5 Great Walks (With Pub Stops) Near Bristol


At BristolandLocal we often get asked for suggestions about lovely walks near Bristol that include a pub stop. Luckily, Dan, our resident nature walker has some lovely suggestions to share, and so, this is the round-up of 5 nature walks near Bristol that includes a pub stop.

In this post, we suggest walking routes and give you miles and timings taken from the AllTrails website. This is a great Website to know, they also have a user-friendly app and you can use the service absolutely free!

Here is a link to the AllTrails site– you can sign up for an account but the basic version, which is always enough for our purposes is free. They crowdsource walk suggestions and people’s comments and attach photos of the walk. Short of having perfect photos to upload, we’ve included some screenshots of these below.

Photo from a section of the Pill Path walk, details below

We’ve tried to include fairly ‘easy’ walks here- but we recommend checking the comments to see what the recent feedback says as walks can be very different in wet conditions. Also, please always be careful, wear appropriate clothing and don’t walk in extreme weather…..feel free to use this post as pub suggestions for bad weather days too!

An overview of the 5 walk suggestions:

  1. Rowberrow Warren Wood and Dolebury Hill Fort Circular (5.6 miles)
  2. Pensford and Stanton Wick Circular (3.7 mile or 10 miles)
  3. Bristol and Abbots Leigh Circular (ending in Clifton Village- 14.6 miles)
  4. Bristol and Abbots Leigh Circular (ending in Clifton Village- 14.6 miles)
  5. Weston to Upton Cheyney (7.2 miles)

For each walk, we are clear to describe how far it is and whether you can get there by public transport. The accessibility is one of the great things about the countryside near Bristol!

We also have a post on Fantastic nature walks IN Bristol which you may also enjoy browsing for the country feel with less travel after you’ve had a go through this one.

1. Rowberrow Warren Wood and Dolebury Hill Fort Circular (5.6 miles)

This walk starts and ends in the village of Roberrow, situated right at the edge of the Mendip Hills, an area of outstanding beauty. It is a popular spot for walkers, runners and cyclists.

There are a number of paths and trails, stretching across the Mendips from Rowberrow.

Start/Finish pointRowberrow
Walk Length 5.6 Miles Circular (9km)
How to get thereA 30-minute drive from Bristol Temple Meads, also accessible by Public Transport (On Falcone and Airport Link Bus. Depending on times it might take about 1hr30)
All Trails Linkhttps://www.alltrails.com/en-gb/explore/trail/england/somerset/rowberrow-warren-wood-and-dolebury-hill-fort-circular?mobileMap=false&ref=sidebar-static-map&u=i
Pub at the EndThe Swan Inn, Rowberrow

The Swan Inn, Rowberrow A highly recommended, grade 2 listed pub and inn, very popular with walkers and cyclists. Delicious pub classics and food offers based on seasonal produce, with Butcombe beer range on tap.

These are photos, posted by walkers, on the AllTrails page at this address here (Or see link in text above)

2. Pensford and Stanton Wick Circular (3.7 mile or 10 miles)

This is a circular loop starting from the village of Pensford. It is a lovely, 3.7-mile (which might take 1hr 40mins) loop walk, with the option to go for a lovely pub meal at The Rising Sun.

Start/Finish PointPensford
Walk Lenth3.7 mile (~<6 km) [Option for 10-mile route above]
How to get thereYou can drive there in 25 minutes from Temple Meads or it’s accessible by public transport on the 379 or the 376 Mendip Explorer from Temple meads- the journey is about half an hour and the busses come every 30 minutes,
All Trails Linkhttps://www.alltrails.com/en-gb/trail/england/somerset/pensford-and-stanton-wick-circular?u=i
Pub at the EndThe Rising Sun

The is a gorgeous pub, and the outdoor garden backs onto a fabulous Pensford Viaduct, over the River Chew.

Photo was taken from the Rising Sun Instagram page (@risingsunpensford)

Option: Dundry, Chew Manga and Pensford Circular (10 miles)

If you fancy a longer walk (and feel confident to do a bit of route adapting), you can follow the Dundry Chew Manga and Pensford Circular and adapt the route to start and end in Pensford (and cut out the section that walks up to Dundry). That then becomes a just under 10 mile (16km) loop- which might take about 4 hrs 30min.

3. Bristol and Abbots Leigh Circular (ending in Clifton Village- 14.6 miles)

This walk goes directly from the city, up the Pill path to Pill and then back around through Abbots Leigh, Abbots Pond (where a lot of people enjoy stopping off for a swim). You can then walk crossing back over the suspension Bridge to Clifton where we suggest The Mall Pub as your end-of-route stop- and this is a long walk- your pints will be hard earned!

The route on all trails starts and ends at Brandon Hill park- but can be adjusted as suits you.

Start/Finish pointBrandon Hill park (or can start at Cumberland Basin and End at Clifton Village)
Walk Length14.6 miles
How to get thereIt starts from the city – so you can walk/get a bus/cycle or drive (if so- check parking options)
AllTrails Linkhttps://www.alltrails.com/en-gb/explore/trail/england/bristol/bristol-and-abbots-leigh-circular?u=i
Pub at EndThe Mall Clifton Village

The Mall pub in Clifton Village is a very beautifully up-kept City Pub, with stained glass, and a secret- three-tiered garden to the back. It’s very stylish but also warm and laid back.

This is a picture of the Mall Garden in Clifton Village (Photo from The Mall Clifton Village facebook page)

4. Chopping Sodbury for the Sodbury Circular (6 miles)

This is a very low-key, Cotswolds field walk, past a lovely church, along footpaths and through fields (possibly with some horse round if you’re lucky!) and then up a lovely hill for a little view over the countryside.

The walk is the Sodbury Circular. It’s 6 miles, which might take about 2hrs 30 to complete. You start and end in the town, and that’s also the pub spot!

Start/FinishChipping Sodbury
Walk Length6 miles circular (~10km)
How to get thereIt’s near Bristol, a 30 min drive northeast of Temple Meads, and close to the M4. It’s also accessible by public transport.
AllTrails Linkhttps://www.alltrails.com/en-gb/explore/trail/england/bristol/the-sodburys?mobileMap=false&ref=sidebar-static-map&u=i
Pub at EndThe Squire (Pub and Steakhouse)

Chipping Sodbury is a little market town just outside of Bristol, near Yate. It’s a 35-minute drive north from temple meads, and accessible by a slow bus from Bristol Parkway

A family-friendly hub and steakhouse. It’s got a modern interior, it’s simple and no fuss, with a big hall-type dining space, lots of ales and really great food!

5. Weston to Upton Cheyney (7.2 miles)

This is a 7.2-mile circular walk. It might take about 3 hours to complete- and at the end is a lovely pub- the Charlecombe Inn.

Walk Start/FinishLansdown park and ride
Length7.2-mile circular (11.5km)
How to Get thereThis is really near Bath, and there are busses from the city- Lansdown is actually Bath park-and-ride. It’s a 30 min drive from Bristol.
Alltrails Linkhttps://www.alltrails.com/en-gb/explore/trail/england/somerset/weston-to-upton-cheyney?u=i
Pub at the endThe Charlecombe Inn

The Charlecombe also really welcomes walkers and on their website are links to some short circular walks nearby. They have a little brochure of them: Walks near the Charlecombe Inn, or check details on their website. These walks come with instructions- I have given all trail links as I prefer that for navigation- but seeing as not everyone is me, this might be perfect for you!

We hope you’ve enjoyed this guide. you may also love our post on Fantastic nature walks IN Bristol for weekend when you want the country feels but have a bit less time to spare.

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