Rat Hill

The name alone stops you dead - Rat Hill. It's a proper old Wiltshire peak that sits near Chippenham, the sort of place that doesn't announce itself loudly but rewards those who bother to climb it. The walk up is manageable rather than punishing, and once you're at the top, you get views across the Cotswold edge that make the effort feel justified.

It's not dramatic. It won't take your breath away the way the Brecon Beacons might. But that's rather the point - this is walking for walkers, not Instagram fodder. The summit reveals rolling countryside stretching toward the chalk downlands, and on a clear day you can see further than you'd expect from what isn't a particularly high vantage point.

Families with kids aged eight upward will manage the ascent without complaints. Younger children might find it a bit dull unless they're properly into climbing things. History types will appreciate that this corner of Wiltshire has more medieval stuff buried in it than most folk realise, though Rat Hill itself is more about the walking than the archaeology.

Allow an hour or so, depending on your pace and how long you linger at the top. If you're staying at The Moors Campsite or Roe Deer Fields - both within easy reach - it makes a solid morning expedition before heading back for lunch. The peak works best on a walk rather than as a standalone stop. Best visited from late spring through early autumn when the ground underfoot stays reasonable and the views aren't socked in by winter cloud.