Ridgeway Circular Walk - Aldbourne

Description

This circular route on the Wiltshire Downs explores the area around the village of Aldbourne. It's a 12 mile route on broad tracks which is also suitable for cyclists. The tracks are waymarked with 'Ridgeway Circular Route'. There's lovely rolling countryside with great views and some moderate climbs. Look out for a wide variety of flora and fauna on the attractive chalk downland. Wildlife includes deer, hares and birds such as skylarks and meadow pipits. In the summer butterflies can be seen around the widlflowers growing on the hills.
The route starts in the village of Aldbourne, about 5 miles to the south east of Swindon and 6 miles north east of Marlborough. It's a pretty village with an interesting history and the medieval church of Saint Michael which overlooks the village green. There's also a number of attrative old sarsen stone cottages.
You leave the village climbing in a north westerly direction to Sugar Hill where there are four Bronze Age barrows. You then turn west towards Liddington Hill. Here you will find Liddington Castle, a late Bronze Age and early Iron Age hill fort. From the 900ft hill there are splendid views over the beautiful countryside of the North Wessex Downs.
From the hill you descend to the hamlet of Woodsend and the abandoned medieval village of Snap. The route then heads east, passing Upper Upham before returning to Aldbourne.