| Day | Route | Mileage | Approx time |
| 1 | Overton Hill to Ogbourne St George | 9.5 | 4.5 hours |
| 2 | Ogbourne St George to Sparsholt Firs | 16 | 6.75 hours |
| 3 | Spartsholt Firs to Streatley | 18.7 | 7.25 hours |
| 4 | Streatley to Watlington | 17 | 7.5 hours |
| 5 | Watlington to Wendover | 17.7 | 7 hours |
| 6 | Wendover to Ivinghoe Beacon | 12.8 | 5.25 hours |
Having absolutely loved completing the South West Coast Path and The Cleveland Way, I decided to set myself the challenge of hiking all the National Trails in England and Wales. The Cleveland Way was my first solo long distance multi-day walk and I was surprisingly comfortable with the long hours alone, feeling like a tiny speck in the magnificence of the landscape. I enjoyed the glow on my skin from the burning hot sun, the camaraderie of my fellow hikers and the liberation of wandering free. Read about it here: https://hilshols.com/the-cleveland-way/.
At the beginning of January, as the blues set in, I needed a change of scenery and a mental reset. I chose the Ridgeway as it it would take about a week, it didn’t look too challenging and in January I would most likely have the walk to myself.
The complete trail is 87 miles long through the heart of England, passing through five counties. The path is considered to be the oldest road in the country, dating back around 5000 years when prehistoric man made his way on higher and drier ground across the country. I quite liked the idea of following in the footsteps of prehistoric men and women and passing some of their ancient settlements on the way.
This is the route, from Overton Hill, near Avebury, in Wiltshire to Ivinghoe Beacon in Hertfordshire, passing through Berkshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire.
It was minus 4 when I set off. As I walked across a frosty field, the white grass crunched under my boots and I wasn’t relaxed. My jaw was clenched. I was mildly irritated by other people being on the path. My mind was swirling with thoughts. I had to tell myself to look up and to take some deep breaths. It took several miles to adjust, to ease into the meditative movement of my body and to relax into the process of putting one foot in front of the other.
Most of the day was on flat, wide gravel tracks, meandering along the ridge, looking out over the surrounding farmland and the rolling hills of the Marlborough Downs.
Random grassy mounds appeared from time to time, ancient tumuli dating from 4500 to 4000 years ago. The path headed up the steep, grassy slopes of Barbury Castle, an Iron Age hill fort, dating back to 1200-600 BC. Passing through the chalk grassland l wondered what the Iron Age folk would be doing when they were living here. Would they be out hunting, cooking, digging, building, just trying to stay alive?
The highlight of the day was walking along Smeathe’s Ridge. Up high, the ground fell away on either side to reveal the green downland and distant hills. With easy walking on soft grass and no roads in sight or earshot, I finally felt at peace. The tension that I felt at the beginning of the day faded.
The cold had a real, forceful presence all day. Whilst moving, my body was warm, but during any brief stop my freezing fingers and icy toes went numb, so I barely took any breaks. I completed the day’s walk much quicker than I had anticipated.
The day started on a dirt road. On other trails I had encountered situations to keep me on my toes: steep climbs, narrow paths on edges, thick mud, scrambling. The Ridgeway had none of these scary challenges. Instead I had to deal with the repetition of many miles of unchanging scenery and completing the long distances before dark. I realised that this walk was not going to give me excitement and exhilaration, but endurance and quiet contemplation.
The historic interest today was a Neolithic long barrow, called Wayland’s Smithy (c3500 BC), and two Iron Age forts, Liddington Castle and Uffington Castle. I was looking forward to seeing the Uffington White Horse, which is a chalk hill figure thought to have been cut into the hillside around 800 BC. Although it was spectacular walking around the White Horse hill area, I was in the wrong location to view the horse. Apparently the best views are from the road north of the hill. I’ll have to return for that another day.
Towards the end of the day, I found myself on a springy grass bank. A shape in the sky caught my eye. A bird, gliding with grace, circled above a crop field. I caught a flash of white as it gained height. This was my first glimpse of the magnificent red kite. After this sighting I saw many of these beautiful birds over the next few days.
I stayed the night in a remote farmhouse. All around was mist and silence. I had spent another day under heavy, dark clouds and much of the landscape had been obscured, but I was covering the miles and making progress.
