Walks you can reach from Four Oaks by train
MapA day hike is just a simple train journey away — plan your next day of green.
Alvechurch to Kings Norton (Worcestershire)
45 minutes direct from Four Oaks.
Towpath along canal with suburban and greenbelt sections. Nearly 1000 years ago Kings Norton was valued five times higher than Birmingham for taxation; canal junction constructed 1796; area incorporated into Birmingham in 1911.
Waterway: three quarters along the Worcester & Birmingham Canal.
Woodland: a fifth under tree cover.
Time: 2h30–5h
Warnings: Narrow road with fast traffic; dark tunnel to avoid (2.5km Wast Hill Tunnel).
Walk details: Walk Midlands (tips, photos and local insights).
Hagley to Barnt Green (Worcestershire)
1 hour direct from Four Oaks.
Ridge walk over North Worcestershire Hills, open hilltops, scrubland, gorse, woods, pastures, motorway bridge crossing, country parks and heathland with bilberry and heather.
Time: 5h
Warnings: Steep descents.
Walk details: the Saturday Walkers Club (tips, local insights and turn-by-turn directions).
Bromsgrove to Barnt Green (Worcestershire)
1 hour direct from Four Oaks.
A gentle climb through open country on the Monarch’s Way and canal towpath.
Waterway: three fifths along the Worcester & Birmingham Canal.
Time: 3h30–6h30
Walk details: Worcestershire Community Rail Partnership (PDF).
Lichfield Trent Valley Circular via Whittington Heath (Staffordshire)
15 minutes direct from Four Oaks.
Golf club, heath, woodland and Heart of England Way.
Woodland: a quarter under tree cover.
Time: 5h–10h30
2 lunch spots: the Tame Otter (2h–4h30 in), or the Red Lion (2h–4h30 in)
2 end-of-walk rewards: the Horse and Jockey, or the Turnpike
Warnings: MOD firing range — check access.
Adapted from: the Leicester Ramblers.
Sutton Coldfield to Lichfield City (Warwickshire)
3 minutes direct from Four Oaks.
Varied suburban and exurban and rural terrain. Connects Sutton Coldfield to historic cathedral city of Lichfield via Anglo-Saxon Shenstone and Roman remains at Wall where Watling Street and Icknield Street met.
Time: 5h–10h
Warnings: Camp Road has high traffic, tight bends and heavy lorries; M6 Toll, A5, A5148 crossings; low-hanging power lines.
Walk details: Walk Midlands (tips, photos and local insights).
Birmingham New Street to Kings Norton (Warwickshire)
30 minutes direct from Four Oaks.
Canal towpath (Worcester and Birmingham Canal). Kings Norton was site of a 1642 English Civil War battle.
Waterway: nine tenths along the Worcester & Birmingham Canal.
Time: 2h30–5h
Walk details: Walk Midlands (tips, photos and local insights).
Birmingham New Street to Bournville (Warwickshire)
30 minutes direct from Four Oaks.
Canal towpath, urban paths and suburban streets. Walk along the Worcester-Birmingham Canal from city centre to Cadbury's model village.
Waterway: four fifths along the Worcester & Birmingham Canal.
Time: 2h–4h
Walk details: Walk Midlands (tips, photos and local insights).
Longbridge to Wood End (Worcestershire)
45 minutes direct from Four Oaks.
Spectacular views to Birmingham and Worcestershire. Ridge lip with fields, woodlands and lanes. Traces the Midlands Watershed Ridge along the Birmingham Plateau lip; route parallels Roman Icknield Street.
Time: 4h–8h
Warnings: A441 Redditch Road busy; M42 motorway crossing.
Walk details: Walk Midlands (tips, photos and local insights).
Bromsgrove to Kings Norton (Worcestershire)
45 minutes direct from Four Oaks.
Pastoral yet industrial terrain of north east Worcestershire into Birmingham. Walk traverses the Worcester and Birmingham Canal (1792-1815), featuring 30 locks at Tardebigge Flight.
Waterway: four fifths along the Worcester & Birmingham Canal.
Time: 5h–10h
Warnings: Fast cars on suburban lanes; dual carriageway crossing.
Walk details: Walk Midlands (tips, photos and local insights).
Wythall to Longbridge (Worcestershire)
45 minutes direct from Four Oaks.
Rural with woodland, fields and suburban areas. Walk traces River Cole source on Severn-Trent watershed; passes moated medieval farmhouse; passes Shire Country Park.
Time: 2h30–5h
Warnings: Busy main roads; muddy footpath sections.
Walk details: Walk Midlands (tips, photos and local insights).
Shenstone to Tamworth (Staffordshire)
9 minutes direct from Four Oaks.
Great views to the northwest across Staffordshire. An enjoyable route on quiet lanes and pleasant footpaths, with some road walking at the start, gently rolling countryside with great views, an off-road stretch beside the Black Brook, a short canal towpath section and a final riverside path along the River Tame into Tamworth. Some stiles, occasional cattle and sandy ground near a quarry. Briefly joins the towpath of the Coventry Canal; the riverside Tame path passes a number of wartime pillboxes. Few facilities en route - 'The Pretty Route'.
Time: 4h–7h30
Lunch: An unnamed inn at Hopwas (roughly midway) and a bistro at Weeford beside the Black Brook.
Warnings: A few lanes have no verge; reaching Hopwas requires a short stretch of noisy roadside walking (with pavement). HS2 works cross the route but paths remain open and well managed.
Walk details: Slow Ways.
Shenstone to Sutton Coldfield (Staffordshire)
9 minutes direct from Four Oaks.
Some really beautiful sections. A long, varied route taking in Sutton Park, streets, quiet lanes and countryside. Field paths around Footherley can get muddy and a stretch near the water works is boggy scrubland; several stiles. A green lane has a locked gate diverting onto an overgrown, nettly path and the first half of the Sutton Park crossing is on an access road used by cars. Start and finish are both on the same railway line, so you can walk one way and train back.
Time: 3h30–7h
Warnings: Hollyhill Lane is narrow with no pavement; the section of pavement-walking next to busy roads through Little Aston is unavoidable. A narrow railway bridge near Shenstone needs caution. Stiles and boggy ground make it unsuitable in wet weather without boots. Can be muddy.
Walk details: Slow Ways.