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A walk around Dudley

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Walk directions

From the car park, return to the A4037, turn right and right again at the roundabout to head up Castle Hill. Bear right, along Broadway, down past the college. You’ll soon reach the 12th-century priory ruins in Priory Park. Go right and wander through to the far end of the park, then go left down Woodland Avenue, turn right along the A4168 (Priory Road), crossing to the other side.

Turn left down Cedar Road and continue past a school to enter the southern part of Wren’s Nest National Nature Reserve. Continue ahead for 100yds (91m), turn left up the long flight of steps and continue along the higher footpath, first left and then right. This path leads near to the Seven Sisters Caverns. Continue ahead past the school on your left and you will eventually emerge onto Wrens Hill Road near the Dudley Bar and Grill. Go right along the road and just past the houses, to a gate on the left.

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Location

Nearest postcode:

Additional information

Terrain - Parkland paths and roadside pavements, several stiles

Landscape - Nature reserve and streets around Dudley

Dog friendliness - Off lead in park, otherwise under control

Parking - Dudley Zoo and Castle car park, Discovery Way, Dudley

Toilets en route - In Dudley

Walks in West Midlands Dog-friendly walks in West Midlands

About the walk

The Black Country originally took its name from the dark, coal-stained soil that characterises this corner of the county where the old boundaries of Worcestershire, Shropshire, Staffordshire and Warwickshire meet. It truly earned the name in the 18th and 19th centuries, when the Industrial... Revolution took off. The mines, factories and furnaces belched out their blackening soot, so the sky was ‘black by day and red by night’. This walk offers the opportunity to explore the unique history of Dudley and the surrounding countryside, including the Wren’s Nest National Nature Reserve. You could be forgiven for expecting the capital of the Black Country to be an old industrial town with little to offer the visitor, but Dudley is a large, vibrant place with a fascinating history that reveals an amazing contrast of English heritage. From Saxon times up to the Civil War, the town developed much like any other in Britain. In the Middle Ages, it became a country market town, with a town hall and small shops dotted around its central market place. The arrival of coal mining and iron working in the 17th century brought massive changes to the area and Dudley steadily expanded to become the main business centre of the Black Country. It was here in the 1620s that Dud Dudley first experimented with using coal (as coke) for smelting iron. Another Dudley man, Abraham Darby, at Coalbrookdale, developed the process and the town’s later ironworks dominated the area until the middle of the 20th century. The Black Country Living Museum reveals how tough life would have been during the early days of the Industrial Revolution. Today, mining activities are a thing of the past. The 1817 Regency Gothic Church of St Thomas the Apostle, with its towering spire, dominates the town’s skyline. A number of other attractive old buildings remain, including the landmark Crown Inn, with its unusual bartizan (corner turret with windows), and Baylies’s Charity, a charity school built in 1820. The Wren’s Nest National Nature Reserve, Britain’s first National Nature Reserve for Geology, is famous for its fossils, the best-known being a trilobite christened the ‘Dudley Bug’ or the ‘Dudley Locust’. It forms the centrepiece of the town’s coat of arms and is a symbol of the limestone mining industry.

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About the area

After Greater London, the West Midlands is the UK’s biggest county by population, and after London, Birmingham is the UK’s largest city. There’s a lot to seek out here – it has a vibrant culture, with exceptionally good nightlife.

Route details

Difficulty:

Easy

Gradient:

Moderate

Distance:

4.3 miles (7kms)

Ascent:

328ft (100m)

If you like this walk, you can try more routes in the area.

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A walk around Dudley

Recommended by

Walk details

Difficulty:

Easy

Gradient:

Moderate

Distance:

4.3 miles (7kms)

Ascent:

328ft (100m)

Walk directions

1 of 5

2 of 5

Follow the path that takes you over craggy Mons Hill. Eventually, where the path divides, take the left fork, initially down steps, until you near some houses. Reaching Parkes Hall Road, turn right along the road until you come to the A457 (Sedgley Road West).

3 of 5

Turn right and follow the A457 for about 750yds (686m), then go right along the A4123 (Birmingham New Road). After 440yds (400m) of easy walking, the road arcs left, and beyond a bus stop look out for the Castle Mill industrial estate on the right.

4 of 5

A few paces up the Castle Hill industrial estate access, go left through a scruffy barrier onto a footpath, then continue along the Limekiln Walk path through the woodland by Castle Hill. There are many paths through this woodland, but try to keep to the left-hand paths going southwards near to the edge of the trees for over 0.5 miles (800m). This is pleasant walking and soon the path reaches the open, with a view over the Black Country Living Museum. Continue back to the car park.

5 of 5

Location

Starting point

Nearest postcode:

Additional information

Terrain - Parkland paths and roadside pavements, several stiles

Landscape - Nature reserve and streets around Dudley

Dog friendliness - Off lead in park, otherwise under control

Parking - Dudley Zoo and Castle car park, Discovery Way, Dudley

Toilets en route - In Dudley

Walks in West Midlands Dog-friendly walks in West Midlands

About the walk

Been on this walk?

Send us photos or a comment about this route. Or recommend a route of your own.

Find out more

Walking in Safety

Read our tips to look after yourself and the environment when following this walk.

Learn more

Get an AA guide

Explore our range of ‘50 Walks in’ guides - they’re the ideal companion for a ramble.

Learn more

Been on this walk?

Send us photos or a comment about this route. Or recommend a route of your own.

Find out more

Walking in Safety

Read our tips to look after yourself and the environment when following this walk.

Learn more

Get an AA guide

Explore our range of ‘50 Walks in’ guides - they’re the ideal companion for a ramble.

Learn more

About the area

West Midlands

A walk around Dudley

Been on this walk?

Walking in Safety

Get an AA guide

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Walking in Safety

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A walk around Dudley

Been on this walk?

Walking in Safety

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Get an AA guide

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