On the Wye at Hereford

NEAREST LOCATION

Hereford

RECOMMENDED BY
DISTANCE

4 miles (6.4kms)

ASCENT
180ft (55m)
TIME
1hr 45mins
GRADIENT
DIFFICULTY
Easy
STARTING POINT
SO503401

About the walk

Percy and Fred Bulmer, the founders of H P Bulmer, were brought up in Credenhill, where their father was rector. His education interrupted by asthma, Percy lacked qualifications and decided to set up in business on his own. In 1887, inspired by his father – a contributor to the Herefordshire Pomona, a beautifully illustrated catalogue listing the varieties of apples and pears – and taking his mother’s advice to select a business in ‘eating or drinking – activities that do not go out of fashion’, Percy tried his hand at cider-making. It must have been a promising start, for his brother Fred, having completed a degree in history at Cambridge, turned down an opportunity to tutor the children of the King of Siam (present-day Thailand) and joined his business.

With a loan from their father, the brothers purchased land beside the city for a new cider mill and began fermenting the cider in 100-gallon casks. Cider production was still not mechanised and the brothers often worked 16-hour days, sleeping overnight in the mill. The outcome of their labours was often uncertain, too, for the natural yeasts could unpredictably turn the brew sour. Their business also depended upon the annual harvest, which in 1890 was disastrous, forcing them to buy Somerset apples at inflated prices. Their fortunes began to turn, however, when a university friend of Fred’s, Dr Herbert Durham, isolated the wild yeast necessary to produce a pure cider. The brothers started to expand, mechanising the process and installing tanks to store excess stock as insurance against a poor harvest. The also began planting their own orchards, developing suitable varieties that they could supply to the local growers. Marketing their product was a challenge, since much of Britain had little or no tradition of drinking cider. Fred began travelling the country, taking their product to agricultural shows, but soon realised that to succeed, they had to create a new demand. Publicity was expensive, but the brothers began trawling directories for appropriate contacts, targeting them with specially produced informative pamphlets. They accumulated a list of some 20,000 names and the business generated finally enabled them to become a ‘wholesale only’ company. Their famous Woodpecker brand was first sold in 1896.

During his schoolless childhood, Percy taught himself French and as the business blossomed took himself to France, where he learned from the cider-makers of Épernay, found out about new bottling techniques and discovered the methode champagnoise. This he subsequently employed to make a champagne cider, which the brothers marketed as Pomagne. Bulmers continued to grow and was granted a Royal Warrant in 1911. It finally became a public company in 1970. Now part of Heineken, it remains a top brand and is still based in Hereford. Fred’s book Early Days of Cider Making, published in 1937, is available from the Cider Museum. Written in the language of its day, it is a delightful read, a story of sweat, endeavour, opportunism and good fortune.

Walk directions

From Hereford Centre (Eign Street) take the bus to Hereford Garden Centre, King’s Acre. From the bus stop a hedged bridleway leaves the main road. Follow it to its end at the corner of Wyevale Wood. Cross another bridleway to a small gate opposite and continue along the right-hand edge of successive fields beside orchards, eventually coming out onto a lane.

Cross and go over a stile into the field opposite. Carry on with the boundary now on your left down two fields to exit by a kissing gate in the corner. Swing right beside a house to emerge onto another lane.

Cross to a small metal gate opposite and strike half-left in an old orchard. Beyond a second gate, skirt a tennis court to a lane. Through a kissing gate opposite, continue the same line across another orchard to a stile. Keep going to join a green path that passes to the right of St Michael’s Church and graveyard. After another kissing gate, walk on above a wooded bank past the foot of the extensive vicarage garden and then orchards beyond. Keep going at the edge of a field, passing through a gate partway along to continue within a narrow pasture. At a fork beside a large tree, branch right downhill to a kissing gate and walk beside the hedge down to the River Wye.

Go left over a gated bridge and follow the river downstream towards Hereford. After 1 mile (1.6km), a track on the left leads to the Waterworks Museum. Otherwise, carry on along the riverbank to Hunderton Bridge.

Climb steps beside the bridge onto the course of the old railway and go left. After passing beneath a road bridge, keep left at a fork and wind past buildings to emerge on a supermarket car park. Follow the path ahead, which joins a street past the Museum of Cider. To return to Eign Street where you caught the bus out of town, carry on a little further to a mini-roundabout and go left.

Additional information

Farmland and woodland paths, old railway bed, several stiles

Orchards, arable fields and riverside pastures

Some arable fields, but many cattle beside Wye

OS Explorer 189 Hereford & Ross-on-Wye

Several pay-and-display car parks in city centre, including West Street and Friars Street

None on route but several in city

Bus routes 71, 71B and 446 leave Hereford along Eign Street (A438); ask for Hereford Garden Centre

Been on this walk?

Send us photos or a comment about this route.

Know a good walk?

Share your route with us.

WALKING IN SAFETY

Read our tips to look after yourself and the environment when following this walk.

Find out more

About the area

Discover Herefordshire

Herefordshire is split in two by the River Wye which meanders through the county on its way to the Severn and the sea. Largely rural, with Hereford, Leominster, and Ross-on-Wye the major towns and cities, its countryside and ancient villages are the county’s major asset.

Visitors can take advantage of a number of the trails which will guide them through areas of interest. Those especially interested in historic village life should try the Black and White Village Trail, which takes motorists on a 40-mile drive around timber-framed villages from Leominster to Weobley (established in the 17th century and known as a centre of witchcraft in the 18th), Eardisley (where the church boasts a 12th-century carved font), Kington, Pembridge and others. Other trails include the Mortimer Trail, the Hop Trail and the Hidden Highway, which goes from Ross-on-Wye to Chester. Hereford has a small Norman cathedral, which has a great forest of pink sandstone columns lining the nave. Inside is a chained library, a 13th-century Mappa Mundi (map of the world) and one of only four copies of the 1217 version of the Magna Carta.

Why choose Rated Trips?

Your trusted guide to rated places across the UK
icon example
The best coverage

Discover more than 15,000 professionally rated places to stay, eat and visit from across the UK and Ireland.

icon example
Quality assured

Choose a place to stay safe in the knowledge that it has been expertly assessed by trained assessors.

icon example
Plan your next trip

Search by location or the type of place you're visiting to find your next ideal holiday experience.

icon example
Travel inspiration

Read our articles, city guides and recommended things to do for inspiration. We're here to help you explore the UK.