A moderate route in Warwickshire. Check the GPS track on Outdooractive for full details of the route, waypoints, and terrain.
Starting Point: Abbey Fields Car Park, Kenilworth (SP 286 724)
Terrain: Town paths, Abbey ruins, churchyard, Centenary Way, road, Millennium Way, castle lane, field paths, Chase Lane, pond-side path, farm drive, quiet lanes, A Coventry Way, old railway line (HS2 diversion - good clear path), woodland paths, riverside path
A fine circular walk from Kenilworth making excellent use of three long-distance trails — the Centenary Way, the Millennium Way and A Coventry Way — through some lovely North Warwickshire countryside. The walk opens and closes in the beautiful Abbey Fields, with the Abbey ruins and the impressive Kenilworth Castle providing real historical drama at the start. The Millennium Way carries you west past the castle and out through open fields to Rudfyn Manor, with a section that requires careful navigation, before the route crosses the busy Kenilworth Road and heads back east via Black Hales Farm to join A Coventry Way. The HS2 works have caused a somewhat winding diversion near Burton Green but the path is good and clear so it presents no real difficulty. The stretch along the old railway line is pleasantly straightforward before the optional loop to Cryfield Grange adds a little extra distance and interest — though the shortcut along the old railway is probably the wiser choice until HS2 construction settles down. A Coventry Way then brings you south through Crackley and the common to rejoin the Centenary Way for the final stretch back into Kenilworth, with a lovely riverside path along the backs of the houses leading you home to Abbey Fields. A thoroughly enjoyable walk.