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Gloucestershire Walks

Cerney Wick Walks & Route Map

Cerney Wick walk, Gloucestershire
Cerney Wick · Photo: Malc Mcdonald

The Cerney Wick walks offer a brilliant mix of easy, scenic routes through the heart of the Cotswold Water Park, with four options to suit everything from a gentle wander to a longer, more adventurous loop.

All routes start from the free Gateway Centre, making it a great base with cafés and facilities close at hand, before heading out around tranquil lakes, along sections of the old canal and beside the peaceful River Churn.

Highlights include the pretty paths around Lake 6, wildlife-rich waters, and village lanes through Cerney Wick, with the chance to stop at welcoming spots like The Crown or the Boathouse Pub.

With mostly flat terrain, a little road walking, and some sections that can get muddy after rain, these walks are ideal for relaxed exploration, family outings and enjoying lakeside scenery at your own pace.

Download the Gloucestershire Walks App to follow these routes with real-time GPS navigation.

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Cerney Wick walk 01

Cerney Wick Short Walk

Walk distance
2 miles
Time
1 hour
Route type
Circular

This is the shortest of four walks from this area, covering some of the Lakes that make up the Cotswold Water Parks.

You start at the free Gateway Car Park where you can access the cafe and eateries on site. The walk takes you around Lake 6 and edges alongside the privately owned fishing lake with the pretty tree lined path following the River Churn. This is a lovely place to be in the summer and a great place for dogs and kids to paddle!

You will cross Spine Road during the walk and pass the cafe at the Cotswold Outdoor centre with beautiful views of the activity lake, then follow the River Churn before turning off and skirting around Isis and Windrush Lakes, joining the old canal back to the start.

Refreshments:

Various cafes and Boathouse Pub

Cerney Wick Short Walk 4.3 Ratings and reviews 12 ratings · 7 reviews

Based on 12 user ratings

Community feedback

Overall rating4.3

A very popular walk

Dog friendly4.6 / 5
Path condition3.6 / 5
Buggy friendly1.7 / 5
Wheelchair friendly1.8 / 5
Toilet facilities3.8 / 5
Pub or café3.9 / 5
Route accuracy4.8 / 5
ClimbingTotally level
LivestockNo livestock
StilesA stile or two
Mud levelBoots recommended

Real feedback from people who have completed this walk using the Gloucestershire Walks app.

First-hand experiences

User reviews

Walker review

Fab dog walk, especially for the water lovers! Flat walk but muddy/uneven in parts... proper shoes after some rainfall!

Walker review

Was a gorgeous walk along the river and around the lakes. Our labrador loved. The last half a mile was abit muddy and i dont think the path is waljed as often as there were fallen branches over parts which we had to duck undeer.

Walker review

Great walk, it was still muddy in places despite being dry for a few weeks (may 2025) so must be a mudfrst in winter

Walker review

Lovely walk but quite muddy. By lakes or streams the whole way.

Walker review

Beautiful scenery and great for dogs with plenty to sniff and lots of water that is easy to get in.

Walker review

Good walk, the gates are a nightmare with a buggy. It does state keep dogs on leads at all times, but people dont listen.

Walker review

Loved this walk! Nice combination of leafy paths, lakes and streams. Plenty of places for a doggy dip. No styles but some gates, do NOT make the mistake of going through the one with the keypad! Paths were generally good, if a bit nettley with one fallen branch. Two food / toilet options but we didn’t stop at either. We’ll be back!

Cerney Wick walk 02

Cerney Wick Lake Walk

Walk distance
2¾ miles
Time
1.5 hours
Route type
Circular

This walk is the second of four starting in this location and uses the free Gateway centre car park, where you can base yourself and access the cafe and eateries.

There are many different walks in this area, most of them covering the 180 lakes which make up the Cotswold Water park.

This walk takes you past the pretty Lake 6, onto Cerney Wick Lane, where you will pass The Crown pub, well worth a stop for refreshments and walk straight over the road to the footpath which edges around Lake 9, the sailing lake.

The route then heads back across the quarry to Cerney Wick Lane and the start. A small amount of road walking is required.

Refreshments:

Various cafes

Boathouse Pub

The Crown, Cerney Wick

Cerney Wick Lake Walk 4.3 Ratings and reviews 7 ratings · 3 reviews

Based on 7 user ratings

Community feedback

Overall rating4.3

A very popular walk

Dog friendly2.7 / 5
Path condition3.7 / 5
Buggy friendly2.9 / 5
Wheelchair friendly2.3 / 5
Toilet facilities3.0 / 5
Pub or café2.1 / 5
Route accuracy4.1 / 5
ClimbingGentle slopes
LivestockRarely any livestock
StilesA stile or two
Mud levelMay be muddy after wet weather

Real feedback from people who have completed this walk using the Gloucestershire Walks app.

First-hand experiences

User reviews

Walker review

Level and easy route. Potentially a little dull but there are some stone stiles and several little bridges to keep younger kids interested. Paths around the quarry at the farthest point have been surfaced with loose stones, which are not pleasant for dogs.

