The Wessex Ridgeway 2014
Day Three: 8th September
Weather: Misty start and very nearly wet shock horror. It turned out nice in the afternoon
Route: Edington to Heytesbury - 14.4 Miles
A really nice breakfast at the Three Daggers, but a poor sleep due to a throbbing appliance down in the kitchens. It was a great place to stay and had a wonderful lounge to sit and rest in, though a tad expensive for single occupancy. I also had a great packed lunch, as I didn’t have any other options with no pit stops or staging posts along the route today. Out into the morning light it was very misty with very low cloud and I thought I was going to get wet – but I didn’t. It was straight out from the pub, across the road and straight uphill along a sunken lane, through trees with plenty of broken branches for nettle thrashing, a real delight. Soon enough I popped out on top once more and it was really misty and eerily quiet all round. There was a definite autumnal turn to the landscape despite the hot days, and thankfully the nettles couldn’t get any worse. The farmers have harvested the crop at this time of year and were now busy ploughing back the stubble or clearing the haystacks away for winter storage. The maize crop is still going on to ripen and some of the grass meadows were still looking good with many purple and yellows. The Hawthorn trees were bursting with berries and some are taking on an early golden hue. I quite like this time of year. I spent a large part of the day walking the perimeter of the firing ranges, the red flags were flying as were the bullets, and some things that went fizz. Quite a barrage at times and noisy – how very dare they disturb my peaceful meandering. Up on the range I passed by a wind sock and two small landing strips – a great name on the sock – Turnip Airways! Another odd sight was a stone mason dressing a couple of blocks out in the middle of nowhere. It was very dusty so better out there than in his workshop I suppose. I got wet boots and legs, but my feet were dry despite the best attempts of the long wet grass. There were several hill forts walked over today, the first being Bratton Camp (about 3miles into the day), which is also the site of the Westbury White Horse. Thankfully the sun had lifted and I had a view down over Westbury below. The white horse was made of concrete which looks ok from below but not so good from close up, and I much prefer the old ones with cut turf revealing the chalk below. I stayed up on the Imber range path passing a massive chalk quarry, fenced in by big railings – safety first of course. As with a lot of the Imber range path there are long straight stretches, and I relieved the boredom by chasing bullocks here and there. I also had a spot of trouble with a barbed wire fence and it won, and my leg lost! After a long track to Upton Cow down, passing a stray burnt wreck, hoping it wasn’t a stray shell that caused it. The route dropped steeply downhill and I took lunch on the hillside, in the sun, listening to the rat a tat tat of gunfire from the rifle range on the opposite side of the valley. Off the gravel tracks it was delightful walking down through meadows, frightening the bullocks and generally wandering along. The best colour in the fields all week was seen close to the rifle ranges at Warminster Down. The route turned along a wide ridge towards Arn Hill Down and the West Wilts Golf Club, perched high above the army town of Warminster, which has a large training centre all fenced off. I didn’t find any wayward golf balls as I passed the West Wilts GC, and Kidnappers Hole – I love the old names on the OS maps. Once I was past the Imber range path and Warminster (a bit of road walking here – and an army store where you could get refreshments if needed) my final walk to Heytesbury was a delight – two hill forts with strip lychet terraces, and in between a hill called Middle Hill with a tumulus on top – a deserving location for a burial cairn. I like to think of the hill forts as villages, with the burial cairn between as their resting ground. The Battlesbury Hill Fort lies to the west end of the Salisbury plain military training area, with Scratchbury Hill Fort and Cotley Hill high above Heytesbury. The chalk grasslands landscapes are a man made phenomenon, the product of grazing over the millennia. The tin chalk soils are low in nutrients so there is great diversity of species as no single plant is able to dominate, and many different species can grow alongside each other. A great location, and a very satisfying end to the day. The final approach to Heytesbury was a bit hit and miss through the fields and dropping down to cross the busy A36 was different. I was soon into the village and checked into the Red Lion and a pint of shandy before all else. A lively evening ensued in the pub as it was a quiz night raising funds for the village bonfire night and I was roped into the liveliest team in the pub – great fun and once again lovely welcoming people.
out of Edington and straight uphill on an old green lane
out onto higher ground
not sure what this crop was, but it looked ripe for harvest. Very misty up on the top of the hills
up steadily on the side of Edington Hill
Turnip Airways flying sock - I know quality when I see it
wet grass down the lane towards Reeves Farm close by the Imber Range Perimeter Path
checkpoints manned today, so they were firing
Turnip Airways flies over this lot
a couple of miles road walking before Bratton Camp
the approach to Bratton Camp ramparts
impressive banks and ditches surround the camp
and thankfully the sun was coming out to clear away the mist
with the Westbury White Horse coming into view
it's made of concrete blocks - not impressed close up, but looks ok from down below
a great view looking along the escarpment towards Westbury
the big chalk pit next to the Ridgeway footpath
on the Imber Range Perimeter footpath track
hope this wasn't a stray shell from the range
the Warminster Down rifle ranges are across the valley
my lunch spot was halfway down the hill
no entry into this landscape
a field barn in the valley before climbing back up to the range roads
looking back to my route down from the other side of the valley
wonderful grasslands full of colour
the track along towards Arn Hill Down
looking across to Battlesbury Hill Fort
the Hill Forts to the south east of me beyond Warminster
Kidnappers Hole is down below the golf course
Warminster Training Camp
Battlesbury Hill Fort
looking back down on Warminster
banks of delightful colour
Battlesbury Wood below the ramparts
the route down towards Middle Hill with the old field system in view
Middle Hill with it's Strip Lynchets
looking back to Battlebury Hill from Middle Hill
Scratchbury Hill Fort was next in line to be ascended
the tumulus on top of Middle Hill
Middle Hill, Battlesbury Hill Fort and in the distance Arn Hill Down
glorious weather down towards Cotley Hill
Cotley Hill ahead
massive fields abound, all the better for a big crop. Wonder how it would be to walk before harvest
down into the woods above Heytesbury
this is where I went a bit off piste and lost my exit due to oevrgrowth
but I made it into the village - this wasn't my B&B btw
