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Category: English Countryside

Crook Peak & Wavering Down: A Mendip Motorway Stop

Crook Peak & Wavering Down: A Mendip Motorway Stop

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The Mendip Hills form a pronounced upland plateau serving to distract the outdoor enthusiast driving though Somerset on the M5 motorway. A closer inspection reveals that, despite extending for some fifteen miles and rising above the one-thousand-foot contour in several places, on the whole the Mendips lack individual definition and are invaded by a profusion of roads, neither of which is conducive to Worthy recognition. Nevertheless, for those travelling the M5, an exception is right under (well, above) their nose…

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Beacons of the Chiltern Ridgeway – A Downland Sanctuary

Beacons of the Chiltern Ridgeway – A Downland Sanctuary

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Small in stature yet abounding with character, the eastern fringes of the Chiltern Ridge emerge from the woodlands that cloak the main body of the hills, forming a shapely swathe of open, chalky grassland. But how can a tiny compass of rolling downs command Worthy status when compared to the giant mountains of the north?  Realistically, these are small hills and only just make the grade, principally through isolation from any rival, which ensures their unique appeal can be measured…

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The Long Mynd – Shropshire’s Blue Remembered Hills

The Long Mynd – Shropshire’s Blue Remembered Hills

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I would guess that few dedicated hillwalkers pay the Shropshire Hills much attention because Shropshire has no mountains, but it does have hills with mountainous attributes, and quite a fine selection there are too. The region also boasts a bewildering myriad official designations with blurred boundaries, which attest to the value of these hills, including an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, a National Landscape, a Natural Area and a Natural Character Area. Certainly, beauty and distinction are intrinsic traits for…

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Pewsey Downs – A Wiltshire Wanderland

Pewsey Downs – A Wiltshire Wanderland

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Hills don’t need to be mountains to provide walking pleasure and this exploration of the Wiltshire Downs is an excellent example. In my view the Pewsey Downs are probably the finest representative in the county (and arguably the country) to showcase the charm of the chalk downland amidst a quintessential English countryside setting. These hills may attract a rating of 67 but to miss them would leave a hole in your outdoor education and they are therefore awarded full Worthy…

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