The North Wessex Downs are ringed by conurbations – Swindon, Reading and Wantage Newbury to name a few, but up on the hills themselves, quiet roads and rolling contours deliver a driving escape to saviour. Hemmed by the Great Western Railway to the north, and carved at by the M4 motorway in the south, it’s the roads that rise over and around the downs that offer the best views and challenging ascents, while a section that parallels the original Ridgeway – the Iron Age path that traverses the Wessex and Chiltern hills – weaves among ancient monuments and crazy hillocks like no modern roadway ever would.
Less well known than its North Wales evo counterpart, this triangle is a go-to runout for many motoring journalists on a tight timeframe or those cannot justify the overnight expenses of a trip to Powys. As such there is no defined start or end point, but a handy parking area on the B4001, at the top of Hackpen Hill, is a good launch site to ease into the roads that define the loop. Starting fairly high up the downs also gives you chance to enjoy the rolling vistas on a clear day. Running mostly straight for just under four miles, the course of this section takes you over and along the ridgeline between Sparsholt Down and Crow Down. If the verge grass has been cut you can chase the horizon on both sides of the road with far reaching views over Wiltshire, Oxfordshire and West Berkshire.
Lambourn is horse country. Thoroughbred racehorses roam these hills and the road parallels a couple of gallops as it runs the ridgeline before descending into the village. With so much grass to run on the likelihood of passing riders on the roads is low, but there are crossing points and multiple stable yards around the town, so care is needed when approaching these. The village itself is based around a crossroads, and this means a slow drive through to the junction and out again. But having turned right on to the B4000 and left the equestrian world behind the road opens up once more.
Departing Upper Lambourn, the road cuts between Row Down and Park Farm Down, curving slightly on a westwards course. The NSL signs beckon and you can unleash a few horses of your own. The first set of bends is at Fognam Farm. This begins with a long gentle righthander, barely a curve, which tightens as you pass the farm entrance on the left. The heavy farm traffic has taken its toll on the tarmac, and the bumpy surface needs care, especially if recently coated in mud and muck from the tractor tyres. Once passed the farm though the road curves left, opening out for the short run towards Ashdown House, a Dutch-style National Trust country house and parkland. Before reaching Ashdown itself there is a righthand bend that looks incongruous but is rather challenging to master. Not overly tight or complicated, this turn still caused me scrub off far more speed than needed each time. I think the high ground and mature trees on the inside obscuring the road ahead are the influence here, but with more confidence it would be a joy to swing round, especially as it feeds almost directly in to sweet longer lefthander that rises with the road as it undulates along the base of Kingstone Down. Here there are a series of small crests and dips to enjoy, and its only 500 metres or so to the next right hander that demands your concentration. Very soon, barely another 200 metres later, the road swings left again and passes the entrance to Ashdown House. Midway along Kingstone Down now, the contoured landscape creates a wonderful set of esses – left, right, then left again, with a clear view of the exit at the end allowing for more and more throttle as you pass through. Once clear of these wiggles the road begins to climb gently and you can let the engine sing as you run up to Honeybunch Corner (yes really) which swings you left and on to the long, mostly straight, climb up Ashbury Hill. Cresting the hill reveals grand views over Oxfordshire until the road drops down into the trees and then a 30mph limit sign and warnings of the junction ahead.
Turning right at the crossroads begins the last side of the triangle. This is the B4507 and it takes a similar course to the ancient Ridgeway path, but slightly lower down the slope. It’s only a short run to the NSL signs, but the first twist is immediate and from then on is rarely straight and never flat. If the upper roads of the triangle have a Roman-like influence, this section is a wild and hairy woad-covered Briton zig-zaging gleefully through the woods and hillocks.
