In the Cotswolds, meander through forests and farms as you hike from one charming village to the next

Near Winchcombe, the trail leads past a country manor. Pam LeBlanc photo

For the last two hours, I’ve hiked across meadows carpeted in buttercups, into thick forests and past moss-covered stone walls. When I finally reach the top of a ridgeline here in the Cotswolds, I swing through a wooden gate, round a bend and arrive at a dirt mound about the size of a half a football field. 

This is Belas Knap, a Stone Age burial site where archaeologists have uncovered the remains of 31 people. I explore the edge of the mound, pausing to peer into a dark side chamber, then walk down its spine, thinking about the people buried here thousands of years ago. 

It’s just one highlight of a guided trip through the Cotswolds with Active England. While we’re not doing the complete 102-mile Cotswold Way, our six-day itinerary is heavy on hiking. Unlike Texas, where hikers encounter prickly plants, venomous snakes and scorching temperatures, the Cotswolds feature lush, shady forests, stately country manors, and lots of sheep.  

Roman history in Bath 

We started our tour in Bath, about 100 miles west of London, named for the spring-fed thermal pools built there by Romans around 60 AD. It’s a UNESCO World Heritage Site. If you followed the Netflix series “Bridgerton,” you might recognize a few buildings.  

We strolled the streets, meandered onto the Pulteney Bridge over River Avon, and peeked in the windows of tea shops and boutiques. Eventually, we made our way to the Francis Hotel for the night. Originally built as a row of townhouses, it was converted to a hotel in 1884. It’s got some history. Bombed during World War II, it was rebuilt in the early 1950s. The Beatles stayed there in 1963.  

Racehorses, forests and more  

We followed trails through forests of ancient trees. Pam LeBlanc photo

Our first day of real hiking began with a leisurely 5-mile stroll through the Slad Valley.  

The Cotswolds get their name from the rolling “wolds” or hills that distinguish them. Our route took us alongside pastures where racehorses grazed and past farms raising ducks and sheep. The trails remain open to the public, just as they have for centuries, even if they crisscross farmers’ fields or pass through private property.  

We wrapped up our morning walk with lunch at the 300-year-old Woolpack Inn. The menu includes deviled kidneys on toast, partridge with bread sauce, and “hogget faggots,” a type of meatball made from sheep offal. British poet and writer Laurie Lee, who once frequented this pub, made it famous in his novel “Cider with Rosie.”  

After lunch, we made our way to Painswick, known as the Queen of the Cotswolds. The streets there are so narrow we had to fold in our van’s mirrors to avoid bumping other cars. The Painswick, our home for two nights, was built at the height of the wool trade in the late 18th century.  

With an afternoon to burn, we headed to Painswick Beacon, one of the highest points in the Cotswolds. It’s a short but steep walk to the top of the hill, where you can take in a 360-degree view. The buttresses of an ancient Iron Age fort remain visible. Then we popped by St. Mary’s Church, where visitors can wander among 99 meticulously pruned yew trees, some reminiscent of the huge stone heads on Easter Island.  

A garlic-scented walk through the Cotswolds

Walking paths in the Cotswolds lead through farmers fields filled with sheep and lambs. Pam LeBlanc photo

The forests here smell like wild garlic, which made me want to flop down on the ground and breathe deeply. The plants thrive in these woodlands, and in spring they bloom, making the whole place smell like pizza.  

Our 7-mile hike began in Winchcombe and led up a hillside to Belas Knap, where I’m now exploring that burial mound. After a break, we continue our hike. When we make our way over a crest flanked by fields filled with newborn lambs, I stop to admire the bleating babies. A solo hiker approaches, lured by the animals. She tells me she used to live in Austin but moved to the UK to get away from the traffic. We chat, then I march on, admiring a stately country estate. When I walk into a pasture, a pig as big as a two-man tent rushes over to greet me. 

After lunch (plus scones and clotted cream, my fave), we stroll the High Street in Broadway, then drive up to the Broadway Tower, a monument designed for George William, Sixth Earl of Coventry. Depending on who tells the story, the earl either built the tower as an overlook of an old trading route, or as a backdrop for trysts with his mistress. Either way, the 2-mile hike from the tower to the village is worth doing. 

More nature in the Cotswolds 

As the trip goes on, I fall into a leisurely routine. Mornings begin with a hike, followed by lunch at an idyllic country pub. Afternoons are spent wandering streets of villages built of wheat-colored limestone draped in wisteria. 

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Today we start in Sapperton and set out on a shaded path. The trail leads into the Sapperton Valley. Along the way we pass another country manor, this one lined with blooming flowers. But the highlight comes when we reach Daneway Banks, a nature reserve where scientists are reintroducing the large blue butterfly, which vanished here in the 1970s. The butterflies won’t appear until June or July, but the wildflowers are glorious. This land has never been plowed. 

Wake up with the birds 

Our final day begins with a Dawn Chorus hike between the adjacent towns of Upper and Lower Slaughters with ornithologist and birding guide Ed Drewitt.  

“We’re just going to hop up to this churchyard, which was built in Normandy times,” Drewitt says as we pile out of the van in galoshes borrowed from the hotel. For the next hour we walk along the River Eye, our heads on a swivel. 

“Just turn your head like a satellite dish,” Drewitt suggests, as we cup our ears and listen to birds calling. 

Loss of habitat and intensive agricultural uses have caused steep declines in bird populations in Britain and elsewhere in the last 40 years. But here in the Cotswolds, farmers are working to protect the ancient forests and riparian habitat they need. We listen to chaffinches, chiffchaffs, blackbirds and starlings. 

Afterward, we visit nearby towns. In Stow-on-the-Wold, we admire a pair of twisted yew trees that frame the doorway of St. Edward’s Church. They’re said to have inspired the Door of the Durin in J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings.”  

In Chipping Campden, we visit Hart Silversmiths, where artisans have been handcrafting everything from teapots to pendants to processional crosses since 1888. Some of the tools still in use pre-date the workshop’s current location, which opened in 1902. Yellowing invoice sheets are tacked to the ceiling and Frank Lloyd Wright’s signature appears in a guestbook.  

Dreaming of the Cotswold Way

After five days of exploring, I’ve gotten a feel for the area. I’ll forever associate the Cotswolds with the scent of wild garlic and wisteria. When I see a building made of honey-colored limestone, I’ll remember the villages I visited.  

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Our hikes have been leisurely and unhurried, taken at a pace that somehow matches the setting. It’s given me time to think about the deep history of the region, and the long tradition of wool production and farming. 

It’s also given me a new goal – to return and hike the entire Cotswolds Way.