Ben takes the lead - herefordshireramblers.org.uk

1 The walk starts by the lovelyRiver Wye and passes theancient ruined Wilton Castleon its way to the attractivevillage church in Bridstow. The usualwalk is a leisurely there and back ofaround four miles but it is possible toextend the route to Broome Farm or toshorten it by catching a bus back toRoss. Most of the route follows theHerefordshire Trail, a circular walk ofabout 154 miles, all within the Countyof Herefordshire, devised by theHereford Group of the of the Trail book can bepurchased locally in TouristInformation Centres, bookshops or ring 01432 is a dog-friendly walk with twoeasily negotiable stiles and one less-friendly stile, two of which are planned to be replaced with gatesduring 2010. Always remember theCountryside Code when taking yourdog on a walk. In particular:By law, you must control yourdog so that it does not disturb or scarefarm animals or a general rule, keep your dogon a lead if you cannot rely on itsobedience and always when in a fieldcontaining knows how unpleasant dog mess is and how it can causeinfections, so always clean up after your dog and get rid of the of the paths followed by this walkis a permissive path so please respect thefarmer s fields when following themarked the Wilton Road car park,cross the road and walk towards theriverbank.

2 At the river turn left andcontinue downstream along the bank toWilton Bridge. Climb a short flight ofsteps and cross the bridge. The six-arched red sandstone bridgeMarch 2010 takes the leadBlack Labrador Ben assisted by his owners Jenny and David Collin of RossRamblers has compiled a booklet of eight dog-friendly walks with no stiles to support the Ross Walkers are Welcome project. Here is one of them1 WALKBen takes owners Jennyand David Collin on afavourite walk nearBridstow Church the east window and two arches builtinto the north wall of the chancel wererecycled from the earlier visiting the church, exit thechurchyard, cross the road, pass throughtwo kissing gates and continue along thefield edge to Pool Mill. Retracing yoursteps from here back to Ross makes awalk of around 4 miles. To return toRoss by bus either catch the 37 whichstops close to the end of the footpath atPool Mill or walk back to BridstowChurch turning right on reaching theroad and walking up to the A49 past theschool and catching the a longer walk continue along thelane to the right and follow the signs forBroome Farm where delicious cream teasare available during the summer tours and tastings are also availableduring longer periods of the year.

3 Aftervisiting Broome Farm one can againretrace one s steps to Ross (around fivemiles in total) or walk further along thelane to the A49 and catch the 38 busservice from Peterstow. This walk is adapted from one ofBen s Favourite Walks contained in thebooklet A Guide to Dog-friendlyWalks in and around Ross-on-Wyepublished by the Ross-on-Wye Walkersare Welcome Group and available fromthe Ross Tourist Information 2010 completed in 1600 and was a tollbridge linking Wilton to sun dial was installed in 1712,originally on the opposite side of thebridge. It was moved in 1939 when thebridge was widened and strengthened tocope with increased wartime residents still await its restorationto its pre-war the public footpath on the rightonto the riverbank, keep left and passthrough a metal gate and over afootbridge to the right. At the end ofthe footbridge go through a kissing gateand turn sharp left past the ruined castlewalls then left over another Castle was probably built in the11th century on a site that commandedviews of two roads and the river and wasone of many that served to police theAnglo-Welsh border.

4 The castle was seton fire in 1642 during the Civil War,the current owners and English heritagehave spent several years in tidying thesite and restoring parts of the ruins. It isopen to the public on a limited basisduring summer months. Leave the castleboundary and follow the permissivefootpath to the right. Keep the brookon your right and go through the tunnelunder the exiting the tunnel turn sharp leftup the slope parallel to the road andregain the public footpath at the right at the top of the slope and,keeping the fences and hedges on the leftgo over a stile, through the gate ofGreenoak Lodge and onto a farm 30 yards go over a stile into thefield on the left and cross the field toanother stile (the less-friendly one).Continue to the far side of the field andenter Bridstow churchyard through akissing gate. A church has existed on thissite since before the arrival of theNormans.

5 The tower dates from the late14th century and is the only part whichis original, the rest of the church havingbeen rebuilt in 1862. The chancel arch, 2010 94 The RamblersThe Ramblers isBritain s biggestcharity workingto promote walking and toimprove conditions for allwalkers. In Herefordshire thereare four local groups, Hereford,Mortimer, Ross-on-Wye andLeadon Ramblers, and indeed mostramblers' groups, welcome dogson walks, but you must checkwith the walk leader more information contact Tom Fisher, tel: 01886 821544or email: MORE WALKSROSS-ON-WYE12345 RIVER WYEA40 WiltonCastleA49A49 WiltonBridgeWilton RoadCar ParkBroomeFarmPool MillBridstowChurch Bridstow WalkStart/parking:Wilton RoadCar Park, Ross-on-Wye. Grid Ref; SO593239 Map:OS map; OutdoorLeisure 14 Distance:4-5 miles. Grade: LeisurelyNearest town:Ross-on-Wye Refreshments:Numerouscafes and pubs in teas at Broome Farm,tel: 01989 567232 Public toilets:In Wye Streetadjacent to Bandstand,opposite The Riverside InnPublic busruns between Ross andHereford via Pool Mill, bus runs betweenRoss and Hereford along the A49 Full details ortel: 01432 260211 WALK2345 Above: Leaving Bridstow Church.

6 Below (top to bottom): Wilton Bridge; Ben; Wilton Castle Below: Bridstow Church66