Cuckhamsley Hill

The Ridgeway

We wanted a nice Sunday morning walk which would not be too muddy after the recent heavy rain - and this clearly pointed to higher ground. This walk, partly along the Ridgeway, had its official start point at Cuckhamsley Hill. But as this is only accessible from East Hendred to the north, and this would have added a lot to our journey there, we started part way round at the wonderfully (and mysteriously) named Lands End, near West Ilsley. There is a copse and an isolated cottage in a pleasant valley.

From here the route leads up a wide shallow valley towards a gap in the trees, just beyond which is the Ridgeway. The track goes by the well-chosen name of Old Street.



At the top you turn east onto the Ridgeway and follow it along an open ridge with fine views north into Oxfordshire. After a while there is light woodland on either side.



And at the end of it, on the right, is a Saxon burial mound - Scutchamer Knob. As you approach you see a mound shaped like an open horseshoe, with a few trees silhouetted on the top. Unfortunately, the sun was directly behind the trees, so I had take my photograph from the other, less interesting, side.




The Cuckhamsley Hill (203m) car park is immediately after the burial mound and the Ridgeway stretches away towards Bury Down, part of our Berkshire Way walk - see photo at the top of this post. Our route however turned right here and followed a delightful descending track back down to Lands End. There were lovely views over the undulating downland to the east.



From: Chilterns and Thames Valley (Pathfinder Guides).

Map: Explorer 170 (Abingdon, Wantage and Vale of White Horse).

Distance: 4 miles.

Rating: four stars. Exhilarating, quiet, that away-from-it-all feeling. Short, but perfectly formed.


Reflections

As I was descending the final section of the route I saw the clump of trees in the last photo and I was watching for the right moment to take a photo which would capture them and the subtle curves of the landscape. It was very striking how quickly the image changed. Obviously it was the combined effect of descending through countryside which was itself constantly changing. But it gave the landscape a sense of real dynamism.