The Ridgeway

The Ridgeway
The Ridgeway National Trail on Grim's Ditch near Mongewell
Length87 miles (139km)
Locationsouthern England, United Kingdom
DesignationUK National Trail
TrailheadsOverton Hill, near Avebury, Wiltshire and Ivinghoe Beacon, Buckinghamshire
UseHiking
Elevation change3,881 feet (1,183 m)[1]
SeasonAll year
Trail map
Map of the Ridgeway National Trail in the south of England
Ivinghoe Beacon (the eastern trailhead) seen looking north from The Ridgeway
The Ridgeway winds over the Berkshire Downs
Path down from the Ridgeway to Bishopstone, Wiltshire

The Ridgeway is a ridgeway or ancient trackway described as Britain's oldest road.[2] The section clearly identified as an ancient trackway extends from Wiltshire along the chalk ridge of the Berkshire Downs to the River Thames at the Goring Gap, part of the Icknield Way which ran, not always on the ridge, from Salisbury Plain to East Anglia.[3] The route was adapted and extended as a National Trail, created in 1972. The Ridgeway National Trail follows the ancient Ridgeway from Overton Hill, near Avebury, to Streatley, then follows footpaths and parts of the ancient Icknield Way through the Chiltern Hills to Ivinghoe Beacon in Buckinghamshire. The National Trail is 87 miles (140 km) long.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference walkand was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference seven was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Darvill, Timothy (2002). Oxford Archaeological Guides: England. pp. 297–298. ISBN 0-19-284101-7.