Start: The Stag at Offchurch CV33 9AQ. Grid Ref: SP360 658
(S/E) With your back to The Stag pub go left (West) down Welsh Road and a few paces after Corner Cottage go left over a stile into a field. Continue ahead across the field walking slightly uphill to exit at the top corner by a stile. Continue up the grassy footpath with trees right.
(1) The grassy path veers left so keep the wire fence right, shortly to exit onto the surfaced driveway where we turn right ( this area is known as Offchurch Bury Park, a delightful expanse of parkland). Stay down the track for 300 yards and when you reach a tall tree on your left, with an interesting sculptured trunk, turn left off the surfaced track and go along the grassy track with a ditch left and trees right.
Continue across a couple of semi-surfaced tracks with access gates and follow a footpath around through an area of woodland to take a stile next to a metal gate.
(2) Cross a small bridge over River Leam and stay on the path with the river left to a larger bridge. Go over this bridge and turn right keeping the river on your right to enter a large grazing field. Continue through the field towards a large lone oak tree at the far end.
On drawing level with the tree take a stile next to the metal gate on left. Stay forward with the hedge right eventually to exit by the gap next to a wooden fence. Continue across the field along a wide path reaching a waymarker to go over a small stone bridge over the ditch, through the gap.
(3) Go left here for 120 paces and when you reach the corner of the wood, just before a wooden bench on your left, turn right passing a small hidden pond, then keep straight on ignoring the gap on your right (this area was once a municipal golf course).
Stay forward, along what used to be one of the fairways, keeping the trees right to arrive at a small bench & litter bin ahead, next to a track. Ignore gaps on right and stay forward along the track, passing a waymarked white post, under a canopy of small trees.
(4) Stay along the track to cross a small ditch bridge by a waymarker post and eventually reach a car park on your left and then ( separated by hedges & a gap ) reach a second car park. At the end of this second car park leave the track and enter the car park by a gap next to 5 bar metal gate with MW waymarker.
Go through the car park keeping to the right edge and exit to a surfaced access drive. ( Here we leave the Millennium Way.) Go diagonally left for a few paces here, to enter the Newbold Comyn childrens play area. Ignore the small green bridge on your right and instead leave the path to exit the play area at the bottom end where you will find a waypost (here you are entering the Leam Valley Nature Reserve).
(5) Walk downhill following River Leam on right and at a junction of paths go right over a small bridge and through a large kissing gate. Stay on the riverside walk with river on right, to reach a surfaced track where we turn right to take a wooden bridge over the river then through a car park to reach the main A425 road.
Turn left along the road for 250 yards and just before the second set of bollards cross over the main road to find a footpath with a set of wooden steps.
(6) Go up steps to join the towpath of the Grand Union Canal. Turn left along the towpath for just over 1 mile to eventually pass under three bridges, the last being bridge 34 to reach Radford Bottom Lock.
(7) Go under the viaduct (bridge 33) and then turn immediately left up a gentle incline to join the Offchurch Greenway. Stay along this pleasant disused railway line which has glorious views to the right. After just over half a mile you will see a small bridge overhead, crossing The Greenway but 100 yards before this bridge you will find a national cycle route 41 waypost on your left.
(8) Go left here up the narrow track to leave The Greenway. Go through the large kissing gate at the top of the incline and turn left continuing slightly uphill to reach the road through a wooden gate. Cross over into Village Street and continue down lane. 25 paces past the 30 mph sign go right into woodland and cross over a wooden ditch bridge into the field.
Stay across the field walking slightly left downhill towards the house. Exit the field through a narrow walkway to the right of the house and take the metal kissing gate to the driveway. Go down the driveway to reach a road and go left to arrive back in Offchurch at The Stag pub for refreshments. (S/E)
You can then do Offchurch East Circular which also starts here!
