Start: Standing Cross on The Green, Meriden CV7 7LN. Grid Ref: SP373 685
(S/E) From the medieval stone cross move across the road and go right to the roundabout. You are already on the Millennium Way on which you will stay for all of this circular apart from a section through Berkswell. Turn left down Hampton Lane and after 200 paces (at Cobblers Corner) take the footpath left to a passageway and stile.
(1) Take the path left with the hedge left to the concrete track. Take the kissing gate opposite and go ahead along the top edge of the field to reach a large kissing gate. Do not go through the kissing gate but stay in the same field to go right with the hedge left to take a wooden kissing gate.
Go ahead with the wall and interesting building to your left. At the end of the wall go ¼ right up the hill to find a mid fence metal gate. Take the gate and go a quarter left across the field corner to take a mid fence stile. Go ahead over the stile to the fence corner, and ahead keeping the fence on your right to come to a (damaged) stile leading to the road.
(2) Cross the road with care and take the kissing gate into a field. Go 1/2 left to cross the field and find the corner kissing gate. Take gate and go right with hedge right to exit field by kissing gate. Go ahead keeping the hedge on your right.
Halfway along the field look for a gap in the hedge on your right, take the gap and then go left keeping the hedge to your left towards the copse and overhead power lines. Here you will have a nice view of St Laurence Church. Continue on with copse left to find a waymarked grassy exit track on your left.
(3) Take the track and exit to the road via a gap next to a large metal gate. Go right on the road, passing the church. Continue on, going past the public footpath sign, for a further 75 paces passing Moat House Farm to find Fentham House on right at the road corner.
Take the short grassy vehicle track to the left of Fentham House to find a kissing gate. Go through the gate to take the permissive path and go 1/2 right across the field to exit by the far right corner gate. Go ahead on the track keeping the hedge on your left and wire fence on your right.
Continue ahead on a track with a hedge left to find an old metal gate on the left. Take the gate and follow the direction of the waymark to walk around the left edge of the field to reach the edge of Millison's Wood ahead.
(4) On reaching the edge of the wood (ignore gap at corner) go right keeping the wood on your left. Halfway along the wood, you will come to a solitary way post pointing to a path right across the field. Go across the field to pass to the left of lone oak to the corner of the wood. (This apparent doubling back is to avoid walking across fields with crops).
(5) Go ahead for 50 paces with the wood right to find the kissing gate at the corner. Take the kissing gate then over the bridge into the field. Go right for 25 paces then turn left up field centre to skyline hedge gap. Through the gap and continue ahead with the hedge on your left. Follow the track around the corner then past the barn on your right and take the kissing gate to the road.
(6) Go left on the road passing Shirley Lane and the entrance to a farm shop, continue under power lines and take the kissing gate on your right, opposite Oak Farm. Proceed across the field parallel to the main overhead power lines to reach the far left corner kissing gate.
Go through a kissing gate and continue down the field to the far left corner gate. Through the gate and continue ahead along a short track to take the kissing gate to the road.
(7) Go right and after some 250 paces pass two cottages on your left. Face the last cottage, the footpath is across the front garden, keeping the hedge right, continue past the cottage left and hedge right then up the back garden to exit by the fence gap to find a hidden passage. Take the passage to reach the kissing gate and continue along a narrow grassy track eventually to reach a further kissing gate.
Take the kissing gate and go left with the hedge left to take the field corner kissing gate. Go right, passing a small bench, to the hedge gap, continuing ahead under overhead cables to the next hedge gap by metal way post. Go through the gap and continue ahead with the hedge left to field corner stile ( damaged,) through collecting paddock and over a stile to the road.
(8) Here we turn left on the road and after some 40 paces take the driveway right. Just before Sunnyview Cottage take the hidden waymarked passage left then through the gap into the field and go right for 45 paces to find the gate leaving Berkswell Village The Millennium Way.
With your back to the gate go diagonally 1/2 right towards trees and a kissing gate. Take the kissing gate and continue directly ahead across the field towards the gap in the far hedge. Take the kissing gate and continue directly ahead, to walk between two small clumps of trees in the middle of the field.
Continue on same heading to find a kissing gate in the field corner. Take the kissing gate then go through a short passageway to the road. Turn left towards the crossroads past The Bear Inn, a delightful 16th Century pub in the village of Berkswell.
(9) Go directly over the crossroads into Lavender Hall Lane (you can start this circular from the car park on right), then after 100 paces, bear right by the Store and Stove cafe, up Church Lane towards the attractive 12th Century Norman church of St. John Baptist (visit the crypt if you have time). Berkswell takes its name from Bercul, a Saxon landowner and the 16 foot square stone-walled well near the church is said to have been used for baptisms by immersion.
Continue ahead through the churchyard and two gates, then through a small wood and another gate and on to a long section of the boarded walkway, with views of Berkswell Hall ( built c.1815 ) to your right. Cross the bridge over a stream, continue to a kissing gate and turn immediately right rejoining the Millennium Way. Pass through one small wood and follow the wide well defined path up the large field heading for the corner at the edge of another small wood. You have lovely views of the lake & hall to your right.
(10) Take a wooden kissing gate and go through the small wood, then continue slightly uphill along wire fenced path keeping the tall hedge to your right to reach the HS2 footpath diversion signage. Follow this signage, staying ahead between temporary metal fences, which is very close to the original footpath, alongside sixteen Acre Wood, eventually to go through a wooden kissing gate, then right to follow around the edge of wood passing a small pond on right and continuing along the fenced pedestrian route, eventually reaching a junction of paths with a wooden kissing gate on right, and Marsh Farm over to your left. HS2 will be in a deep cutting at this point.
(11) Go right through this wooden kissing gate and head down to cross a waymarked bridge over a stream. Then go ahead across a small field and between a fenced gap towards the stile. Go over the stile and then along a path at the edge of the quarry on right.
Take a gap next to a large metal gate to go right along surfaced track around two bends eventually passing through a wooden gate next to a large metal gate. After another 250 paces you will come to a metal gate-in-gate on your left. Go through this waymarked gate and take the fenced footpath with quarry workings to your far left. Stay on the path with a fence to your left until you reach the road.
(12) Turn right onto the road and after 50 paces, just before the entrance to Cornets End Farm, turn left through the concealed kissing gate up along the path with quarry workings on left. Continue over the footbridge, the path turning right. Follow the path around with quarry workings left, shortly to join a rising fenced path.
Continue up the rising path between fences and keep a sharp lookout for large metal kissing gate on right ( partly obscured by a small tree). Go through the kissing gate and go diagonally half left across the large field ( following the direction of the Millennium Way waymark ) then downhill to the metal gate.
(13) Cross the corner of the field to a metal gate and a wooden bridge. Go diagonally 1/2 right across the field (keeping to right of right hand solitary sweet chestnut tree) to reach a large kissing gate. Here you see the outward Millennium Way to your right - ignore this and go ahead along the short passageway to reach the driveway to Meriden Hall.
(14) Turn left up the driveway to reach the road opposite the Bulls Head pub. Turn left and complete your walk at the stone cross, noting on the right beforehand, the Cyclist's Memorial, commemorating all the cyclists who gave their lives in the First and Second World Wars. There is a fish and chip shop, cafe and convenience store for refreshments. (S/E)
