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This is a delightful corner of Worcestershire. It is possible to do a circular walk along the bank of the Leigh Brook, and then back up the hill and through the woodland. Very pleasant way to while away of couple of hours or more!

Nice quiet coffee stop

Great place to visit. Mini hidden gem near the village of Alfrick. Not suitable for road cycling and cycling as a whole. But it's definitely worth getting dismounted and having a lovely walk around.

Very well-surfaced road with hardly any holes, so nice section for a sort of fast cycling in Malvern direction

The town has a very long history (dating back to Early Saxon Age). Famous as a market town during the Middle Ages. I'd strongly recommend visiting Ledbury heritage centre, which is located near Parish church, where you can dive into the history of that place.

Be careful when decenting to this church due to a very busy A-road. The road surface is good

One of the most challenging and rewarding climbs in Malvern Hill. The road surface is brilliant

Good spot for a hearty breakfast before heading off for a day's riding! Open all day with some good light lunch options too! 😋

Great coffee. Craft centre

The trail around the Knapp and Papermill starts in an apple orchard with old lichen-encrusted trees that attract nuthatches and green woodpeckers. In autumn and early winter visitors should keep an eye out for butterflies such as red admiral and peacock or birds like fieldfare and redwing feasting on the fallen fruit. The Leigh Brook has cut a winding valley with steep woodlands and rich meadows. Look for grey wagtails and dippers on the brook and, during the winter months, listen for flocks of long-tailed tits and siskins in the brook-side alders. Dragonflies and damselflies thrive on the brook during spring and summer but only the luckiest of visitors may catch sight of an otter. The trail takes visitors along the brook, around meadows and through woodland. Big Meadow is a hay meadow with flowers such as knapweed, ox-eye daisy and yellow rattle together with a scattering of green-winged and common spotted orchids. Papermill Meadow is an old pasture on slightly more acid soil. This meadow is a favourite hunting ground for buzzards that breed in the valley. The much smaller Tor Meadow has orchids and cowslips. Butterflies frequent all three meadows and more than 30 species have been recorded here including common and holly blue, brimstone, purple hairstreak and white admiral. Each meadow is maintained by hay cutting and/or grazing. Woodland occupies about half the reserve and some areas are managed by coppicing. This traditional method of cutting down young stems to near ground level on a rotation ensures that trees never die and there is always a range of habitats for wildlife at different stages of re-growth. Coppicing helps to encourage the marvellous carpet of bluebells and other wildflowers (yellow archangel, stitchwort and wild garlic) that can be seen each spring. Wild service trees grow in profusion here along with both small and large-leaved lime as well as oaks and hazels. Dormice are encouraged through the provision of nest boxes, as are many species of birds and bats. The reserve is important for bats and 11 of the UK’s 17 regular breeding species are found here. Source: worcswildlifetrust.org.uk

Nice steady climb to have a dig.

Quiet back lanes with nice surroundings

get double espresso and boost your energy for better ride

Church is situated by the busy road.

A pretty market town in northern Herefordshire. There are lots of examples of the Tudor half timber black and white buildings. The Ledbury Market Hall in the town centre is a particularly good example built in 1617.

The Woodshed is located right at the entry to Eastnor Deer Park, which played host to the legendary Malvern Classic MTB event for a number of years, but isn’t normally open to cyclists. There’s plenty of seating, both under cover in the “shed” and out in the fresh air, bike racks, a toilet, bins and even free wifi. Dog-walking friends or family will appreciate the dog shower and poo bins. There’s a decent-sized free car park so, if you wanted, you could easily start/finish the circular route here rather than in Great Malvern as I’ve suggested. On offer from the café are locally-sourced treats, including paninis, samosas, scotch eggs, soups and handmade sausage rolls from nearby Legges of Bromyard. Those with a sweet tooth won’t be disappointed either, with assorted cakes, bakes and ice creams on the menu, including gluten free and vegetarian options. Tea, coffee, hot chocolate and cold drinks are also available. Drinks and food are served in recyclable or compostable packaging and all waste is sorted for recycling.

