How Caple - Crow Hill - How Caple

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The starting point is on a lane in the open meadows on the bank of the River Wye. A short distance from here, a path from the lane takes you up through a park to How Caple Court, a property renowned for its eleven-acre, Edwardian garden set high above the River Wye. The medieval church contains beautiful stained-glass windows, a Norman font and a 16th Century diptych.

From How Caple Court, the walk climbs through woodlands, (often overgrown in high summer, so long trousers and a stick for beating nettles are recommended) eventually to achieve a ridge that presents a sweeping panorama of the hills of Herefordshire. A descent takes one to Yatton Chapel. In its farmyard setting, the simplicity of this tiny church, with its 12th Century tympanum over the door, the agricultural floor and the largely un-plastered walls, conveys a strong sense of the remote and the romantic. This place, wild but not savage, is just a little enchanted.

The next section of the walk follows the Herefordshire Trail through the open woodland of Yatton Wood, a carpet of bluebells in late spring. Herefordshire's ancient woods are recognised as some of the most important in England. Although parts are planted with conifer, the majority of the woodland on this walk is typical of that found in Herefordshire: ancient semi-natural, generally the most biologically rich, supporting characteristic plant and animal communities that are not found elsewhere.

The route then leads to the north of Crow Hill. This is high, undulating country that offers broad upland meadows, farms and glorious, sweeping views of the hills of Herefordshire in all directions. Points of interest include the pottery at Wobage Farm.

After crossing the A449, the walk descends into a broad, peaceful, emerald-green valley bordered by woodland on each side and eventually emerges on the lane by the River Wye that leads to the start point. This final section is a gentle and relaxing stroll by the beautiful river along the narrow lane which is little-used by traffic. Herefordshire supports the greatest length of river designated for its conservation value of any county in England; the River Wye, with part of the Lugg, is a candidate Special Area for Conservation.

England - Central England - Herefordshire - River Walk

Features

Ancient Monument, Birds, Butterflies, Church, Flowers, Gift Shop, Good for Kids, Great Views, Hills or Fells, River, Tea Shop, Toilets, Wildlife, Woodland
7/14/2021 - David James

Thanks for the feedback, Adrian, which is appreciated. I am so sorry that you encountered difficulties regarding overgrown paths and poorly maintained stiles. Comments such as yours are valuable in raising these issues. The summer months see a flourishing of growth, which can sometimes be a problem. This is why it is so important that we use Britain's footpaths regularly in order to keep them usable. With regard to the parking problem, the walk was devised when the gardens were open to the public but this has recently changed. I will revise the starting point accordingly.

7/12/2021 - Adrian Percival

To begin with there is a difficulty with the recommended start point for parking. The owner spoke with us and told us that it is private land and so there is no parking (made doubly difficult because there was a wedding in the church that day), and he gave the impression of being somewhat fed up with Walkingworld users showing up to park. He did however helpfully point us to parking we could use which is between waypoints 32 and 33 on the route. We walked this route in the summer, and I have to say it is probably the worst maintained route we have ever walked. There were multiple stiles that were in disrepair, but what was even worse was the number of stiles and other boundaries that were thick with eye-level undergrowth, including stingers and brambles, which left us heavily scratched and stung! In places the footpath was impassable because of undergrowth or crops that had been planted across the path meaning significant diversions had to be found. The stiles were nearly all fenced across the base making them impassable for dogs, we had to manhandle our dog across nearly all the stiles. It would probably be better in the winter, but I certainly wouldn't recommend for the summer.

2/1/2017 - Robin Copeland

An excellent and varied walk with great views from the Herefordshire Way east to the Malverns, south to Forest of Dean and West to the Brecon Beacons. The walk down the valley by Easton Park, points 30 to 31 is stunningly beautiful as is the road along the Wye, points 32 to 33. Some paths might be quite overgrown in summer but were ok in winter. Surprised that Herefordshire Way not better maintained and way-marked and we used a gps quite a bit to check we were on track. The path at points 3/4/5 through to 7 are not obvious due to land use changes and missing markers. The stile at point 9 is in very poor condition and requires some agility to safely negotiate. The signage immediately after Wobage Pottery, point 27, is a hard to follow without a gps or compass.

