Long-distance footpaths in the United Kingdom
The following long-distance footpaths can be found in the United Kingdom:
England and Wales: National Trails
National Trails are distinguished by being maintained by the National Trails organization [1]. As of September 2010[update], there are fifteen such trails, one of which is not yet complete.
- Cleveland Way, 177 km (110 miles) round the edge of the North York Moors National Park in England
- Cotswold Way, 163 km (101 miles) in England
- Glyndŵr's Way, 217 km (135 miles) in Wales
- Hadrian's Wall Path, 135 km (84 miles) in England
- North Downs Way, 246 km (153 miles) in England
- Offa's Dyke Path, 285 km (177 miles) in Wales and England
- Peddars Way and Norfolk Coast Path, 150 km (93 miles) in England (treated as one by National Trails)
- Pembrokeshire Coast Path, 298 km (185 miles) in Wales
- Pennine Bridleway, 192 km (119 miles) in England (As of September 2010[update] not yet complete)
- Pennine Way, 429 km (267 miles) in England and Scotland
- The Ridgeway, 139 km (86 miles) in England
- South Downs Way, 160 km (99 miles) in England
- South West Coast Path (South West Way), 1,014 km (630 miles) in England - the UK's longest
- Thames Path, 294 km (183 miles) in England
- Yorkshire Wolds Way, 127 km (79 miles) in England
Scotland: Long Distance Routes
Long Distance Routes are proposed and financially supported by Scottish Natural Heritage, but administered and maintained by the local authority areas through which they pass.
Other UK long-distance paths
Those included here meet the definition of a long-distance path as being around 50 km (31 miles) or more, particularly that they will take more than one day's walking to complete. Some shorter paths linking between major walks (e.g. Maelor Way) are also included.
England
- 1066 Country Walk, East Sussex - 50 km (31 miles) Pevensey Castle to Rye
- Abbeys Amble, North Yorkshire, 167 km (104 miles)
- Abbott's Hike, 172 km (107 miles) Cumbria challenging moorland walking
- Ainsty Bounds Walk, North Yorkshire, circular from Tadcaster, 71 km (44 miles)
- Angles Way, 123 km (76 miles) from Great Yarmouth to Knettishall Heath, with much of the path following the Norfolk/Suffolk border. Additionally there is a link path from Knettishall Heath to Thetford.
- Avon Valley Path, 54 km (34 miles) Christchurch to Salisbury (Hampshire and Wiltshire)
- Basingstoke Canal, 53 km (33 miles)
- Bishop Bennet Way, 55 km (34 miles) Beeston to Wirswall (Cheshire, Staffordshire)
- Boudica's Way, 60 km (37 miles) from Norwich to Diss
- Bournemouth Coast Path, 59 km (37 miles) from Sandbanks to Milford-on-Sea (Dorset and Hampshire)
- Bronte Way, 69 km (43 miles) from Birstall, West Yorkshire to Padiham, Lancashire
- Bullock Smithy Hike , a 90 km (56 miles) circular challenge walk that starts and finishes at Hazel Grove, Greater Manchester.
- Burnley Way, a 64 km (40 miles) circular trail around Burnley in Lancashire
- Calderdale Way, West Yorkshire, circular from Greetland 80 km (50 miles)
- Capital Ring, 115 km (71 miles) circular through inner London crossing the Thames at Richmond and Woolwich
- Celtic Way - runs from the west of Wales to Stonehenge and then heads south-west to Cornwall, a total of 1,162 km (722 miles)
- Centenary Way, Warwickshire - covers 158 km (98 miles) from Kingsbury to Upper Quinton.
- Channel to Channel Path, Seaton to Watchet, 80 km (50 miles)
- Cheshire Ring 156 km (97 miles) circular walk alongside six canals, via Dukinfield and Marple.
- Chiltern Way, 200 km (124 miles) circular walk from Hemel Hempstead (275 km (171 miles) with extensions).
