oh, and the track *could* have been at the bottom of the ridge - it was only the 1812 Enclosures Act which defined what we now know as "The Ridgeway" (between Avebury and Streatley) - before that it was a general free-for-all, going anywhere you fancied in that general direction - the "Ridgeway" was the sw/ne route that avoided having to cross any major rivers

what you would call "The Ridgeway Path" now is even more recent, only going back about 40 years or so. The Goring-Aylesbury section sort of follows the Icknield Way though the Chilterns, but you needn't take "The Actual Route Taken By Our Ancestors" schtick too seriously ....

I was *really* looking forward to doing the Ridgeway this week - been really reading up. Might get a couple of days in just before the school holidays end, but I think we might have missed our opportunity this year ...

RG