Moel-y-gaer Llantysilio Hillfort

The Iron Age fort sits about a mile south of Ruthin, sprawling across moorland with views that stretch right across the Vale of Clwyd. You'll find yourself walking up to the ramparts of Moel-y-gaer - two or three rings of defensive ditches and banks that still command the landscape after two thousand years. It's the kind of place where you can actually picture the settlement that once thrived here, with proper space to wander the interior and trace the ancient boundaries.

The walk up takes twenty minutes or so from the nearest road access, and you're rewarded with sight lines that would've served the fort brilliantly - you can see trouble coming from miles off. The ramparts themselves are overgrown with gorse and bracken, which adds to the atmosphere if you don't mind getting your legs scratched. Archaeologists rate this site highly; the defensive design is textbook Iron Age clever.

It's a proper hike rather than a casual stroll, so families with younger children might find it tiring. But if you're the type who enjoys landscape archaeology and don't need visitor centres or interpretation boards to feel the history, this is exactly your sort of morning. Clwydian Glamping Pods and Campsite is only four miles away - a sensible base for exploring this corner of Denbighshire without the crowds you'd deal with at more obvious attractions.

Best visited on a clear day when visibility is decent. Free to access and no set hours.