Henley-in-Arden, Preston Bagot and Stratford-upon-Avon Canal
The Forest of Arden - Mellow countryside and a towpath walk in the heart of England
Google Maps Open Source Maps| Statistics and Files | ||
|---|---|---|
| Start: Henley-in-Arden | Distance: 5.6 miles (9.1 km) | Climbing: 106 metres |
| Grid Ref: SP 15071 65902 | Time: 3 hours | Rating: Easy |
| GPX Route File | Google Earth File | Henley-in-Arden |
| Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Start: Henley-in-Arden | Distance: 5.6 miles (9.1 km) |
| Climbing: 106 metres | Grid Ref: SP 15071 65902 |
| Time: 3 hours | Rating: Easy |
| GPX Route File | Google Earth File |
Ordnance Survey Explorer Map (1:25,000)
The Walk: The small town of Henley-in-Arden, the starting point for this walk, is a pretty town whose long High Street is a living museum of English vernacular architecture. Medieval cottages rub eaves and gables with well restored yeoman's houses and ancient coaching inns. The walk starts by the 15th century Church of St John, which juts resolutely into the Main Street and continues down the lane to the Norman Beaudesert Church. This was the original parish church, but was replaced by St John's because the River Alne often flooded in winter time, cutting the parishioners off from their place of worship.
High Street, Henley-in-Arden
All Saints church, Preston Bagot
A little further on from Beaudesert Church is a hill that was the site of the 11th century Beaudesert Castle, the seat of the Montfort family. The fortunes of the castle declined after the lord of the manor, Peter, was slain with his kinsman, Simon de Montford, at the Battle of Evesham in 1265. Little remains today.
Rabbits burrow into the soft soil of the hill, which gives long views over the flat lands which once formed the vast Forest of Arden. Small pockets of the ancient woodlands still remain.
The walk continues through farmland to the scattered hamlet of Preston Bagot, with its fine hilltop church. It then drops down to the valley of a fast flowing brook, and follows the towpath of the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal.
Stratford-upon-Avon Canal
The White Swan, High Street, Henley-in-Arden
The Stratford-upon-Avon Canal was built between 1793 and 1816 to join the Grand Union Canal with the Worcester and Birmingham Canal. The longboats carried mostly coal on the southbound journey, and returned laden with many products, amongst them wheat and lime.
Trade dropped off at the end of the 19th century, and the waterway was derelict for many years. It came into the hands of the National Trust, and after restoration by enthusiastic bands of volunteers, it reopened to traffic in 1964. It is now busy with pleasure boats in the summer.
Among the features to look out for on the way are bridges with slits down the middle, so that the towing horses did not have to be unhitched, and lock keepers cottages with distinct barrel roofs, perhaps adapted from templates for bridges. Not long after joining the towpath, you will see a restored timber framed manor house on the other side of the water.
After leaving the waterway, the route crosses pasture and meadowland, and then briefly joins a road past some osier beds where willow trees were regularly coppiced, to provide the raw materials for wicker basketmakers.
The final part of the walk follows the course of the River Alne. The pools of this meandering stream are home to ducks and swans, and increasingly large flocks of Canada geese which eat fields of seed abutting the river, causing a problem to neighbouring farmers.
From Blackford Mill Farm, where flower was ground for local crops for centuries, it is just a short walk back along the road to Henley-in-Arden. Once back in the town there are numerous places for refreshments, including the strikingly beautiful, timber-fronted, White Swan Inn.
Acknowledgment: Text derived from the Out and Out Series; Discovering the Countryside on Foot. Pictures courtesy of Wikipedia.
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