Blocked paths on walk at Shropshire Bury Ditches Hillfort

Before I share what was not a great experience on my six and a half mile circular trek at Bury Ditches hill fort, let me stress that I'm not always one to moan or complain on the routes I do.

Most of the time my walks are planned and I keep to footpaths, bridleways and permissible paths, sometimes quiet country lanes if I am desperate to get back on track too. 

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So when planning a walk at Bury Ditches, a place I have never been to before, I always knew that the Forestry England site is a good reason why you should explore the Shropshire Hills National Landscape.

Hill forts in the southwest corner of the county are well-known and very impressive for a woodland walk or maybe a riverside walk along the River Clun at the village of Clun itself.

The summit of Bury Ditches looking towards Corndon Hill, which is just inside Wales (Image: Will Luker) Bury Ditches is one of the finest Celtic-built forts in the area, high above the Clun Valley and at a height of around 393 metres above sea level. Early Iron Age is when the fort was believed to have been built.

My route began at the Forestry England car park as I made it a decent loop starting on a path along the Shropshire Way. A pleasant downhill trek through some more woods, I came off the national trail to follow a footpath through Merryhill Plantation.

It's basically a woodland section rising towards the mini summit of Clunton Hill, but here is why I and I think many other ramblers have a complaint. The overgrown footpath was not ideal as it was full of brambles, ferns and stinging nettles.

The downside and unpleasant side of this walk is poor footpath directions. This stretch of woodland below Bury Ditches was not even a public right of way but I had no choice! (Image: Will Luker) I could have cut back the vegetation but only enough to get myself through as going out with a purpose to clear vegetation without permission from the landowner could be considered criminal damage.

At the top of the hill, the views down towards Clunton village are majestic and even across the valley to Sowdley Woods and Hopton Heath - this is why the Shropshire Hills are a thing of beauty.

The final three miles of the route include the uphill walk to the summit of Bury Ditches. A lane to Steeple farm buildings is where to go but when you follow the public footpath to the base of the woodland, what was not good at all was the footpath direction disappearing.

I understand that Forestry Commission works are taking place but the footpath heading back towards Bury Ditches and beside another woodland summit called Steppleknoll, the path just disappeared underneath felled branches, no notice of a diversion or anything.

I therefore had to divert through a gate, which I don't think was a public right of way before scrambling through more ferns and back onto the main trail. I really wish those in authority could help us ramblers if a public right of way has changed or is inaccessible.

Putting aside overgrown paths and other bad parts of the walk, Bury Ditches is a good walk and this section overlooks Clunton village with Sowdley Wood in the background, a fine Clun Valley scenescape. (Image: Will Luker)

Overgrown footpaths aside, the walk to the top of Bury Ditches is great in any season. There are fantastic views of other Shropshire Hills such as Brown Clee and Stipertones from the top, plus views into Wales.

Maybe I walked footpaths off the beaten track too much, so maybe if I am in the area again, I should use more popular routes. 

Overall Bury Ditches is a good small walk for families if you're just after a short trek from the car park to the vantage point. For more longer distance circular routes, I'd suggest keeping clear of the overgrown paths I've mentioned.