The Wrekin- Shropshire-A beautiful land-mark (All Other Attractions in Shropshire)

Member Name: mummy2twogirls

Product:	All Other Attractions in Shropshire
Date:	16/11/08 (50 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Beautiful scenery and walks

Disadvantages: none

There are many beautiful sights to visit in Shropshire, but one that's close to my heart is 'The Wrekin'. For those of you, who haven't heard of it, firstly let me tell you a little bit about it.

The Wrekin is arguably the most famous landmark in Shropshire, it is made up of a cluster of small hills and one big one that stands over 400 meters high. Which borders Telford and Shrewsbury, and is very popular with tourists, and hikers because of the stunning views that can be seen for miles around once you get to the top, and on a clear day you can see up to 15 different counties

The Earliest mention of the Wrekin dates back to 855, as it was entered in a late eleventh century Worcester chartulary. Since then there have been many tales told about the Wrekin and how it got there. Myths have been recorded telling us that it was built by a giant who disliked Shrewsbury; The Giant in question was a Welshman who dug a spade full of soil and planned to dump it into the river seven, flooding the town.

However, whilst slogging across the Shropshire hills, this giant lost his bearings and having only got as far as Wellington stopped for a rest. He then fell asleep, and his spade tipped over and the soil landed in one big pile, this since then has stayed there and that's how the Wrekin got there. Of course these are only folk-law tales, to which none of them can be proved.

In fact though the Wrekin is made up of volcanic rock, although it is not a volcano. No-one knows exactly where the vent was that deposited the molten rock and ash that made up the Wrekin many millions of years ago. It is, however, very close to the Church Stretton Fault, a dormant fault in the earth's crust. When this fault was active there would have been many volcanic eruptions and earthquakes in the area.

The name 'The Wrekin' is also used to refer more generally to the part of East Shropshire around the towns of Telford and Wellington, within sight of the hill. The area is rich in geology and is one of the birthplaces of industry: Ironbridge Gorge is just to the south of The Wrekin hill. Woodland covers much of the hill, the area around the hill and into the Ironbridge Gorge area too.

I have been up the Wrekin many a times, since I was little and love the thrill of getting to the top just to look at the sights.
Many people use it every day, and it makes a great day out. It can take anything from half an hour to a couple of hours to get up there depending on which route you take, the owners have mapped out specific routes some hard and some easy, the main path is gravelled, grass, and stones but there are some steep areas to tackle.

Half-way is a small cafe, which sells drinks, ice-creams, and small snacks, to hungry and thirsty walkers.

Over the last five years, the Wrekin has been in and out of the press, due to the owners wanting to sell it. Which basically meant that all its historic nature would be destroyed as they where wanting to sell it off into 8 plots, and local people where worried that it wouldn't remain a public landmark.

Locals started a 'Friends of the Wrekin' project and aimed to raise money in order to buy it, and even got a £200,000 lottery heritage grant. But it still wasn't enough for the one million pound asking price, today is future of the Wrekin is still up in arms.

JRR Tolkein (author of 'The Lord of the Rings') used to enjoy walking on the hill when he lived in nearby Penkridge. As he said it brought inspiration to his writing.

In my opinion the Wrekin is one of my favourite landmarks in Shropshire as it brings so much grace and elegance to the county.

Summary: Ideal for tourists and hikers