Walking History From The Ivy
Devizes White Horse and Oliver's Castle
This walk begins at The Ivy and heads uphill past Leizig Plantation to the Devizes White Horse and returns via Oliver’s Castle with spectacular views across the area. Be sure to explore Roundway Hill Covert on a clear day!
Distance: 6 Miles
Time: 2 Hours
Difficulty: One steep climb. No Stiles.
Dogs: The road is quiet, but do keep dogs on lead until you get to the bridlepath. Livestock sometimes graze on Oliver’s Castle and in surrounding fields.
Directions
- (1) Turn right out of the Ivy. Go past the Church. Bear right at the grass triangle and follow the road up to Hill Cottage, turning right to follow it until it turns into a byway.
- (2) Turn left, going straight on to follow a footpath when the byway bends right.
- (3) At the end of the footpath go into the beech wood and bear left through it to visit the White Horse. Retrace your steps back into the beech wood this time carrying straight on until you come to a road.
Planted by the Victorians, Leipzig Plantation comprises mostly beech trees. It is believed to be named after the 1813 Battle of Leipzig.
Carved in celebration of the millennium, the Devizes White Horse is the most recent of the Wiltshire White Horses, and the only one to be facing to the right.
- (4) Cross over the field ahead to enter Roundway Hill Covert.
- (5) Either follow the edge of the Covert or explore it a bit further by bearing left when the paths for.
- (6) On exiting the Covert bear left then go through a kissing gate on the left. Follow the footpath to and around ‘Oliver’s Castle’, bearing left to another kissing gate. Follow the footpath to a pedestrian gate.
Mother Anthony’s Well is a spring at the base of Oliver’s Castle which was probably the primary source of water for those at the fort. The site of a Roman dwelling, it is thought to have been a water shrine.
- (7) Turn left and follow the bridlepath turning right at the end onto the byway, to Hill Cottage and back down the road to The Ivy.
Old Bath to London Coach Road
On this walk from The Ivy, look out for cobblestones and the milestone, relics from the old coach road.
If it has been very wet, when The Ivy is open again check there on the amount of mud in the first part of the bridlepath. Use the alternative route to avoid the mud at the start if need be.
Distance: 3 Miles
Time: 1.5 Hours
Difficulty: One steep climb. No Stiles.
Dogs: The road is quiet, but do keep dogs on lead until you get to the bridlepath. Livestock sometimes graze on Oliver’s Castle and in surrounding fields.
Directions
- (1) Turn right out of the Ivy. Go past the Church and bear right at the grass triangle. Where the road turns up the hill, take the bridlepath on the right in front of farm buildings and follow it to its end where it meets the main route of the old Bath to London Coach Road.
Alternative route: At the first T-junction instead of heading towards the church, turn right. Walk along the road to the byway just after Splatts House and follow it up to a T-junction. Turn right and, as above, follow the bridlepath to its end. - (2) Turn left and walk up the byway known as ‘Heddington Steps’. When it levels out continue straight on until you reach Hill Cottage.
Milestones (MS) along the course of the London to Bath road have many designs. Those closest to Heddington are the simplest.
- (3) Turn left to go down the road and back round to the Ivy Inn.
Optional: Extend the Walk
- (a) Turn right onto the bridleway at the top of Heddington Steps.
- (b) Go through the second pedestrian gate and follow the path along the fence line to a kissing gate.
- (c) Follow the footpath to and around Oliver’s Castle and through another kissing gate by Roundway Covert.
- (d) Bear right then immediate left and follow the byway round to join the route of the walk above.
