Stanton and Snowshill, Cotswolds. B Walk (BOOKING ESSENTIAL)

B WALK DESCRIPTION: This walk takes in typical rural Cotswolds landscape and villages. We start at the pretty village of Stanton and soon pick up a section of the Winchcombe Way which offers some very pleasing views of the wider countryside to the west. At the village of Buckland we walk briefly along the village road then turn off to take an undulating route to the north of the village - and have a morning tea break around here. We pick up a bit of the Cotswold Way on a farm track and rejoin the Winchcombe Way which here takes a high level mostly flat path with great views this time to the east.  We leave this path and descend to Snowshill, another pretty Cotswold village nestling in the fold of the valley.  We take a lunch break here, places to eat our lunches round by the church with the Snowshill Arms very handily nearby. Leaving Snowshill we ascend a lane and halfway up take a field path towards Littleworth Wood;  emerging from the wood we are on another high level path which follows a plateau for a short distance before we take a short detour to the Shenberrow Hill Iron Age settlement which shows some remains of the earthworks – and beautiful vistas. Next is Stanton Hill (that’s what I call it, although it’s not called anything on the map). It’s a gradual descent from here with fantastic views way off to the west, the familiar profile of the Malverns on the horizon and nearer unnamed hills in between.  It’s a lovely descent!  At the bottom of the hill we walk into Stanton and pick up a field path towards the main road where our coach is parked. Walk distance: 9.25 miles, total ascent:1,250 feet (378 metres). Picnic lunch around pub Leader: Brenda Cameron.