A great walk to a great pub: the Pheasant, Wellington, Shropshire

The Wrekin is said to have been formed when a giant called Cawr dropped a shovel of earth on the way to Shrewsbury. The name of the clumsy clod is Welsh for giant; Wales is just 30 miles away, and Shrewsbury was routinely the site of skirmishes between the Welsh and whoever happened to have invaded England at the time. The name Wrekin, like nearby Wroxeter, probably derives from Wreocens?te, an Anglo-Saxon kingdom.

Though only 407 metres high, the hill is special to Shropshire because it has, since the days of the industrial revolution, been a place for workers from as far away as the Black Country to find clean air and respite. Deep inside its woods are the remains of medieval charcoal-burning platforms; iron was smelted here long before the iconic Ironbridge was constructed.

The clockwise walk from the car park starts with a sharp climb up a wide track, zigzagging to gain height. Here and there narrow paths, presumably used by fell runners, cut through the ferny undergrowth. The main path ascends more gently through woodlands of veteran oak, ash and beech.