Explore a landscape shaped by thousands of years of human activity, from Bronze Age burial mounds and great prehistoric cross-dykes to Romano-British fields and a lost medieval settlement. Skirt Dole’s Ash, Thomas Hardy’s inspiration for Flintcomb-Ash in Tess of the d’Urbervilles, before climbing the ancient ridges surrounding secluded Lyscombe Bottom and returning across the open hills above the Piddle Valley.
Distance: 4.5miles/6.5km
Time: 2 hours
Ability: Easy.
Max height: 845ft
Min height: 347ft
Total climb: 522ft
Terrain: Tracks, paths, fields, and roads.
Start Point: Dole’s Ash. (Postcode: DT2 7FW, Grid Reference: ST716004, What Three Words: expensive.sulky.develops).
Map: OS Explorer 117 Cerne Abbas to Bere Regis.
How to get there: From Dorchester, head east into the valley of the River Piddle. Drive up through Piddlehinton and White Lackington to reach Piddletrenthide. After passing the Piddle Inn, take the next small, narrow lane on the right. Head all the way up to the top of the hill to find a large layby on the left. Please do not block any access.
Dogs: On leads where livestock is present and in accordance with any notices on the walk and The Countryside Code.
Refreshments: None on route but nearby are The Brace of Pheasants in Plush in The Poachers Inn and the Piddle Inn in Piddletrenthide and The Oak in Dewlish.
Neighbouring Walks: Plush, Lyscombe Bottom, The Dorsetshire Gap, Melcombe’s Bingham, Cheselbourne, Piddlehinton and Piddletrenthide.
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