Most popular routes across Great Britain
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Ben Nevis circuit (19 km / 11 mi)
A circuit of Carn Mor Dearg and BenNevis via the Arete. It involves some mild scrambling
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Village Map Symbols (519 m / 1703 ft)
This route is intended to show map symbols which might be associated with a village in a rural setting. To see more details of how to use the resource go to The Teacher Resource Exchange (http://www.tre.ngfl.gov.uk/) and search for ‘Explore OS Map Symbols’. An index to the symbols covered in all of these Map Symbol Routes is included with this TRE resource.
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Guildford-Brighton: cycling via the Downs Link (67 km / 41 mi)
This route is mainly off road on easy tracks. It uses the Downs Link, a path following the disused railway track from Guildford to Christ's Hospital, then a cross country route to the sea at Shoreham, finally following cycle routes into Brighton. You can return to Guildford on the train via Gatwick Airport (check bike restrictions). Best suited to off road bikes, though any bike should be OK in dry weather so long as you don't mind the bumps.
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Loggerheads and Moel Famau (9 km / 5 mi)
An alternative route up Moel Famau, for those who do not wish to start at the Bwlch Penbarra car park. This is a very well sign-posted route up to Moel Famau going up the Leete Path, around Ffrith Mountain before reaching Moel Famau and then a steep descent down and across easy farmland back to Loggerheads County Park.
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Eccup Reservoir Walk (13 km / 8 mi)
A lovely, easy circular walk around the beautiful Eccup Reservoir in easy reach of Leeds Centre. Parking is on the road side.
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formby beach (6 km / 3 mi)
Sunday afternoon walk
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15 Trigs (86 km / 53 mi)
15 Trigs
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Sulham Valley (Longer Circular Walk) (19 km / 12 mi)
A varied walk along the full length of Sulham Valley. The walk makes full use of Rights of Way and two permissive paths and despite being in close proximity to Reading is almost entirely within the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. There are many alternative starting points for this walk and several points at which it can be shortened.
I recommend using OS Explorer Map No. 159 for this walk.
Public transport links are available at Theale (rail and bus), Pangbourne (rail and bus), Turnhams Farm (Reading Buses Route 33) and Westwood Glen (Reading Buses Route 15) in Tilehurst and Purley (Reading Buses Route 16).
1. The walk begins at the junction of City Road and Little Heath Road in Tilehurst. From City Road turn left to walk down Pincents Lane. There is a viewpoint over the southern end of the Sulham Valley at a field entrance past the first house on your right. Where the road widens, continue down Pincents Lane past Pincents Manor on your right and the new Turnhams Green offices on your left, continue past the retail park on your right until you see Nunhide Lane on your right just before the Motorway.
2. Turn right up Nunhide Lane. The tarmac lane gives way to a gravel track. Continue along Nunhide Lane past Nunhide Farm and cottages on your right. After the first set of cottages on your left take the path forking left.
3. Continue along this path following the hedge on your left then continue straight on over the crossroads junction with another path, past the wood on your left.
4. After this wood you will see a T junction, take the path left, then continue to follow this path straight on over the Sulham Brook - ignore the path on your right.
5. Continue through the wood with the field on your right until you reach an open field. Continue along the track at the northern edge of this field. Follow the track along the southern edge of the next field then the northern edge of the next field until you meet another track. Turn right along this track and follow it until you reach an old tarmac road - this is the old A340.
6. Turn right crossing over the old Hogmoor Bridge. Immediately on your left on the north side of the river you will see a permitted path. Follow this path underneath the modern A340.
7. You now enter an open field. Proceed in a northwesterly direction to the hedgeline at the far end. There is a stile along this hedgeline. Cross over the stile into the next field, then cross another stile at the next hedge. A detailed map of this permitted path can be found here (copy and paste link):
http://countrywalks.defra.gov.uk/DisplayImage.aspx?Type=Mapboard&IFN=021120003.pdf
8. Turn right onto the track and continue past the buildings on your left then your right.
9. Cross the A340 with care onto the pavement opposite. Walk through Tidmarsh. Cross Mill Lane on your right again with care as this is a busy cut through between Tidmarsh and Tilehurst and continue along the main A340 past the Greyhound Pub and a hexagonal cottage on your right.
10. Immediately after the new road and houses of Strachey Close to your left take the path on your right and follow it around the back of the houses on the main road.
11. Continue to follow the path north crossing over a newly constructed driveway towards a new development on your right. Follow the path around the cottage on your right with a large open field on your left.
