13-05-2025
A gentle seven-mile countryside hike starting at Alfrick
The Leigh Brook wanders through rural Worcestershire from the Suckley Hills eastwards to its confluence with the Teme. Starting as a steep-sided gorge, the valley opens into peaceful meadows and pasture, dotted with ancient coppice. The area lies within the Abberley and Malvern Hills Geopark, recognised for its unique blend of geology, landscapes, ecology, history and culture.
We set out from Alfrick on a blazing spring day, passing the intriguing church of St Mary's with its early-12th-century nave and windows. A week of sunshine had greened up the landscape, and we followed Folly Road past fields, trees and hedgerows buzzing and twittering with life. Leaving the lane, a footpath skirted the edge of Hayley Dingle, one of several steep-sided, densely wooded dells carved through the
