Walks from Kenilworth

Historic market town, farmland, open countryside, woodland, brooks and bridleways.

Time: 3h30

Warnings: Can be muddy.

Walk details: Heart Rail Trails (PDF).

Recommended: Good views; varied scenery. A varied, fairly peaceful route that keeps away from roads as much as possible and with mostly dry going and good views. The shorter route to the west of the golf course can be a swamp; this route stays mostly dry.

Time: 3h30–7h

Walk details: Slow Ways.

Rewarded by a great 360 view of the surrounding countryside. A varied countryside walk over agricultural land and through villages, woodland and across canals, with plenty of gates, stiles, bridges and steps. There is an early climb onto a motte-and-bailey, some road walking and sections can get very muddy after rain. Crosses both the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal and the Grand Union Canal. The route passes through an old tractor graveyard with rusting machinery.

Time: 5h–10h

1 lunch spot: the Case is Altered

Warnings: Plenty of stiles and gates; some sections can be very muddy after rain. Several road sections to negotiate.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A long, varied walk leaving Solihull through parks and alleyways, then beside the River Blythe (the muddiest section), over the M42, through farmland, fields, woodland and small hamlets to Kenilworth. It has plenty of stiles, steps, footbridges and gates in varying repair and with several stretches of road walking. Temple Balsall is packed with history, including the Old Hall (now home to the Women's Institute) and a 17th-century almshouse. Near Kenilworth the route crosses Park Pale earthworks linked to The Pleasance, an early 15th-century construction by Henry V.

Time: 6h–12h

Lunch: Knowle offers a surprisingly large choice of refreshments; plenty of options in Kenilworth at the end.

Warnings: The section beside the River Blythe can get really muddy in winter or after rain; several stretches of road walking with narrow verges require care, especially a quarter-mile stretch on Kenilworth Road. Plenty of stiles, steps and gates in varying states of repair.

Walk details: Slow Ways.

A pleasant walk that leaves Solihull's suburbs through parks and underpasses, then takes on a more rural feel with several kissing gates, small wooden bridges and woodland, before the urban edge of Kenilworth returns. Sections would get very muddy after prolonged rain and there is some road walking. The big abandoned house north of the underpass is Woodloes Farmhouse, a Grade II* listed building; the 4m sandstone formation in nearby woodland is North Woodloes Quarry.

Time: 2h30–4h30

1 lunch spot: the Cape of Good Hope

Warnings: A quarter urban. Land west of the golf course can be very marshy or flooded outside dry spells, requiring a detour; a footpath may be blocked by an overgrown gate with trees grown through it; some sections get very muddy after rain.

Walk details: Slow Ways.