12. Turn left onto the driveway passing the lane leading back to the A340 on your immediate left. Continue past the field and the Old Vicarage on your right. Immediately after the cottages on your right take the path into the first field on your right, continuing on the right side through the next two fields until you meet the River Pang once more. Pass through the gate and follow the river until you come to a T junction with a path coming from your left. Turn right and cross over the River Pang.
13. Continue in a northeasterly direction until you reach a crossroads with another path. At the crossroads turn right and follow the path in a southeasterly direction. The path bridges two shallow ditches then crosses over a hedge and bridge with a larger ditch. Follow the path through the next field and cross the stile into Sulham Lane.
14. Turn left into Sulham lane and follow the road north until you reach the T junction with the A329. NB this road is often used as a cut through between Pangbourne and Tilehurst and traffic can be fast. At the junction with the A329 turn right over the bridge then immediately left, crossing the road with care.
15. Follow the path north with the Sulham Brook and houses on your left and a large open field on your right.
16. Turn right onto the concrete road and pass underneath the railway bridge. Leave the concrete road at the entrance to the sewage works and continue to follow the path north in the direction of the Chiltern Hills ignoring the path to your right. Continue with the Sulham Brook on your left until you reach the river Thames.
17. On reaching the Thames Path walk east along the river and through Mapledurham Lock. NB There are refreshments available and places to sit at Mapledurham Lock.
18. Cross over the wooden bridge across a brook entering the Thames with the weir on your left. At this point take the path right and continue along the eastern edge of the field until you meet the access road to Mapledurham Lock on your right. Continue straight on along this access road into Purley.
19. Turn right and walk into Purley village with open fields on your right. Continue through the old village until the road turns sharp left. At this point take the gravel drive to your right.
20. Follow the gravel drive to its end then continue along the path curving west with the back of the houses on your left and a scrubland area on your right. Follow this path through fields until you approach the railway bridge on your left. Cross over the gravel track and continue straight on along the path beside the railway until you reach Westbury Lane.
21. At Westbury Lane, turn left over the railway bridge and continue along this road up the hill through Upper Purley until you reach the A329.
21. Turn right along the A329 in the direction of Pangbourne until you see Beech Road on your left. Cross the A329 with care into Beech Road. Walk up Beech Road until it turns sharp left. Do not follow the road any further but take the path on your right.
22. Follow the path between the houses then turn left and follow the path south along the back of the houses, then continue along this path through the copse. NB The path here does not currently follow the right of way as depicted on the Ordnance Survey Maps. As the line of the right of way passes through crops and is untraceable on the ground, follow the established path directly south into the northern end of Sulham Woods. A new fence has been erected on your right along this entire stretch of path.
23. On entry to Sulham Woods turn right along a permitted path. Follow this permitted path around the northern edge of the wood. Continue to follow this path as it turns south along a trackway with an old chalk pit to your left. Follow the trackway around the western edge of the wood. Where the farm track turns right, keep left and follow the track back into the wood. Turn right along a wide woodland path until you reach a cross roads junction with another path going east to west. Go straight on until you reach another cross roads junction.
24. At this second crossroads of paths take the path right downhill between the fields. You will see houses at the foot of the hill, take the path on your left along the back of the houses. Follow the path until you reach the end of the houses then follow the hedge on your left through a small field until you reach a gate leading onto the Sulham Hill road.
25. Cross over the road into Nunhide Lane. Walk straight on past the Church on your left and Sulham Farm on your right. Follow the gravel track past several paths on your left and right and a pair of cottages on your right until you reach the buildings of Nunhide Farm near the start of your walk.
26. A short distance after the last big house on the left you will see a path going uphill through the field on your left. Take this path. About halfway along you will see a path leading up to an old red brick tower. This is a dovecot and it is a listed building. A permitted path has been created by Sulham Estates to allow access to the tower.
27. Continue along the Right of Way past the dovecot tower until you reach an area of scrub. Take the path right through the area of scrub - ignore the path on your left, this is neither a right of way nor a permitted path. Now pass through a gate and follow the path across another field up to the edge of the wood. Then pass through another gate into the wood. The path goes steeply uphill through the woods with a small stream on your left. Cross the stile up the top of the hill out into a field and follow the line of trees on your left. Cross another stile. The path from here on is fenced until you reach a final stile. Turn left to reach your starting point and the end of the walk.
Please note this is a draft route description and despite having walked the route many times there may be an omission or something that is not clear. I therefore recommend copying and gently penciling the route onto a larger 1:25,000 scale map before setting out.
