Why this ride
125 km from Bardon Mill to Bardon Mill, about 2 h 01 of riding. It goes by way of Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp, Bewcastle Roman fort, The Roman bath house to the north east of and Hadrian's Wall vallum between the boundari.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet and Hadrian's Wall vallum between the boundari
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 125 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 01
- 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
Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp → Bewcastle Roman fort
Speed drops and stays down. Park rather than crawl through. 16 km through ground somebody thought worth listing. The road passes it rather than bypassing it.
Chapter facts
- Length
- 17 km
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet
Midway along Hadrian's Wall, the land rises into a dramatic line of crags, and here the wall perches along the edge of the Whin Sill, a hard, dark rock that stands like a cliff over green pastures. Roman engineers followed the natural line of the escarpment, and from the top you can see for miles across moor and farmland, with the Cheviot hills blue in the north.
Read the complete Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet is where the day begins. Next is Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp.
2. Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp
West of Haltwhistle, the land rises gently to the watershed between the Tyne and the Irthing, a broad, windy saddle of rough pasture known as the Tyne Gap, where rivers flow east to the North Sea and west to the Irish Sea. Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp is one of several marching camps here, where Roman soldiers on the move dug a rectangular ditch and rampart for a night or a season, the earthworks now barely visible as low ridges in the grass. It is part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage site.
Read the complete Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp comes up about 16 km into the recorded legs. Next is Bewcastle Roman fort.
3. Bewcastle Roman fort
Bewcastle is one of the loneliest places in Cumbria, and it has been for a very long time. Roman soldiers built an outpost fort here, about ten kilometres north of Hadrian's Wall, on a plateau whose shape the walls followed, giving it an unusual six-sided plan. It was a forward base for scouts watching the tribes beyond the frontier, and it was linked to the Wall at Birdoswald by a road. Later, a medieval castle was built into one corner of the old Roman defences, and its broken walls still stand above the beck.
Read the complete Bewcastle Roman fort write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 33 km into the recorded legs you reach Bewcastle Roman fort. Next is The Roman bath house to the north east of.
4. The Roman bath house to the north east of
Brampton is the kind of small Cumbrian market town that riders pass on the A69 without a second look, which is a pity, because the country just north and east of it is some of the richest Roman and medieval ground on the whole Wall. The site of the Roman bath house lies close to the town, near the remains of an early fort on the Stanegate, and like most bath houses it sat outside the fort walls, where its furnaces and the risk of fire could do less harm. Little or nothing stands above ground, so come for the setting rather than the stones.
Read the complete The Roman bath house to the north east of write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The Roman bath house to the north east of, about halfway. Next is Hadrian's Wall vallum between the boundari.
5. Hadrian's Wall vallum between the boundari
Carlisle has been a frontier city for nearly two thousand years, and the vallum that runs across its northern edge is part of the reason. North of the River Eden, in the suburb of Stanwix, stood the largest fort on the whole of Hadrian's Wall, home to a cavalry regiment a thousand strong. The fort lies under the streets and the churchyard now, but the line of the Wall and its rear earthwork, the vallum, can be traced across the fields and gardens to the west, and walkers on the national trail follow it out of the city towards the Solway.
Read the complete Hadrian's Wall vallum between the boundari write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Hadrian's Wall vallum between the boundari sits at 66 km, about halfway. Next is back through The Roman bath house to the north east of.
6. back through The Roman bath house to the north east of
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete The Roman bath house to the north east of 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 bath house to the north east of comes up about 81 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Bewcastle Roman fort.
7. back through Bewcastle Roman fort
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Bewcastle Roman fort write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 97 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Bewcastle Roman fort. Next is back through Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp.
8. back through Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Chapel Rigg 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 Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp, late in the day. Next is Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet.
9. Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet 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 125 km.
Leg by leg
Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet to Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp
Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet → Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp to Bewcastle Roman fort
Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp → Bewcastle Roman fort is 17 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Bewcastle Roman fort to The Roman bath house to the north east of
Bewcastle Roman fort → The Roman bath house to the north east of is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The Roman bath house to the north east of to Hadrian's Wall vallum between the boundari
The Roman bath house to the north east of → Hadrian's Wall vallum between the boundari is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Hadrian's Wall vallum between the boundari to back through The Roman bath house to the north east of
Hadrian's Wall vallum between the boundari → back through The Roman bath house to the north east of is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through The Roman bath house to the north east of to back through Bewcastle Roman fort
back through The Roman bath house to the north east of → back through Bewcastle Roman fort is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Bewcastle Roman fort to back through Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp
back through Bewcastle Roman fort → back through Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp is 17 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp to Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet
back through Chapel Rigg Roman temporary camp → Hadrian's Wall and associated features bet is 16 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.