6.5 miles
Route - (Select Satelite view)
Parking. Park in the Car Park in Figgins Lane off George Lane.
From George Lane in Marlborough, cross the A345.
Start at the lane next to the garage, just to the left of the Public Bridleway (which is marked White Horse Trail).
Continue along this path past the buildings on the left keeping to the left of the trees, past a wooden gate, until you reach a metal gate on the left, which is C shaped.
Go through this gate and continue straight along the grassy track and pass through a gap in the hedge.
On your right is the school running track and on the left some trees.
At midway of this running track bear left towards the top of this field keeping the trees close on
your left.
You bear slightly right still with the trees on your left until, ahead of you, you will see a notice
which reads Private Property
.
Pass through the trees on your left
and then follow the narrower track to the right.
Follow this (the narrower) track between the trees/bushes into the next field, go through the hedge on the left and follow the hedge keeping it on the left. Continue through the next two fields. At the end there will be two stiles to cross. Keep left on a track with the trees on your left. After it goes round a bend there is a track leading away at right angles. Follow this until it reaches a road. Turn left onto the road and proceed about 125 metres until you can turn right onto a track. Continue along this track keeping the trees on your left as it bears first right then curves back to the left.
After about 300 metres this track will lead to an open field, still with the trees to your left of the track. The track starts to bear left but as soon as you see two isolated trees up ahead (marked in yellow on the Google map) bear right so that you pass to the right of these trees towards the far corner of this grassy field. Cross over a stile on your right, then left around a fallen tree and proceed towards an open field. Just before the field there is a sunken path on the right which leads down a lane. Notice that the fields are still on you left and the forest on your right. Follow this until you reach a road. We are now at Clatford Park Farm, Short Oak Copse and Fosbury Copse.
Cross the road and run up the track into the woods.
(Note that if you haven't checked out your stage in advance you could easily get lost in this wood.)
This track is fairly faint but you should reach a well defined track a bit higher up. Take the (well defined) track to the left.
If you get lost when doing your recce before the race, try this: On the way into the woods, on the right, in the trees, is a 2 foot post painted yelllow for the top 2 inches. It is difficult to see. Follow it, go past it and you will come to a path. On this path there is a blue 'White Horse Trail' sign. Go uphill (that is bear left) and you will come to another blue 'White Horse Trail' sign and a 'Public Way' sign. You are now on the correct track. Here there are several paths. Take the larger path to the left. (If you were to go right you would soon come to another Y junction showing the public track to the right along a smaller track. - GO BACK!) So I repeat, take the larger path to the left.
Follow this track and after another 100 metres there will be a large junction of tracks with a ditch coming up from the field on your left. Bear right onto the main track. Keep to this track and it should be about 1.2 km further on before we see the next field. Turn right on to a gravel track still just in the wood (on the right), keeping the field on the left. After a while you will see the wood thickens out in front of you and the track turns left. Keep on it as it proceeds downhill to a wide junction of tracks. Turn right over a stile and keep to the left of the field. As you climb up the hill the trees on your left thin out, the track bears left still keeping the large field to your right. You will soon see a wood (Gopher Wood) in front of you again as the path bears back to the right.
At the end of the wood bear left and almost immediately you should see a path (Tan Hill Way) to your right. Follow the path staying at the top of the ridge. Do not go downhill. Follow this ridgeway (Tan Hill Way) for about 1 km until you come to a gate. The finish of this stage and Knap Hill car park is to your right.
List all the stages of this Relay Race