbulent north. The cathedral is a masterpiece of Romanesque architecture, with massive columns carved with zigzags and spirals, and its stone rib vaults are among the earliest of their kind in Europe, pointing the way to Gothic architecture. Together, castle and cathedral were listed by UNESCO in 1986.
Read the complete Durham Castle and Cathedral write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Durham Castle and Cathedral is where the day begins. Next is The Roman fort.
2. The Roman fort
Down by the North Tyne, where the river runs fast over stones under a canopy of trees, a Roman cavalry regiment once kept its horses and its very comfortable bath house. Chesters, the fort the Romans called Cilurnum, sat astride Hadrian's Wall near the village of Walwick, guarding the bridge that carried the wall across the river. It is one of the best preserved forts along the wall, with the headquarters building, the commander's house and the bath house still standing to knee or shoulder height, and the remains of the bridge abutment visible on the far bank.
Read the complete The Roman fort write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Roman fort comes up about 59 km into the recorded legs. Next is Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps.
3. Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps
Don't expect walls. The two Roman temporary camps at Moss Side are the sort of monument you mostly have to imagine: a pair of rectangles traced in the fields east of Carlisle, known from cropmarks and low earthworks rather than anything that rises above the grass. What you are looking at is a farmed slope of the lower Eden country, hedges and pasture, with Scotby and Wetheral a few kilometres off and the city of Carlisle seven kilometres to the west. The point of stopping is to stand where a Roman army once dug in for the night and to let the landscape do the explaining.
Read the complete Moss Side 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
about 115 km into the recorded legs you reach Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps. Next is back through The Roman fort.
4. back through The Roman fort
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The Roman fort write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through The Roman fort, late in the day. Next is Durham Castle and Cathedral.
5. Durham Castle and Cathedral
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Durham Castle and Cathedral write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Durham Castle and Cathedral. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Durham Castle and Cathedral to The Roman fort
Durham Castle and Cathedral → The Roman fort is 59 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The Roman fort to Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps
The Roman fort → Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps is 56 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps to back through The Roman fort
Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps → back through The Roman fort is 50 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through The Roman fort to Durham Castle and Cathedral
back through The Roman fort → Durham Castle and Cathedral is 60 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.