Distance: 6.8 miles

Difficulty of the terrain: medium/hard

Get the route via: Ordnance Survey Maps or download the GPX. file from Dropbox

Walk in the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty from Church Stretton Railway Station to Acton Scott site of the Acton Scott living farming history museum, which it is hoped will reopen in spring 2024 under new management.

The Story

The Walk

Getting Back

TV’s Victorian Farm

Blists Hill Victorian Town is probably Shropshire’s most famous living history museum. Yet, a little further southwest in the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, lies another quite different vision of the northwest Midland’s in the 19th Century.

Acton Scott Working Farm about three miles south of Church Stretton is currently closed. This is because due to funding cuts, Shropshire Council, who had operated the museum since the 1970s decided to no longer subsidise it. This left the museum, which attracted several tens of thousands of visitors each year, to close.

However, this is probably not the end of the working farm museum’s story as following Shropshire Council’s return of the lease in late 2022, the Acton Scott estate itself is working on a plan to reopen the museum with a view to doing so in spring 2024.

In doing so they are continuing work that the estate began two generations ago under the direction of former owner Thomas Acton, whose interest in old farming practices, traditional crops and livestock breeds laid the ground for the establishment of the museum in 1975.

Upon the hoped for reopening the new museum organisation is intending to continue the rare breed farming, horse and veteran agricultural equipment displays that the museum was known for. Things which were showcased across the UK and beyond through TV programmes like Victorian Farm and other series and films which have been made at the site over the years.

Of course, the estate itself is rather older, being traceable back to Anglo-Saxon times. The current Acton family who own the 1,500 acre estate have possessed it since the 12th Century.

Walking to Acton Scott from nearby Church Stretton is quite straightforward. After an early steep ascent as walks in the middle of the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty go, the route is relatively flat (although some terrain is tricky especially when wet) and offers great views of the hills, in particular Caer Caradoc and the Long Mynd plateau. Something to do prior to the Acton Scott museum hopefully reopening in spring 2024.

The Walk

Get the route: via Ordnance Survey Maps or download the GPX. file from Dropbox

I create the Walk Midlands routes via Ordnance Survey Maps Explorer enabling me to take them on my phone. Subscribe yourself via the banner above.

This walk to Acton Scott site of the Acton Scott historic working farm museum begins from Church Stretton Railway Station.

Exit the station from the entrance to the southbound platform (trains towards Craven Arms, Ludlow, Leominster and Hereford, as well as South Wales) and walk up the road towards a large petrol station on the left, beside the A49.

Once at the A49 cross the road and head up the residential street immediately opposite passing a Methodist chapel.

A short distance past the chapel the road forks at a four way junction. Here take the middle road on the right.

Continue walking up this road for quite some distance.

Presently there is a steep cul-de-sac off to the right. Turn right here and walk up the cul-de-sac.

At the top there is a footpath between two houses.

Walk up the snicket and through a gate into woodland. You then follow the path to the left reaching a flight of steep steps cut into the hillside.

Walk up the snicket and through a gate into woodland. You then follow the path to the left reaching a flight of steep steps cut into the hillside.

Follow the path as it runs through the trees, guided by a series of wooded waymarks.

Presently you reach a junction, here take the path’s left hand fork.

Head along the path a little further until you reach the end of the trees.

Out on the open hillside you have spectacular views across the (slightly) more gentle country to the east.

Walk along the path as it crosses a field.

On the far side of the field there is a gate leading out onto another, larger field sloping downhill towards another gate leading out onto a grassy slope leading down to a farm track.

Once through the gate head down the slope towards the farm track.

Upon reaching the farm track, walk straight ahead.

Continue along the track a short distance until you reach a lane.

On reaching the lane turn right and walk a short distance along the lane.

Soon you come to a junction with an old fashioned fingerpost sign pointing the way to various local settlements.

Here beside the fingerpost sign turn left and follow the lane running downhill.

Keep following the lane for quite some distance. There are spectacular views on both sides as you walk along.

Passing a farm you come to a junction, around which the hamlet of Chelmick is arrayed, where there is a bridleway (waymarked as the Wagoner’s Way) running off to the right.

Follow the bridleway for some distance as it runs off to the right along a green lane.

Presently you come to a metal gate on the left leading out into a field.

Walk across the field heading to the right until you reach the hedge line on the far side.

Keep following the hedgerow steadily approaching some woodland.

There is a metal gate leading into the woodland. Head through the gate and into the woodland. Follow the path downhill through the trees.

At the bottom turn right and follow the path towards a stream, cross the stream then turn to the left.

Follow the path as it runs uphill through a gate.

On the other side of the brow of the hill follow the path until you reach a hedgerow with a fence running through it.

Upon reaching the hedge turn right and head uphill keeping close to the hedgerow.

