Maiden Way Roman road from B6318 to 450m S and Hadrian's Wall and vallum in wall mile 10
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
129 km
Riding-time estimate
1 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 129 km round trip from Greenhead - roughly 1 h 59 in the saddle. The stops in between: Stone circle, Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac, Hadrian's Wall and vallum in wall mile 10 and back through Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Maiden Way Roman road from B6318 to 450m S
Where Cumbria meets Northumberland in the valley of the river Irthing, the Wall climbs out of a wooded gorge on to open ground, and a Roman road called the Maiden Way ran north from the Wall towards Bewcastle and south towards Kirkby Thore, linking the frontier to the supply routes of the interior.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Maiden Way Roman road from B6318 to 450m S is where the day begins. Next is Stone circle.
2. Stone circle
Long before the Romans built their wall across northern England, people were raising stones on these moors. Close to the line of Hadrian's Wall, in the hills north of Haydon Bridge and Haltwhistle, a small prehistoric stone circle stands in the rough grass, a few weathered boulders arranged in a ring, probably dating from the Bronze Age. Its exact purpose is unknown, but circles like this were often used for ceremonies or burials, and many have legends attached to them.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Stone circle comes up about 24 km into the recorded legs. Next is Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac.
3. Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac
Just north of Hexham, the A road climbs out of the Tyne valley and meets the Roman frontier on a high, windy shoulder of Northumberland. Here, near Acomb, Wall and the crossing of the North Tyne at Chollerford, the line of Hadrian's Wall and its vallum runs across open farmland, sometimes visible as a low bank, sometimes followed by the road itself. Like every stretch of the frontier, it belongs to the UNESCO Frontiers of the Roman Empire, and this middle section is where the wall starts to feel serious, heading west into the wild central crags.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 46 km into the recorded legs you reach Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac. Next is Hadrian's Wall and vallum in wall mile 10.
4. Hadrian's Wall and vallum in wall mile 10
Heddon-on-the-Wall is aptly named. Just west of Newcastle, on a ridge above the Tyne, the village sits right on the line of Hadrian's Wall, and at its eastern edge is the longest surviving stretch of the broad wall still visible in the east, a section of thick, solid masonry about a hundred metres long, complete with the foundations of a medieval kiln built into it. Wall mile 10 is the stretch around here, counting westward from Wallsend, and it is part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire World Heritage site. South of the wall, the vallum, a huge ditch flanked by earth mounds, can still be traced across the fields.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Maiden Way Roman road from B6318 to 450m S closes the day.
Leg by leg
Maiden Way Roman road from B6318 to 450m S to Stone circle
Maiden Way Roman road from B6318 to 450m S → Stone circle is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Stone circle to Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac
Stone circle → Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac to Hadrian's Wall and vallum in wall mile 10
Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac → Hadrian's Wall and vallum in wall mile 10 is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Hadrian's Wall and vallum in wall mile 10 to back through Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac
Hadrian's Wall and vallum in wall mile 10 → back through Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac is 18 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac to back through Stone circle
back through Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the trac → back through Stone circle is 22 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Stone circle to Maiden Way Roman road from B6318 to 450m S
back through Stone circle → Maiden Way Roman road from B6318 to 450m S is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.