Best walks in Staffordshire by train
MapA day hike in the countryside is just a simple train journey away — explore the most charmingly located railway stations in Staffordshire and plan your next day of green.
Lichfield Trent Valley Station Circular via Whittington Heath
30m from Wolverhampton, with one change.
19km. Moderate ascents. 5h–9h.
Golf club, heath, woodland, and Heart of England Way. MOD firing range — check access.
Lunch stops: the Tame Otter (2h–3h30 in), or the Red Lion (2h–3h30 in).
End-of-walk rewards: the Horse and Jockey, or the Turnpike.
Adapted from a route by the Leicester Ramblers — download GPX route
Penkridge Station to Stafford Station
8m direct from Wolverhampton.
12km.
Impressive views across southern and central Staffordshire landscape. Walk traverses Staffordshire countryside from Penkridge to Stafford via the ruins of a neo-gothic manor on the site of Stafford's medieval castle. Busy road near Penkridge; care crossing main roads near Stafford.
Documented by Walk Midlands — download GPX route
Old Hill Station to Tipton Station
8m direct from Wolverhampton.
9km.
Wild and dramatic escarpment (Rowley Hills). Mostly along canal towpaths through suburban towns and villages. Walk celebrates William Perry, the 'Tipton Slasher', a renowned 19th-century bareknuckle boxer born in Tipton in 1819. Over two miles through dark Netherton Tunnel (option).
Documented by Walk Midlands — download GPX route
Stone Station to Stafford Station
15m direct from Wolverhampton.
14km.
Boggy muddy ground at wetter times of year. Stafford Common is an unusually large surviving common land near a major Midlands centre with origins in medieval townland for grazing, protected by parliament 1839 and 1939. Comparatively busy road at Whitgreave; boggy ground when wet.
Documented by Walk Midlands — download GPX route
Walsall Station to Cannock Station
30m from Wolverhampton, with one change.
15km.
Remarkable survivals (Pelsall and Pelsall North Common). Greenway paths, common land, woodland, and field edges. Former mining country with industrial heritage; route follows McClean Way greenway on former South Staffordshire Railway. Barbed wire fencing; complicated road sections with M6 Toll crossing.
Documented by Walk Midlands — download GPX route
Hednesford Station to Rugeley Town Station
45m from Wolverhampton, with one change.
9km.
Cannock Chase with rugged sandstone plateaus, steep dells, forest tracks, heathland, and residential areas. Cannock Chase is UK's smallest Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty established 1958 as green lung for coal mining communities; Littleton Colliery closed December 1993. Golf players on course; care of cars on quieter roads.
Documented by Walk Midlands — download GPX route
Smethwick Galton Bridge Station to Sandwell and Dudley Station
8m direct from Wolverhampton.
Easy: 3km, moderate ascents. 1h.
Documented by Railwalks — download GPX route
The Hawthorns Station to Smethwick Galton Bridge Station
15m from Wolverhampton, with one change.
Easy: 1km, gentle ascents. 30m.