The

Wye Valley The Wye Valley () is a valley in Wales and England. The River Wye () is the Rivers of Great Britain#Longest rivers in the United Kingdom, fourth-longest river in the United Kingdom. The upper part of the valley is in the Cambrian Mountains an ...

Walk () is a

long distance footpath A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, equestrianism or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents exce ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

and

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

following the course of the

River Wye The River Wye (; ) is the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn Estuary. The lower reaches of the river forms part of Wales-England bor ...

History

In 1975 the Wye Valley Walk opened with a stretch between St. Arvans and

Monmouth Monmouth ( or ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated on where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. The population in the 2011 census was 10,508, rising from 8 ...

. Further stretches were added, leading to it becoming a 34-mile (55 km) footpath by 1981. During the 1980s, gaps between

Ross-on-Wye Ross-on-Wye is a market town and civil parish in Herefordshire, England, near the border with Wales. It had a population estimated at 10,978 in 2021. It lies in the south-east of the county, on the River Wye and on the northern edge of the Fore ...

Hay-on-Wye Hay-on-Wye, or simply Hay (; or simply ), is a market town and community (Wales), community in Powys, Wales. With over twenty bookshops, it is often described as a book town, "town of books"; it is both the National Book Town of Wales and the s ...

and

Rhayader Rhayader (; ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Powys, Wales, within the Historic counties of Wales, historic county of Radnorshire. The town is from the source of the River Wye on Plynlimon, the highest point of the Cambri ...

were integrated into the pathway, forming a walk reaching from near the river's mouth at

Chepstow Chepstow () is a town and community in Monmouthshire, Wales, adjoining the border with Gloucestershire, England. It is located on the tidal River Wye, about above its confluence with the River Severn, and adjoining the western end of the ...

Monmouthshire Monmouthshire ( ; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county in the South East Wales, south east of Wales. It borders Powys to the north; the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire to the north and east; the Severn Estuary to the s ...

, to

Mid Wales Mid Wales ( or simply ''Y Canolbarth'', meaning "the midlands"), or Central Wales, is a region of Wales, encompassing its midlands, in-between North Wales and South Wales. The Mid Wales Regional Committee of the Senedd covered the unitary autho ...

. In September 2002, the route was finally extended to start or finish in Coed Hafren, having passed within viewing distance of the source of the

Plynlimon Plynlimon, or Pumlumon in Welsh language, Welsh (also historically anglicised as Plinlimon, Plynlymmon or Plinlimmon), is the highest point of the Cambrian Mountains in Wales (taking a restricted definition of the Cambrian Mountains, ex ...

near

Aberystwyth Aberystwyth (; ) is a University town, university and seaside town and a community (Wales), community in Ceredigion, Wales. It is the largest town in Ceredigion and from Aberaeron, the county's other administrative centre. In 2021, the popula ...

, a total of .

The route

Northern end of the Wye Valley Walk - geograph

The Wye Valley Walk is marked out by circular yellow

waymark Trail blazing or way marking is the practice of marking paths in outdoor recreational areas with signs or markings that follow each other at certain, though not necessarily exactly defined, distances and mark the direction of the trail. A blaz ...

arrows, finger posts, and signs showing the path's

logo A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name that it represents, as in ...

, a leaping

salmon Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...

. Most of the route follows Public Rights of Way. Some parts are permissive paths where owners have agreed for them to be used. Parts of Plynlimon are open countryside in which there is a

right to roam The freedom to roam, or everyone's right, every person's right or everyman's right, is the general public's right to access certain public or privately owned land, lakes, and rivers for recreation and exercise. The right is sometimes called the ...

established by the

Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 (c. 37), also known as the CRoW Act and "Right to Roam" Act, is a United Kingdom Act of Parliament affecting England and Wales which came into force on 30 November 2000. Right to roam The Act impleme ...

. The Wye Valley Walk: The essentials
Retrieved 12 April 2014 The route passes through Chepstow, the

AONB An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is one of 46 areas of countryside in England, Wales, or Northern Ireland that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Since 2023, the areas in England an ...

Tintern Tintern () is a village in the community (Wales), community of Wye Valley (community), Wye Valley, on the west bank of the River Wye in Monmouthshire, Wales, close to the border with England, about north of Chepstow. It is popular with tourist ...

