National Cycle Route 44

National Cycle Network, Route 44, part of the National Cycle Network, connects Shrewsbury, Shropshire with Cinderford, Gloucestershire. The part of the route from Shrewsbury to Bromfield is signed - the remainder of the route is currently unsigned.

The section from Shrewsbury to Leominster is advertised as the Six Castles Cycleway. The six castles on or near the route are (in geographical order from north to south): Shrewsbury Castle, Bishop's Castle, Stokesay Castle, Ludlow Castle, Richard's Castle and Croft Castle.

The route begins in Shrewsbury, one mile west of the town centre, where it links up with National Cycle Route 81. The formal start point of the route is on Shelton Road (the B4380), at the junction with Woodfield Avenue, where route 81 exists on its way between Shelton and the town centre. Route 44 heads southeast along the B4380 to Longden Road Roundabout, where it turns off onto Longden Road out of Shrewsbury, passing the Priory and Meole Brace secondary schools. The first village outside of Shrewsbury is Hook-a-Gate. After passing through Hook-a-Gate and the neighbouring hamlet of Annscroft, the route turns off along country lanes to Arscott and then Shorthill, where it meets the A488. The route crosses over the main road and along country lanes again to the large village of Pontesbury, where again it meets the A488.

After Pontesbury the route again follows country lanes and heads south to Habberley and then after this village, west to Minsterley, where the route again meets the A488. The route then heads along the B4499 to Priest Weston, on the Shropshire-Wales border, passing to the west of the Stiperstones hills. It briefly enters Powys, including the village of Churchstoke (or Church Stoke), where it meets the A489. After Church Stoke, the route is on country lanes again and heads roughly southeast to the small (English) town of Bishop's Castle.

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