Walk Around Stow-on-the-Wold
/We had forgotten how beautiful the shades of green on the rolling hills and valleys were in the Cotswolds. I sent pictures to a friend, who answered, “it looks like Iowa where we grew up.” And I answered, “Yes! Isn’t it wonderful.”
This is the door nestled between two yew trees on the side of St. Edwards Church in Stow-on-the-Wold dating back to the 11th Century. The door is said to be the inspiration for Tolkien’s “Doors of Durin” in his Lord of the Rings trilogy.
At the “Sheep Inn” on Sheep Street in Stow-on-the-Wold we found out luggage sitting in a corner of the lobby. After a few minutes with no one showing up we went into the attached restaurant and were told they were getting ready for service and the reception would be there soon. Shortly we were sent to a back building and a very large comfortable room to call home for three nights.
After checking in we walked around Stow for a couple of hours in the late afternoon. This was actually our third time in Stow. The first was for two nights on a tour in 2017. We fell in love with the Cotswolds on a tour led walk through Upper Slaughter and down to Lower Slaughter, with ice cream at the water wheel. We were in Stow again in 2022. This was a planned 12 day walk in the Cotswolds which was delayed until the summer of 2022 because of the COVID lock down. At that time we were dropped in Stow as the start of a 4.5 mile walk to Bledington, and didn’t have much time to look around the village.
This time in Stow we explored St. Edwards Church, a Church of England, that dates back to the mid 11th Century, with updates and additions for the next 800 years. A product of the wool trade, the church is best known today for a back door nestled between two yew trees which have been given credit as Tolkien’s inspiration of the Doors of Durin in the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
There is a large Tesco Super Store on the northern edge of town and several small restaurants and snack shops in the center of town. We also enjoyed the Tara Antiques Center on the village square with 3 floors of items representing 30 dealers. The Durham House antiques on Sheep Street was just up the street from our hotel and also held excellent collections. With over 2,000 years of history we can see why the UK has so many antiques.
On day 2 our driver dropped us off at Naunton, about six miles southwest of Stow. Reading our directions we crossed through a gate and started up a pasture hill and into the woods. We walked through several fields, past a few horse farms, met two horse riders, walked along a stream, met a few other walkers going back toward Naunton. A couple hours after we started, we passed behind a house, walked up a hill and we were suddenly looking down at a stone bridge crossing the River Eye to a street leading into Upper Slaughter.
Rolling Hills. There is a beauty to the green, the fields, the wide open sky. One of our views as we walked from Broadwell to where were staying for three nights in Stow-on-the-wold.
Upper Slaughter has been settled for at least 2,000 years. The manor house is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086. With a population of 181, Upper Slaughter is residential with no services. We found St. Peter’s Church containing elements of Norman and Saxon architecture to be a unique structure.
Leaving the church we walked back down the hill. We met a couple of gentlemen and asked if they knew where the trail to Lower Slaughter started. They pointed across the street and said to follow them.
The mile or so to Lower Slaughter was a gentle walk through a pasture, mainly following the River Eye. It was interesting entering Lower Slaughter. The first thing we saw were 2x4s nailed to a post. The top 2x4 had an arrow pointing to the left and said “Church.” The middle 2x4 had an arrow to the right and said “Dog Bin.” The bottom board had an arrow to the left and said “Cricket Club.” And so was our entrance to Lower Slaughter.
Walking farther into town, we came to the water wheel mill, doubling as the Lower Slaughter Museum, but it was closed for renovation work. I was disappointed as I was looking forward to the ice cream we has eaten on our 2017 visit as it was delicious.
The ice cream shop/museum, closed for renovation when we were there, was opened in 2013. The Parish Council opposed the shop because visitors would damage the grass around the town, and children might fall into the river.
Walking along the River Eye, the back streets opened up and we crossed the river on a stone bridge to The Slaughters Country Inn. It was lunch time and the inn was packed. A couple from London on a mini-vacation let us share their table and along with a very good lunch we enjoyed an interesting conversation.
There has been a community calling Lower Slaughter home for over 1,000 years. Today 236 people live in the Cotswold limestone houses. The main attraction is The Slaughters Country Inn, which was busy with visitors who had come to see this idealistic adorable village with stone houses and thatched roofs.
