Wild Edric’s Way
A 50-mile long-distance path in Shropshire making a thorough exploration of the Shropshire Hills between Church Stretton and Ludlow. With map, statistics, and GPX route file.
Statistics and Files
Grid Ref: SO 457 934
Distance: 50 miles (80 km)
Time: 22–26 hours
Duration: 3–5 days
Ordnance Survey Explorer Maps (1:25,000):
201 Knighton and Presteigne / Tref-y-Clawdd a Llanandras
203 Ludlow, Tenbury Wells and Cleobury Mortimer
216 Welshpool and Montgomery
217 The Long Mynd and Wenlock Edge
Summary
Wild Edric’s Way is a waymarked long-distance footpath running wholly within the county of Shropshire, set within the delightful Shropshire Hills. The path runs for 50 miles, most of it sharing the route of the Shropshire Way. The route runs from Church Stretton in the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) to Ludlow.
It is named for Eadric the Wild, an Anglo-Saxon magnate of the West Midlands who led English resistance to the Norman Conquest, actively revolting against the Normans between 1068 and 1070. From Church Stretton, Wild Edric’s Way climbs up the Long Mynd and then across to the Stiperstones before descending to Bishop’s Castle. Continuing along a medieval drovers’ road (the Portway) and Offa’s Dyke Path, the route reaches the quiet town of Clun—where a visit to Norman Clun Castle is recommended—before traversing the Iron Age hillfort at Bury Ditches and heading to Craven Arms and finally Ludlow, the center of the Welsh Marches.