It was an eerie start to the day as I stepped directly onto the Ridgeway in the early morning light. I was still on the wide grassy path and was overwhelmed by the silence. Hanging low and motionless, the misty grey clouds concealed any colour.
I was conscious that the large expanse of the Devil’s Punchbowl, a great grassy amphitheatre, was to my left, but I could only sense the suggestion of a gaping space. Black dots appeared in the sky out of the void. Crows cawing raucously, breaking the silence.
I walked along chalk paths and grassy tracks, the wet chalk creating a white paste that stuck to my boots. Some of the grassy tracks seemed to go on and on, with little variation. I spied the hint of a view opening up along Several Down and this fleeting glimpse of exposed downland touched me. I passed through another Iron Age fort, Segsbury Camp, with its ditch and ramparts.
Early morning and late afternoon, when I had the trail to myself, I experienced moments of intense stillness. Windless, not a single bird call, nor a rustle in the trees. For a few hours in the middle of the day I was joined by a collection of runners, dog walkers and cyclists.
Gallops are a feature of the Ridgeway. These are wide grassy lengths of land, created parallel to the Ridgeway, for exercising race horses. The soft and springy ground, and the open spaces make it ideal for their training. Although I passed by many of these gallops I was disappointed to only see one racehorse in the entire walk.
I reached the halfway mark just before Streatley and this also marked my arrival back in civilisation, not having passed a single shop or cafe for 3 days.
After walking through the pretty town of Goring the path followed the Thames for around 5 miles. Sometimes the path was beside the river and at other times parallel to it, with glimpses of the water through the trees. The cacophony of Canada geese calls accompanied this Thameside stretch.
Gone were the long, exposed trails and rolling hills of the first 3 days. Instead, a more sheltered path wended its way through small quaint Thameside villages with tiny thatched cottages, and impeccably kept gardens. I barely saw any people. The villages were deserted.
After leaving the Thames I found myself on a narrow, undulating path through the woods and alongside Grim’s ditch. This creepy 3.5 miles long ditch is thought to have been built during the Iron Age. I walked along a carpet of brown leaves, under a canopy of misshapen ancient trees, with crooked bare branches jutting out at odd angles.
It took around seven miles to actually get out onto high ground again. It was wonderful to experience the feeling of space as I walked through a series of expansive farmers’ fields, separated by small copses.
After four days I finished with tired legs and aching shoulders. The Ridgeway is a fantastic walk for a first time multi-day hike as it is safe and undemanding. For me it was too predictable and I felt that my next adventure needed to push me further out of my comfort zone.
I had a day 5 wobble, waking up feeling exhausted and stiff. The last thing I wanted to do was walk 18 miles. Once I got going, the sound of my feet pounding the earth was accompanied by the rustle of my jacket and the odd chirrup of a bird in the trees. Otherwise silence.
This was my toughest day in terms of motivation and my thoughts turned to pushing through difficult situations. The physical motion of making progress one step at a time is a metaphor for dealing with any life situation that initially seems overwhelming. Deal with one small thing after another small thing, over and over, and eventually you get there. I was glad I was here, learning this lesson again.
The scenery scarcely changed for 10 miles. On this endless wide, flat, muddy track I felt every ache, noticed every twinge, and constantly felt like stopping. .
Chinnor Chalk Pits: Here was something new. Although it was made very clear the pits were private with keep out signs every few metres, a curious person before me had cut a hole in the fence, big enough to crawl through. It was too tempting to ignore, so I took off my backpack, clambered through the small hole and slid down a chalky bank. Great hollows had been created by the historic chalk quarrying. Now unused, the pits had flooded, creating freshwater lakes with blue water. They were beautiful.
After Chinnor I followed a shady track, gently rising to reveal partial views through the trees. I ascended Brush Hill under the low hanging clouds. The woodland had an air of mystery, with the branches of the bare trees emerging from the haze like hands reaching out. The eerie stillness was unsettling.
The path circled around the Chequers Estate, with the Prime Minister’s country residence visible through trees. The path then headed through the estate, close to the location where countless important decisions have been made for our country over the years. There was CCTV everywhere.
