The vallum between the road to Laversdale and Hadrian's Wall and vallum between Sunnybra
Plan this ride
Recorded distance
130 km
Riding-time estimate
1 h 57
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 130 km round trip from Carlisle - roughly 1 h 57 in the saddle. It goes by way of Hadrian's Wall, Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel, Hadrian's Wall and vallum between Sunnybra and back through Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel. It was put together for the scenery rather than the shortest line.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. The vallum between the road to Laversdale
When the Romans abandoned their Wall, local builders found it a splendid quarry. Lanercost Priory, a few kilometres east of Brampton, was begun in the twelfth century by Augustinian canons, and its red sandstone includes dressed stones that were once part of the Wall and its forts, still marked with the tool lines of Roman masons. Naworth Castle, close by, was built from the same stone. In that sense, the Wall never really went away: it turned into churches, castles and farm walls across the north of England.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The vallum between the road to Laversdale is where the day begins. Next is Hadrian's Wall.
2. Hadrian's Wall
If you only have time for one stretch of Hadrian's Wall, make it the central section between Haltwhistle and Housesteads. Here the Wall runs along the top of the Whin Sill, a long ridge of hard volcanic rock that forms a natural cliff facing north, and the stone curtain rides the crests like a rollercoaster, dipping into gaps and climbing again. Built from AD 122 on the orders of the Emperor Hadrian, it stretched about seventy-three miles from coast to coast, with milecastles, turrets and forts along its length. The UNESCO listing covers it as part of the Frontiers of the Roman Empire.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Hadrian's Wall comes up about 25 km into the recorded legs. Next is Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel.
3. Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel
Here the Wall is at its most dramatic. In the central sector of Hadrian's Wall, north of Haydon Bridge and Hexham in Northumberland, the Roman frontier runs along the top of the Whin Sill, a long ridge of hard volcanic rock that breaks the moorland into a series of north-facing cliffs. The Romans built their wall right along the crest, using the natural defences, and the result is a line of stone that rises and falls with the crags like the spine of a great animal. Behind it, to the south, runs the vallum, a broad earthwork ditch with mounds on either side that marked the military zone, still clearly visible across the fields.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 45 km into the recorded legs you reach Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel. Next is Hadrian's Wall and vallum between Sunnybra.
4. Hadrian's Wall and vallum between Sunnybra
Just east of the point where the A68 crosses the line of Hadrian's Wall, at Portgate, the Romans had a gateway through the frontier for Dere Street, the great road running north from York into Scotland. Today the A68 follows much the same course, and the wall and its vallum run east and west across the fields here, sometimes visible as a bank or a ditch, sometimes buried under the Military Road. A little to the east, the fort of Halton Chesters, known to the Romans as Onnum, lies under the fields, and like the rest of the frontier, this stretch is part of the UNESCO Frontiers of the Roman Empire.
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The vallum between the road to Laversdale closes the day.
Leg by leg
The vallum between the road to Laversdale to Hadrian's Wall
The vallum between the road to Laversdale → Hadrian's Wall is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Hadrian's Wall to Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel
Hadrian's Wall → 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 Hadrian's Wall and vallum between Sunnybra
Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel → Hadrian's Wall and vallum between Sunnybra is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Hadrian's Wall and vallum between Sunnybra to back through Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel
Hadrian's Wall and vallum between Sunnybra → back through Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel is 21 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel to back through Hadrian's Wall
back through Hadrian's Wall and vallum between the fiel → back through Hadrian's Wall is 20 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Hadrian's Wall to The vallum between the road to Laversdale
back through Hadrian's Wall → The vallum between the road to Laversdale is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.