Outdoor hatch with hot and cold drinks, cakes and snacks and local I've cream. Great place to stop when walking or riding on the road or trails.

Beautiful Ledbury Town. Mostly flat

1085 Norman Beginnings According to the Worcester Monastic Annals the building work began in 1085. The Priory was built for thirty monks and was much smaller than it is now. The areas coloured red in the plan on the right are part of the original building, itself part of a larger complex of Monastery buildings. The picture (below right) shows the Roman style pillars and arches. Not long after the time of the Battle of Hastings St Wulstan, the Bishop of Worcester, encouraged a monk, called Aldwin, in the work of founding a monastery in what was then the Malvern Chase. (A chase was an unenclosed area of land where wild animals are preserved for hunting!) The Priory was built on land which belonged to Wesminster Abbey, under the control of the crown at that time. Malvern was in the diocese of Powick but the Priory was subservient to Westminster Abbey and so it had 'Priory' status. Having allegiance to Westminster Abbey, there were altercations between the Priory and the Bishop of Worcester over the years. It is reported that in 1286 the Archbishop, the King and even the Pope were involved in these disagreements.   The picture (right) shows one bay of a two bay sunken chantry alongside St Anne`s chapel. You can see two coffin lids, one of which records an epitaph to Prior Walcher who died in 1135. He was Malvern's most outstanding scholar and the first man in the western world to record the use of the astrolabe, an early form of sextant marked in degrees. 1440 - 1500 Around this time Henry VII and the Duke of Gloucester, later Richard III donated two of our great windows, that at the west end and the one in the North Transept. You can see a sample of these windows on the Stained Glass page. The North aisle was also extended and the new shape of the Priory is indicated by the blue colour on the plan (left). Widening of the South aisle was prevented by existing monastery buildings. Floor and wall tiles plus Monk's stalls were added at this time. The Norman church was extended in the years between 1440 and 1500. There is an interesting study into the rebuilding of Great Malvern Priory in 15th Century.   1539 and Henry VIII (I) During the 1530's King Henry VIII was short of cash and since the monasteries belonged to someone else (the Pope) he decided to plunder them. All opposition was brushed aside by Thomas Cromwell and in 1539 the Malvern monks surrendered their lands and buildings. These were leased and sold to various people. The exception was the disused church which belonged to the crown. (II) Destruction began; one man paid a pound for the Lady chapel and destroyed it. The cloisters and the South transept were pulled down and the lead removed from the roofs. (III) The Priory church was saved by the parishioners of Malvern. Their own tiny parish church was derelict. It stood where the main Malvern post office is now. The parishioners petitioned the King and succeeded in buying the Priory for £20. It took them two years to raise the money. The parish consisted of only 105 families and after they had bought the church they had no money left to carry out repairs! It is an interesting fact that we have, in the Priory, a monument to one of the men, John Knotsford, who was responsible for the demolition of the monastic buildings. John's daughter Anne gave the impressive monument (pictured on right) with herself kneeling at the foot of the tomb.   1540 to 1800 Lack of money continued to be a problem over the next couple of centuries. This meant that hardly any repairs or maintenance were carried out over this period of time. On the plus side there was no money to remove the 'Popish' medieval glass so it is still with the priory. Although the Civil War raged in nearby Worcester, Malvern was still a remote part of the English countryside surrounded by the dense forest of Malvern Chase. 1860 Restoration and Repair We are not sure who financed this work but this was the age of the industrial revolution and wealthy businessmen clearly made possible this renewal. Details in the stained glass windows of the nave, and tiles on ceiling and floor, bear witness to their generosity. On the right is a picture of the ceiling put in at this time. The North Porch was rebuilt in 1894 and between 1910 and 1915 a considerable amount of restoration of the stained glass was carried out. 1939-45 World War II During World War II the stained glass was removed and stored in zinc lined boxes which aided their preservation. After the war Dr L.A. Hamand, the organist, painstakingly replaced the stained glass windows in their original positions as far as was possible. 1977 In 1977 over £100,000 was raised for urgent repairs to stonework and re-leading of the glass. This never ending preservation work continues today.

Great choice of hot and cold snacks... but watch out for the crowds!