Towards the end of the day, I stood on Coombe Hill, the highest view point of the Chilterns, looking down at the misty outlines of the scene below. I breathed in deep lungfuls of air. I breathed out relief as I was close to my destination now. I sensed how gorgeous this last stretch of the walk would be on a clear day. All thoughts of my normal life had receded into the background and I was fully immersed in the walk. I was beginning to feel fitter and healthier and noticing the benefits of the miles in my legs.
I had a spring in my step today. The same heavy clouds hovered overhead, but it felt a few degrees warmer. My body had got used to walking and was happy to walk today. Was that a psychological thing as my head knew it was the last day?
After leaving Wendover, I was walking on crunchy brown leaves through Barn Wood, Hale Wood, Pavis Wood, then Tring Park. My steady footsteps provided the rhythm, interjected occasionally by the call of a coal tit, the distant crowing of a cockerel and the whistle of a red kite, like a child playing the recorder for the first time.
After walking for five days without seeing the sun, it finally emerged from behind the low clouds. The landscape was transformed. From the dull, gloomy shades of grey, colours burst forth – brightly lit shades of blues and greens, oranges and browns. I gained a surge of energy and my aches and pains disappeared, for a while at least. I felt suddenly more agile and supple and found my pace quickening.
Towards the end of today’s walk there were several climbs, the first through woodland, then out of the trees on a long, grassy ridge. My final destination of Ivinghoe Beacon was now in sight.
A final short, steep climb and I was on the Beacon enjoying the panoramic 360 views. Perched on a concrete step by the side of the trig point, I was relieved to finish what had been a more challenging walk than I expected. It had required considerable perseverance to get through the long, slow miles, especially on grey, sun-starved days.
In the last 6 days I had walked 98 miles, an average of 16.3 miles a day. It had been my most solitary walk to date. I missed the connections that I had formed when I did the Cleveland Way and realised how much I had gained from sharing stories with others. Finding that balance between alone time and company is not an easy one. I’ll be working on it and seeking answers on my next hike.
| Getting to Avebury |
| Train to Trowbridge or Swindon, then buses: |
| Bus Trowbridge to Avebury (Stagecoach West No 49) – 1 hour |
| Bus Swindon to Avebury (Stagecoach West No 49) – 30 minutes |
| Returning from Tring |
| Tring is a 3.5 mile walk from the end of the Ridgeway (Ivinghoe Beacon) |
| Train Tring to London Euston (West Midlands Trains) – 40 minutes |
| Onward journey to your destination from London |
| Avebury | Mrs Dixon’s B&B, 6 Beckhampton Road, Beckhampton, SN8 1QT | A short walk into Avebury, which you can do on footpaths to avoid the main road. Excellent room with its own entrance. Huge breakfast. The bus stop on the 49 route from Trowbridge was literally right outside the B&B. |
| Ogbourne St George | The Sanctuary B&B, Marlborough, Wiltshire SN8 1SQ | A very walker friendly B&B serving a lovely breakfast as well as a packed lunch. This is needed as there is no shop in Ogbourne St George and nowhere to get provisions on the next day’s walk. Very helpful owner. Located in the middle of the village and very easy to get to from the Ridgeway. |
| Sparsholt Firs | Hill Barn B&B, Sparsholt, Wantage OX12 9XB | Great place to stay, very quirky but very comfortable. Situated right on the Ridgeway and it feels like the middle of nowhere. Silent and peaceful as there is nothing there. The owner served a delicious evening meal, breakfast and provided a packed lunch. Everything a walker needs! |
| Streatley | Townsend Farm Airbnb, Wallingford Road, Streatley, RG8 9JX | Beautifully renovated farmhouse with artistic touches, extremely warm and comfortable, with a bath. Friendly owner, access to kitchen, teas, coffees, snacks and big breakfast. Right on the Ridgeway again. A bit noisy, as on the main road. |
| Watlington | Ivy Cottage, High Street, Watlington, Oxfordshire OX49 5PY | Little terrace house on the main street in the small town of Watlington. Lovely owner, helpful and friendly. Big room with own bathroom. Good breakfast and she offered me a lift back to the Ridgeway in the morning to save a 0.7 mile extra walk. It all counts! |
| Wendover | Private house (Airbnb), Hampden Road, Wendover, England HP22 6HU | Comfortable bed, bathroom with shower and bath. No breakfast or snacks provided, but had tea and coffee in the room. My least favourite place of the trip. |