- Cistercian Way, Grange-over-Sands to Roa Island (Cumbria) 53 km (33 miles)
- Coast to Coast (Devon), Wembury to Lynmouth 186 km (116 miles)
- Coast to Coast Walk, 309 km (192 miles) from St. Bees in Cumbria to Robin Hood's Bay in North Yorkshire
- Coleridge Way, Nether Stowey to Porlock Somerset 58 km (36 miles)
- Cross Cotswold Pathway - see Macmillan Ways below
- Coventry Way circumnavigates Coventry from a start point in Meriden 64 km (40 miles)
- Cumbria Coastal Way 241 km (150 miles) from Silverdale in Lancashire to Gretna Green in southern Scotland.
- Cumbria Way, 112 km (70 miles) from Ulverston to Carlisle
- Dales Way, 126 km (78 miles) from Bowness-on-Windermere to Ilkley with extensions to Leeds, Shipley and Harrogate
- D'Arcy Dalton Way, Wormleighton, Warwickshire - Waylands Smithy, Oxfordshire 106 km (66 miles)
- Dartmoor Way, 139.5 km (87 miles) around Dartmoor
- Derwent Valley Heritage Way, 88 km (55 miles) from Bamford to Shardlow via the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site
- Devonshire Heartland Way 69 km (43 miles) from Stoke Canon in the Exe Valley to Okehampton
- Downs Link 59 km (37 miles) from the North Downs Way at St. Martha's Hill near Guildford to the South Downs Way at Steyning, and on to Shoreham-by-Sea
- East Devon Way, 61 km (38 miles) Exmouth to Lyme Regis
- Ebor Way, 112 km (70 miles) from Ilkley to Helmsley (connecting the Dales Way to the Cleveland Way)
- Esk Valley Walk, North Yorkshire56 km (35 miles) from Castleton to Whitby
- Essex Way, Epping to Harwich, 130 km (81 miles)
- Exe Valley Way, Devon 72 km (45 miles) from the River Exe extuary to Exmoor
- Fen Rivers Way, runs 98.5 km (61 miles) Cambridge to King's Lynn
- Geopark Way, 175 km (109 miles) Bridgnorth to Gloucester
- Gloucestershire Way, 161 km (100 miles) Chepstow to Tewkesbury
- The Greater Ridgeway. This is the name used for the combined route of 583 km (362 miles) crossing from Lyme Regis, Dorset on the English Channel to Hunstanton on The Wash, following the Wessex Ridgeway, The Ridgeway National Trail, the Icknield Way Path and the Peddars Way National Trail.
- Grafton Way, Northamptonshire
- Greensand Way, 169 km (105 miles) from Haslemere, Surrey to Hamstreet, Kent
- Gritstone Trail, 56 km (35 miles) from Disley to Kidsgrove (mainly Cheshire)
- Hampshire Millennium Pilgrims Trail, 48 km (30 miles) from Winchester to Portsmouth
- Hardy Way, Dorset and Wiltshire, 342 km (213 miles) Hardy's Cottage, Higher Bockhampton to Stinsford (almost circular: end points a mile apart)
- Heart of England Way, Midlands - 161 km (100 miles) Milford, Staffordshire to Bourton-on-the-Water
- Herefordshire Trail, 246.5 km (153 miles) circular route from Ledbury via Ross-on-Wye, Kington, Leominster and Bromyard, waymarks are planned but not yet in place
- Howardian Way, 46.3 km (29 miles) linear walking route from Coxwold to Kirkham Priory
- Hereward Way, 166 km (103 miles) from Oakham to East Harling (Rutland, Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk). The Stamford to Peterborough section is not fully waymarked, but walkers travelling between those two places can follow the waymarked Torpel Way.
