Devil's Dyke & Nomansland

This circular walk from Wheathampstead threads together open common land, quiet lanes and one of Hertfordshire's most intriguing earthworks. Setting off from the village, the route heads out to Nomansland Common, a broad expanse of grass and woodland that has long been a spot for locals to walk, ride and pause at a country pub.

On the common you pass the Elephant & Castle and the nearby Reading Rooms, before the trail loops back through fields and hedgerows towards Devil's Dyke. This deep, wooded ditch is part of a much larger Iron Age earthwork, its steep banks now cloaked in trees and remarkably atmospheric on a still day. A memorial to polar explorer Apsley Cherry-Garrard, who lived locally, offers a quiet moment of reflection along the way.

The return to Wheathampstead brings you past reminders of the village's railway past, including the remains of Wheathampstead Station and the line of the old track beside the by-pass. It is a satisfying half-day out combining ancient history, gentle countryside and a proper Hertfordshire village at either end.