Bratton White Horse & Bratton camp — Attraction in Bratton

A very short but steep drive from Westbury. There is plenty of space in unmarked bays in the car park, (note the surface is not at all even and some drivers were scrunching their vehicle undersides on the bumps). No parking or entry charges. Helpful bins by the car park.

Great place for walking dogs around the beacon and grassy areas behind the car park and also across the road a short walk to view and walk right up to the now painted (since 1950s) concrete white horse on the hill. There is a lot of history and unknowns about the site, worth reading about. Do beware the obvious steep drops if your dog likes to pull as notices say they are to be on lead in the fenced and gated area. There are great ridges and dips to get different views and where I understand the historic fort battlements used to be. Superb long views on a clear day, across to the East, North and West as you walk around the top ridges on the all weather paths. Very windy, of course, so great for flying kites, short-wing paragliding and...

CONCRETE like a few people have said, I never read any reviews before going, so was shocked to see white painted concrete, done some research and found this ;

Local records from 1742 suggest that the horse was originally cut in the late 17th century, probably to commemorate the supposed Battle of Ethandun, thought to have taken place at Bratton Camp in AD 878. In the 17th century it had become popular to commemorate these supposed Saxon battle victories over the pagan Danes with white horses, in celebration of the belief that the Saxons had brought Christianity to Britain. The tradition probably derived from the mistaken belief that the Uffington White Horse in Oxfordshire had been created in Saxon times to celebrate such a victory. Cut into the chalk, the horse originally had to be scoured regularly to keep it white. The last recorded scouring took place in 1853. In the late 1950s, the horse was preserved by covering it in white-painted concrete. Still a lovely place, with...

This is my touchstone. It is a beautiful place so dear to me. Westbury 'White Horse Hill' is at the end of the Salisbury Plain, and was an ancient hill fort.

It is free to go there, and has free parking.

An amazing place to go on a sunny day, take a picnic and just relax. The earthen mounds are still there, and you can climb and roam on them.

Records from 1742 suggest that the white horse was originally cut into the chalk hill in the late 17th century, likely to commemorate the Battle of Ethandun, thought to have taken place at Bratton Camp in AD 878, which was where Alfred the Great's defeated the 'Great Heathen Army' led by the Dane Guthrum. In later years this victory led onto the formation of a united England.

With or without the history, it's a stunning place to visit and take in the spectacular views or just go for a walk around the iron age hill fort. Often you can find paragliders soaring off the side...