When you reach the top of the hill keep walking as the path runs downhill towards a small copse.

On reaching the copse turn right and walk a short distance. Soon on the left the path runs down a steep bank into the trees.

Once in the trees keep heading to the left across a small stream and head through a gate. Follow the path as it runs along a green lane type track.

After you reach the hedgerow cross into the next field, keep walking straight ahead crossing the field remaining close to the hedge.

Soon you come to another green lane like path running through trees straight ahead of you.

Once out of the trees take a slight right, then turn left to cross a stream and head through a gate.

On the far side of the gate follow the path as it runs across a field and out onto a lane.

Through the gate you are stood on a lane with the Acton Scott estate immediately in front of you.

Access to the museum – once it hopefully reopens in spring 2024 – is off a short distance to the left.

After finishing at the museum, return to the lane and head to the left once more, heading back up the lane. You pass the entrance to the field which you exited earlier. Keep walking straight up the lane until presently you reach a junction.

Here head down the lane to your right, walking north back towards Long Mynd and Church Stretton.

Presently there is a footpath waymarked across a stile off to the left next to a metal gate.

Cross the stile and head into the field. Once in the field cross it making for a stile on the far side leading into trees.

On the far side of the field head down a short bank to a farm track below.

Upon reaching the track turn and follow it to the left.

Soon you reach a gate which you cross. It is a public right of way, but was shut off when I walked the route, so I just climbed it. There is an awkward stile of sorts off to the right of the gate.

Once you cross the gate you head a short distance uphill along the track.

Reaching a hedgerow you walk up a steep slope, following a footpath running uphill on the far side of the hedge along the edge of a field.

Keep following the path walking straight ahead as you cross the brow of the hill and begin heading downhill. Long Mynd looms into view in front of you as you approach woodland.

Approaching the woodland there is a metal footgate off to the right into the trees.

Through the gate follow the path running downhill through the trees.

Cross a wooden bridge over a brook at the bottom of a steep dell. Over the brook keep following the path uphill.

Keep walking until you come to a stile, up a bank up off to the right.

Once over the stile turn left and follow the path as it runs steeply downhill.

You come to a metal gate leading into a yard beside a house.

On entering the yard exit it down a driveway running off to the left.

Soon you reach the side of the A49.

Here turn right and cross the road walking north towards Church Stretton.

Presently off to the left you follow a road running into the village of Little Stretton.

Opposite the village pub turn right.

After turning right, there is a road running off to the left.

Turn left and follow the road. Keep walking along this road for some distance approaching the Long Mynd plateau.

Near the base of the plateau there is a campsite just in front of a stream. Here off to the right there is a stile which you cross.

Across the stile you head left up a fairly steep footpath, with steps part way up.

This leads up onto a ridge, where you head to the left and follow the path along passing through a gate.

Keep following the path heading straight ahead.

Once in the field as directed by a footpath signpost keep walking straight ahead across the field.

On the far side you come to a track leading into woodland.

Keep walking following the track into woodland. Passing through a gate along the way.

Shortly after the gate the path narrows and swings to the right, heading quite sharply downhill.

This brings you out onto a road lined with mid-20th Century houses on the edge of Church Stretton.

Turn left here and walk a very short distance along the road.

Soon off to your left there is a track sloping uphill past the gate leading onto a house’s front drive.

Here turn left and walk up this sloping track.

Keep walking past a metal device put in to stop cars and motorbikes and onto a footpath.

Continue along the footpath as it runs through the woods above the residential outskirts of Church Stretton.

Soon this path narrows for a short distance.

Leading out onto a semi-paved road with scattered houses along it.

Follow this track walking straight ahead for a short distance.

Soon the road becomes fully tarmacked.

Presently it curves around sharply to the right.

Remain on the road as it heads slightly to the left.

A little further on you emerge onto a road of mid-20th Century houses above the historic centre of Church Stretton clustered around the parish church and market place.

Follow the road as it winds downhill towards the centre of the town.

Soon you reach the road running into the centre of Church Stretton on the edge of the town’s historic core.

Turn left here and begin walking back into the town centre.

From the town centre it is a very short walk back to the railway station. This is where the walk ends.

Getting Back

From Church Stretton there are trains north towards Shrewsbury, many of which continue on towards Manchester or North Wales. As well as south towards Ludlow, Leominster, Hereford and South Wales, as well as towards Swansea down the Heart of Wales Line. Trains to the rest of the Midlands, via Telford, Wolverhampton, Smethwick and Birmingham depart from Shrewsbury. Trains to the rest of the Midlands via Worcestershire and Birmingham depart from Hereford. Church Stretton is not especially well served by buses, but at the time of writing in August 2022 there was a service, hourly until the evening, running between Ludlow and Shrewsbury. There are also weekend and bank holiday shuttle buses around the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (at least during warmer times of the year).