Hadrian's Wall between the track to Cockmo and Parton Roman fort
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
255 km
Riding-time estimate
3 h 59
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.
A 255 km round trip from Haltwhistle - roughly 3 h 59 in the saddle. It goes by way of Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so, Parton Roman fort and back through Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so. The line favours views over speed.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Hadrian's Wall between the track to Cockmo
The stretch of Wall near Cawfields is where the whole thing makes the most sense, because the Romans used the landscape. Here the Great Whin Sill, a hard ridge of dark dolerite, rises in a line of crags along the north, and the Wall runs along the top of it, looking down over a drop on one side and a long slope on the other. Close to Cockmount Hill, the Wall and its southern ditch, the vallum, are both visible, and the milefortlet at Cawfields is one of the best preserved on the line, a square enclosure with a gateway still standing. Nearby, an old quarry has filled with water to make a small, dark lake at the foot of the crags.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Hadrian's Wall between the track to Cockmo is where the day begins. Next is Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so.
2. Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so
Between Bowness-on-Solway and Drumburgh, the road follows the shore of the Solway Firth along a strip of land so flat and low that the highest tides cover it, and the line of Hadrian's Wall and its vallum runs just inland, through fields and past farms. This stretch, near Port Carlisle and Glasson, is part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage site. Little is visible of the Wall itself, which was robbed for stone long ago, but the vallum and other earthworks can be traced in places by those with a keen eye.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so comes up about 64 km into the recorded legs. Next is Parton Roman fort.
3. 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.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Hadrian's Wall between the track to Cockmo. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Hadrian's Wall between the track to Cockmo to Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so
Hadrian's Wall between the track to Cockmo → Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so is 64 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so to Parton Roman fort
Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so → Parton Roman fort is 63 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Parton Roman fort to back through Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so
Parton Roman fort → back through Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so is 62 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so to Hadrian's Wall between the track to Cockmo
back through Hadrian's Wall vallum between the track so → Hadrian's Wall between the track to Cockmo is 65 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.