Hadrian's Wall between Houghton Road and T and Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
70 km
Riding-time estimate
1 h 08
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.
From Carlisle it runs 70 km to Carlisle; allow about 1 h 08 of riding. The stops in between: The vallum between the road to Garthside a, Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel and back through The vallum between the road to Garthside a. The line favours views over speed.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Hadrian's Wall between Houghton Road and T
Where does the Wall go when it reaches a city? In Carlisle, it takes a quiet route under the pavement. The Roman fort of Luguvalium stood here, on the south bank of the River Eden, to guard a crossing, and the line of the frontier ran north of the town, through what is now the suburb of Stanwix. Along the road between Houghton Road and the river, you are following a stretch where the Wall once stood, though you would need a map and a good imagination to see it. A small plaque, a piece of ditch or a slightly raised bank is all that remains.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Hadrian's Wall between Houghton Road and T is where the day begins. Next is The vallum between the road to Garthside a.
2. The vallum between the road to Garthside a
Brampton is a small red sandstone market town at the edge of the Pennines, and just north of it, where the land rises toward the Irthing valley, a stretch of the vallum runs across the fields near Garthside. The vallum, the great ditch and banks that ran south of Hadrian's Wall, is often clearer than the wall itself in this area, because the stone of the wall was carried off long ago to build farmhouses, churches and even a priory. It is part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage Site, and it is best seen in low light, when the earthworks cast long shadows.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The vallum between the road to Garthside a comes up about 15 km into the recorded legs. Next is Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel.
3. Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel
Around Haltwhistle the wall country becomes the landscape everyone imagines: the Whin Sill, a long ridge of hard volcanic dolerite, rears up in a series of cliffs facing north, and the Romans used it as a ready-made rampart, running their stone wall along the very top. Between the crags and the road the vallum ditch runs across the fields as a broad, clear trench, and from any high point you can see the whole military system laid out: crag, wall, road and ditch side by side.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 35 km into the recorded legs you reach Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel. Next is back through The vallum between the road to Garthside a.
4. back through The vallum between the road to Garthside a
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Hadrian's Wall between Houghton Road and T. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Hadrian's Wall between Houghton Road and T to The vallum between the road to Garthside a
Hadrian's Wall between Houghton Road and T → The vallum between the road to Garthside a is 15 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
The vallum between the road to Garthside a to Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel
The vallum between the road to Garthside a → Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel to back through The vallum between the road to Garthside a
Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel → back through The vallum between the road to Garthside a is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through The vallum between the road to Garthside a to Hadrian's Wall between Houghton Road and T
back through The vallum between the road to Garthside a → Hadrian's Wall between Houghton Road and T is 15 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.