Places We Visit | Ironbridge Walking

The Gorge-ous Gorge

The wonderful UNESCO heritage site of Ironbridge is the start and finish points on many of our walks. Turning left off the bridge and walking along the Wharfage, you will come to the Museum of the Gorge, where on the river bank of the magnificent River Severn, a sculpture dedicated to the Ironbridge Coracle Men can be seen. The sculpture is based on an iconic image of Tommy Rogers, grandfather to the Gorge’s last coracle man, Eustace Rogers, who died in 2003. You can follow the Coracle Trail and visit both the new and old Coracle Sheds.

Heading past the Museum, see if you can spot the unusual railings of the Merrythought Teddy Bear shop and museum before eventually arriving on the edge of Buildwas. This was the former home of the Power Station’s unique and much loved cooling towers which were demolished in 2019, with the remaining chimney coming down in 2021. Check out our tribute to the towers which were a key landmark on many of our walks and are still missed by many today. After crossing Buildwas Bridge, you’ll find the site of the stunning remains of Buildwas Abbey.

Visiting the Gorge from both sides of the River and from high and low perspectives gives a great insight into the many fantastic views. We are sure you'll love the beautiful Dingles in the Gorge as much as we do which have been created and maintained by the Severn Gorge Countryside Trust.

https://www.ironbridge.org.uk/

https://ironbridgecoracles.org/

https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/buildwas-abbey/

https://www.severngorge.org.uk

A Hall packed with History

Walk through wonderful Benthall Woods and up to Benthall Edge to discover the magnificent Benthall Hall, now in the care of the National Trust. Many of our walks will pass through this beautiful estate and we are very lucky that staff from the National Trust host some of our walks on the programme which are always very popular. These walks will be back in our 2025 programme. In the meantime, you can also follow the orienteering trail around the woods and park.

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/benthall-hall

An Olympian Town and a Thankful Village

Visit the medieval and beautiful town of Much Wenlock and find about its links to the 19th century revival of the Olympic Games. Home to the wonderful Much Wenlock Abbey, now in the care of English Heritage. Enjoy walking along the magnificent Wenlock Edge on some of our walks which stretches from the Wrekin to Craven Arms in the south of the County and offers amazing views. Visit the “Thankful” Village of Harley with its beautiful Church and en route enjoy glorious views of The Wrekin.

https://www.visitmuchwenlock.co.uk

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/wenlock-edge

Step Back to Victorian Times

Madeley is recorded as a settlement as far back as the Domesday Book. Visit St Michael’s Church in Madeley and pay your respects to the Nine Men of Madeley. Walking in and around Madeley, you will see the fantastic Blists Hill Victorian Town, one of the great attractions of the Ironbridge Gorge Museums. Cross the bridge from Blists Hill and you will arrive at the All Nations Inn, run by one of our very own Walk Leaders!

https://www.ironbridge.org.uk/explore/blists-hill-victorian-town/

https://www.ironbridge.org.uk

https://www.allnationsinn.co.uk

China, Iron and Bears

You will come to know these lovely villages as you walk with us, in and out of the Gorge. Walking through Coalbrookdale and the tranquil setting of Dale End Park heading towards Buildwas, you will be in the home of the Museum of Iron, the Darby family and the world famous Merrythought Bear Factory.

Heading along the River Severn in the opposite direction, you will come to Jackfield and Coalport which occupy opposite sides of the River, connected by the Memorial Bridge. Jackfield grew as a river port for nearby Broseley and Benthall. You can see the history of the first Shropshire railway and view for yourself the stabilisation work that has taken place in the Gorge.

Coalport, home of the famous pottery is where you can see the original canal infrastructure and bottle kilns at what used to be the actual China Works. Nowadays the buildings are home to a Youth Hostel with a great cafe and the Coalport China Museum.

https://www.ironbridge.org.uk/explore/coalport-china-museum/

A Boom Town of Firsts

Broseley , the original town of the Shropshire coalfield where the first commercial Watt blowing engine was erected and the first iron boat built. Situated above Ironbridge with a wonderful history and the glorious Jitties. The Jitties are a maze of narrow lanes and passageways that link together a jumble of many quaint and beautiful cottages, once occupied by squatters. Each of the Jitties have a distinct name reflecting their history and the stories of the people who once lived there.

You may not know this, but Broseley was the centre of the clay tobacco pipe industry and we are delighted to offer a walk and a tour of this fascinating museum. Broseley also has a magnificent Church which you can see from many viewpoints, but is also home of The Red Church, which whilst no longer standing has a fascinating history.

https://www.visitbroseley.co.uk

https://www.ironbridge.org.uk/explore/broseley-pipeworks/

https://broseley.org.uk/redchurch/

5. The Wrekin, The Ercall and Telford 2023.jpeg

A Giant of a Town

You don’t have to go far in the Ironbridge Gorge to find spectacular views of the Wrekin and if you so desire you can always book a walk to climb the tallest hill in Telford and Wrekin and as the saying goes find yourself going “all around the Wrekin”. You can also discover the Wrekin’s little sister, The Ercall or the story the Wrekin Giant. Both hills during the Festival will have beautiful bluebells in abundance amongst glorious woodlands.

Take the opportunity on some of our longer walks to visit Telford, one of the U.K.’s “new towns”. Head up the Silkin Way to the “wonder land” of the Town Park and its various pools before returning back to Ironbridge.

https://www.visittelford.co.uk//

https://www.visitshropshire.co.uk/destinations/telford-ironbridge/

https://www.telfordtownpark.co.uk/site/index.php

A Church in every Village?

We’ve counted 15 Churches that feature on our 60 walks but we may have missed some… each Church has a fascinating history and stunning architecture and stained glass windows. Can you identify the Church with the stained glass window that was put in the wrong way? Or the one that is truly thankful? Of course the one that you will probably get to know the most is St Luke’s in Ironbridge which overlooks the Bridge and you will hear chime during the start and finish of your wonderful walks from the Toll House.

https://www.discovershropshirechurches.co.uk/

A Feast for your Senses

Our Festival always starts on the first May Bank Holiday weekend and you will enjoy some stunning Dingles bursting with wild garlic and bluebells, fields of rapeseed in spectacular yellow, trees and woodlands in dappled sunshine and many reigns of post boxes! Watch out for them...

Of course, you can’t come walking in the Gorge with the magnificent River Severn meandering through without crossing a few bridges, each with their own story to tell and unique appearance. The hardest walk of the Festival features 5 of them and you will have plenty of rises and falls to include them all.

https://www.ironbridgegorgewhs.co.uk/

An End of an Era

They may no longer be here, but we have wonderful memories of the 4 fabulous Ironbridge Cooling Towers and the distinctive chimney and we still miss them. There weren't many views of them where you could see all 4 of them and this was one of our favourites. They were also a landmark visible from the Wrekin They were a much loved and unique feature on our walks and gave us our bearings as we were out and about. It was a very sad day when they came down as well as a remarkable feat of engineering, as you can see by clicking the link below.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/uk-england-shropshire-50671593