Stony Brook Pools – Cannock Chase Forest Trailhead loop from Cannock Chase National Landscape
Stony Brook Pools – Cannock Chase Forest Trailhead loop from Cannock Chase National Landscape
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Stony Brook Pools – Cannock Chase Forest Trailhead loop from Cannock Chase National Landscape
01:06
13.3km
150m
Cycling
Moderate bike ride. Good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels. The starting point of the route is accessible with public transport.
Last updated: August 6, 2026
Tips
Includes a segment in which cycling is not permitted
After 156 m for 55 m
Waypoints
Start point
Bus stop
Get Directions
199 m
Brocton Camp Information Board
Highlight • Historical Site
A large workforce was assembled to build the camps and the associated railway,later nicknamed the 'Tackeroo Express' with more than one hundred men working on the construction of the camps at any one time. Water was supplied by the South Staffordshire Waterworks Company, and electricity by the Cannock and Rugeley Colliery Company. The camps were based upon a complex of timber huts adapted for specific purposes such as barracks, mess rooms and workshops. Following the implementation of the camps' infrastructure, the first huts were under construction in March 1915 and the first battalions arrived soon after.
Use of the camps
During the early part of the war the camps were primarily used as transit camps to accommodate Service Battalions travelling towards the western front; following their completion, the camps settled into the mould of a training facility and there was a steady influx of battalions, including men of the New Zealand Rifle Brigade, who later made Cannock Chase their UK headquarters. Various schools of war were established, offering instruction in musketry, scouting, signalling,physical training, gas warfare and many other related subjects.
The camps, when completed, could hold up to 40,000 men at one time and probably trained upwards of 500,000 men. They had all their own amenities including a church, post offices and a bakery as well as amenity huts where the troops could by coffee and cakes, or play billiards. There was even a theatre.
Tip by
1.50 km
Gravel path by the pools, Cannock Chase
Highlight (Segment) • Lake
Tip by
3.66 km
Perry's Trail, Cannock Chase
Highlight • Cycleway
Tip by
6.06 km
Stony Brook Pools
Highlight • Natural
Tip by
7.40 km
Cannock Chase Forest Trailhead
Highlight • MTB Park
Choose between the green-rated gravel road loop around the lakes, the new Perry's Trail blue-rated singletrack, or the red-rated trails Follow The Dog and Monkey Trail, with some very spicy black optional segments.
Tip by
9.24 km
Swinerton Cycles Forest Centre
Highlight • Rest Area
cannockchasecyclecentre.co.uk
Tip by
9.37 km
Cannock Chase Visitor Centre and Grounds Café
Highlight • Trail
All day parking is £6.
Take the correct change.
The car park closes at 5.
Many trails are signposted for hiking and biking.
You can 'go ape' here too if you like heights 😊
Tip by
9.46 km
Grounds Café, Birches Valley
Highlight • Cafe
Would personally recommend the onion bahji wrap but other choices look great too. Ice cream servings seem pricey but are very generously portioned.
Tip by
13.3 km
End point
Bus stop
Way Types & Surfaces
Way Types
7.99 km
2.29 km
1.49 km
966 m
388 m
119 m
Surfaces
7.39 km
2.64 km
2.38 km
715 m
123 m
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Elevation
Highest point (210 m)
Lowest point (120 m)
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Weather
Powered by Foreca
Sunday 16 August
24°C
16°C
19 %
Additional weather tips
Max wind speed: 11.0 km/h
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Our route recommendations are based on thousands of hikes, rides, and runs completed by other people on komoot.
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