Looking for an easy hike near Bristol? Eagle’s Nest in Wye Valley is a MUST! Let us share some hiking tips with you, plus what to see nearby and where to eat.
If you have nothing much to do on a sun-shining weekend, I have a suggestion – go for a small hike, then enjoy some good food!
From the north of Bristol, we drove for about 30 minutes to hike Eagle’s Nest, one of the iconic scenic spots in the famous Wye Valley. Here I will share with you our current experience and some useful tips.
Take The Lower Car Park
To hike Eagle’s Nest, you can park the car in 2 different places – both are free, one is lower, one is upper.
Although the upper car park is near the viewing point (approx. 15 min’s walk), I recommend parking the car in the lower one, since then you can fully immerse yourself in nature, and the hike is really not hard, assuming you’re a normal healthy person.
2 Paths: Choose The Rewarding One
Opposite to the lower car park is the starting point of the footpath. Soon you’ll notice there are 2 ways to climb up – strenuous or moderate. The former one takes 365 steps, and the other is a mostly gentle slope. Either way you choose, the whole loop requires about 1 hour to finish.
365 steps sounds a lot, but it was not as difficult I imagined.
To us, a casual hiker with normal fitness (plus no problem with climbing stairs), this strenuous path was quite manageable and worth doing! We saw much more lushy green and rich textured tree roots on the way than on the easy path, hence we rewarded ourselves with more beautiful photos!
Our Little Hiking Tips
- Hiking boots is recommended. Some paths can be very muddy if rain happens before (and it always is). A pair of sturdy hiking boots absolutely let you be worry-free during the hike. Or, at least, gardening boots help too.
- Bring a raincoat/water-proof jacket. As you know, the UK’s weather – rain is unpredictable. Putting on something that can save you from the rain is always good practice.
- No toilet nearby. Wee beforehand!
What to See Nearby
After the Eagle’s Nest small hike, why not drive only 5 minutes to see the almost 1000-year-old historical site, Tintern Abbey?
We didn’t get inside though, since to us, inside a ruined Abbey has nothing much to offer to see (unless you REALLY like history). Yet, walking around the Abbey was still very pleasant!
There is an inn which provides you with plenty of seats and an excellent view of the Abbey. However, the menu didn’t excite me much, so we left the Abbey behind, and headed to Monmouth!
Where to Eat
The drive from Tintern to Monmouth along the Wye Valley was picturesque and lovely. It took us only 20 minutes! If you’re not in starving mode, please do consider eating at Monmouth, a town filled with restaurants and independent shops.
This time we chose a Bangladeshi restaurant called Kutir, based on its current 4.9 Google-rating.
The presentation might not be photogenic, but the food was spot-on!
The staff recommended us to try the Village Curry with lamb, which was served on a piping-hot iron plate and the sauce was very tasty that I’d had never tried before!
And the Street Food Platter allowed us to sample different kinds of snacks which were similar to some Indian street foods, but I love the tamarind sauce served in the little copper jug! Tried them with a chewy naan, perfect!
If you want a light bite, try those popular independent cafés and coffee shops, like Alex Gooch Baker, The Marches Delicatessen, or the Coffi Lab.
Have a nice walk in Wye Valley! 🙂