- High Weald Landscape Trail, running 145 km (90 miles) from Horsham to Rye (West Sussex, East Sussex, Kent)
- Hyndburn Clog, a 53 km (33 miles) circular around Hyndburn in Lancashire, with a main start point at Stanhill
- Icknield Way Path, 206 km (128 miles) Bledlow to Knettishall Heath (Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire, Norfolk)
- Isaac's Tea Trail, circular route of 58 km (36 miles) from Ninebanks via Allendale, Nenthead and Alston in the North Pennines Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
- Irwell Sculpture Trail, 48 km (30 miles) from Salford Quays to Bacup, Rossendale following the River Irwell (Greater Manchester, Lancashire)
- Isle of Wight Coastal Path, circular from Ryde 105 km (65 miles)
- Itchen Way, 51 km (32 miles) from Hinton Ampner to Sholing railway station (Hampshire)
- Jack Mytton Way 160 km (99 miles) in Shropshire
- Jubilee Trail, Forde Abbey - Bokerley Dyke, 145 km (90 miles) (Dorset)
- Jurassic Way, 142 km (88 miles) Banbury, Oxfordshire to Stamford, Lincolnshire
- King's Way, 72 km (45 miles) from Winchester to Portchester
- Kirklees Way, 72 km (45 miles) circular in Kirklees, West Yorkshire
- Knightly Way, Northamptonshire
- Lake to Lake Walk, 267 km (166 miles) from Windermere in Cumbria (England's largest natural lake) to Kielder Water in Northumberland (England's largest man-made lake)
- Lancashire Coastal Way, 200 km (124 miles) from Silverdale to Freckleton
- Land's End Trail, 480 km (298 miles)
- Lea Valley Walk, 80 km (50 miles) from Leagrave in Bedfordshire to the East India Docks in London.
- Leeds Country Way, 99 km (62 miles), circular route around Leeds, West Yorkshire, within the Leeds metropolitan district
- Leland Trail, 45 km (28 miles) Stourhead to Ham Hill (Somerset)
- Liberty Trail, 45 km (28 miles) Ham Hill to Lyme Regis (Somerset, Dorset)
- Limestone Link, 58 km (36 miles) Mendip Hills (Somerset) to Cold Aston (Gloucestershire).
- Limestone Way, 80 km (50 miles) from Castleton to Rocester (Derbyshire)
- Limey Way, 65 km (40 miles) from Castleton via 20 Limestone Dales to Dovedale and Thorpe
- London Outer Orbital Path ('The LOOP'), 241 km (150 miles) Erith to Rainham
- Lyke Wake Walk across the North York Moors, 63 km (39 miles)
- The Macmillan Ways
- The Maelor Way, is a key link path, running 38 km (24 miles) from the Shropshire Way, Sandstone Trail, Llangollen Canal, South Cheshire Way, and the Marches Way all at Grindley Brook near Whitchurch to the Offa's Dyke Path National Trail at Bronygarth.
- Mendip Way, Uphill (near Weston-super-Mare) - Frome 80 km (50 miles)
- The Mercian Way is part of National Cycle Route 45, but is also well used by walkers.
- Midshires Way, Princes Risborough - Stockport, 363 km (226 miles)
- Monarch's Way, Worcester - Shoreham-by-Sea 984 km (611 miles)
- Mortimer Trail, 48 km (30 miles) from Ludlow in Shropshire to Kington, Herefordshire
- Nar Valley Way[2], Norfolk - 54 km (34 mi) King's Lynn to Gressenhall
- Nene Way, Badby, Northamptonshire to Sutton Bridge, Lincolnshire 177 km (110 mi)
- New Lipchis Way, Liphook, Hampshire through Midhurst and Chichester to West Wittering, West Sussex (60.8 kilometres (37.8 mi))
- Nidderdale Way[3], a circular route of 85 km (53 mi), centred on Pateley Bridge in North Yorkshire
- Northumberland Coast Path[4], from Cresswell to Berwick-upon-Tweed, part of the North Sea Trail, a 103 km (64 mi) coastal walking route.