6/14/2015 - MIKE DUDLEY

We were lucky to enjoy good weather and this certainly enhances this walk with some great views. Between Wm 4 and the road beyond Wm 7 is very confusing – the walk instructions are not exactly the same as the actual path on the OS map and waymarks are hard to find. The Chapel was minimalist but all the better for it. The Hereford trail is very poorly waymarked and you need to be on your mettle to avoid going off course. Good walk but perhaps not great.

4/10/2015 - john gallier

What a wonderful walk, well done to the planners of this one. My wife and I have done dozens of walks in this part of the country, this certainly being the most rewarding, views are magnificent yes it maybe a little difficult at times but isn't that what country walking is all about.The instructions were bang on even to the extent of bolding up the script when an alternative route is possible. Well done.

7/4/2011 - Graham Bennett

This time we completed it! The walk instructions were very detailed and clear, and having a Satmap GPS help to confirm them. We were unable to get to the stile mentioned in point 4/5 as a result of overgrowth but it was quite clear where we should go and we crossed the fence higher up the field to get back on track. All the sown fields had a clear path through the crops provided by the farmers, and one area that was overgrown the last time we tried (stile at 15) is now totally clear. Great walk, just needs a small bit of path clearing to be perfect.

7/3/2011 - Caroline Johnson

We were very keen to enjoy this walk as it crosses Perrystone Hill where we have just bought a house. However the directions between waypoints 3 and 7 were difficult to follow probably because landowners have ploughed up paths and stiles have fallen into disuse. Some paths were very overgrown and several stiles were completely dog-proof necessitating heaving our Labrador over the top. There is also a stud farm around waymark 19 where we attracted the attention of around 30 lively horses which was quite nerve-wracking! Some lovely views though and the stretch along the Wye was very pleasant.

8/26/2009 - David James

We used this walk as part of the organised summer schedule by the Wyre Forest Ramblers and it was voted a really lovely walk, with plenty of variety, interest, views and open countryside. Yes, the initial part, in the valley, was overgrown (as is the case with most walks in the summer months) but this was quickly and easily overcome with the use of a stout stick! Ferns, nettles and similar growth - though appearing quite daunting - are actually quite flimsy and can be bashed down. The initial footpath route into the woods can be by-passed by means of the broad forest track.

6/13/2009 - Graham Bennett

This is a beautiful walk and we are glad we tried it but we also did not finish it, because, despite the detailed directions, we missed the path on several occasions and after we missed a vital style (our fault) and went too far the wrong way we turned round and retraced our steps to the start. Although many parts were open and obvious, nettles and other folige were high making some parts of the path hard to spot. We could not even find the waymark at the start of the walk and had to ask a friendly local to confirm that what we thought it must be was right. Will try to complete it sometime. Thank you for posting it. The woods were stunning and the views of the hills wonderful.

2/17/2009 - Susan Waring

This is a lovely walk, completed in several inches of snow the other weekend. Several decent hills & good views, definitely recommended.

10/22/2008 - Sarah Theobald

We revisited this walk and found the entire route is completely clear. Some bramble growth has been cleared along the opening stretches in the woodland and this may have been one of the problems Marilyn encountered.

8/12/2008 - Sarah Theobald

This time of year is a time of riotous growth. It's the same everywhere in August, however we have done the walk three or four times and cannot think where the problem might be, as much of the walk is in open countryside and we have never had a problem. No section is in any way "dangerous" or we would not have submitted it.

8/11/2008 - Marilyn Abrahamson

We did not complete this walk as it had obviously not been walked for some time and the paths were completely overgrown and became dangerous.

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