Themed Trails

Pilgrimage along the Golden Valley

This trail starting and finishing at Hereford Cathedral is a new pilgrim route that will introduce churches within the Golden Valley in Herefordshire. This new walking route will take in the following churches along the way and most are able to offer overnight accommodation: Madley, Moccas, Bredwardine, Dorstone and Tyberton. We will showcase the route during Herefordshire Walking Festival that takes place in between 19th – 27th June 2021.

Hops & Cider Trail in Herefordshire

This Themed Trail showcases a selection of Herefordshire Churches which can be linked in close proximity to Cider & Beer producers. Travelling along the A417, you are following in the footsteps of the Hop Pickers who travelled along this road by horse drawn caravan to spend the summer helping the local farmers and living on the land.

Food & Drink in Shropshire

This Themed Trail will aim to encourage visitors to a selection of Shropshire Churches which are located in close proximity to local food and drink producers. Working together with these producers we would hope to do some joint marketing as this trail would certainly benefit both parties. Cheese Makers, Organic Farm Tours, Wine Tours, Farm Shops, Beer Tours and Spring Water. Linking with a number of Food & Drink Festivals that take place in Shropshire throughout the year.

Cycling in Shropshire

This trail is based on the Church Stretton Cycle Rides Route – Long Mynd Loop, but with Wentnor, More & Bishops Castle churches added to the loop trail. Increasing the trail from 20 to 26 miles with some challenging climbs, scenic views, quiet roads and the opportunity to see the gliders close hand over the Long Mynd.

War of the Roses Trail

February 2021 will mark the 560 year anniversary of the War of the Roses - Battle of Mortimer's Cross

Follow in the footsteps of the army who fought at the Battle of Mortimer’s Cross. Travel down through Shrewsbury, visit Ludlow Castle and St Laurence Church. Then travel through Mortimer Forest to Wigmore Castle and travel past the site where the battle took place at

Mortimers Cross. Visit National Trust Croft Castle and church before heading to Kingsland Church, Leominster Priory and finish in Hereford at the Owen Tudor plaque in Hereford (outside M&S).

Bookable Experiences King Makers, Monks and Brewers

This 3 day experience takes in the hidden stories in the valleys and villages of the rivers of the Ony, Teme and Clun. Based on Bed & Breakfast with two lunches and an afternoon tea. This short break based in Ludlow explores the historical Churches, Brewers, Abbeys, Public Houses, Castles, Houses, each with their own story to tell on how our history has been shaped today.

Day One Includes a visit to St Laurence’s Church Ludlow, travel to St John’s Doddington, standing on the side of the Titterstone Clee Hill with refreshments. Visit to Hobsons Brewery and Tap Room, Cleobury Mortimer, the leading independent brewery in Shropshire and one of the most sustainable in the UK.

Day Two Private visit to the home, with the ruined medieval castle in the grounds, of the Harley Family, Brampton Bryan and Wigmore, later earls of Oxford and Mortimer. Guided visit to St Barnabas church, the original Norman church was largely demolished during the English Civil War siege of the adjacent castle. Its successor dates from 1656 and is significant as one of only six churches known to have been allowed redevelopment during the ‘Commonwealth’ period.

Meet good company, good food and good friends for a Ploughman’s lunch (or traditional fish and chips) at The Sun Inn, Leintwardine, one of three listed ‘parlour pubs’ in England. After lunch a private visit to Wigmore Abbey, with its long and convoluted foundation history with the Marcher Earls of Mortimer of Wigmore and Ludlow castle. Short talk from Mortimer History Society. The final visit of the day is to Wigmore church, with its Saxon origins and Wigmore Castle. Roger Mortimer, known as the king maker and who played a key role in some turbulent events in 14C English history, was born here. Roger Mortimer helped his mistress Queen Isabella, in the overthrow of her husband King Edward II. We return to Ludlow through the Mortimer Forest.

Day Three Today we visit Clungford described in the Shropshire Lad poems of A E Houseman as one of the four quietist places under the sun. for more than seven centuries the parish church of St Cuthbert church has been the centre of village life. Of particular note is the unusually fine organ, built by John Binns of Leeds and dedicated in 1895. Short organ recital.

