Why this ride
A 343 km round trip from Carlisle - roughly 4 h 59 in the saddle. The stops in between: Brownrigg milefortlet 22, Corbridge and back through Brownrigg milefortlet 22. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps and Corbridge
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 343 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 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.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps
Don't expect walls. The two Roman temporary camps at Moss Side are the sort of monument you mostly have to imagine: a pair of rectangles traced in the fields east of Carlisle, known from cropmarks and low earthworks rather than anything that rises above the grass. What you are looking at is a farmed slope of the lower Eden country, hedges and pasture, with Scotby and Wetheral a few kilometres off and the city of Carlisle seven kilometres to the west. The point of stopping is to stand where a Roman army once dug in for the night and to let the landscape do the explaining.
Read the complete Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps is where the day begins. Next is Brownrigg milefortlet 22.
2. Brownrigg milefortlet 22
The wall did not stop at the Solway. Along the Cumbrian coast, south of Bowness, the Romans built a chain of small forts, milecastles and watchtowers to guard against raiders arriving by sea from across the Irish Sea, and Brownrigg milecastle 22 is one of them. It stands on a low ridge above the shore near Maryport, with views across the Solway Firth to the hills of Scotland, a line of blue on a clear day. Little remains but a platform and some stonework, but the situation says everything.
Read the complete Brownrigg milefortlet 22 write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Brownrigg milefortlet 22 comes up about 55 km into the recorded legs. Next is Corbridge.
3. Corbridge
Two thousand years ago, Dere Street, the Roman road heading north into Scotland, crossed the Tyne here, and a town grew up around a supply base just behind Hadrian's Wall. Coria, now called Corbridge Roman Town, was a bustling place with granaries, temples, workshops and a main street, and its remains, managed by English Heritage, are among the most important Roman sites in Britain. The museum displays finds including the Corbridge Hoard, a chest of armour and equipment, and the Corbridge Lion, a sculpture of a lion attacking a stag.
Read the complete Corbridge write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 172 km into the recorded legs you reach Corbridge. Next is back through Brownrigg milefortlet 22.
4. back through Brownrigg milefortlet 22
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Brownrigg milefortlet 22 write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Brownrigg milefortlet 22, late in the day. Next is Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps.
5. Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Back at Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps to Brownrigg milefortlet 22
Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps → Brownrigg milefortlet 22 is 55 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Brownrigg milefortlet 22 to Corbridge
Brownrigg milefortlet 22 → Corbridge is 117 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
Corbridge to back through Brownrigg milefortlet 22
Corbridge → back through Brownrigg milefortlet 22 is 114 km of getting across. Ride it tidily and keep the enthusiasm for what comes after.
back through Brownrigg milefortlet 22 to Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps
back through Brownrigg milefortlet 22 → Moss Side 1 and 2 Roman temporary camps is 58 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.