If you're quiet you might be lucky enough to spot fallow deer, which feed near the woods north of Beckford.

Bredon Hill is very nearly part of the Cotswolds. It has a steep scarp slope, a gentle dip slope and it is encircled by a number of attractive villages and hamlets.

This walk visits six of them, each of which occupies a favoured position below the south-facing dip slope. Each communuty is different but one thing they have in common is a mixture of timber-framed and stone-built houses, reflecting the influence of both the Vale of Evesham and the Cotswolds.

Though much of the south side of Bredon Hill is intensively farmed, there are places where wildlife still has a foothold. The John Moore Nature Reserve at Kemerton is one such place and you can explore it on this walk. A woodland reserve, it was established in memory of the popular local author by his widow, Lucile Bell. It is managed by Kemerton Conservation Trust, which was set up by Adrian Darby of Kemerton Court with the aim of promoting conservation in Worcestershire, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire. There are a number of pools at Kemerton and you'll pass two of them so you can expect to see good numbers of water birds.

Next to the pools is an area densely planted with native shrubs such as guelder rose and spindle, which are covered in heavy crops of colourful berries each autumn. You might also be lucky enough to spot fallow deer, which feed in and around the woods north of Beckford.

St Giles's Church at Bredon is currently closed for renovation but you'll probably find most of the other churches open. The church of St John the Baptist at Beckford is particularly interesting - don't miss the weird carvings on the tympanum - above the entrance - and the chancel arch.

FACTFILE

Start: Bredon, grid ref SO927369.

Length: 10 miles/16.8km (easily shortened as it consists of two loops).

Maps: OS Explorer 190, OS Landranger 150.

Terrain: Mostly pastoral farmland, with a few arable fields; no hills.

Footpaths: Excellent.

Stiles: 11.

Parking: Bredon.

Public transport: Bus (First 550/551) or train to Evesham, then First 540, which stops at Beckford, Conderton, Overbury, Kemerton, Lower Westmancote and Bredon, Mon-Sat only; Traveline 0870 608 2608 or www.

worcestershire.gov.uk/bustimetab PLEASE NOTE This walk has been carefully checked and the directions are believed to be accurate at the time of publication. No responsibility is accepted by either the author or publisher for errors or omissions, or for any loss, accident or injury, however caused.

DIRECTIONS:

1 Walk west along the main street, forking right at a sign for church and river. Turn right by the church, following Dock Lane to a footpath just before Brook House. Follow the path to Back Lane and turn left. Turn left again at a T-junction, and then left on a footpath. Follow it to Moreton Lane, cross over and turn left to find another path which runs by a field edge to another lane at Lower Westmancote.

2 Cross to a footpath opposite and follow it to a junction by a hedge. You can turn either left or right - both routes lead to a lane at Westmancote. Turn left, then take the first footpath on the right, opposite Farm Lane.

Follow it to a lane at Kemerton and turn right. Turn right again in the village centre (by The Warren), then left at the war memorial.

Keep straight on at a crossroads, pass St Nicholas's Church and turn left on a footpath. Walk through the grounds of Upper Court, between two pools.

3 Turn left at a junction, crossing a footbridge and following a woodland path to another junction. Turn right into a field and cross to a gate at the far side, between two willow trees. Continue across another field, bearing slightly left, to a pair of stiles and a footbridge then walk across parkland towards Overbury. Head for the first of the buildings over to your right - as you draw nearer you'll see a gate giving access. Go straight on past the buildings then left along a walled path to the village. Turn left, then right, passing St Faith's Church and following a lane round to meet another.

4 Turn left, then shortly right on a field-edge path. Ignore the first path branching right but turn right in the corner, not into the next field but into an adjacent wood. Turn right, then soon left to find a stile. Cross a field and two orchards to meet a lane at Conderton. Turn right to the village centre, then left. Turn first right on a footpath which runs through four fields, moving to the other side of the hedge in the third field.

5 Meeting a bridleway, turn right. Follow it to Court Farm where it turns briefly left, then right, before continuing to a lane at Beckford. Turn right, then left, passing through the churchyard to the village green and the main street. Turn right, then shortly left on to Back Lane. After 250m, turn right on a bridleway.

Follow it to Crashmore Lane then cross to a footpath almost opposite. Walk across a field to a hedge gap then turn right on another bridleway. Turn left when you meet the lane again.

6 Take the first footpath on the left. Walk straight across pasture, keeping close to the right-hand edge. Ignore a path branching right and continue to a corner. Go through a gate and left through another, joining a field-edge track. Keep straight on at all junctions, eventually joining a tree-lined track and then passing the John Moore Nature Reserve to reach Kemerton.

7 Turn left, then shortly right at a junction with a no through road, and right again at the next junction. Take a footpath on the left, opposite Kemerton House. Follow it to a junction with a track and turn right for a few paces, then left on a field-edge path, with a hedge on your right. The path soon leaves the field edge and follows a well-defined course to Kemerton Road. Turn left into Bredon.

10:47am Monday 27th November 2006

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