Choose a challenging climb from Shipston-on-Stour and peer into the Cotswolds, or stay on the level on former railway tracks on The Lias Line, stopping for a picnic at Draycote Water. We’ve routes to suit, whether you like to pump pedals or freewheel. Whet your appetite on our highlights, click through to detailed guides and set off, maybe to the gentle, traffic-free Stratford Greenway or Burton Dassett Country Park’s rugged hills.
Get the adrenaline pumping on this mountain bike adventure through central Warwickshire. Start point is Coombe Country Park, a major local attraction with events and play areas for all ages. Then you are on a 12-mile trail that mixes roads and stony, muddy bridleways with a couple of downhill stretches – mind the uphill in between! The route is best suited to trail and mountain bikes rather than road racers.
Up for a challenge? Try this 16-mile mountain bike expedition from Pooley Country Park exploring northern Warwickshire. Around 6 miles are off-road and you are mainly on quiet lanes, in a little-known area of the county that surprises with pleasing views. The trail passes a varied mix of nature reserve and villages (and country pubs!), while also following a Saxon salt traders’ route.
Ryton Pools Country Park between Rugby and Coventry is a place for both activity and tranquillity, with lakes where you can watch birds, as well as an adventure playground for children. Use the visitor centre facilities at the start or end of this 16-mile route that follows quiet lanes and bridleways across a gentle landscape. You will cross the Roman Fosse Way and pass a number of villages with shops and pubs.
Panoramic scenes from the rolling hills of Burton Dassett provide a breathtaking start to this short, 8-mile trail – on a clear day you can see the Malvern Hills and Clee Hills over 40 miles away! The cycle route suits most people’s capabilities and within just an hour you can pedal to Fenny Compton, Farnborough, three pubs and the National Trust’s Farnborough Hall. Busy, busy!
Alcester, once an important Roman settlement, is nowadays a small, friendly market town that is ideally located for discovering Shakespeare’s Stratford and touring the Cotswold countryside. Take your pick of three cycle routes from the Greig Leisure Centre, to explore rural heritage sites and National Trust properties. The rides, of 10, 20 and 25 miles can also be linked into one longer 33-mile full circuit – if you’ve the energy!
Embark on a ride of tracks and exhilarating vistas: around the Vale of Feldon on the fringe of the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, riding over the Ironstone Hills and around Brailes Hill. The tracks are good, though largely soft and un-surfaced, so they are best tackled in dry or frosty conditions (it’s a muddy ride when wet!). Start the circuit at any point; we describe it here from Whichford in the south.
Enjoy a gentle outing along the course of an old railway line, now a dedicated traffic-free cyclepath/footpath. With no hills to climb, the Stratford Greenway to the village of Long Marston (5 miles there, 5 miles back) suits all ages. Set yourself up with refreshments at the start, at the Carriages Cafe at Seven Meadows Car Park on the edge of Stratford-upon-Avon, and maybe pause halfway at the picnic benches at Milcote Car Park.
Make the most of those wraparound vistas from the hills of Burton Dassett before you embark on this 20-mile trail. It is a slightly strenuous route with several small climbs, so be prepared. But you will also have the reward of downhills! Along the way you circle the site of the Battle of Edgehill 1642, the opening encounter in the Civil War. Village pubs and shops provide refreshment stops.
Cycle from the historic market town of Shipston-on-Stour, through rolling Feldon countryside and villages amid low lying hills. Choose between a shorter, 14-mile ride that is mostly easygoing with some undulations, and a jaunt of an additional 7 miles that includes some challenging climbs. You will certainly enjoy great views of the Cotswolds en route, and the optional longer circuit heads into the northernmost hills of the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Why not mix town and countryside, and Shakespeare with the Gunpowder Plot? This 27-mile circuit around central Warwickshire includes a level, traffic-free canal towpath stretch, and shortcuts also make 20- and 11-mile rides. Start this trail from any of the numerous local villages and attractions, such as Mary Arden’s (home of Shakespeare’s mother). Places of interest near the route include Anne Hathaway's Cottage, Edstone canal aqueduct, historic Alcester and Kinwarton Dovecote.
This generally level section of National Route 41 uses some former railway lines and is open between Rugby and Warwick. It is known as The Lias Line after the locally quarried Blue Lias stone. The ride is a linear route that starts or ends at Rugby rail station, with stopping points at Leamington Spa or Warwick town centres and rail stations – cycle back or return by train. The trail can be extended, linking to the Warwick to Wellesbourne trail and on to Stratford-upon-Avon.
Spin around some of the finest Warwickshire countryside on this superb 25-mile trail. Leaving Warwick, cycle along the valley of the River Avon before passing the waterside village of Wellesbourne. The stunning cross-country route to Chesterton Windmill then returns via Regency Royal Leamington Spa to historic Warwick.
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