Hadrian's Wall vallum in wall mile 6 and Hadrian's Wall & vallum between field boun

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Hadrian's Wall vallum in wall mile 6

   If the Wall was the barrier you could see, the vallum was the barrier you were not supposed to cross. This is a great flat-bottomed ditch, about six metres wide, with mounds of earth on either side, and it ran along the south of the Wall for most of its length, forming a kind of military zone behind the frontier. Nobody is quite sure of its purpose, though the usual theory is that it marked the rear boundary of the area and controlled the movement of people and goods. At Benwell, within Newcastle, the vallum has one of its best-known features, a stone causeway that allowed the road to cross the ditch near the fort gate, a neat piece of Roman engineering that came to light in the twentieth century.

   Read the complete Hadrian's Wall vallum in wall mile 6 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 in wall mile 6 is where the day begins. Next is The vallum between Oatens Bank.

2. 2. The vallum between Oatens Bank

   Look south of the road near Oatens Bank, just west of Heddon on the Wall, and you will see it: a broad, flat-bottomed ditch running across the fields, with a low mound on either side. That is the vallum, and it is one of the strangest and most debated elements of Hadrian's Wall. It runs parallel to the wall, a short distance to the south, along most of its length, and it seems to have marked the rear edge of the military zone, controlling access from the south rather than defending against attack from the north. Crossings were limited to causeways opposite the forts, which suggests a kind of customs line.

   Read the complete The vallum between Oatens Bank write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   The vallum between Oatens Bank comes up about 15 km into the recorded legs. Next is Hadrian's Wall & vallum between field boun.

3. 3. Hadrian's Wall & vallum between field boun

   Hadrian's Wall runs for about seventy-three miles across the north of England, from the Solway Firth in the west to the Tyne in the east, built on the orders of the Emperor Hadrian after his visit to Britain in 122 AD.

   Read the complete Hadrian's Wall & vallum between field boun write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   about 29 km into the recorded legs you reach Hadrian's Wall & vallum between field boun. Next is back through The vallum between Oatens Bank.

4. 4. back through The vallum between Oatens Bank

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete The vallum between Oatens Bank write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   back through The vallum between Oatens Bank, late in the day. Next is Hadrian's Wall vallum in wall mile 6.

5. 5. Hadrian's Wall vallum in wall mile 6

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Hadrian's Wall vallum in wall mile 6 write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

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

   Planning note

   Back at Hadrian's Wall vallum in wall mile 6. That is the ride.