The Vale of Pewsey cuts through the middle of the district, separating the chalk hills of the Marlborough Downs in the north with the vast expanse of Salisbury Plain to the south. This route is also followed by the main railway service in the District and the Kennet and Avon canal.
Other significant valleys have been cut into the chalk by the River Kennet to the north, in contrast to the west of the District where the chalk uplands give way to the clay vale which continues through to West Wiltshire.
