Wandlebury Hill

Wandlebury Hill
The stable block at Wandlebury House
Highest point
Elevation	74 m (243 ft)
Prominence	10 m (33 ft)
Parent peak	Great Wood Hill
Coordinates	52°09′31″N 0°10′57″E / 52.158611°N 0.1825°E / 52.158611; 0.1825
Geography
Location	Gog Magog Hills, England
OS grid	TL493533
Topo map	OS Landranger 154

Wandlebury Hill (grid reference TL493534) is a peak in the Gog Magog Hills, a ridge of low chalk hills extending for several miles to the southeast of Cambridge, England. The underlying rock is present in a number of places on the hill. At 74 metres (243 ft) it is the same height as the nearby Little Trees Hill, although the latter is a more notable landmark.

The top stands in Wandlebury Country Park,^[1] a nature reserve owned by Cambridge Past, Present & Future (registered charity number 204122), formerly known as the Cambridge Preservation Society. Wandlebury was already inhabited in the Bronze Age^[2] and 2500 years ago there was an Iron Age hill fort here known as Wandlebury Ring. This hill fort once had concentric ditches and earthen walls which were kept in place by wooden palisades. Although the fort has vanished, the ditch (the Ring) dug around the edge can clearly be seen and walked along, being 5 metres deep in places and offering an adventurous route along its edge. There is no evidence that it was ever used in defence.

The reserve, mainly beech woodlands and fields, is a place for birdwatching. Banyard bird hide, overlooking Varley's Field, was completed in February 2012. Like Little Trees Hill, the summit is on public land and is accessible when sheep or Highland cattle are not in the field. Dogs must be on a lead everywhere in Wandlebury Country Park. It can be reached by walking across the field from post 3 of the nature trail. Virtually no climb is involved in the ascent, just a stroll through woodland.