Gallows Down

The walk up Gallows Down from Newbury takes about forty minutes if you're not rushing, and the views across the Berkshire Downs justify every step. It's a proper ridge walk - nothing technical, just good honest climbing through beech woodland before you break out onto open downland with the whole landscape rolling away beneath you.

Historically it's where they hanged people, which sounds grim but honestly the name now feels oddly detached from the place itself. What you're actually doing is accessing some of the best high ground in the area, the kind of spot where you can see for miles on a clear day. In autumn the beech trees turn gorgeous, and in spring the wildflowers start coming through the grassland.

This works brilliantly as a half-day walk if you're staying at Hollington Park Glamping just down the road - it's close enough for an early start without needing to drive far. Families with older kids will manage it fine; younger ones might flag on the climb up. Allow two to three hours for the round trip including time to stop at the top.

Walkers will get the most from this one. It's not a destination attraction with facilities or a visitor centre - there's no café at the summit, no gift shop. Just the down itself, the views, and that particular quiet you get on English hilltops when the wind's right. Free to visit, naturally. Go midweek if you can - weekends bring the crowds from Reading.