The walk begins from the car park at Wandlebury Country Park, a woodland park covering 110 acres. Over the centuries, the estate had various owners, including the Godolphin family, but in 1954 it was acquired by the Cambridge Preservation Society, who opened it to the public as a place of recreation and peace. It has since become very popular, particularly with nature lovers — featuring three waymarked nature trails — and walkers. The society has returned the farm fields in the estate gardens to grass and, through an extensive tree-planting programme, has created a range of valuable habitats for plant and wildlife, especially insects and birds.
The hilltop at Wandlebury is the site of an Iron Age fort, now known as Wandlebury Ring. Probably erected during the 3rd century BC, it comprised a circular ditch and rampart enclosing an area about 1,000 feet (305 metres) in diameter. The enclosure held a village and had enough surplus space to take in outlying farmers and their animals when an enemy threatened. The fort was rebuilt twice, but appears to have been abandoned by the 1st century AD. All that remains visible today is the encircling ditch running between two banks: the inner bank, originally reinforced with timber, formed the rampart, while the outer bank was just dug-up earth.
Wandlebury Ring also has more recent historic connections. At the beginning of the 18th century, the estate passed to the Earl of Godolphin, who built a mansion and two monumental stable blocks inside the fort's perimeter. The house is no longer standing, but a raised lawn with a sundial marks its site. The stable blocks remain and have now been converted into private residences.
The cupola block today contains the Cambridge Preservation Society's offices and shop. The clock on the cupola has one hand only and dates from the 18th century. In the archway below the cupola is the grave of a horse: the Godolphin Arabian, one of the three Arab stallions that sired the whole of England's thoroughbred racing stock in the early 1700s.
Across the raised lawn stands Tadlow Granary, a timber-framed building dating from around 1415. Originally part of a farm complex at Tadlow near the Bedfordshire border, it was re-erected at Wandlebury in the mid-1970s by the Cambridgeshire Preservation Society. Standing on brick piers, it has vertical plank walls and a crown-post roof; the original timbers as well as restored sections are of oak.
From Wandlebury Ring, the route crosses chalk grasslands and wooded areas to reach the Roman road, or Via Devana, which ran from Colchester to Godmanchester (if not further). It was once thought the road went as far as Deva (Chester), which would explain the name. The road is also known variously as Wool Street — probably derived from Wolvestreet, a reminder of the time when wolves were an everyday menace — and as Worsted Dyke, a reference to the wool trade.
Today, the Via Devana is a grassy, gently undulating track. Its hedgerows, thick with wild roses, sloe, hawthorn, and hazel, give way here and there to wide views across the Cambridgeshire countryside.
From the Via Devana, the route follows a quiet by-road where plants and insects benefit from protected verges, down to Babraham, a mellow village in flint and brick standing on the east bank of the River Granta. Although the Granta changes to the Cam as it flows through Cambridge, it is the Granta which originally gave the city its name: the Saxons called their settlement "bridge over the muddy river" or Grantabridge. Under the Normans this became Cantabridge and later Cambridge, changing the river's name accordingly. But here at Babraham, the Granta retains its true identity as it flows lazily along the village, passing Babraham Hall just before it reaches the church.
This grandiose Elizabethan-style mansion on the site of an earlier dwelling was built in 1830 for the Adeane family. By the 1950s it belonged to the Agricultural and Food Research Council, and in 1994 the hall and grounds became home to the Babraham Institute, which undertakes research into cell and molecular biology. One of the 19th century's leading stock breeders, Jonas Webb, farmed at Babraham, and his statue stands in the village almost opposite the George Inn.
Babraham church, dedicated to St Peter, mostly dates from the 1400s, although the chancel and tower are older. Items of particular interest include the 15th-century pews and font and the Adeane family hatchments (coats of arms belonging to the deceased). The church's most striking feature, however, is the modern east window designed by John Piper. In rich, glowing colours, the window depicts the keys, cockerel, boat, and other emblems of St Peter's life.
From Babraham, the route follows the Granta valley for about one mile, then heads back to Wandlebury and the start.
