Deserted Villages and a Saltway in Hodnell, Warwickshire

The start of the walk is on the A423 between Southam and Banbury. 600 metres south of the Ladbroke by-pass there is space to park in a lay-by on the southbound side of the road, opposite a line of cottages.

If public transport is preferred there are 5 buses per day on service 66 from Leamington, Southam and Banbury. There is an unmarked bus stop at the southern end of the Ladbroke by-pass, near the Radbourne Lane crossing.

Parts of this route are along Unclassified County Roads, green lanes which may not be shown on Ordnance Survey maps. 

[1]  From the lay-by walk north past Ascote Cottages. Look out for fast moving traffic. Go through a yard at the right hand side of the cottages to find a clearly waymarked footpath through two gates at the rear of the cottages. The path continues as a grassy strip through a large field. Go across a farm track and walk to the right of Chapel Ascote Farm.

Beyond the farm the path crosses a ploughed field. Aim first for the left side of a large pond and then for the far left corner of the field. Go over a stile and straight across a second field to reach another stile in the far fence.

To your north you can see the aptly named Round Hill with Weddington Hill behind it. As you climb Ascote Hill you gain a good view to the west, with the Burton Dassett Hills prominent, Brailes Hill with its clump of trees further away and Ilmington Downs in the distance.

[2]  Once over the stile turn left and follow a bridleway alongside the fence. A gentle climb takes you over Ascote Hill. A track emerges from a gate on your left. It is in fact an unclassified county road.

(A) As you look over the gate the site of the deserted village of Ascote is on the slope ahead of you, running from the track down to a stream. The area is now ploughed so there is nothing to be seen on the ground except a few depressions which might be former holloways.

Do not go through the gate but turn south west and follow the track downhill. The track passes though two more gates, becoming better defined. Follow the hedge on your right as it makes a sharp right turn. You are now approaching the railway line from Banbury to Leamington which you cross by means of a bridge.

You reach a road junction by the farm at Holmes House. Turn left onto the tarmac road. This is a gated road so please be sure to leave the gates as you find them. Follow the road downhill to a bridge over the Radbourne and then past Grange Farm to reach Ham Bridge over the Itchen.

[3]  Just before the bridge there is a metal gate on the left with a county council waymarker indicating an unclassified county road. Go through the gate and follow a track keeping the hedge on your left. Ignore the first gate on your left, then as you approach the railway, follow the track as it goes through a second gate and then follows the other side of the hedge to the railway bridge.

From waypoint [3] to waypoint [5] you will be following the route of the ancient saltway. The line of this track can be traced from Stratford as far as Priors Marston and on into Northamptonshire.

Go through the bridge under the railway and take the right hand of two gates on the far side. Continue on the track through a second gate, keeping a hedge on your left.

As the fence swings right approaching Watergall Hill Farm go through a gate on the left with a footpath waymark. Cross the field, aiming for the right hand end of a line of conifers. Go through a gate and continue over the next field towards a wooden kissing gate. Do not go through the gate,turn right just before it  and walk down the slope to reach a gate midway between a bungalow and the farm buildings. Go through the gate and turn left onto a tarmac road. Follow this road to reach a junction with the A423.

(B) Your second deserted village site is in the field to your left as you approach the main road. In a few places it is possible to see over the hedge and pick out 'lumps and bumps' in the field, with the buildings of Watergall Manor Farm beyond. There is a good aerial photograph of this field on the Warwickshire Timetrail website (see the Point of Interest section below).

[4]  Cross the main road with care. Go straight ahead along the minor road opposite. After about 1 km the tarmac ends at a junction of tracks. Private farm drives lead off to left and right but your route is straight ahead along a cinder track, following an Unclassified County Road waymark.

The track continues with hedges closing in from both sides. Where you first gain a view to the left you may be able to spot Napton windmill on a distant hill. After just over a kilometre you reach a bridge over a stream with a bridle gate on the far side. At this point the unclassified road comes to an end at a parish boundary although the route continues as a bridleway.

From this point route finding requires a little more attention. Continue on the bridleway beside a hedge as it curves gently to the left until you reach double gates on the left with a bridleway waymark.

