Stow-on-the-Wold Travel

Take Pulhams bus 801 from Moreton-in-Marsh station (approx 15 minutes) or drive up the A429 to reach Stow-on-the-Wold — where eight ancient roads converge, every approach is uphill, and the Market Square opens up at the summit. First explore the square: on the west side, the 1450 "Crooked House" (formerly the King's Arms) leans from 500 years of subsidence — legend says Charles I spent the night here on 8 May 1645 before heading to the Battle of Naseby; the medieval Market Cross in the centre served as a warning to merchants trading fairly, with a base plaque commemorating General Astley's last stand; the adjacent stocks are relics of medieval justice. Wander Sheep Street (named for the narrow Tures lanes used to drive sheep to market) and Church Street browsing antique shops — Tara Antiques Centre occupies three floors of a Grade II listed manor house on the square, Durham House Antiques has four showrooms with over thirty dealers, Styles of Stow specialises in longcase clock restoration — the heart of the "Antique Capital of the Cotswolds". In the afternoon visit St Edward's Church: the existing building dates from the 11th century, the tower completed in 1447 at 88 feet (26.8 metres), housing Gloucestershire's heaviest ring of eight bells; the north door framed by yew trees is the famous "Tolkien Door", rumoured to be the inspiration for the Doors of Durin in *The Lord of the Rings* — Tolkien visited frequently while teaching at Oxford but no firm evidence exists; inside, a painting of the Crucifixion by Flemish artist Gaspar de Craeyer hangs on the left wall, and a brass memorial to Hastings Keyte, a 23-year-old Royalist officer killed in action, is set into the floor before the altar. Evening dinner at The Porch House (claiming to be England's oldest inn, dating back to the 10th century) or The Old Stocks Inn (17th-century coaching inn) for Cotswold lamb.

Stow-on-the-Wold is a key waypoint on the **Cotswold Way** National Trail — 102 miles from Chipping Campden to Bath, accessible directly from the town. Day 2 morning: walk south along the Cotswold Way for 4.5 miles (approx 7.2 km) gentle downhill to Bourton-on-the-Water, passing fairy-tale meadows and Cotswold drystone wall countryside, about 2 hours. Alternatively, take a short walk north to the Donnington village junction, follow the footpath sign west for 10 minutes to climb Donnington Ridge (OS SP187 281), overlooking the open battlefield of the last Civil War engagement on 21 March 1646, marked with a battlefield interpretation panel. In the afternoon, drive 10 minutes south along the A429 (the Roman Fosse Way, built mid-1st century AD from Exeter to Lincoln) to Lower Slaughter and Upper Slaughter — the "sister villages" with mill streams and unmarked stone roads preserving medieval character; then another 10 minutes to Bourton-on-the-Water to walk its five stone bridges. Return to Stow along the Fosse Way in the evening, finishing with a local ale at The Unicorn Hotel (17th-century massive stone fireplace).