The Round Moat

A circular earthwork sits deep in Cambridgeshire woodland, and honestly, you could walk straight past it without realising. The Round Moat is an Iron Age defensive structure - think ancient bank and ditch forming an almost perfect ring - though these days it's rather more peaceful than warlike. The trees have reclaimed it, which means you get decent woodland walking alongside a genuine bit of archaeology.

It's the sort of place that rewards a bit of planning. Walkers will get the most from it, particularly those already heading through the Cambridgeshire countryside between Royston and beyond. You won't spend hours here - thirty minutes to an hour to walk the perimeter and take it all in is realistic - but it works brilliantly as a stopping point on a longer route. The moat itself is the whole experience; there's no visitor centre or interpretive boards to lean on, so you're rather left to imagine what life looked like when it was actively defended.

Stay at Pightle Farm Campsite or Guilden Gate Glamping nearby and you've got proper base camps for exploring this patch of East Anglia. Free admission, naturally, and accessible year-round, though late autumn and winter give you the clearest views when the undergrowth dies back. If you're camping locally and fancy something genuinely different from the usual park attractions, this delivers - no crowds, no admission fees, just ancient earthworks and trees.