Bruce Trail Friendship Trail – Beacons, Commons and Woods

This spectacular walk leads Cromwell’s you along peaceful woodland Stone tracks and out onto Cliff Wood windswept hillsides with Edgemoor breath-taking views. A true Ringhill 6 Cotswold Way Haresfield Inn Farm Stockend 5 jewel in the Cotswolds crown. Hill 7 Halliday’s Distance: Wood Broadbarrow 6 miles Bunker’s Green Haresfield Bank Scottsquar A4173 Duration: Haresfield Camp Beacon (site of) Hill 2½ - 3½ hours 1 Shortwood 4 Difficulty: Moderate – some stiles and Pitchcombe Resthaven Wood Residential Home moderate slopes Bird-in-Hand Public transport: Standish No 63 Stroud to Gloucester bus Wood 2 A46 stops at Bird in Hand (2 on map). Sherman’s Wood See ‘Explore the Cotswolds’ public Pitchcombe transport guide or visit www. Cotswold Way Friendship Trail traveline.org.uk Optional detour 3 Cotswold Way Ruscombe Start/Finish: Wood National Trust Cripplegate car park Whiteshill (no charge). Grid reference 1 Leave the car park through the 4 Turn left, andRuscombe where the road date 1643 which corresponds to the SO 832084 (OS Explorer 179), wall near the main entrance and follow bears right, keep straight on passing Siege of Gloucester. Continue on nearest postcode GL6 6PP. the Cotswold Way along a broad path several houses. Cross the stile at the through the woods towards Ringhill into Standish Wood. Turn left at the end onto Edge Common. This area of Farm. Refreshments: Edgemoor Inn (short detour across fingerpost indicating Bird-in-Hand to unimproved limestone grassland is busy road). leave the Cotswold Way and join a grazed by cattle to preserve the 6 At the road, turn left uphill and path along the edge of a field heading habitat for several varieties of orchid almost immediately right. Climbing right. Cross over the stile at the end of and the rare Duke of Burgundy steadily, take in the wonderful views This part of the Cotswold Way is twinned this path onto the road and turn left. butterfly. To the right beautiful views across the Severn vale to the Forest with a section of the Bruce Trail, located open up of Painswick and the spire of of Dean and May Hill until you reach in Ontario, Canada, as a mark of 2 Where a second road joins from St Mary’s Church. Continue straight the trig point at the tip of Haresfield friendship and international cooperation the right, cross over and enter a ahead until you reach a Cotswold Way Beacon. Bear left and follow the ridge between our two trails. narrow lane to the right of a letter sign post. of the escarpment to a flight of steps box. At the end of this lane, cross a which descends to a lower track The 890 km long Bruce Trail is Canada’s stile into a large field. Keeping to the 5 At this point turn right to reach leading into Shortwood oldest and longest marked footpath and right hand boundary, head downhill the Edgemoor Inn for refreshments, or is maintained by volunteers. The trail ignoring two paths on the right. Pass turn left to follow the Cotswold Way 7 Head left uphill through the spans beautiful and varied landscapes as through the gate at the bottom of the all the way back to the start. Proceed wood to emerge onto open grassland. it passes through Canada’s most densely field. uphill crossing a broad track and Bear right and continue to the end of populated region, and is the only following a series of waymark posts to the promontory where a topograph continuous public access to the Niagara 3 Almost immediately turn left the top of the common. When you sets out the surrounding countryside Escarpment, a UNESCO World Biosphere and cross a stile to join a broad track reach an old quarry, head down the in relief. To your left, the escarpment Reserve. For further information on this through Pitchcombe Wood. All along stone steps towards the road. Cross runs south towards Uley Bury and the wonderful trail, visit: www.brucetrail.org this path there are fine views down to over into the woods and follow the Tyndale Monument, and further right is the right of Pitchcombe village with its path downhill to a rough track. From the Severn Estuary and on a clear day, The route description below is small church and across the Painswick here there are clear views to the the twin bridges. Finally to the west lies regularly checked and updated, but Valley. At the end of the track, enter Malvern Hills and on a clear day, the Forest of Dean with the Welsh hills to make it even easier to follow, the a field and cross diagonally behind beyond to the Brecon Beacons. Carry in the distance. Once you have drunk friendship trail has been signed at Resthaven residential home to reach on until you reach another road, and your fill of one of the Cotswolds’ finest key points with a a stile in the corner. Cross this stile turn right downhill. Turn left at the old views, put your back to the topograph special marker and follow the hedge to your left well and horse tough to climb steadily. and follow the trodden path back to disc (pictured descending to a tarmac road. At the top of the rise, there are three where you began. right). slabs of stone, the upright one is known as Cromwell’s Stone and features eroded lettering and the

Cotswold Way National Trail • Tel: 01451 862000 • Email: [email protected] • Website: www.nationaltrail.co.uk