Enjoy a 4 mile, circular, ramble through lovely parkland followed by tranquil farmland paths and a section along Offa’s Dyke National Trail. The route is fairly flat and crosses eleven stiles and affords stunning views of the border landscape.
Montgomery
Montgomery is an historic Border market town situated in the Welsh Marches and is the old county town of Montgomeryshire. There is a mixture of Georgian, Victorian and much earlier half timbered architecture . The whole town within the ancient walls is a Conservation Area and is the jewel at the heart of the designated Outstanding Historic Landscape Area of the Vale of Montgomery.
The town was granted a Royal Charter in 1227 to enable it to build a wall and a ditch for protection and to hold fairs and markets. These continue today. The street plan has changed little in almost eight centuries; being laid out on the original medieval street pattern at the foot of an imposing cliff crowned with the ruins of Montgomery Castle which is a CADW protected site. It is only a mile from the Shropshire border and Offa’s Dyke National Trail which attracts both national and international walkers. (Words from Montgomery website)
Offa’s Dyke
Offa’s Dyke is a large linear earthwork that roughly follows the current border between England and Wales. The structure is named after Offa, the Anglo-Saxon king of Mercia from AD 757 until 796, who is traditionally believed to have ordered its construction. Although its precise original purpose is debated, it delineated the border between Anglian Mercia and the Welsh kingdom of Powys.
The dyke, which was up to 65 feet (20 m) wide (including its flanking ditch) and 8 feet (2.4 m) high, traversed low ground, hills and rivers. Today the earthwork is protected as a scheduled monument. Some of its route is followed by the Offa’s Dyke Path; a 176-mile (283 km) long-distance footpath that runs between Liverpool Bay in the north and the Severn Estuary in the south.
Lymore Park
The Lymore Park was home to a magnificent timber framed house from 1675 to 1931. It succumbed, however, to the ravages of rot and was demolished. It was located in the now wooded section near the beautifully situated Montgomery Town cricket ground, which has been in operation since 1847.