That was from ST 802 377. It was a long time ago but I recall a dodgy parking spot at the roadside on a blind bend - so a bit nervy for driving off after descent. However, the walk to the summit was lovely, along a pleasant ridge after a short climb.
This morning, for my second visit to this summit, I started right from the other side of the hill, at ST 778 374. This was a much better and safer parking place. However, after a couple of fields, it was necessary to climb a steep grassy slope which wasnāt fun.
Hi Tom
Nice view, thank you for sharingš
In the past year of hiking almost every weekend in HB i never noticed a bad parking spot. However our problems often are the first few 100 meters in hight that start on a big road built for the cars of the locals. Going up there is just boring but when you return from the summit the last part back on that concrete streets can really hurt in your knees. It also feels like they go on and on forever when walking on them.
Thatās why iām very fond of mountains where you are able to skip the first part by taking a small cable railway. But this only makes sense if there still is āenough mountainā for hiking some hours afterwards. After all i`m there to stretch my legs and get some exercise
My vote goes to the dangerous parking spot and pleasant walk up. When Paul and I activated the hill back in 2007 an early morning activation helped minimise the traffic and gave us some cracking views. Definitely go with someone so you have two sets of ears to listen for approaching traffic when vacating the parking spot.
On the good walk side to the South thereās a tile factory/shop and a B&B shown on Google maps. Ring them up and ask if you can park for an hour/few hours etc. Ask nicely, tell nice story about why walking etc. make it clear to them if they say yes youāll never bother them again. This has been 90%+ successful in my case. There appears to be enough verge to walk along.
To the North thereās a triangular piece of land at the entrance to Rodmead Farm, could park there without blocking access and you can contact the farm to ask.
That triangular area you mention is where I parked (3attempts, 1successful activation). It is a good parking spot out of the way. However it is a HORRIBLE walk along that road until you reach the start of the walk proper off to the right. There is no path, the verge is tricky and a blind summit/bend with national speed limit (60mph). I agree with Tom, the hill itself is lovely, but the access will probably stop me revisiting. The parking to the south (if you can get permission) looks reasonable if you can cross the fields and then pick up the track leading diagonally up the south face.
There are so many hills to choose from, I choose not to repeat this one.