[5]  Go through the gates and follow the hedge on your right to reach a bridle gate. Go through and head out diagonally left into the next field. Scan the hedgerow on your left to spot an opening where a post and rail fence leads to a kissing gate. Turn towards this gate and go through. Head straight out into the next field aiming for the far right corner where you find a stile.

Once over the stile you are in a large ploughed field. Aim for the right hand corner of a coniferous wood in the middle of the field. Follow the right hand edge of the wood to reach a private drive. From this point you should scan the distant hedgerow on your right. Scan the hedgerow leftwards from the point where the farm drive reaches it. Just to the left of a group of prominent trees there is a gap in the hedge. This is the point you should next aim for. (An alternative would be to walk down the farm drive and then follow the field edge to the left.)

(C) The farm drive leads to Chapel Bank Farm, behind the trees ahead of you. The site of the demolished parish church of Radbourne is thought to be near this farm. Radbourne is another parish which has lost almost all its population. It may also be of interest to know that the HS2 railway is projected to cross this valley on a 4 metre high viaduct.

At a gap in the hedge you find a low brick and concrete bridge over the Radbourne stream. On the far side the status of the right of way changes to an unclassified county road. Head diagonally left across the next field, aiming for the right hand end of a woodland strip. At the far side of the field turn right along the field edge.

[6]  You soon reach a concrete farm drive. Go straight across, noting the Unclassified Road waymark. Continue on a grassy track, initially with a hedge on your left. The track continues though a gate, heading for the right hand edge of woodland. Once past the woods you reach a ploughed field. Looking ahead you should see the buildings of Hodnell Manor Farm and a detached area of woodland to the right of them. Head across the field, aiming for the left hand side of this woodland. At the far side of the field go through a series of waymarked bridle gates to pass just left of the trees.

As you approach Hodnell Manor you reach the highest point on the walk. To the south and east you can see the hills along the Northamptonshire border. Two radio masts are the most obvious features, one on the hills at Charwelton and the other, which you passed earlier, near Wormleighton. 

(D) The third deserted settlement in Hodnell was in the fields around Manor Farm. There are well preserved earthworks in the fields north of the farm which may be connected with the medieval village.

One last gate on the right takes you into the woodland. At the time of writing the way ahead is blocked by overgrown bushes, so it is necessary to cross the fence line to the left and walk down the adjacent field to the end of the trees where you cross back into the woodland and find a metal gate on your left. Go though the gate and follow the left side of the next field down to the road.

The medieval parish of Hodnell contained three settlements, at Ascote, Watergall and Hodnell Manor. There was also a parish church, although this was not on the route of the present walk. The sites have been identified from aerial photographs but little remains to be seen above ground. The only buildings now in the area are a few isolated farms and cottages. The southern part of this walk runs along an ancient trackway, identified in a tenth century legal document as the "salt street". At this period salt was the commodity most often traded by land, so the long distance trade routes are generally known as saltways. Along this section it is not too difficult to imagine the conditions faced by travellers before our present highway system was established.

Hodnell had a population of around 150 at the time of the Domesday Book. It was probably depopulated some time in the 15th century and converted to pasture. It is not known which of the various landowners were responsible for the depopulation. There were some notable families involved, such as the Catesbys and the Spencers (who subsequently moved to Wormleighton and then Althorp).

According to the Victoria County History the parish church was still standing in 1531 when Thomas Spencer left orders for his burial there. However in 1633 it was reported to the Archbishop of Canterbury that the church was decayed. With the collapse of any parish organisation the area fragmented into four parts, Hodnell, Chapel Ascote, Watergall and Wills Pastures. These were treated as extra-parochial districts and at various times were administered from neighbouring parishes.

The Warwickshire Timetrail website www.http://timetrail.warwickshire.gov.uk/ has information about the sites visited during the walk. The most relevant record numbers are  822 (Ascote) 823 (Watergall) 807 (Hodnell Manor) 1305 (Radbourne Church) and 817 (Hodnell Church).

Turning from the past to possible future developments, the detailed HS2 route can be seen on http://highspeedrail.dft.gov.uk/in-your-area

The Blue Lias Rings Working Party have published a series of leaflets on walking routes in the area. Their Walk 3A coincides in part with the route described here.