Belas Knap Long Barrow

Belas Knap is a particularly fine Neolithic long barrow in the hills near Winchcombe, unusual for its false entrance: at the northern end, two standing stones and a lintel set between two projecting horns of the mound lead nowhere, while the real burial chambers open from the sides of the mound. Excavations in 1863 to 1865 found the remains of 31 people in the chambers, and six more skeletons, five of them infants, behind the false portal. Visitors can walk around the mound and look into the side chambers, and the barrow makes a natural picnic stop on the Cotswold Way National Trail. Reviewers praise the peace at the top and the views on the way up. The site is managed by Gloucestershire County Council for English Heritage. Expect a steep climb of just over half a mile through woodland and fields, with two stiles and a kissing gate. Keep dogs on leads, as sheep may graze the fields.