Malvern Hills dog walk
8.2 miles/13.2km | 5 hours | moderate | 705m ascent
1. Start
From North Quarry (WR14 4LT), head south on the obvious track. Stay on this for 650m until you come to a switchback going sharp right. Follow this path gently uphill for 400m until you reach another hairpin to the left. The climbs steeply up the hill in a series of switchbacks until it levels out. After 0.5km, take the grassy track quite steeply up the hill. Follow this to summit of North Hill (altitude 397m).
2. 1 miles
The Malvern Hills is open access, so as long as you hit the various way points, it doesn’t matter if you diverge slightly from this route. Head south-west down to the saddle below. Turn left and follow the track in the direction of Worcestershire Beacon (the next summit), passing a round place-indicator stone, before taking any of the trails heading to the summit (425m). You’ve gone 3.5km at this point.
3. 1.9 miles
Continue south from the beacon and take the path along the east side of the ridge. Enter a gorse grove which takes you past a pumping station. Emerge at another indicator stone and take the paved road into a carpark to the road at Upper Wyche.
4. 2.9 miles
Cross the B4218 and take the steps going up the hill by the public toilets. Continue south on the obvious path. There are two routes up to Pinnacle Hill (345m) and either is fine. You’ve now covered about 7km.
5. 4.1 miles
Carry on south for about 100m, and then almost immediately, head east (left) to the track about 100m below you. If this is too steep, continue another 0.5km to Black Hill, then double back. Head north on the track that follows the hill contours until you arrive back at Upper Wyche and the Wyche Inn.
6. 5.7 miles
Head down Wyche Road (B4218) for about 200m until you reach a track going into Upper Wyche Quarry on the left-hand-side. Follow the path through two wooden posts, then through the woods into another two carparks where you take the route passing between three metal ‘Rhino’ posts. From here you stay on the track, past Earnslaw Lake, and follow the contours through the woodland for about 2km until you reach St Ann’s Well Café (WR14 4RF).
7. 7.4 miles
From the café, stick to the main path that continues to follow the contours and it’s just under 2km back to North Quarry Carpark. Total route distance is just under 14km.
Looking for something a bit shorter? Check out our five-mile walk in the Malvern Hills.
