A narrative outline of the route appears below together with a guide to further reading.
The route makes much use of other paths, in particular the North Worcester Way and the Wychavon Way as well as taking in an extensive stretch of the scenic Worcester to Birmingham Canal.
St Kenelm's Church,
Romsley
Day 1 St
Kenelm’s Church, Romsley [0.0] to Tardebigge
[14.5]
The
journey starts at St Kenelm’s Well, by the church of that
name, about 1 mile north-west of the village of Romsley.
The Church and the Well mark the legendary location of the martyrdom of St
Kenelm, the survival of the legend being evidenced by the ribbons still
left on trees adjacent to the site, continuing the ancient folk
tradition of
well-dressing. The reason for the isolation of the church is that it is the
last surviving remnant of a much older settlement – the
village
of
From
here, the route moves to Walton Hill where it picks up the
North Worcestershire Way
, and travels successively over Walton Hill, Romsley Hill, Waseley Hill
and the Lickey Hills, taking in many fine views on the way. At the Lickey
Hills visitors Centre, we leave this path and proceed south to exit the
park at Barnt Green and then weave our way through the streets of that
village, over and under the railway line, until we arrive at the
This
most scenic of canal routes was constructed between 1794 and 1815 and
today is in great demand for boating holidays and anglers. After following the canal for
one and a half miles, arrive at Tardebigge.
St Kenelm's Church,
Upton Snodsbury
Day 2 Tardebigge [14.5] to Flyford Flavell [32.1]
The first nine miles continue to follow the canal, taking in the astonishing line of the thirty Tardebigge locks, one of the great feats of canal engineering.
At Dean Brook the route leaves the canal and joins the Wychavon Way for three miles to the village of Shell.
The St Kenelm’s Trail then proceeds due South for some
five miles, closely following the line of Bow Brook, passing through Himbledon and then Huddington to arrive at Upton Snodsbury where we find
another ancient church dedicated to St Kenelm. Local legend has it that
the body of the Saint rested here for the night on its last journey to
Winchcombe.
The Avon at Fladbury aka
Pyriford
Day
3 Flyford Flavell [32.1
] to
Ashton under Hill [47.9
After Sheriff's Lench, the route proceeds through a large orchard and then the Wood Norton Estate before reaching the Evesham Golf Club on the banks of the Avon and then the riverside village of Fladbury.
Cross the river
at Jubilee Bridge,
possibly the Pyriford site where the monastic dispute over the
remains of St
St Kenelm's Well, Sudeley
Day 4 Ashton under Hill [47.9] to Winchcombe [59.7]
Instead of carrying on for that village, divert South East towards Greet, and then to Hailes Abbey a famous ruined monastery now in the care of English Heritage.
From there, the Route goes up Salter’s Hill towards
the second St Kenelm’s Well, this time above the finish of the walk at Winchcombe. This is the site where the funeral cortege was supposed to
have rested prior to its arrival at Winchcombe, but it may not escape the
walker's notice that they had already passed their destination.
The route is completed by a trip through the grounds of Sudeley Castle before arriving at Winchcombe.
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It is recommended that anyone undertaking the route should purchase Ordinance Survey maps 139 and 150 in the Landranger series. The OS's website is Ordnance Survey Maps - Britain's National Mapping Agency.
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As much of this walk is derived from the North Worcestershire Path and the Wychavon Way, the books describing those routes are to be considered.
North Worcestershire Path
Jonathan Preston, Della Hook and Dave HollisISBN 853010227, 1997.
The Wychavon Way
Mark Richards (editor)
ISBN 095080990X, 1993.