Cottington's Hill

The walk up Cottington's Hill rewards you with proper countryside views across West Berkshire - nothing dramatic, but genuine chalk downland that feels a world away from Newbury despite being practically on its doorstep. It's a modest climb, twenty minutes at most from the nearby lanes, and the summit gives you clear sightlines across the Kennet Valley when the weather plays ball.

This is straightforward walking country rather than a tourist attraction in the formal sense. No visitor centre, no café, no heritage plaques - just open grassland and the occasional buzzard overhead. You'll see local dog walkers and the odd group of ramblers, which tells you it's genuine rather than packaged.

History types will appreciate the Iron Age earthworks dotted across the hillside if they know what they're looking at. Families with older kids will find it a manageable leg-stretcher between longer adventures. The real draw is the quietness - it's exactly the sort of place you'd head to on a grey Tuesday morning when you want to clear your head without fighting crowds.

If you're camping at Bishops Green Farm or Cherry Bird Country Park nearby, Cottington's Hill makes a proper early morning walk before breakfast. It's free, obviously, and you can string it into a longer circular route if you fancy exploring the bridleways that crisscross the chalk downs around here. The best light is late afternoon when the grass goes golden, though you'll want to be back before dusk comes in hard.