Regional walking route · Wales and England

Maelor Way

Also known as Maelor Way

45 km (28 miles), crossing Wales and England.

Data compiled by Ryan — sources and method

Route from OpenStreetMap (ODbL). Coastline, borders and national park boundaries from the Office for National Statistics (OGL v3.0). Summits from the Database of British & Irish Hills (CC BY 4.0).

Distance: 45 km
In miles: 28 mi
Day stages: 3 at ~20 km
Typical trip: 2–2 days
Countries: Wales, England
Listed summits within 2.5 km: 0
Western end: SJ 2641 3746
Eastern end: SJ 4984 4313
Waymark: yellow named arrow on green disc

How long it really is

We measure Maelor Way at 45 km (28 miles), computed by walking the OpenStreetMap route geometry point by point . The route is tagged in OpenStreetMap as 39; where that differs from our figure, the difference is usually alternative sections, spurs, or a published distance that rounds.

No ascent in this figure

This is horizontal distance only. Our trail dataset carries no elevation profile, so we will not quote a total climb or a confident walking time — on hill routes ascent can add hours a day. A flat-ground pace gives roughly 10 h 20 min of walking for the whole route, which is a floor, not an estimate. Add your own ascent figure in the walking-time calculator for something usable.

Access rights along the way

This route crosses 2 legal jurisdictions, and the rules change at the border — what is lawful on one section may not be on the next.

Wales — about 57% of the route

Conditional Right to roam: Right to roam only on mapped CRoW open access land.

Permission needed Wild camping: Permission needed everywhere.

Full access rules for Wales

England — about 43% of the route

Conditional Right to roam: Right to roam only on mapped CRoW open access land.

Conditional Wild camping: Permission needed — except on the Dartmoor commons.

Full access rules for England

A waymarked route is a route you may walk — it does not follow that you may camp beside it, leave it, or take a dog on it. Long-distance paths cross farmland, estates and access land in turn, and byelaws and seasonal restrictions override the general position. This is general information, not legal advice. Check a specific spot with the access checker.

The route in day stages

Maelor Way cut into 3 stages of roughly 20 km, measured along the line itself. These are equal-distance splits computed from the geometry, not an official itinerary — they will not always land on a village, a bunkhouse or a station, and the real day you walk should be set by where you can sleep.

Day stages of the Maelor Way at roughly 20 km each
Stage	Distance	Cumulative	Starts near	Ends near	Flat-ground time
1	20.1 km	20.1 km	SJ 2641 3746	SJ 4048 4167	4 h 25 min
2	20.2 km	40.4 km	SJ 4048 4167	SJ 4931 4167	4 h 27 min
3	6.5 km	46.9 km	SJ 4931 4167	SJ 4984 4313	1 h 26 min

Positions are 8-figure (100 m) OS grid references for points on the line, computed from WGS84 coordinates. Flat-ground times are Naismith at 5 km/h with a 6 min/hour rest allowance and no ascent — add the climb in the walking-time calculator before you plan around them.

Conditions on the route

Weather at the route midpoint live

Loading forecast for the midpoint of the route…

Forecast for the midpoint of the Maelor Way, at MET Norway's own ground level — we hold no elevation profile for this route, so nothing here is altitude-adjusted, and conditions vary considerably end to end on a route this long. Weather data from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0).

Daylight at the midpoint today

Sunrise: —
Sunset: —
Daylight: —
Civil twilight ends: —

Computed astronomically for 52.956, -2.889. Set a turnaround with the daylight safety planner.

Plan this walk

Walking-time calculator — add ascent, terrain, pack weight and fitness to get a usable time.
Pack-weight calculator — multi-day routes live or die on base weight.
Kit-list generator — season and terrain aware.
Access checker — what a specific grid reference on the route allows.
Best month to walk — historical rainfall, temperature and wind by area.
Safety notes — conditions change fast; build in margin.

Other long-distance paths nearby

Sources for this route

Distance, stages, country crossings, park crossings and summit proximity: computed by OpenFell from that geometry.
Boundaries: Office for National Statistics (OGL v3.0). Summits: Database of British & Irish Hills v18.3 (CC BY 4.0).

OpenStreetMap data is licensed under the Open Database Licence. Our derived trail measurements are published under the same terms — see data sources.