The road rises and falls rapidly, although not always by any great amount, it is enough to deter any rash overtaking manoeuvres. The first righthander, itself on an incline, has a lumpy drain cover and enough bumps the unsettle the rear end if you get on the power to quickly. This crests on to a left, and then what feels to be a straighter section that runs in and out of the trees towards the crossroads at Knighton. This is the first of many similar junctions and you need to be wary of other road users pulling out unsighted. After Knighton, more crests and dips are mixed with short bends that seem to have you constantly flowing left and right. It really is a great road to drive, the rolling compressions and turns linking well, slightly marred by the patchy tarmac and short sightlines that hold you back. The next crossroads is for Dragon Hill, and the Uffington White Horse. To the right, Dragonhill Road offers the opportunity to drive through the earthworks of the old hill fort at Uffington Castle, but the single-track lane is steep and narrow even by Seven standards. Keeping with the B4507, we get to experience the Dragon Hill drop as the roadway turns right and then plunges down the ravine-like turn to the base of the escarpment. Shrouded in trees at the top, the open view of the steeply rising Down as you descend is enough to distract you from the sharp lefthander at the bottom. It’s a long curve, with no obvious apex on the entry, bringing you round almost 180 degrees before climbing back up and swinging right over a crest on to another undulating short straight. The other end of Dragonhill road exits at the next crossroads and we roll left and right and down into series of longer dips and crests formed by the eastern end of the hill itself. Passing Britchcombe Farm, the road climbs again, flicking left and right with more crests and dips before dropping into another ravine-like hairpin. This starts with a tight righthander at the top, so you enter with little or no view of the left turn at the bottom. The trees crowd in close too, darkening the roadway even in bright sunshine. Bumps and uneven surfaces jostle you slightly on the decent, but the long corner at the base is smoother allowing for a powerful exit up the incline and into the rolling righthand bend that completes the horseshoe-shaped curve. Once level, the road returns to a rolling gait along semi-straights and has a more open feel. Another crossroads flashes by, Blowingstone Hill, and at this point the trees begin to crowd over the road in a tunnel of green. Never straight, the gentle curves flow from left to right like a meandering river. The surface feels good – and then doesn’t – as nasty pothole, patched many times, clunks the suspension. It’s easy enough to avoid if you know where to look but is easily lost the gloomy green light. The high-sided banks and ancient trunks give this section a real sunken lane feel, but with two clear roadways and central white lines, no Seven should feel restrained. The meandering continues as the road rises again slightly, clearing the trees and revealing glimpses of the downs on the right. The exposed tarmac is more weather-beaten, so finding a smooth line can be a challenge, yet lost in the flow of bend crest and dip, you’ll barely notice any rough patches. Occasional small roads run off to scattered villages, and there are single-lane farm tracks that climb the downs to the right, so care is needed for any emerging traffic, an early start benefitting the keen driver here. About a mile out from the village of Childrey a more notable crest sweeps upwards, curving leftwards at the peak. Dropping down sharply on the other side the road rolls right, climbs and keeps on turning. This is a good bend, compressing you into the seat slightly as you climb, yet always curving away, dragging your focus down the road before you. Even before it levels out, with a jink left, then right, your eyes scan ahead as a rare clear view of the open road is revealed. The change in scenery is a clue, as is the red warning sign, that this section of the ‘triangle’ is about to end. And stop it does, with the Stop Sign at Childrey crossroads.
Pulling away at the crossroads, we turn up the B4001 to begin the final ascent of the downs on this loop. The trees quickly give way to open grassland, and the road rises steeply so you can hold a low gear longer for some higher revs, which will shoot you out and over the crest nicely. It’s a slight curve, and the drop down into the rolling fields affords a great view of the straighter road ahead. Far from the tree-lined meanderings, this is open and fast. Clearing the second rise, the road arcs left, but a warning sign signals a right turn ahead. If the grass verge has been trimmed, glance right and check for oncoming traffic. The bend is sharp – and the farm track deadhead is probably the original course – but with no traffic this near wide ninety-degree turn can be swung in to with glee. If safe to do so, take a tight line and then straight-line the following jink right to get a good run as the road climbs up Hackpen Hill on the north east side of the downs. It’s a long straight rise to the first righthander, which disappears into the roadside trees. A slight crest on the exit restricts the view ahead, so any overtaking should be confined to the lower slope. The road wiggles right and left, climbing still, before opening out on to an almost straight run upwards towards the sky. Another crest, more gentle jinks and we arrive back at the start point, completing the 20-mile Lambourn Loop, ready for another run. On a clear traffic-free morning a loop of the ‘triangle’ takes 20-25 minutes to complete. Such an engaging drive, it feels far longer, is highly rewarding and is well worth seeking out.
