Discover New Zealand, Home of Middle Earth
	Beyond Helm's Deep and the Deeping Coomb is the Westfold, so called because of the rolling, folded land that forms the northern foothills of the White Mountains. It is difficult terrain for horses, and doubly so for people on foot. As Wormtongue observed, it was slow going here for the women and children from Edoras. In the early morning light, it is especially daunting. The refugees' hope must have relied heavily on the selfless leadership of Princess Eowyn.
	This is the Westfold between the White Mountains and the Deeping Stream, where The Fellowship and the Riders of Rohan were attacked by wargs. Here also Eowyn led the people of Rohan westward from Edoras to the safety of Helm's Deep and helped make camp for the warriors and horsemen. The photo on the right shows the area where they all camped and Eowyn made her "tasty stew" for Aragorn and learned the secret of his royal ancestry.
	During the battle with the wargs, Aragorn fell over a cliff into the Deeping Stream, which is easy to find. It flows from its source in the Hornberg through Helm's Deep, and then through a gorge that becomes deeper as it wends its way toward the Entwash. There it dissipates in the marshy fens just south of Fangorn Forest. For a time it must have been a formidable barrier against the fearsome orcs from Isengard, until at last they crossed it to ravage Rohan.
	There is a narrow road just to the east of the young Stream within the Deeping Coomb, known as the "Road to the Hornberg." It connects Helm's Deep, which is south of the Coomb, to the road that runs straight from the Fords of Isen to the foot of the White Mountains. This is one of the few places one can ford the otherwise treacherous Deeping Stream. Eowyn and her charges passed here, and may have camped briefly, while fleeing along the Stream to Helm's Deep
	On the way back to Dunharrow after the Battle of Helm's Deep and the reconnaissance of Isengard, Theoden and Merry took a slightly different route, shown on the left, than that taken by Gandalf and Pippin, shown on the right, along the Misty Mountains. Theoden rallied the mountain men among the foothills, while Gandalf raced directly across the Plain of Rohan to the confluence with the Snowbourn and Entwash, then southeast through Anorien to Minas Tirith.
	The ground here is much like that farther north, where the wargs attacked, but as one travels eastward along the Plain of Rohan it becomes more flat. Away from the Deeping Stream, it is somewhat more dry as well, resembling the terrain east of the Entwash where the Rohirrim encountered Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli. From the Fords of Isen it is about 135 miles to Edoras. Noble Shadowfax carried Gandalf and Pippin this distance in about a day, a truly remarkable feat!
	There are strange land forms here, with huge chunks of volcanic rock rising out of the ground. They provide the only shade in the area, and the scouts on patrol here must have been glad to stop and rest their horses in the shadows and eat their trail rations. In the left photo, the White Mountains can be seen in the distance, whereas the right photo shows the location of Edoras itself, next to the foot of the Irensaga and Starkhorn, and the road that runs south to Dunharrow.
	At this point, we made a brief detour to follow the path of Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli after they left the orc mound at the southeast tip of Fangorn Forest and rode south, with the newly-resurrected Gandalf, to rescue Theoden from the evil enchantment of Saruman and Wormtongue. Initially, they had to swing westward through "fen and hollow" and at some point they waded the Deeping Stream, which is not so deep or swift here near the marsh as it is farther west.
	The land of West Emnet through which they passed is much like that west of Edoras, brown and seemingly bare in the winter time. The precise route was chosen by Shadowfax, who knew this area well. The entire distance from Fangorn to Edoras is about 130 miles, a day's gallop for Shadowfax, but a incredible feat for the other horses. No doubt this remarkable equine achievement was made possible by the choice of the easiest route by the inspirational Shadowfax.
	Not shown in the earlier photo of Edoras is the River Snowbourn, which arises in the mountain streams west of the Dwimorberg, south of Dunharrow. It joins the Entwash at the folde at the foot of Mount Irensaga, where the White Mountains turn southwest toward Minas Tirith. It is joined at Dunharrow by a small mountain stream which flows just south of the road that Theoden and Merry rode to the Muster of Rohan. The Snowbourn here runs close to the western hills.
	The road to the Hold on Firienfeld on the Dwimorberg, or Haunted Mountain, leads up some hundreds of feet to a shelf on the eastern cliffs. There are several turns, or switchbacks, and at each there are piles of worked stones which might have once been part of some kind of carved statuary. From the top one can see the far off Plain of Rohan glittering here in the setting sun. From here Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli entered the Dimholt to take the Paths of the Dead.
	The Hold at Firienfeld offers a good view of the Snowbourn valley and the surrounding terrain. It makes a natural, easily defended fortress against attack from the north. The ground below is an accessible, easily located spot for scattered forces to assemble, as they did before their march to the aid of Gondor. The officers in the Hold can make plans and observe the disposition of the riders and horses camped on the plain below, where there is plenty of water and grass.
	The plain at Harrowdale, where the road from the hills, the road to Dunharrow and the road to Edoras meet, is about a half a mile wide. Here the riders camped and made ready for the long march to Minas Tirith. From here it is about 310 miles, a distance the Rohirrim covered in four days and a night, a hard ride for men and horses needing the strength at the end to fight. Since this is such a good campsite, we decided to stop here before following their journey.
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