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Old Glossop to Higher Shelf Stones Circular (27 km / 17 mi)
SK045948 Old Glossop to Higher Shelf Stones Map required Outdoor Leisure 1 The Peak District (Dark Peak Area)Details of the aircraft wrecks obtained from "Dark Peak Aircraft Wrecks" Ron Collier.
This walk which is mostly over rough moorland will take you to three aircraft wrecks, including possibly the most well known and visited wreck in the Dark Peak area, the Superfortress "Over Exposed" which crashed here in 1948 killing the 13 members of the crew. Make your way to the turning area at the eastern end of Shepley Street in Old Glossop, there you will find parking for about six cars. Start out up the wide farm track with the beck on your right hand side, passing the bunkhouse on your left, in just under half a mile you come to a gate and a ladder stile over the wall on the left, take the stile and ascend the grassy track rising steeply up the moor, cross another ladder stile and shortly after a step stile over a wire fence onto the open moor. Follow the edge of the steep escarpment until you come to a dilapidated fence, which you follow upstream until the rocky bed of Yellowslacks brook rises up to meet you at a 5 foot high waterfall. The stream bed rises less steeply now and after 100 yards you come to another 5 foot waterfall, just passed this waterfall you can cross the bed of the stream on some flat slabs and climb steeply up the other side onto the moor above. You now should be on the 540-metre contour, which you follow around the hill in a southerly direction until you meet a feint path coming up from Wigan Clough on your right. Keeping above some low Crags follow the edge of the Moor, and just before the edge drops away and turns northeasterly, you should come across the wreckage and a low stone memorial set into the hillside nearby.
Lancaster KB993
In the early evening of 18th May 1945, Lancaster EQ-U with Flying Officer Anthony Arthur Clifford at the controls took off from Linton-on-Ouse. The crew consisted of Bomb Aimer, Flying Officer David (Scratch) Fehrman; Wireless Operator, Warrant Officer Michael Cecil (Blood and Guts) Cameron; Air Gunner, Flight Sergeant Clarence (Hairless Joe) Halvorson; Air Gunner, Flight Sergeant Leslie Claude (Rabbit) Hellerson and Flight Engineer, Pilot Officer Kenneth (Gassless) McIver. It appears that the crew, bored with flying round practising landings and take-offs, with no fixed exercise, had decided to go for a circular tour. Darkness must have caught them out of sight of base and lost over the Derbyshire hills, the bomber struck the top of James's Thorn hill and burst into a ball of flame. All the crew of six perished in the crash, although the rear gunner lived for a short while. Leave the wreck site in a southerly direction descending on a steep grassy path until you reach a fence which you follow to the left (East) for a 100 yards, this fence leads directly to the next wreck.
C-47 Skytrain.
The C-47 took of on July 24th 1945 on a routine supply trip from Leicester East to Renfrew in Scotland. The pilot, First Lieutenant George L. Johnson, had been warned of bad weather along the flight path up central England. So he decided to take the more direct route and risk the high ground. The rest of the five man crew consisted of co-pilot, First Lieutenant Earl W. Burns; navigator, First Lieutenant Beverly W. Izlar; Crew Chief, Sergeant Theodore R. McCrocklin and the radio operator, Sergeant Francis M. Maloney. There were two passengers, Corporal Grover R. Alexander, USAAF and RAF Leading Aircraftsman J. D. Main.
The crash was found two days later at 5 o'clock in the afternoon when Sergeant Pridgeon, an RAF cypher clerk, and his girl friend came upon the wreckage of a Skytrain whilst out walking. He knew of the Lancaster bomber that had crashed at some point on the mountaintop they were on, just nine weeks earlier, and he thought that he had come across the scene of the Lancaster bomber wreck. It was only when he came upon the dead bodies of the crew that he realized that he had come across a new crash scene. It appears that the Skytrain hit the high ground, when the hills were shrouded in low cloud as they so often are. When I was at the site in May 2003 there was a plastic Memorial plaque, which was placed there during 2002 by the brother and sister in law of the co-pilot First Lieutenant Earl W. Burns, Glen and Elsie Burns when they visited the site both aged 69 years. Unfortunately this plaque has now disappeared, probably due to high winds. To continue the walk, follow a grassy path which contours in a Northeasterly direction along the base of James's Thorn, until you arrive at the saddle between James's Thorn and Lower Shelf Stones, where you pick up a path which crosses the peat haggs and heads in the direction of Lower Shelf Stones. From Lower Shelf Stones walk along the top of the crags until you reach the trig point on Higher Shelf Stones. At the trig point set your compass to 60 degrees and keep walking for about 250 yards, when you will come over a low hill and find the wreckage of the Superfortress scattered about the clough before you.
