Knighton to Craven Arms

5 September 2010 - Knighton to Craven Arms

Distance - 15.1 miles

Weather - Rain at first, dry later

We stayed at - Stokesay Castle Hotel - School Road, Craven Arms, Shropshire, SY7 9PE Cost - £70.00

Unfortunately when we woke up the next morning, the weather was very different to when we were last at Knighton. The sky was very grey and there were fat drops of rain falling. We had breakfast, then went to the supermarket for some supplies, as we weren't going to encounter any pubs or shops until we reached Craven Arms - well, unless you included The Bird on the Rock Tea Rooms, which we had been told required a reservation, and the trouble with walking is that you can never guarantee when you're going to arrive anywhere. We walked back to the pub and kitted ourselves out for wet weather walking. A few minutes later, we passed Knighton station, crossed the bridge over the River Teme and into Shropshire and England.

From here, we headed up onto a woodland path which ran parallel with the A488 below, emerging out of the wood a little later, we crossed over this road, into some fields and up into the hills. We climbed up a steep track around the pretty church at Stowe and soon found ourselves looking down on it. As the rain stopped and the day started to warm up, the forestry around us became all very misty and surreal. On Stowe Hill we caught some glimpses through the mist of how stunning the views might be on a clear day. In the wood at Hopton Titterhill we took the wrong footpath and on spotting our error decided to head off through the undergrowth until we came back on the correct track. Not something I would recommend doing with a full rucksack, lots of undergrowth and a steep downhill! Somehow though we made it to Hopton Castle in one piece! The castle itself was being renovated when we passed by and was shrouded in a big plastic canopy, which was rather a shame.

After crossing a few fields, we came into Abcott and spotted, what looked like a farmhouse by the side of the road offering cream teas. When we walked in the place was really busy, but there was one small table for two left, which we quickly took. After some lovely food and a wonderful pot of tea, we were suitably refreshed and started back on our way. It was only outside, when we looked back, we saw the sign Rock Cottage! 

After passing through Clungunford, we followed a Roman road for a while, then headed off through Stoke Wood. As we left the woodland, we started descending through a meadow, crossing a railway line and the Shropshire Way to reach the beautiful Stokesay Castle, with its very weird garden feature!

A little way past Stokesay Castle we came to the A49, where there was meant to be a footpath directly across the road, but we couldn't see anything. In the end we just walked along the road, until we found a way of getting down to the land the other side, then walked along the side of the river until we got to Craven Arms.

I had found it really difficult to get any accommodation in Craven Arms and although the reviews on Tripadvisor weren't all that great, decided that we'd risk staying at the Stokesay Castle Hotel. The room was a bit tired, but the owners were really hospitable and the bar food was good value for money.