Saturday, October 31, 2009

Roman Road

The carpark near Hardy's cottage was ample, remote, and un-signed, so we pitched our camp there. Several trails in Thorncombe Park take off from the carpark, and we decided to follow one. It was another bright autumn afternoon.
We got a few hundred yards before encountering this sign









The newly re-cleared Roman road; I visited with some of
the rangers later and learned the road linked present-day
Dorchester with the Bradbury Rings and Exeter; ultimately
with London; the Roman roads are easily identifiable,
they said, pitched, with drainage ditches; "wide enough
for two chariots to pass?" I wanted to ask









Note the pit on the left; the area is largely limestone and subject to what 
Floridians call "sink-holes"; some here were sufficiently old that 
the Romans had to run the road around them, deviating from their normal 
"straight line" approach to the world

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