Superfortress B 29
It was only a twenty five minute trip for a B-29 from Scampton in Lincolnshire to Burtonwood USAF base near Warrington, when the pilot Captain Landon P. Tanner took off on the morning of 3rd November 1948, at around 10.15. His crew for the trip consisting of co-pilot, Captain Harry Stroud; engineer, Technical Sergeant Ralph Fields; navigator, Sergeant Charles Wilbanks; radio operator, Staff Sergeant Gene A. Gartner; radar operator, David D. Moore; camera crew, Technical Segeant Saul R. Banks, Sergeant Donald R. Abrogast, Sergeant Robert I. Doyle and Private First Class William M. Burrows. Two other crew members were Corporal M. Franssen and Corporal George Ingram. Acting as photographic advisor was Captain Howard Keel of the 4201st. When Over Exposed failed to arrive at Burtonwood an air search was initiated and during that early wintery afternoon blazing wreckage was spotted high on the moors near Higher Shelf Stones. By chance members of the Harpur Hill RAF Mountain Rescue Unit were just finishing an exercise two and a half miles away, so they quickly made their way to the scene of the crash. Several bodies lay scattered around the blazing twisted metal, it was obvious that there was nothing that they could do for them. How to get the bodies off the moor was the next problem that they had to face. Because of the rough terrain it was suggested that rather than carry the stretchers three miles across the moors to the Snake Pass Road, they would call in helicopters. However, the rescue men volunteered to attempt the job themselves. Six men to a stretcher they set off down the moorland with others taking turns to carry the grim loads. The bodies were taken on to Burtonwood Air Force Base, which at that period served as a servicing depot for American aircraft engaged in the Berlin airlift, the crew of 13 men had all perished. From the wreck site cross the moor to the Hern Stones which are a solitary group of rocks rising prominently from the peat haggs North of the site. At the stones turn South East down the stream bed, and within 200 yards you will be on the Pennine Way which you follow south and then south westerly to the junction with the Doctor's gate path. Your route now descends this impressive valley and follows the line of a Roman road along Doctor's gate, to arrive back at your starting point in Old Glossop.
Mick Melvin
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Osmotherley (0 m / 0 ft)
Osmotherley
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New Forest Mountain Bike ride (23 km / 14 mi)
30%road 70% offroad. Great mix of cinder track and mud!
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Southampton Common (3 km / 2 mi)
Walk around the Southampton Common
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navigation (69 km / 43 mi)
river thames from eynsham to lechlade
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Willaston to Neston Wirral Way (5 km / 3 mi)
Start at hadlow Station walk along wirral way into Neston
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woody loop (10 km / 6 mi)
steady run
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Devil's Punch Bowl (6 km / 4 mi)
A circular route that starts and ends at the National Trust Car Park / Cafe at Hindhead. Don't be put off by the crowds on sunny weekends, they don't venture far from the car park.
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Durham to Otterburn 2 (106 km / 66 mi)
Durham to Otterburn via Stanhope, Hexham and Bellingham
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Wasdale Horseshoe (22 km / 13 mi)
Yewbarrow, Red Pike, Little Scoat Fell, Pillar, Looking Stead, Blacksail Pass, Kirk Fell, Great Gable, Sty Head Tarn, Esk Hause, Great End, Ill Crag, Broad Crag, Scafell Pike, and Sca Fell (via Foxes Tarn)
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Glamorgan Canal Walk (86 km / 54 mi)
A walk along the route roughly where the Glamorgan Canal once ran from the Bristol Channel up to Cyfarthfa.
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Tryfan ~ North Face Scramble (4 km / 3 mi)
A short but exhilarating and demanding scramble up the North Face of Tryfan. Not for the faint-hearted or those who suffer from vertigo!! With a couple of false peaks on the way up and done on the 1st November 2007, in great weather conditions. Spectacular views on the way up and at the top with 'Adam & Eve' to greet you at the summit. The 'Leap of Faith'(betwixt the two) has to be done and is 'airy' enough to get the heart pumping... the scramble and walk down off along the banks of Llyn Bochilwyd is very pretty although take care when trying to cross the stream at the North end of the lake... the waterfall can be hazardous and very wet, if there has been a lot of rain preceding or during your walk! ;-)
This route should NOT be undertaken by those who are not experienced walkers and used to difficult scrambles!!