- North Worcestershire Path, 43 km (27 mi) from Kinver to Major's Green
- Oldham Way
- Ouse Valley Way, 240 km (149 mi) from Syresham, Northamptonshire to King's Lynn, Norfolk via Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire
- Oxford Canal Walk[5], 132 km (82 mi) from Oxford to Coventry
- Oxford Green Belt Way, a circular route of 84 km (52 mi) around Oxford
- Oxfordshire Way, Bourton-on-the-Water - Henley 104 km (65 mi)
- Pappoos 1, from London to Cambridge and The Wash
- Pathfinder March, an annual 74 km (46 mi) circular around former RAF Pathfinder Airfields in Cambridgeshire, held on the Saturday closest to Midsummers Day
- Pendle Way[6], a 72 km (45 mi) circular starting and finishing at Barley, incorporating Pendle Hill (Lancashire)
- Pilgrims' Trail, 45 km (28 mi) from Winchester to Portsmouth
- Pilgrims' Way, 192 km (119 mi) from Winchester to Canterbury, an ancient trail of which perhaps two thirds is still identifiable, much of it now incorporated into the North Downs Way National Trail
- Quantock Greenway, a figure of 8 centred on Triscombe in Somerset, the northern loop is 31 km (19 mi), the southern loop 29 km (18 mi).
- Reiver's Way, 242 km (150 mi) from Corbridge to Alnmouth (Northumberland)
- Ribble Way, follows the River Ribble for 114 km (71 mi) from Longton to Ribblehead
- River Parrett Trail, 75 km (47 mi) along the river in Somerset and Dorset
- Robin Hood Way runs 169 km (105 mi) from Nottingham to Edwinstowe
- Rochdale Way
- Rossendale Way[7], a 75 km (47 mi) circular around the Rossendale Valley, Lancashire
- Sabrina Way, 324 km (201 mi), Hartington to Great Barrington (Staffordshire, Shropshire, Worcestershire, Gloucestershire)
- Saints' Way, Padstow - Fowey 42 km (26 mi) (Cornwall)
- Samaritans Way South West[8], runs 160 km (100 mi) from Bristol to Lynton, but only the section from Bristol to Goathurst is waymarked
- Sandlings Walk, 96 km (60 mi) from Ipswich to Southwold (Suffolk)
- Sandstone Trail, 51 km (32 mi) from Frodsham in Cheshire to Whitchurch, Shropshire
- Sarum Way, Wiltshire, 51.5 km (32 mi) circular, only part of it is waymarked
- Saxon Shore Way, 261 km (162 mi) from Gravesend, Kent to Hastings, East Sussex
- Severn Way, Plynlimon - Bristol 360 km (224 mi)
- Shakespeare's Way, 235 km (146 mi) from Shakespeare's birthplace in Stratford-Upon-Avon to the Globe Theatre on London's South Bank. The route opened on 19-April-2006.
- Sheffield Country Walk[9][10], a circular walk of 85 km (53 mi) which keeps as close to the City of Sheffield’s boundary as possible, starting and finishing at Eckington, Derbyshire (Derbyshire, South Yorkshire).
- Shropshire Way, 224 km (139 mi) from Shrewsbury via the Ironbridge World Heritage Site to Wem with a further 19 km (12 mi) northern spur to Grindley Brook
- Six Dales Trail 38 miles across the Nidderdale AONB from Otley in West Yorkshire to Middleham in North Yorkshire.
- Six Shires Circuit, 331 km 206 mi - being updated - Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire & Rutland
- Solent Way, 112 km (70 mi) from Christchurch, Dorset to Emsworth on the Hampshire/West Sussex border
- South Cheshire Way, 51 km (32 mi) from Grindley Brook to Mow Cop
- Staffordshire Way, 147 km (91 mi) from Mow Cop to Kinver Edge
- Stour Valley Path, 96 km (60 mi) from Newmarket to Manningtree, (East Anglia)
- Stour Valley Walk, 82 km (51 mi) from Lenham to Pegwell Bay (Kent)
- Stour Valley Way, 103 km (64 mi) from Stourton to Christchurch Priory (Dorset)
- St. Cuthbert's Way, 100 km (62 mi) from Melrose to Lindisfarne (Scottish borders, Northumberland)
- St. Kenelm's Trail, 100 km (62 mi) from Clent Hills, Worcestershire to Winchcombe Gloucestershire
- St. Oswald's Way, 156 km (97 mi) from Lindisfarne to Heavenfield (on Hadrian's Wall), Northumberland)
- St. Peter's Way, 66 km (41 mi) from Chipping Ongar, Essex to Chapel of St Peter-on-the-Wall, Essex
- St. Swithun's Way, 55 km (34 mi) Winchester to Farnham
- Suffolk Coast Path, Felixstowe - Lowestoft 80 km
- Sussex Border Path, 256 km (159 mi) from Thorney Island to Rye
- Sussex Ouse Valley Way, 67.5 km (42 mi) Lower Beeding to Seaford
- Swan's Way, Salcey Forest - Bledlow 104 km (65 mi) through Buckinghamshire (Aylesbury Vale and Milton Keynes (borough))
- Tarka Trail, Devon - 2 separate circles from Barnstaple totalling 288 km (179 mi)
- Tas Valley Way[11], 40 km (25 mi) from Norwich to Attleborough (Norfolk)
- Teesdale Way, 161 km (100 mi) from Dufton to Warrenby
- Test Way, Walbury Hill - Eling 70.5 km (44 mi) through Hampshire and West Berkshire
- Thames Down Link, 24 km (15 mi) from Kingston upon Thames to Box Hill, Surrey.
