I arrived in Avebury the day before I started walking the Ridgeway. Being a place full of ancient monuments, I didn’t want to miss it. I travelled on a largely empty train to Trowbridge. Then, sitting on the top of a double decker bus from Trowbridge to Avebury, I had a bird’s-eye view of the Wiltshire rolling hills, the new landscape where I was going to spend the next few days.
Avebury is much smaller than I expected. There is one High Street with a couple of shops, a pub and a National Trust cafe. The main attraction is the famous stone circle and several other important historical sites within walking distance of the village. I was able to visit all the main attractions strolling at a leisurely pace in an afternoon. I wandered in the clear January sun, finding it impossible to imagine how life might have been 4000-5000 years ago. And why they went to so much trouble to build these monuments, hauling massive stones from the downs, or even further afield. The purpose remains a mystery today, although many theories have been put forward.
This is a World Heritage Site – the largest megalithic stone circle in the world. I spent a couple of hours walking round the outer circle, which was built between 2850 and 2200 BC. That is so old! The henge was a huge circular bank and ditch, which still exist, and there were originally 100 stones. Inside the big circle are two smaller circles. Thirty of the original stones are still standing, the result of comprehensive excavation and restoration projects, and the missing stones have been replaced with concrete markers. What makes Avebury a much more pleasurable experience than Stonehenge is that it is completely free, you can wander around it all without restrictions, and a big, busy road hasn’t been built right next to it!
The people who built the stone circles also constructed two avenues of stones leading out across the plain. This is known as West Kennet Avenue and originally consisted of 100 pairs of standing stones. It provided a 1.5 link between Avebury and The Sanctuary, but today only 750 metres of it remain. These stones marked what was obviously an important route, as well as acting as grave markers. As I strolled between the stone markers, I tried to imagine people taking this walk 4000 years ago. Where were they going? What was their purpose?
Another mystery is this artificial mound, which was once, around 5,000 years ago, the tallest manmade object in Europe. It took 200 years to complete and at one time had steps running up its sides of bare chalk. It has been found not to be a burial mound and the purpose and significance is unknown. I walked quite close to the hill, but sadly you are no longer able to climb it, in order to protect it from further erosion.
This monument is a lovely 2 mile walk from Avebury. One of the largest and most accessible chambered tombs in Britain at 100 metres long. It was built around 3650 BC. During excavations the bodies of 45 people were discovered here. You can actually walk into this long barrow and observe the first five burial chambers. Access is completely unrestricted so you can wander in and around the monument at your leisure. There are also incredible views from the barrow on a clear day.
This site is directly opposite the start of the Ridgeway walk. Although there is not much to see here now, it was the site of a circular wooden building, which could have been a temple from around 2500 BC. It shows several concentric circles marked out with concrete posts. This must have been a significant building as it is the other end of the West Kennet Avenue.
An afternoon is plenty of time to see the main sights of Avebury and I ended up walking 7.5 miles to do so. There were a handful of people around the stone circle, but once I’d walked for 10 minutes to see the other sites, I hardly saw anyone. The walks between the monuments were lovely, with extensive views over the downs. I highly recommend arriving a day early to take in this ancient place before starting the walk.
