High Post

The walk up High Post takes about twenty minutes from the Salisbury Plain Training Area car park, and you're rewarded with views across Wiltshire that stretch for miles in clear weather. It's not a dramatic summit - more of a gentle rise with the remains of an Iron Age settlement up top - but on a decent day it feels like you own the whole county.

The earthworks themselves are subtle. You're looking at ancient banks and ditches that would have formed a fort or settlement around 2,500 years ago, which means history buffs will get more from it than casual walkers. There's no interpretation, no visitor centre, just open downland and silence. That's rather the point.

Plan for an hour or so if you're stopping to take photos and enjoy the view. Kids will manage the walk fine but may find the lack of amenities or dramatic features a bit flat. Families tend to do better at somewhere like Old Sarum near Salisbury, which has actual ruins and a visitor space.

What makes High Post worth the trip is combining it with other walks on Salisbury Plain. The landscape is vast and open, the air is proper clear, and you genuinely feel far from anything when you're up there. The Salisbury Camping and Caravanning Club Site sits just 2.9 miles away, making it an ideal base for exploring the downland. Come when it's not raining - the chalk gets slippery - and avoid military exercise days if you can.