Stokesay Castle and St John the Baptist church. Stokesay Castle, largely built in its present form in the late 13th century by Laurence de Ludlow, it has been described as ‘quite simply the finest and best preserved fortified medieval manor house in England’. The most striking features of the church are the biblical texts on the walls, two decker pulpit, box and canopied pews and a West Gallery. Refreshments.

The final visits of the day is to St Mary the Virgin church, Bromfield and the Clive Estate. The church was built as a parish church before the Norman Conquest and was described as being "a wealthy minster of royal foundation". Visit to the Ludlow Farm Shop on the Clive Estate, brief talk by the Manager, afternoon tea.

Telford & the Industrial Heritage

Day 1 - Arrival to Telford take time to visit The Telford Statue & Bridge as well as visiting St Michael’s Church, Madeley. St Michael’s Church replaced an earlier church in 1797. Telford designed it in an austere classical style with high windows and a square west tower. The plan is unusual being octagonal with vestries which cut off two triangles leaving an oblong nave that is almost square, creating a large preaching hall – as in Methodist churches – with a high pulpit close to the congregation.

Day 2 – This morning we make our way down to Kidderminster to board the Severn Valley Railway and take in the scenery on a nostalgic steam train journey up to Bridgnorth. Free time in Bridgnorth for lunch to visit the beautiful Georgian East Castle Street. Number 26 is where Telford once lived. Then make your way to the Cliff Railway from top to bottom and visit Bridgnorth Bridge. Telford oversaw a rebuilding and widening of the bridge following damage during the Great Flood of 1795. In the afternoon with our guided coach tour, we make our way from Bridgnorth to Telford via Much Wenlock Church, Harley Church, Telford’s Cressage Bridge and the very first road that Telford ever constructed, Eaton Constantine. Completed in 1801 it was built to link the turnpike roads from Shrewsbury to Much Wenlock (1752) and the Buildwas to Atcham road (1778).

Day 3 – Today we make our way to the popular tourist attraction of Ironbridge and find out how iron, and particularly Coalbrookdale iron that changed the course of the world. For lunch we head to Blists Hill and enter a small industrial town set in the year 1900; Queen Victoria has been on the throne for 63 years and the national average wage is around £42 a year. In 1900 the Ironbridge Gorge was still known as an industrial area, but it no longer dominated the industrial world as it once had. Whilst a town never existed on this site, the area was once a deeply industrial landscape dominated by blasts furnaces, foundries, mines, factories and canals. There are many Victorian lunch options to choose from, including their famous fish and chips and a pint in the New Inn pub.

Day 4 – Make our way home In the footsteps of Charles Darwin

Based on Darwin’s Shrewsbury Town Trail, this bookable experience will stay at the Lion Hotel in Shrewsbury for 2 days. Based on Half Board.

This break will be launched on the 140th Anniversary of his death on Tuesday 19th April 2022. The experience will include: A introduction evening talk on arrival before evening meal A walking tour of Shrewsbury taking in the Darwin commemorative way markers along the way. A Shrewsbury boat trip with a Charles Darwin commentary with tea/coffee and biscuits included.

Following Breakfast and Check out, there maybe free time to head to Shropshire Wildlife Trust. Head over the English Bridge towards Shrewsbury Abbey and visit the Cut Garden Project – Wildlife Garden, which we are sure Charles Darwin would have approved!

(Photos to be taken along attached town trail)

Music & Literature

This bookable experience is centrally based Hereford for 2 days on Half Board Basis. Hereford hosts the Three Choirs Festival every three years and part of the experience includes evensong at Hereford Cathedral, Bell Ringing in Much Marcle and a visit to the world famous book town Hay on Wye.

Day One Today we head west and follow in the footsteps of Rev Frances Kilvert, local author Phil Rickman, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, musician Mike Oldfield and world-renowned William Wordsworth.

Day Two Today we head east and visit a pretty village church where Elgar played the organ, head to a town famous for its poetry festival and home to famous poets such as Elizabeth Barrett Browning and John Masefield.

Churches on the Herefordshire Trail along the River Wye

This trail will be planned and showcased for the re launched Herefordshire Walking Festival next June 2022, with a legacy for the walk to be designed as a printable PDF & online for walkers to complete independently at any time. The Walk takes in is approx. 8 miles (attached Bing maps not accurate)