Video

Gallery

Map

Directions

Start: Crich Market Place

Crich is a delightful historic village in the heart of Amber Valley. Once an important pack horse route crossing the hills, the stone troughs in the Market Place are reminders of this past. Crich is also known for its rich natural mineral deposits, including limestone and lead.

1. Walk up Sandy Lane past the Baptist Church (beware of traffic). Just after the Fire Station, take the footpath on the left signposted Chadwick Nick. Continue straight ahead through the squeeze stile and across five small fields along The Tors.
   To the right and behind you are views of Crich Stand and St Mary’s Church. Crich Stand is dedicated to members of the Sherwood Foresters Regiment.
2. Follow the footpath as it turns left down stone steps to the road. Turn left and walk along the roadside (beware of traffic). After ½ mile, take the footpath on the left signposted The Common. Cross the road (take care) and follow the road almost opposite (Fritchley Lane). Continue down this lane into Fritchley village. At The Green, continue straight ahead along Bowmer Lane, which bears right and drops down into the valley.
3. Follow the footpath skirting the Sewage Works and cross the first footbridge. Continue ahead, keeping the boundary on your left. Cross the second footbridge and walk along the field parallel to the railway line. At the end of the field, do not use the stile crossing the railway. Instead turn left and climb uphill with the hedgerow on your right through four fields.
4. Go over the stile hidden in the hedge and turn left to continue up the hill. Cross the road (beware of traffic) and follow the track opposite. Continue straight over further stiles until a woodland appears on your left. Do not enter the woodland. Instead, climb the stile ahead and turn right, keeping the field boundary on your right.
5. At the gate and squeeze stile, turn right. This bridleway runs between walls and hedges. Follow the main bridleway through the gate, bearing left as it winds downhill.
6. After ½ mile, just after the track bends right, reach a stile on your left. Ahead are excellent views of Wingfield Manor on the skyline. Climb the stile and continue straight, keeping the hedge on your left, to the stile beside an oak tree. Cross and enter the woodland. The path is uneven in places. Pass the pond, climb the stone stile at the wall, and bear right towards another stile.
7. Do not cross the stile. Instead, turn right and double back into the woodland. Follow the path past the ruin of a house, then through a field. The well waymarked footpath continues through a lawn and along a driveway leading to the road.
8. Turn right on the road (beware of traffic) and almost immediately cross to the footpath opposite. Climb for ½ mile, keeping the hedge/stone wall on your left. At the crest, continue straight ahead with the boundary on your right. This footpath leads toward Wingfield Manor (no public access from here). Follow the footpath downhill to the right of the manor. At the junction, turn left onto the bridlepath heading north, which bears left and eventually meets the B5035.
   Wingfield Manor contains the dramatic ruins of a medieval manor once home to the Earl of Shrewsbury. Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned here in 1569, 1584, and 1585. This is now private land and you can only view the ruins from public footpaths.
9. Cross the road (beware of traffic). Turn left and after 150 metres take the footpath on the right signposted Inns Lane. At the next stile, turn left and cross the footbridge over Boggy Brook. Ahead, climb the stile and follow the path with the hedge on your left. Continue uphill through six fields, enjoying excellent views of Wingfield Manor.
10. The footpath meets a stone wall. Turn right and walk northwest uphill. Continue over several fields and through a field gate. At the farm track turn left toward Hill Top Farm. Just after the farm, bear right uphill. Cross through two small fields; the path then bears right behind two houses and left down steps to the road. Turn right (beware of traffic) for ¼ mile to Mooredge Farm. Take the footpath signposted for the church. Go through the squeeze stile and head straight across the field, keeping the hedge on your right and the farm track parallel. Head toward Crich Church. The stile is at the bottom left of the field. Enter the graveyard and follow the path up the right side of both new and old graveyards. At the top, go through the kissing gate and head towards Crich Stand.
11. Continue over two fields, keeping the stone wall on your left. At the road, turn left and follow it around to the right past the National Tramway Museum (optional detour to Crich Stand available). Just past the museum, cross the road (beware of traffic) to take the bridleway to Crich. The path bears left through a field; an old railway bridge is visible on the left. Continue straight at the fingerpost. Follow the road onto Coast Hill, bear right, and follow it downhill. Turn left at the junction to return to Crich Market Place, your starting point.

Disclaimer

Please note that the council update these leaflets on a periodic rolling basis and that some landmark information may have changed. The footpaths should remain in place and be signposted and be clearly marked on the Ordnance Survey maps. Please report problems you may find so that these can be investigated to tourism@ambervalley.gov.uk.