Walks Around Harbury & Ladbroke

Walk 7 The Qarries Walk

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The walk commences at the Village Hall (P). Cross the Playing Fields to a stile by Pineham Farm in the south-eastern corner (to those without a compass, the top left-hand corner). Follow the waymark signs through the gate turn left and right to cross the paddock and through two gates across the bridge onto Bush Heath Road. Head straight across the road through the waymarked gap in hedge on the far side.

Having crossed the road follow the footpath with the hedge on your right to a double stile and bridge about three quarters of the way down the field. Cross the stile and turn left to a wooden bridge beside a gate at the bottom of the field following the Harry Green way. Cross the bridge to a gate, bridge and stile at the top of the next field. After crossing the stile, a fine view of Bishop's Bowl Lakes, the abandoned cement quarry, can be seen. The Quarries are steep sided, dangerous and deep. This one is fenced off - there is no access from anywhere on our walk today.

The quarries are a relic of the Cement Works which finished production in Harbury in 1970. The area is now a private nature reserve and fishery and is open to the public. In Spring, a mass of cowslips cover the fields and islands in the lake and lilies cover the lakes. There is an abundance of orchids and other limestone - loving plants. The lakes and surrounding area are frequented by various water birds, particularly Canada geese and coots. Access to the Quarries is from the Bishops Itchington to Deppers Bridge road.

Our footpath goes diagonally right across the field to an old, poorly marked way marker post in the hedgerow. Keeping the hedgerow on your right, follow the footpath to a stile hidden in the corner of two hedgerows on your right just beyond the first overhead cables. From here, walk diagonally downhill over the field towards a clump of trees at the bottom. At this point, cross the stile and bridge and continue uphill with the hedge on your right.

Cross the stile at the top of the hill. There was a pond on the right, which has become overgrown. Looking back, you will see a fine view of typical Warwickshire farmland which extends to Harbury. To continue our walk, keep the fence on your right and follow the footpath to a gap on the right where a gate has existed at some point in the past. The houses of Bishops Itchington are 200 metres ahead of you.

At this point, walk 8 continues along the path by the fence to a stile which leads into Bishops Itchington. The church tower at Bishops Itchington is in the immediate foreground, and there are views of the Burton Dassett Hills and Edge Hill before you.

Through the gap, our walk now turns right. With Manor Farm on the left, the path crosses the field diagonally right to a gate. Once through the gate, cross the Harbury to Bishops Itchington road, go through the gate and take the track past the solar farm which is either side of the track and then past the allotment gardens on your left. This track can be extremely wet and muddy and slippery after heavy rain - animals and little children have been known to disappear without trace - you have been warned!

At the end of the track, continue straight across the field. At the far side of the field, go through a kissing gate where you now join walk 9 and the Centenary Way. Straight on a path leads to Chesterton and Kingston, but our path turns immediately right alongside the ditch which is lined with oak trees.

Keeping the ditch on your right, follow the bridleway into a spinney. Go straight ahead through the spinney, passing through the gate at the far end onto a metalled farm road. On a clear day, stand at the white metal gate on the far side of the road to view the Malvern Hills in the distance - and remember, if you can see the Hills it is going to rain and if you can't see them it is probably already raining!

Turn right and follow the farm road to its junction at a cattle grid, the entrance to the Thwaite’s estate (the dumper truck magnate) with the Bishops Itchington to Warwick road. Cross this road onto Bush Heath Road and turn immediately left onto Bush Heath Lane, which takes you back towards Harbury. Follow Bush Heath Lane to a gate on the right 100 metres from the houses and under the overhead cables. Cross the field to a gap in the trees, which takes you back over the Playing Fields to the Village Hall and car park.