In my last blog I mentioned the blogs that I write for the Hidden Wiltshire website where I’m able to combine my love of walking with that for photography. The blog provides added purpose to my walks, if one were needed, and ensures I pay more attention to my surroundings. It does mean that my walks are much longer than they would otherwise be, as I stop and take time to photograph the scenery. As I write the blog I spend time researching historical references for the features I come across in the landscape. This part of the world is rich in ancient history, all the way back to the time when man first began to farm these lands.

After a long spell of continuous sunshine and cloudless skies the weather has broken today, and I’m looking at a grey cloudy sky with steady rain. This reminded me of a walk I did in Spring 2019 amongst the hills between Pewsey and Marlborough , although the conditions today are nowhere near as challenging. I still recall struggling to stand up in the howling gale and driving rain whilst watching a British Navy Merlin helicopter battling to make progress into the wind above my head as it flew low between the clouds and the hills.

On this particular walk I found Neolithic long barrows and earthworks, Iron Age hill forts, the site of a medieval village mentioned in the Doomsday Book and which had only 3 poll-tax payers in 1377 (the lowest in Wiltshire), as well as more modern follies and architectural obscurities.

So grab a coffee, click on the link below and explore..