THE countryside to the east of Worcester may be gentle and unspectacular but it provides endless opportunities for enjoyable walks.

Though close to the city, it is peaceful and mostly unspoilt.

There is a mixture of pastoral and arable land use and many of the fields remain small and irregularly shaped, divided by ancient hedgerows and green lanes such as the lovely, tree-lined Edward’s Lane.

There is a generous scattering of small woods (more than are shown on the OS map) while many veteran oak trees, several centuries old, survive in the fields and hedges, and alongside the green lanes. These trees are reminders of a time when this part of the county was covered in woodland, and so are the timberframed cottages which line Church Road at Upton Snodsbury near St Kenelm’s Church.

The church has been much restored, but its 15th-century tower survives largely unaltered and forms a prominent landmark visible for miles around.

This walk includes a stretch of the Millennium Way, a longdistance trail which runs for 100 miles through the Midlands.

Taking the shape of an inverted V, it heads north from Pershore, via Inkberrow and Henley-in-Arden, to Meriden (a village near Coventry which claims to be at the very centre of England), then south from Meriden to Middleton Cheney in Northamptonshire, via Kenilworth, Leamington Spa and Priors Marston.

The website walking.41club.org provides information if you’re interested in knowing more about the Millennium Way.

FACT FILE

Start: Broughton Hackett, on A422 east of Worcester, grid ref SO926544.

Length: Seven miles/11.2km.

Maps: OS Explorer 204, OS Landranger 150.

Terrain: Mostly flat farmland and woodland.

Footpaths: Most are excellent but a few have not been reinstated after ploughing and two field-edge paths are too narrow. There are some neglected stiles (broken or missing steps, and/or overgrowth), as well as occasional gaps in way marking.

Stiles: 14.

Parking: Layby at far side of village, next to a phone box and a lane signed to Crowle and Tibberton.

Buses: Diamond/Dudley’s 350 Worcester to Redditch via A422, Mon- Sat; worcestershire.gov.uk/bustimetables or 01905 765765.

Refreshments: Pub at Broughton Hackett, pubs and shop at Upton Snodsbury.

DIRECTIONS

1 Take the Crowle road but leave it after a few paces for a footpath on the right. Follow this for 100m to an unsigned junction then turn left on a path which rejoins the Crowle road in Broughton Hackett.

Turn right, then soon left on Rye Hill Lane. At the end of the lane, go straight on through two fields.

Cross a stile in the corner of the second one and turn left, then cross another stile and proceed along the left-hand edge of the next field until you can cross to the other side of the hedge/fence.

Continue in the same direction to meet Bredicot Lane.

2 Turn left and then take an easily missed footpath on the left after about 450m. Walk along a field edge, go through a gate at the far side then climb over a fence on the right and go diagonally across a field to a stile. Cross a track and a footbridge to enter another field.

Walk along the right-hand edge and through a gate at the far side into the next field. Turn left to walk uphill by the field edge. Cross a stile at the top and go diagonally right across a field to the far hedge, then turn left to the edge of Churchill Wood. Turn right along a track to Worcester Road (A422).

3 The path continues opposite, still beside woodland. Keep straight on at a junction. After leaving the wood behind keep straight on by field edges before passing through a garden to a lane.

Turn left. Go straight on at a junction, and again straight on at the next, along a no through road (Edward’s Lane). After a short distance you can join a path on the right which runs parallel with the lane. Once past the houses, you can rejoin the lane, or you can stay on the footpath, which runs through fields next to the lane.

You’ll have to join the lane when you come to Bow Brook, which crosses the lane at a ford. There is also a footbridge, access to which from Edward’s Lane is via a stile into the field on the right.

4 Go straight on at a crossroad, then take the second footpath on the left, just after a barn conversion. The path is easily followed to a lane, where you turn left. Turn left again, joining a footpath, when you meet the B4082 at Upton Snodsbury. Follow the path to Church Road and turn left.

Pass to the right of a school and keep straight on between a car park and some bungalows to reach a small gate where three paths are indicated. Choose the one which goes straight on – the Millennium Way – and cross a field to Holy Oak Farm. Keep straight on along the farm access road.

5 Cross a road and continue opposite, along a track at first then across three fields to cross Bow Brook again at a footbridge.

Walk to the far side of another field and turn right on a bridleway which leads to the March Hare at Broughton Hackett. Turn right to your starting point.

Worcester News recommends the use of OS Explorer Maps, your ideal passport to navigating the countryside. This walk is based on OS Explorer 204.