Crouching inside the entrance to Wayland’s Smithy, a neolithic burial mound set high on the North Wessex Downs, I feel as if I’ve entered the portal to another world.
Outside the weather is warm, but in here it’s dark, cool and just a little eerie. I’ve heard that people sometimes enter the chamber for what seems like five minutes and emerge to find that an hour has passed.
Time plays no such tricks with me this afternoon as I resurface to a chorus of birdsong. But the light is thinning, and I need to reach my accommodation before sundown. Bidding farewell to Wayland, the Saxon god of metalworking, I go west along Britain’s oldest road.
Wayland’s Smithy is just one of the many prehistoric sites strung along the Ridgeway National Trail, which spans 87 miles from Ivinghoe Beacon in Buckinghamshire to Overton Hill near Avebury in Wiltshire, and celebrates its 50th birthday this year.
The Ridgeway itself is far older — five thousand years older. Today’s official trail is part of a much longer trading route that stretched from the Wash in Norfolk to the Dorset coast, avoiding the wet and wooded valleys. In Saxon and Viking times it marched soldiers into Wessex; later it was adopted by medieval drovers moving animals to market.
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The only wildlife I see on the Ridgeway today are red kites skimming the thermals, hares scampering into hedges and skylarks carolling from meadows studded with buttercups and clover. The white chalk track is hemmed by cow parsley, and by hawthorn snowed with blossom.
I hardly meet another human. This isn’t too surprising, as there are no settlements on the Ridgeway. The villages huddled under the escarpment are where travellers would historically descend for water, sustenance and hospitality.
It’s not so different now. My three-day walk begins in Letcombe Regis, near the market town of Wantage, the birthplace of Alfred the Great. Breakfast at the Greyhound Inn sets me up for the sharp climb to the ridge, and a packed lunch fills my rucksack. The eastern section of the Ridgeway is wooded, but there’s little shelter at this western end, so I’ve stuffed in a sunhat and rainwear for good measure.
Once on top, the chalk hills unravel ahead, and the ribboning path draws me on. Apart from the slog up from the villages, the route is undulating rather than steep. Of the few people I meet, most are walking west to east, reputedly due to the prevailing winds. I’m walking the opposite way so I can finish at Avebury, which is lucky as a chill northeasterly is blowing me in that direction.
It has already wafted me past the Uffington White Horse, etched into the chalk 3,000 years ago and almost modern in its minimalism. Tantalisingly, the horse is just out of sight over the lip of the hill, designed to be seen from below or from an opposing hillside.
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This is also true of the Iron Age hillforts such as Segsbury, Barbury and Liddington, which I pass during my three unhurried days. Built for defensive purposes, they are also thought to have had significance as sacred gathering places, and were visible for miles around.
On either side of my path the meadows are a shimmer of purples and golds. Chalk down is a precious habitat — and increasingly rare. With every square metre containing up to 40 species of plant, chalk grassland is the botanical equivalent of tropical rainforest.
It’s a wrench leaving this natural utopia in the evening as I drop into Bishopstone, and later Ogbourne St George, sweaty and footsore. The welcome I receive, and the camaraderie of my fellow walkers as we compare notes over a glass of ale, is my reward. And each morning I’m revived, ready for the ascent into the hills to be alone again with the wind and the skylarks.
The only downer on my 30-mile walk is where the path crosses another east-west trunk road. The thunderous M4 is the modern equivalent of the Ridgeway, and a reminder of how peaceful the rest of the trail is.
A mile or so before the official end of the Ridgeway, I pause to take in the view. Sarsen stones lie scattered like grazing sheep, skylarks soar in song. Clouds part and on the horizon sunlight spills onto Salisbury Plain. For those sensitive to it, there’s an energy here, an awareness of history under your feet.
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I peel off the Ridgeway to follow a Saxon herepath, or military road, into Avebury. My pace slows as I follow this last dazzling white track downhill, reluctant to finish my journey, although entering the great earthwork surrounding the village is a magical ending.
Less famous than Stonehenge, Avebury is one of the most complete prehistoric complexes in Europe, taking in Silbury Hill and the West Kennet Long Barrow just a mile away. At its centre is the largest megalithic stone circle in the world, and within this, my bed for the night at Silbury House (silburyhouse.co.uk; now closed for refurbishment until spring 2025).
A shower to wash away the dust from the trail, and I head out into the circle where people have gathered to watch the sun set between the sarsens, these sleeping giants half-buried in the earth.
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Where to stay on the western Ridgeway
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1. The Greyhound Inn, Letcombe Regis
Below the Ridgeway, two miles from the historic market town of Wantage, this 18th-century mellow-brick inn combines fine dining with an informal vibe. The eight bedrooms are cosy with views over the pretty village street or up to the Berkshire Downs and nice touches including handmade biscuits and Bramley toiletries.
Details B&B doubles from £100 (thegreyhoundletcombe.co.uk)
2. Helen Browning’s Royal Oak, Bishopstone
The first clue that this isn’t your average village pub is the Land Rover parked outside advertising the “Pork & Ride” farm safaris organised by the proprietors Tim Finney and Soil Association chief executive Helen Browning. Described by its hosts as “gently eccentric”, the inn has 12 spacious bedrooms decorated with farm-inspired art, a largely organic menu and Arkell’s ales, while the on-site farm shop sells packed lunches for your onward journey.
Details B&B doubles from £125 (helenbrowningsorganic.co.uk)
3. The Sanctuary B&B, Ogbourne St George
In a village besides the River Og, the Sanctuary offers spotlessly clean and comfortable accommodation right on the Ridgeway National Trail. Rebecca has been running the B&B for more than 20 years, and is a welcoming and helpful hostess. The three double or twin bedrooms are en suite, and breakfast in the conservatory is courtesy of the free-roaming hens. Frequent bus services run to nearby Marlborough — handy if the village pub is closed.
Details B&B doubles from £93 (thesanctuarybb.uk)
4. The Farm at Avebury
A 30-minute stroll along the processional Avebury Avenue brings you to this luxury B&B, offering six renovated stables for singles, couples, or larger groups. A welcome breakfast is included (which you can supplement with the farm’s own produce), and the Waggon & Horses pub is just a short walk away. An extra day here to explore neolithic Avebury, Silbury Hill, West Kennet Long Barrow and the Sanctuary is recommended.
Details B&B doubles from £104 (thefarmatavebury.co.uk)
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