Ludcle two

Slow Way not verified yet. Verify Ludcle here.

After some consideration I’ve given this route (which we did from east to west) a 3 star rating, but in reality this is an average of the different sections of the walk, which I’ve split into 5 sections:
1: Cleobury Mortimer - Hopton Bank. 4 stars. Very pleasant walking, mostly through fields. No significant navigation issues. We made a slight detour to the Hopton Crown, where the food & drink was excellent.
2: Hopton Bank - Willmore Pool (between Horseditch & Random). 1-2 stars. This was a tough section, mainly due to the footpaths shown on the Slow Ways route and OS maps simply not existing in real life, maybe due to underuse and spread of vegetation. We had to walk uphill in the direction of Magpie Hill through bogs, marshes and thick gorse without ever finding proper footpaths, the best being sheep tracks at best 5cm wide. We did this walk in May, and saw nobody at all en route. Perhaps navigation might become easier later in the summer, when conditions under foot weren’t quite as boggy, and when more people have been out and about walking on the Clee Hills. I would say however that a major positive aspect was that whenever we rested and turned around, the views back toward the Malvern Hills were magnificent, and got progressively better the higher we climbed.
3: Willmore Pool - A4117 crossing. 3-4 stars. As we weren’t confident that we could locate any kind of footpath leading up to Titterstone, we deviated from the Slow Ways route and turned left onto a small road leading down to cross the A4117 just east of Farnden. There was virtually no traffic on this minor road, and views from the Clee Hills over the surrounding countryside were again extensive and beautiful.
4: A4117 crossing - Sheet. 5 stars. What a contrast! Suddenly the Shropshire Way became clearly signposted, easy to follow, and passed through a succession of meadows and fields covered in buttercups. The route went right through the middle of the Iron Age fort at Caynham, and finally crossed Ledwyche Brook just east of Street. The views continued to be excellent, including those of Ludlow Castle which gratifyingly became ever closer!
5: Sheet - Ludlow. 3 stars. This final section of the route was mostly along pavements, though the first kilometre or so was on the verge of Sheet Road which was quite busy at around 5pm on a Thursday afternoon.
Conclusion: I’ve recommended Ludcle 2 for inclusion in the Slow Ways network, but anyone walking it may need to show some flexibility in adapting their actual route on the section between Hopton Bank and crossing the A4117 according to conditions.

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