Nailsworth (ancient name Negelsleag) is a small town four miles South of Stroud. Nailsworth is at the hub three valleys. One to Stroud, one to Avening and the third to Horsley.
Nailsworth is in some great hilly countryside with Rodborough and Minchinhampton common right on the doorstep.
Be careful of errant golf balls when walking on the common. One zoomed past me once, missing me by about 10ft!
During the summer months cows and horses are turned out on the commons. They’re free to roam thanks to old grazing rights and perform valuable management of the grasslands.
Look out for the magnificent highland cattle and keep clear of any cows with their young as they’re very protective.
The cows look slow but you won’t outrun an angry one!
Shopping in Nailsworth
In terms of shopping, Nailsworth has most things, one of the most useful shops is probably Brutons, a hardware store that’s been in town since forever.
There’s three small supermarkets all within walking distance of each other, a Tesco Express, Co-op and Morrisons. None of them are cheap and Morrisons have no concept of what a stock system is so they run out of things for weeks at a time.
If you want bigger and cheaper supermarkets go to Stroud which has a Sainsbury’s, Tescos and Waitrose along with an Aldi and Lidl around its outskirts.
While nearby Stroud appears to be filling up with glitzy barbers and nail bars, Nailsworth has so far escaped most of them. They’re here though.
If you need your laptop or PC repaired (or to buy one) Nailsworth Computers are opposite Morrisons.
I repair older hifi such as turntables and amplifiers.
There’s a number of restaurants in town, the best thing is to have a walk around and pick the one that appeals, or ask someone.
Other than the supermarkets and charity shops, you won’t find any national chain stores. That’s no bad thing, as in their place are lots of small independent shops with their own offerings.
The Mortimer Gardens host a small monthly Saturday market.
Coffee shops are springing up all around the town, an interesting one is The Canteen shown below. It can be accessed via the Domestic Science shop and Old Market.
There’s plenty of others though. Pick your vibe and meet your tribe, sort of thing.
Domestic Science sells vintage (and not so vintage) homewares and other interesting bibs and bobs. Other vintage & retro interior shops are Betty and Beattie’s and The Vintologist, both in Market Street.
The art scene
There’s lots of artists around the Stroud valleys and you will often find their paintings and photography on display (and for sale) in the local cafes.
Every summer there’s an open studios event where local creatives allow you into their homes and studios to view their work.
Exhibition space in Nailsworth is catered for by _underscore.form gallery in Market Street and the nearby Three Storeys, which is open daily along with its coffee shop.
Nailsworth being a working town has practical shops such as a launderette, vets, bakers, bicycle shops, pubs, estate agents, a bookshop and more.
Someone once remarked that Nailsworth was great as you could get everything there!
There’s a large garden centre just out of town on the road to Avening.
In terms of buildings, there’s two parts to the town, the old and the new. The older part is alongside the unfortunately noisy Bath Road (A46) while the newer part is along Old Market by the bus station.
With its low buildings and dead straight road Old Market could have been pulled out of somewhere in California, but without the sunshine!
Back in 1884 the bus station was a big mill pond which is why that part of the town doesn’t have any old buildings other than Days Mill.
The mill ponds were used to store water for turning the water wheels in the old cloth mills, for which the area is famous.
If you want to see an old working wheel, pop into Egypt Mill. It doesn’t power anything other than some old gear wheels but it’s worth a look. There’s also an old wheel on the side of Ruskin Mill, on the road to Horsley.
The stream behind the bus station passes through an old sluice gate where it drops below Days Mill and emerges from under Williams Kitchen before heading under the A46 and on towards Stroud.
Williams is a popular fishmonger, restaurant and delicatessen with an outside seating area beside a big old willow tree.
There’s a number of free car parks in town but be careful of the stay limits as you might get a ticket.
Mags
There’s a free monthly magazine called The Nailsworth News available around the town. If you live here it will appear through your letterbox.
If you want a good listings paper along with articles about the local music scene etc grab a copy of the free Good on Paper.
Public transport links
There are hourly buses to and from Stroud. The journey should take about 15 minutes, if it’s on time. There’s a few others that go via Minchinhampton which is a more scenic route but takes longer.
Cycling
There’s a popular cycle track / footpath to Stroud. It uses the route of the old railway line. It’s accessed near Egypt Mill.
The areas great for cycling once you’ve mastered the hills (or use an e-bike). Grab a local OS map to explore the multitude of quiet back roads and bridleways. You can cover a lot of distance with little need for the main roads around here.
If you don’t know the area, there’s a lot of quiet back roads between Cherington – Tetbury – Sapperton for example.
Exploring the area
If you’re into maps the Explorer series 168 is good for this area. It covers, Stroud, Nailsworth, Tetbury and Malmesbury.
If online check out open street map (new tab).
Related articles
A look at the history of Nailsworth
Some history of Nailsworth along with a time line and old photos.
Stroud to Nailsworth Cycle Track
The popular cycle track and footpath between Nailsworth and Stroud.
The demolition of the old George Hotel in Nailsworth
Once a fine coaching inn and later a hotel got demolished in 2001.
The valleys once had a thriving textile industry. This takes a look at it.
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