- Three Castles Path, Windsor to Winchester, Hampshire, 96 km (60 mi) (unwaymarked)
- Three Forests Way[12], 96 km (60 mi) through Epping, Hainault and Hatfield forests on the borders of Essex and Greater London.
- Three Shires Way[13], East Anglia, Grafham Water to Salcey Forest 59.5 km (37 mi)
- Trans Pennine Trail, 333 km (207 mi) from Southport, Lancashire to Hornsea, East Riding of Yorkshire
- Two Castles Trail, 39 km (24 mi) from Okehampton to Launceston
- Two Moors Way, Devon - Ivybridge to Lynmouth 166 km (103 mi)
- Vanguard Way, 107 km (66 mi) Croydon to Newhaven
- Viking Way, 235 km (146 mi) Barton-upon-Humber to Oakham (Lincolnshire, Rutland)
- Way for the Millennium, Newport, Shropshire to Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire - 65 km (40 mi)
- Wayfarers Walk, 110 km (68 mi) from Walbury Hill to Emsworth (Berkshire, Hampshire)
- Wealdway, Gravesend to Eastbourne 129 km (80 mi) (Kent, East Sussex)
- Weardale Way, runs 117 km (73 mi) from Sunderland to Wearhead
- Weavers Way[14], 90 km (56 mi) Cromer - Great Yarmouth (Norfolk)
- Wessex Ridgeway, runs 219 km (136 mi) from Marlborough to Lyme Regis.
- West Deane Way in the Vale of Taunton Deane, circular 72.5 km (45 mi)
- West Devon Way - Okehampton to Plymouth, 58 km (36 mi)
- Wey South Path - 51.5 km (32 mi) from Guildford, Surrey to Houghton Bridge, West Sussex, mainly alongside the Wey and Arun Canal
- Wherryman's Way, 56 km (35 mi) following the River Yare from Norwich to Great Yarmouth (Norfolk)
- White Rose Walk, 65 km (40 mi) North Yorkshire walk, starting at the White Horse - Kilburn, and finishing at Roseberry Topping
- Wild Edric's Way, 79 km (49 mi) from Church Stretton to Ludlow - it shares much of its route with the Shropshire Way
- Windermere Way, 72 km (45 mi) a circular walk around Windermere in Cumbria
- Witton Weavers Way, a 51.5 km (32 mi) circular around the West Pennine Moors, Blackburn and Darwen
- Worcestershire Way, 49.5 km (31 mi) from Bewdley to Malvern
- Wychavon Way, Droitwich Spa to Winchcombe 67 km (42 mi) (Worcestershire, Gloucestershire)
- Wychwood Way, Oxfordshire, a circular route of 59.5 km (37 mi) in the former Royal Forest of Wychwood
- Wysis Way, (mainly in Gloucestershire, 88 km (55 mi) from the Offa's Dyke Path National Trail at Monmouth to the Thames Path National Trail at Kemble
Wales
- Anglesey Coastal Path, a circular route of 200 km (124 mi) around the island of Anglesey.