Symonds Yat Symonds Yat is a village in the Wye Valley in the English counties of Herefordshire and Gloucestershire, and a popular tourist destination. It straddles the River Wye, and is within a few miles of Monmouthshire and the Welsh border. The two ...

Hereford Hereford ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of the ceremonial county of Herefordshire, England. It is on the banks of the River Wye and lies east of the border with Wales, north-west of Gloucester and south-west of Worcester. With ...

Builth Wells Builth Wells (; ) is a market town and community in the county of Powys and historic county of Brecknockshire (Breconshire), mid Wales, lying at the confluence of rivers Wye and Irfon, in the Welsh (or upper) part of the Wye Valley. In 20 ...

, and

Llangurig Llangurig is a village and community in Montgomeryshire, Powys, Wales. The population was 723 in the 2011 UK Census. The community includes the hamlet of Cwmbelan. The River Wye, the A470 and the A44 trunk roads pass through Llangurig, as do th ...

to Plynlimon. The route of the Wye Valley Walk can be broken into 17 stages, though the entire walk is often walked in seven day-length sections from Chepstow to Plynlimon, or vice versa.

Days and sections

Days and sections* described in the text ''The Wye Valley Walk'', and The Wye Valley Walk website, both by The Wye Valley Partnership.

Day 1

*Section 1:

Chepstow Castle Chepstow Castle () at Chepstow, Monmouthshire, Wales, is the oldest surviving post-Roman stone fortification in Britain. Located above cliffs on the River Wye, construction began in 1067 under the instruction of the Normans, Norman Lord William ...

Tintern Abbey Tintern Abbey ( ) is a ruined medieval abbey situated adjacent to the village of Tintern in Monmouthshire, on the Welsh bank of the River Wye, which at this location forms the border between Monmouthshire in Wales and Gloucestershire in England. ...

– *Section 2: Tintern Abbey to Monmouth –

Day 2

*Section 1: Monmouth to Symonds Yat – *Section 2: Symonds Yat to Kerne Bridge – *Section 3: Kerne Bridge to Ross-on-Wye –

Day 3

*Section 1: Ross-on-Wye to Fownhope – *Section 2: Fownhope to Hereford –

Day 4

*Section 1: Hereford to Byford – *Section 2: Byford to Bredwardine – *Section 3: Bredwardine to Hay-on-Wye –

Day 5

*Section 1: Hay-on-Wye to

Glasbury Glasbury (), also known as Glasbury-on-Wye, is a village and community in Powys, Wales. The village lies at an important crossing point on the River Wye, connecting the historic counties of Brecknockshire and Radnorshire, and is located just outs ...

– *Section 2: Glasbury to Erwood – *Section 3: Erwood to Builth Wells –

Day 6

*Section 1: Builth Wells to

Newbridge-on-Wye Newbridge-on-Wye ( ) is a small village in Powys, Wales. It lies, as its name suggests, on the River Wye, just downstream from the market town of Rhayader, and in the community of Llanyre. Location Newbridge-on-Wye is located roughly in the m ...

– *Section 2: Newbridge-on-Wye to Rhayader –

Day 7

*Section 1: Rhayader to Llangurig – *Section 2: Llangurig to Rhyd-y-benwch (Plynlimon) – _{*miles and km rounded to whole numbers}

Landmarks

The Wye Valley Walk passes the following notable landmarks: *

Goodrich Castle Goodrich Castle is a Norman medieval castle ruin north of the village of Goodrich in Herefordshire, England, controlling a key location between Monmouth and Ross-on-Wye. It was praised by William Wordsworth as the "noblest ruin in Herefordsh ...

* Capler Camp

Rail access

The following stations have services provided by

Transport for Wales Transport for Wales (TfW; ; ) is a not-for-profit company owned by the Welsh Government and managed at arms length by its appointed board. TfW oversees the Transport for Wales Group (TfW Group) consisting of itself and its subsidiaries: Trans ...

which can be used to connect with the Wye Valley Walk: * Chepstow railway station * Hereford railway station *

Builth Road railway station Builth Road railway station is a station primarily serving the town of Builth Wells, in mid Wales. It is on the Heart of Wales Line. The station is over northwest of Builth Wells via the A470, a busy trunk road. The hamlet of Builth Road ha ...

References

{{authority control Recreational walks in Wales Footpaths in Powys Long-distance footpaths in the United Kingdom Tourist attractions in Monmouthshire Long-distance footpaths in Wales Long-distance footpaths in England River Wye Footpaths in Herefordshire