THE TOWER

DORSTONE, HEREFORDSHIRE

If you take a look on Landranger 161 just south of Dorstone, you’ll see the unmistakable symbol for a radio mast, and then you’ll also see there’s a paved road leading up to it. This is like a red rag to a bull in my world; these are always challenging roads, so I had to check it out. The base lies just outside of Dorstone where the climb starts gently, rolling slightly. As you approach a dead end sign it banks right and the hard work begins. The stiff gradient comes in waves as you pass a number of lone houses, peaking at 25% past the last one. Once over these punishing ramps the road bends left and lines up dead straight to the summit. You can see the tower on top of the hill and you only have a short stretch of easy climbing before the final grind to the top. It’s not clear at first, but there’s a gate halfway up for you to open (just a slight inconvenience) before you reach the tower and stand on the top of Vagar Hill.