Bearley, Edstone, Canal to Edstone Aqueduct and beyond, return to Bearley

Date of walk : 22/06/23
Clarity of route description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Walk interest : ★★★★☆ Good

We found this to be a very enjoyable, mainly flat, quiet walk through farmland, parkland, woods and of course a long stretch of canal. We used the app for navigating and it worked wonderfully. We also had Strava recording in the background and used about 30% of the battery life in four hours.
Despite the recent dry spell we found parts of the Monarch Way rather soft underfoot, so I’d be inclined only to use this route after a good spell of weather, or wearing boots. Away from the canal some of the paths were slightly overgrown, but were manageable. This comment particularly applies to the last half mile of the walk.
We deviated from the route by about 200 metres to have very enjoyable refreshments at the Yew Tree Farm Shop, which was well signposted from the towpath just before reaching the first aqueduct by the Navigation Inn.
We hope that others enjoy this walk as much as we did.

Hi Shani Ellis,

Thank you for this feedback. 🙌🏼 Glad you enjoyed the walk! I just contacted the author to see how the description could be improved.

Have a good day

Date of walk : 01/05/23
Clarity of route description : ★★☆☆☆ Disappointing
Clarity of route map : ★★★☆☆ Average
Walk interest : ★★★★★ Very good

This is a super walk in early May, mostly for the incredible bluebells in Austy Wood. There are some beautiful views across rolling fields and gentle hills, and to begin with, the directions were excellent.

They became less so at the point where, just before a bridge, you have to make "an acute left turn". We turned too early, at the wrong bridge; there was a marked waypost here, and it was a sharp turn before the bridge, but it was too soon, and on realising our mistake, we walked back up to the towpath and on for another few minutes before reaching the right bridge. Putting the bridge number where you turn in here would have helped.

Once you've turned off the towpath into the trees, you need to keep left to find the railway crossing. Again, this isn't clear from the directions.

Once over the railway, the directions are very vague. In reality, you keep on the track through the fields; the track forks, which isn't in the directions, but you need to keep to the right. We didn't, and ended up walking back to Bearley along the road, which wasn't ideal. We presume that if you had gone straight on at the point the tracks fork, you would have found the stile and the buildings the author references.

Other than that, it's a lovely walk, and we weren't at all bored by the towpath as others have recorded. The Edstone Aqueduct alone is well worth the effort.

Date of walk : 17/04/22
Clarity of route description : ★★★★★ Very good
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Walk interest : ★★★★★ Very good

Such a beautiful walk on a sunny, cool day. The bluebells in Austy Wood were a spectacular carpet of blue. The birds were singing and woodpecker drumming. This walk offers a variety of interests all around the route including England's longest aqueduct and pub / refreshment stops available. The directions were great.

Date of walk : 10/08/21
Clarity of route description : N/A
Clarity of route map : ★★★★★ Very good
Walk interest : ★★★★☆ Good

Generally an enjoyable walk. Walk through Austy woods interesting but I imagine it could be very muddy during wet times of year. Edstone Aqueduct great canal interest but eventually the long canal section becomes a little tedious. I didn't follow the instructions but simply followed the GPS track. Walked on 11/08/2021.