Walking festival to flaunt 'beautiful' countryside

The schedule of walks will take attendees across the Shropshire countryside

A popular walking festival will introduce hikers from across the country to the "beautiful" Shropshire countryside, say organisers.

The Wellington Walking Festival will feature 33 routes, ranging from gentle strolls to a strenuous 13.5-mile (22km) hikes, from 8 September.

Organisers said that last year's event saw 258 participants cover a total of 2,372 miles (3,817km).

Jean Escott, who is part of the team behind the festival, said there were routes for every standard of walker.

This year's event is being held 14 years after it was first formed by a group of local enthusiasts.

Ms Escott said: "This festival is for every kind of walker. If you don't do much walking, there are walks of one or two miles.

"There are historical walks, so you can learn something new about the area, and archaeological walks."

"I think the Wellington Walking Festival is really excellent - it shows off our beautiful countryside," she added.

"The best thing about a walking festival is you meet people, and they come from all over; it's not just local people."

The event will conclude with a circular walk starting in Coalbrookdale on 14 September.

A full list of events has been listed by the Wellington Walkers Group.