The Great Chalk Way is a family of established walking and riding routes linking the Dorset and Norfolk Coasts across central southern England following the ancient trading route along the chalk ridge, forming a coast to coast route of getting on for 400 miles -

​

• Wessex Ridgeway

• Cranborne Droves Way

• Sarsen Way

• The Ridgeway

• Icknield Way

• Peddars Way

​​

The Great Chalk Way starts at Lyme Regis in Dorset and finishes at Holme-next-the-Sea in Norfolk. It's also referred to as the 'Great Ridgeway'.

​

I am planning to walk the entire trail, setting off from Lyme Regis at the end of April 2025. Living in Northamptonshire and staying overnight in pubs and hotels, I'll probably do a week at a time before coming home for a few days. All being well I'll complete my challenge before the end of summer. I'm not daunted by the distance to walk but what concerns me a little is the area covered by the Wessex Ridgeway in particular. Apart from Lyme Regis itself, which I've visited on a number of occasions, I have no knowledge of the countryside along the route. Public transport & accommodation haven't been the easiest to sort out during my planning stage but I'm sure it'll all work out!​

​

Looking at the very high-level map of the trail you’ll see that the Wessex Ridgeway (in light blue) meets The Ridgeway (in dark blue) near the World Heritage Site of Avebury in Wiltshire. However, there is an alternative route that peels off to the right at Win Green, continues to Salisbury on the Cranborne Droves Way (in yellow) and then continues towards Avebury on the Sarsen Way (in orange). It’s clear just by looking at the map that this alternative route is shorter than just continuing on the Wessex Ridgeway; it also looks more interesting to me as it takes in the city of Salisbury as well as passing close to Stonehenge. For these reasons I have decided to walk the alternative route via Salisbury.  

​