Walker review

Went in December. Was muddy in parts, few stiles, few pebble paths. Not suitable for anyone with mobility issues. Some areas can let dog off. Lovely scenery around lakes and flat. Needed wellies

Walker review

Great shortish walk from the outdoor centre. Quite muddy in places and a few stiles. Unfortunately pub has just had fire :( otherwise its is amazing great food and beer.

Cerney Wick walk 03

Cerney Wick and South Cerney Walk

Walk distance
3½ miles
Time
1.5 hours
Route type
Circular

This walk is the third of four starting near the Gateway Centre, where you can base yourself and access the cafe and eateries.

This walk takes you around the pretty Lake 6 and towards Spine Road, you will need to cross this to do the next part of the walk which takes you past the South Cerney Outdoor centre and the privately owned fishing lakes.

After crossing over the top the bridge on Wildmoor Way Lane you will walk along the grass verge on the road, essentially circling back on yourself to follow the footpath underneath the bridge.

This will lead onto the pretty Bow Wow Lane where you will follow a footpath and part of the disused canal back to the start.

Refreshments:

There is a cafe en route at the South Cerney Outdoor Centre

Boathouse Pub

Cerney Wick and South Cerney Walk 4.4 Ratings and reviews 10 ratings · 5 reviews

Based on 10 user ratings

Community feedback

Overall rating4.4

A very popular walk

Dog friendly4.1 / 5
Path condition3.9 / 5
Buggy friendly2.2 / 5
Wheelchair friendly1.2 / 5
Toilet facilities3.2 / 5
Pub or café4.4 / 5
Route accuracy4.4 / 5
ClimbingGentle slopes
LivestockRarely any livestock
StilesA stile or two
Mud levelMay be muddy after wet weather

Real feedback from people who have completed this walk using the Gloucestershire Walks app.

First-hand experiences

User reviews

Walker review

Lovely walk with water to keep dogs happy. Mainly flat apart from some steps down to a path under the old railway. Would be muddy in wet weather. You walk through one of the water adventure lakes which has restaurants and loos.

Walker review

Really enjoyed it, very pretty, dog off lead almost all the way. Easy to add bit extra on if required. Nice cafe at the end, plenty of parking.

Walker review

Great route, I think I missed one turn and went an extra half a mile or so to get back on track but it was no issue. Lovely walk. A few stiles so not really buggy friendly, one part was. Hit over grown…. Bring bug spray!

Walker review

We got there at 4pm and the car park shut at 5pm so we parked at another car park further down the road. We enjoyed this walk and didnt see many people along the route.

Walker review

This walk was great, easy to do coice of 4 walks. Not packed with ppl on route some interesting bits to see, couple parts of route we had to figure out where to carry on walking but once we got it it was easy to get back on trak, toilets in the center at the begging and end (circular route) places to eat and drink b4 or after tour walk. Really enjoyed my walk today

Cerney Wick walk 04

Cerney Wick Adventure Walk

Walk distance
4¾ miles
Time
2.5 hours
Route type
Circular

This walk is the longest of four starting near the free Gateway centre car park.

This walk follows the disused canal heading towards Cricklade and then branches off on wood lined paths and bridges that cross the River Churn. You will pass through the working quarry towards Cerney Wick village and and follow Cerney Wick Lane and the footpaths back to the start.

A scenic and interesting walk, taking you around some of the lakes in this area. A small detour en route will take you to The Crown pub in Cerney Wick where you can experience some tapas or Sunday lunch! This walk can get very muddy when wet and it may not be possible to walk this route if the water levels are high.

Refreshments:

Various cafes

Boathouse Pub

The Crown, Cerney Wick

Cerney Wick Adventure Walk 3.9 Ratings and reviews 10 ratings · 3 reviews

Based on 10 user ratings

Community feedback

Overall rating3.9

A well-liked walk

Dog friendly4.5 / 5
Path condition3.7 / 5
Buggy friendly1.9 / 5
Wheelchair friendly1.4 / 5
Toilet facilities3.1 / 5
Pub or café3.2 / 5
Route accuracy4.2 / 5
ClimbingTotally level
LivestockRarely any livestock
StilesA stile or two
Mud levelBoots recommended

Real feedback from people who have completed this walk using the Gloucestershire Walks app.

First-hand experiences

User reviews

Walker review

Did in very dry weather so no issues with flooding. While this looks like a walk with lots of lovely views of canals and lakes, most of it is on enclosed paths with very few views of surrounding countryside and very little access to any water. Some of it is very pretty but overall a little underwhelming.

Walker review

Slightly muddy in a couple of places but a lovely walk around the lakes. The only thing that spoilt it was the noise from the main A419 at the start

Walker review

Part of the route was not passable due to the water levels in the fields. We could not complete the walk. Had to turn back after 3 miles.

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Gloucestershire Walks App

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The app works without a phone signal, so you can keep following the route wherever the walk takes you.

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Expanded route map for Cerney Wick Short Walk, a 2 mile circular walk in Gloucestershire