A Question For Anybody That Knows Herefordshire

The visitherefordshire site has info on lots of walks. I would also consult the OS maps site

https://www.visitherefordshire.co.uk/see-do/scenic-trails/black-white-villages

https://www.walkingenglishman.com/ldp/blackandwhitetrail.html#:~:text=From%20the%20start%20at%20Leominister,Upper%20Spond%2C%20Woodbrook%2C%20Kington%2C

These sites may be helpful. By the way, Leominster is pronounced “Lemster”

Thanks to you both Camborne2018 and BillS719.

I have parsed over the Visit Herefordshire site quite and few times and it has helped, but I have to confess that I find the information somewhat incomplete. There seems to be an assumption that people are going to travel by car or bike and there is little description of what walking the area would be like. I've tried searching YouTube for walking videos but they mostly show the actual villages themselves, not the countryside between them or the availability and condition of the public footpaths.

Also, thank you BillS719 for the correct pronunciation of :Leominster." I have learned in my multiple trips to the UK not to make any phonic assumptions concerning the pronunciation of place names.

Maybe some more info here.?

https://ldwa.org.uk/ldp/members/show_path.php?path_name=Black+and+White+Village+Trail

Interesting height chart at foot of the page

This may not be of interest, but I thought it worth a mention as its a nearby option.

There is an HF Holidays country house hotel in Church Stretton. They do guided walking in the general area of the house (Shropshire). I did a 7 day guided walking holiday with HF earlier this year, my first with them, and was very happy with it. I plan on doing lots more.

www.hfholidays.co.uk/country-houses/locations/church-stretton-shropshire-hills
www.hfholidays.co.uk

Thank you, BillS719 - the route profile at the bottom of the page is a definite help, as is the detail of the map.

I also may try to get my hands on The Black and White Village Trail : a walker's guide, which is mentioned in the "Publications, Badges and Certificates" section.

Thank you again for passing that info along.

Thank you for the reply, Katy.

Shropshire looks like a really interesting option and I was actually planning on visiting Ludlow while I was in the area.

I am certainly going to look into your suggestion.

Thanks again.

Firstly, kudos to you for choosing one of my very favourite areas of the UK to explore. It is all completely stunning and yet most of the time can be very quiet.

I have 3 links for you below from a quick search, all for a range of self guided walking holidays. The first is 3 days of walking the Mortimer Trail from Kington to Ludlow.
https://www.wheelywonderfulcycling.co.uk/product-page/mortimer-trail-4-days

The second is a collection of companies offering walking holidays in and around the Wye Valley.
https://www.wyevalley-nl.org.uk/exploring-wye-valley-aonb/wye-valley-on-foot/walking-holidays-wye-valley/

Finally a self-guided walk that may be outside your time and cost limits or both, but would be an epic walk along the length of Offa's Dyke. A bit to the west of Herefordshire itself. It will also be possible to do a shorter section of the walk as well.
https://www.headwater.com/holidays/walking/britain/W17OF.htm

About Ludlow: It is a very pretty place. At the time of my visit (I think it was in 2017), it was very much a foodie destination, the ramifications being:

• Lodging costs were unexpectedly high.
• You often needed dinner reservations. I don't know about lunch.

Ludlow still has a reputation as a foodie destination. Although it's days of having Michelin starred restaurants are long gone there are still 3 places Michelin recommended.

Thanks for the reply, acraven. I agree that Ludlow is quite pricey; which is why I'm only planning a day trip from Leominster and not an overnight stay. It's a shame - it is a stunning town with a lot of great walking opportunities - but the price of the accommodation is out of my range. I like Katy's suggestion of Church Stretton. Maybe that will be more affordable.

Johnew52 - I appreciate the links very much. I'd like to do at least some of Offa's Dyke and had actually planned to walk from Cleobury Mortimer to Ludlow, so that info will come in very handy. Not sure if I'm going to make it to the Wye Valley as Ive started to narrow my options but I will keep the suggestion in mind if something changes.

Herefordshire checks a lot of boxes for me. I love historic villages, hill walking and cask ale and all three of those things seem to be in abundance. I love the fact that the county doesn't attract a lot of tourists and isn't full of M or A roads. It also seems to have a pretty unique character. It's going to take a bit to save and organise but I'm really looking forward to exploring.

Again - thanks for all of your help.

We loved the church in Ludlow! I think it is called church of St Lawrence. We were show around by a couple of wonderful volunteers there. I would love to see Ludlow’s church again. It has very special misericord carvings.