Everything You Need To Know About The Ridgeway Hike
The National Trail rolls through some of the most remote parts of south-central England. The walk starts at the World Heritage site, Avebury. From there, you’ll follow the chalk hill ridges for 87 miles until you reach Ivinghoe Beacon, which lies in the northwest of London.
As we mentioned before, the Ridgeway hike is the oldest known trail in England. During the walk, you’ll follow the footsteps of your ancestors as you follow the line of soldiers, travelers, and herders.
Today you won’t find any soldiers on the trail, but you will find plenty of hikers, tourists, cyclists, horse riders, and much more.
You’ll find the Ridgeway track at the west of the River Thames. The broad trail passes through the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).
One of the best things about the hike is how far you are away from villages and towns. You really feel like you’re in the middle of nowhere.
While walking the trail, you’ll be treated to views of the chalk downland and many archaeological monuments, including:
- Iron Age forts
- White horses cut into the chalk
- Stone Age long barrows
- Bronze Age round barrows
- And much more
As you get to the east of the Thames, the Ridgeway trail presents different landscapes. The trail turns into more of a wooded hills and valleys type of landscape. Through the valleys of Chilterns AONB, you’ll find even more archaeological treasures, nature reserves, and grassland habitats.
As I mentioned before, the trial was first established 5,000 years ago. But I didn’t say the hike used to stretch 250 miles from the Dorset coast to the Norfolk coast, which would have made it one of the longest treks in the UK.
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What does it look like?
How Long Does It Take?
Okay, we mentioned the hike is 87 miles long, which can make it a pretty challenging route. Luckily the trail doesn’t have many hills, making the walk less challenging and perfect for any fitness level.
The hike will take anywhere between 5-8 days for most people to complete the 87-mile route. So how does that break down day by day?
- 5 Days – 17.4 miles per day
- 6 Days – 14.5 miles per day
- 7 Days – 12.4 miles per day
- 8 Days – 10.9 miles per day
As always, these distances are estimations, and depending on where you stay between days; it will depend on how far you actually have to walk.
Another thing to note is the walk can take a lot longer if you want to see all the historical sites the area has to offer… there’s a lot of them.
How To Get There And Back?
The trek starts in Overton Hill in Wiltshire, and it’s not the easiest thing to do. The best way to get to Overton Hill is from Swindon.
Swindon has an excellent railway station that provides connections to Wales, London, and the South West. Unfortunately, there’s no train station next to Overton Hill, which leaves you the only option of taking a bus.
And to make things worse:
There’s no direct bus to Overton Hill, which means you have to get a bus to Avebury, which runs seven days a week every two hours.
From Avebury, you can either catch the 42 bus or walk the three miles to the hills; the second option is probably the best option.
You’ll finish the Ridgeway hike in Ivinghoe Beacon, and from there, you can walk three miles back down the walk to Tring. Tring railway station is connected to the West Coast mainline, which connects to London, Birmingham, and Scotland.
The Best Time To Go
One of the great things about this hike is you can go all year round. That being said, when the trail gets wet and muddy, which can make the trek pretty challenging.
When it comes down to it, it depends on what you want to see during the trial. Spring is great if you’re going to see newborn wildlife in all its glory, you’ll also have relatively good weather and smaller crowds.
During the summer, the weather is excellent, and you can expect some scorching weather. The problem is the trail gets very busy.
Where To Stay On Your Journey
As with all National Parks in the UK, there’s an abundance of accommodation along the trail. If you check out the official Ridgeway website, you’ll find a massive list of accommodation options.
On the western half of the walk, you’ll find plenty of accommodation options, but as you head to the east, things get a little more complicated, so you’ll need to book in advance.
During the hike, you’ll find hotels, hostels, and a few bunkbarns along the trail.
If you plan to camp on the route, you won’t have any problems to the west, but again as you move towards the east, things get a little bit less common.
And although you have no legal right to camp on the trail, there are many landowners that won’t object to you camping as long as you clean up after yourself.
Where To Get Food And Drink Along The Way
When it comes to food, you pass through a number of small villages and towns. In the towns, you’ll have more food options from shops to restaurants. The villages tend to have country pubs and a few cafes where you can top up on calories.
Final Thoughts
The Ridgeway hike is a beautiful walk if you want to get in touch with some remarkable history. One of the highlights of the walk is the white horses carved into the chalk hills, which are truly astonishing to see.
Looking for more Hiking locations in the UK?
Check out our full guides to other hikes in the UK Hiking In The UK