Walks in South West England by train
MapA day hike in the countryside is just a simple train journey away — explore the most charmingly located railway stations in South West England and plan your next day of green.
Salisbury Circular via Stonehenge (Wiltshire)
1 hour 15 minutes direct from Bristol Temple Meads.
Highly recommended
Time: 4h30–9h
1 lunch spot: the Bridge Inn (2h30–5h30 in; excellent)
Warnings: Have lunch a café or pub next to the river. Return from Stonehenge to Salisbury by bus (very frequent & reliable but check times).
Adapted from: The Rough Guide to Walks in London & the South East (3rd edition).
Bath Spa Circular via Dundas Aqueduct (Somerset)
15 minutes direct from Bristol Temple Meads.
Disused railway path, tunnels, viaducts, canal towpath, river and historic city centre.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Castle Cary Circular via Cadbury Castle (Camelot) (Somerset)
1 hour from Bristol Temple Meads, with one change.
Somerset Levels fringes, hillock, quiet residential streets, charming market town, dry green valley, ancient holloway, pastures, shallow river valley, hillfort plateau, steep ascents, large WWII airfield remains and broad plateau with views.
Time: 7h
Warnings: Steep ascents and descents.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Pewsey Circular via Pewsey White Horse (Wiltshire)
1 hour from Bristol Temple Meads, with one change.
Chalk downland, the Pewsey White Horse hill figure, the River Avon and a quiet village, with spectacular views.
Pewsey White Horse: A 20th-century chalk hill figure cut into the downs above Pewsey.
Walk details: Visit Pewsey Vale (photos).
Bruton Circular via Stourhead Estate (Somerset)
1 hour from Bristol Temple Meads, with one change.
South Somerset pastures, wooded ridge forming the Wiltshire/Somerset boundary, hanging woods, landscaped estate gardens with lakeside walks, grassy U-shaped valley and honey-coloured stone-built town.
Time: 5h30
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Exmouth Circular via West Down Beacon (Devon)
1 hour 30 minutes from Bristol Temple Meads, with one change.
A varied circular using the trackbed of the former Exmouth-to-Sidmouth Junction railway out through Littleham, then returning along the South West Coast Path over the cliffs of West Down Beacon and the High Land of Orcombe, passing the Geoneedle that marks the start of the Jurassic Coast before the long esplanade back into town.
The Geoneedle at Orcombe Point: a Portland-stone monument marking the western start of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site.
Time: 3h30
Lunch: Pubs and shops in Littleham, Exmouth town centre and the seafront; the South Beach Café at Sandy Bay (seasonal).
Warnings: The coast path skirts the Straight Point firing range — obey any red-flag warnings; one moderate climb onto the cliffs.
Walk details: Avocet Line Rail Users Group (PDF).
Similar walk: Great Scenic Railways of Devon & Cornwall (PDF).
Okehampton Circular via Lydford (Devon)
1 hour 45 minutes from Bristol Temple Meads, with one change.
Traffic-free former railway trail on the western edge of Dartmoor, crossing the wrought-iron Meldon Viaduct.
Meldon Viaduct: A wrought-iron lattice railway viaduct on the Granite Way high above the West Okement valley.
Warnings: Multi-use trail shared with cyclists.
Walk details: Great Scenic Railways of Devon & Cornwall (PDF).
Moreton-in-Marsh Circular via Longborough (Gloucestershire)
1 hour 45 minutes from Bristol Temple Meads, with one change.
Gentle Cotswold hills, open fields, ridge with fine views and honey-coloured villages.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Maiden Newton Circular via Cerne Abbas (Dorset)
1 hour 45 minutes from Bristol Temple Meads, with one change.
Chalk downland, dry hanging valleys, rounded hills, broad ridges, chalk streams, picturesque villages and historic churches.
Time: 7h
Warnings: Six hilly ascents.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Dorchester South Circular via Hardy's Cottage (Dorset)
2 hours 30 minutes from Bristol Temple Meads, with one change.
Thomas Hardy country east of Dorchester — his thatched birthplace cottage and the woodland and heathland of Thorncombe Wood.
Hardy's Cottage: The thatched cottage birthplace of writer Thomas Hardy, set within Thorncombe Wood nature reserve and cared for by the National Trust.
Thorncombe Wood: A mixed woodland nature reserve surrounding Hardy's Cottage with waymarked trails and heathland.
Lunch: The Under the Greenwood Tree cafe at the Hardy's Cottage visitor centre; pubs and cafes in Dorchester.
Warnings: Hardy's Cottage can only be visited on a guided tour; check National Trust opening arrangements before setting out.
Walk details: Visit Dorset (tips, photos and local insights).
Ashchurch for Tewkesbury to Pershore (Gloucestershire)
45 minutes from Bristol Temple Meads, with one change.
Dramatic outlying northwestern limb of the Cotswolds. Walk crosses from Gloucestershire into Worcestershire at Carrant Brook.
Time: 5h30–10h30
Warnings: Dangerously busy lane with tight bends near Aston-on-Carrant.
Walk details: Walk Midlands (tips, photos and local insights).
Honeybourne to Stratford-upon-Avon (Gloucestershire)
2 hours from Bristol Temple Meads, with one change.
Beautiful line through the northern Cotswolds. Trackbed of old railway line, fields, roads through villages and flat greenway. Route follows the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway from 1859, closed for passenger services in 1968-1969, finally closed in 1976. Now a greenway.
Time: 4h–7h30
Warnings: First section still in use for goods traffic; moderately busy road between Pebworth and Long Marston.
Walk details: Walk Midlands (tips, photos and local insights).