Our driver picked us up and returned us to Stow on the Wold.
On Day 3 our driver dropped us off at St. James Church in Clapton on the Hill, about 7 miles south of Stow on the Wold and we started our walk toward Bourton on the Water.
The drive through Clapton on the Hill was interesting. There were several houses, some very new and many were in the renovation stage. All the work seemed unusual for a population of 110 (in 2019) and a village with no services, but our driver explained. Many people discovered that they could work from home, and home could be anywhere, and suddenly the little Cotswold villages had become very desirable.
We looked through St. James, a small stone church, dating back to the 12th Century. It seats about 45 parishioners, and has impressive stained-glass windows. The church works in conjunction with the church in Bourton on the Water. Services are held at St. James once a month.
Leaving the church yard, we crossed into a pasture overlooking the Windrush Valley and started downhill along a fence on our left. It was a steep downhill, which went on for a long time, until we drifted to our right looking for a break in the hedgerow. We found the break, but it was wrong, and from that point on, we were fairly lost. Using the app on the phone, we made our way back toward Bourton of the Water. Eventually we reached a gravel road, which according to the app would take us into Bourton on the Water. It was not on the trail as planned as we were walking through an industrial area, but we were in Bourton on the Water.
Bourton of the Water was charming. Its highlight were several stone bridges crossing the Windrush River. The town was full of shops, restaurants and exhibits with multiple things to do…and it was crowded. With a population of 3,300 people in 2011, it’s the setting which attracts people with the combination of low stone bridges and quaint stone building and access on the A429 highway. Hundreds of thousands of tourist visit every year, a situation similar to Stow on the Wold, with many on tour buses, and others on day trips.
We ate our lunch as quickly as we could and left on our trek to the northeast and the village of Wyck Rissington, about 2 miles away.
We passed through Greystones Farm on the edge of Bourton on the Water. The Greystone Farm is a privately owned working farm, open to the public. Along with tours of the various farm activities, such as their dairy barns, they also have public events such as storytelling around the camp fire and history lessons in an Iron Age roundhouse they have built on the property.
We crossed through a series of pastures and at about the half way point we reached a bridge crossing the River Eye. We found a public area had been built in the middle of nowhere with benches and a kiosk explaining the topography and the local inhabitants from grey herons to otters to kingfishers, demoiselle fly, water voles, and brown trout.
We sat for a few minutes and simply enjoyed the gently flowing river. We crossed the bridge and entered a field and soon we could see the houses of Wyck Rissington in the distance.
Because of the crowds in Bourton on the Water and our hasty departure we arrived in Wyck Rissington about two hours before the pick-up time. The town contained a few dozen homes and the St. Laurence Church.
We were a couple of hours ahead of schedule. We had gone through Burton on the Water quicker than planned. We called the driving service. He was on the road with another client, but should be back by the scheduled pick-up time of 4PM.
We were literally forced to stop.
We sat on a bench in the church yard for a while, looked through photos on our phones. We walked through the church. Sat in the church yard again, checked our watches to see how long before the pick-up service would arrive. It was really very frustrating…this waiting.
Then it began to rain. It was back to the church for shelter. We were glad the churches in England have an open door policy. This time we took a relook at the church. There were all types of booklets and lists detailing parts of the building, sharing St. Laurence Church’s over 750 years of history. How the roof of the nave collapsed in the 1700s and was rebuilt at a lower level than the transepts and chancel. The nave roof was restored to its original height in the late 1800s. It also described the unique Gable Cross on the tower and the remarkable stained-glass windows.
We read the list of the 21 people who are members of the church (April 2024) and noticed how the services are held in conjunction with the church in Bourton-on-the-Water. Services are held once a month in Wyck Rissington.
All afternoon, we watched the rain, and talked about our trip, and the beautiful church sheltering us from the rain, and watched for the pick-up car. Our driver arrived right on time and took us to the hotel in Stow on the Wold.
This was one of the few times when we actually took in what was happening around us. We were forced to slow down and immerse ourselves in the events surrounding us. It was a great lesson and one of the best days of the trip.