- The Beacons Way an east - west route of 161 km (100 mi) through the heart of the Brecon Beacons National Park
- Cambrian Way, an unwaymarked high level 440 km (273 mi) route from Cardiff to Conwy
- Ceredigion Coast Path - currently still being developed, so not all waymarked - 101 km (63 mi) from Ynyslas to Cardigan
- Cistercian Way - 1050 km (650 mi) long, circumnavigates Wales via its Cistercian Abbeys.
- Clwydian Way, 243 km (151 mi), circular from Prestatyn via Llangollen, Corwen and Denbigh
- Dyfi Valley Way, 172 km (107 mi) from Aberdyfi to Ynyslas
- Glyndŵr's Way 206 km (128 mi) from Knighton to Machynlleth
- Landsker Borderlands Trail, a 96 km (60 mi) route in Pembrokeshire and Carmarthenshire, centred on Whitland.
- Llŷn Coastal Path (also known as The Pilgrim Trail), 150 km (93 mi) between Caernarfon and Porthmadog in Gwynedd.
- Marches Way 320 km (200 mi) from Chester to Cardiff through the Welsh Marches
- The Maelor Way, is a key link path, running 38 km (24 mi) from the Offa's Dyke Path National Trail at Bronygarth to the Shropshire Way, Sandstone Trail, Llangollen Canal, South Cheshire Way, and the Marches Way all at Grindley Brook near Whitchurch.
- Monnow Valley Walk 65 km (40 mi) from Monmouth to Hay-on-Wye following the River Monnow
- North Wales Path 96 km (60 mi) from Bangor to Prestatyn
- Pembrokeshire Coast Path 300 km (186 mi) coastal trail from Amroth in the south to St. Dogmaels in the north
- Rhymney Valley Ridgeway Walk, 45 km (28 mi) circular walk around the Caerphilly basin in South Wales.
- Taff Trail, 109 km (68 mi) from Brecon to Cardiff
- Usk Valley Walk, 77 km (48 mi) from Caerleon to Brecon
- Valeways Millennium Heritage Trail, a circular walk of 111 km (69 mi) in the Vale of Glamorgan
- Wye Valley Walk, Chepstow - Plynlimon 218 km (135 mi)
Scotland
- Arran Coastal Way Around the Coastline of Arran
- Ayrshire Coastal Path From Stranraer to Skelmorlie along the Ayrshire coast.
- Borders Abbeys Way, 64.5 miles / 103 km; five sections
- Cape Wrath Trail, runs around 300 km (186 mi) from Fort William to Cape Wrath; as the route is unwaymarked, different guides to it suggest slightly different routes. See here.
- Cateran Trail, a circular 101 km (63 mi) walk centred on Blairgowrie
- Central Scottish Way, 251 km (156 mi) from Milngavie to Byrness (just over the border in Northumberland, England)
- Coast to Coast, 205 km (128 mi), Oban to St Andrews[1] 128 miles, ISBN 978-0-9526900-8-5
- Cowal Way, runs 75 km (47 mi) on the Cowal Peninsula from Portavadie to Ardgartan
- The East Highland Way, runs from Fort William to Aviemore
- Fife Coastal Path, 107 km (66 mi) from North Queensferry to Tayport
- John Muir Way, 73 km (45 mi) from Musselburgh to Dunglass
- Kintyre Way, 140 km (87 mi) from Tarbert to Dunaverty; fully waymarked. See here
- Moray Coast trail, Forres to Cullen, 50 Miles See here
- Rob Roy Way, Drymen to Pitlochry, 127 or 148 km (79 or 92 mi); not waymarked. See here
- St. Cuthbert's Way, 100 km (62 mi) from Melrose to Lindisfarne in England
- Sir Walter Scott Way from Moffat, Dumfries and Galloway to Cockburnspath, Scottish Borders
- West Island Way, 48 km (30 mi) from Kilchattan Bay to Port Bannatyne on the Isle of Bute
- West Highland Way, 150 km (93 mi) from Milngavie to Fort William just above Glasgow
Northern Ireland
Isle of Man
European walking routes
Several European walking routes pass through the United Kingdom. They all use sections of UK long-distance paths.
See also
References
External links
Recreational Walks in England
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