Croft and Bircher

Herefordshire hill country, up towards the Shropshire border (and not far from Wales either)… Days like this are rare in November, so we’re off again, to walk a route we followed a couple of years ago, at the opposite end of the year. Then, we walked through abundant May blossom and bluebells; today there are toadstools and larch needles, and warm autumn shades against a cold blue sky.

View OS map on Streetmap http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=345000&Y=266346&A=Y&Z=120

Titterstone Clee and Croft: a day of two halves

Tuesday: We’ve had a very pleasant overnight stay in Ludlow, and now we’re looking for some not-too-energetic entertainment – it’s a warm morning, though the weather is gradually changing. The view from the top of Titterstone Clee could be good, and it’s a gentle stroll up from the car, parked on the old quarry level (it was, and it was…).

The tea-room at Croft Castle would be good for a lunch break – afterwards, we would walk up to Croft Ambrey, where the hill fort provides fine views of the Welsh border hills. The chestnuts in the park are increasingly decrepit;  replacement saplings grow nearby. We’ll return to the car by the wooded Fishpool Valley. There’s not much water in the pools – I suspect that’s going to change over the next couple of days.

Croft Castle and Parkland NT