Footpaths Around Upton

First the bare facts. In the 5.20 square miles of the parish of Upton-Upon-Severn we have 21.74 miles of rights-of-way. We have 34 paths (the paths of each parish have separate numbers, starting at the N.E. corner) and six of them are over a mile long.

Bridleway No. 5 (1.65 miles) from the river bridge to Cliff Wood.

Footpath No. 22 (1.93 miles) along the right bank of the Severn to the parish boundary.

No. 25 (1.05 miles) Duckswich to Stanks Lane.

No. 28 (1.34 miles) along Ham Court Drive, then branching south to Newbridge Green.

No. 29 (1.20 miles) Newbridge Green-Southend Farm-Rectory Road.

The average length of the 34 paths is just over half a mile.

But come over the bridge and north along the river bank and watch the pigeons in Fish Meadow hold a pairing-off party in the spring; hear the curlews calling and see the seagulls stealing worms from the peewits. Across the river you will see Severn End, ancestral home of the Lechmere family for over :00 years. Near Cliff Wood you come to a place on the river bank where tongues of land from four parishes meet - surely an important landing-stage when the Severn was the busiest river in Europe. Leading on from that is Donkey Lane. paved in places with house-bricks, which kept the pack-donkeys out of the mud.

Or follow the river downstream from Upton's waterside, past motionless herons (if you're lucky) and noisy mallards till you come to Sandy Point where, just up the brook, you can still see the brick-lined bottom of the lock which once took the coal tubs towards Ham Court. The huge field is called The Ham and the air is alive with the sound of skylarks. The small upright stones in the grass mark out each farmer's share of the field.

When most people approached Upton on foot, raised causeways were provided in case of floods. One of these leads westwards alongside New Street Lane and terminates at the 1832 Cholera Burial Ground. Another causeway leading southwards was constructed to allow the servants of the former Ham Court to walk dryshod to church.

Only one of the walks goes through woodland but you will be surrounded with woods as you walk from Stanks Lane to Duckswich. They have such fascinating names as Stew Covert, Smokeacre Covert, Round Covert, Two-acre covert and Young Covert. The path goes through a mist of bluebells in early May.

In apple blossom time go along New Street Lane, fork right and turn left up the old hollow-way where the sign says: To West Bank. Go down the steps on to the track of the former Malvern Wells-Tewkesbury-Ashchurch (LMS) Railway and then up again into the apple and pear orchards of Clive's Fruit Farm. At the road, turn left with fields of raspberries on both sides and so back into town.

Further afield, a footpath crosses the Brotheridge Green Nature Reserve where 17 butterfly species were seen recently on one afternoon in June. Be sure to have your dog on a lead on all footpaths across private land.

We hope you enjoy following these footpaths. They were made by children going to school, by men going to work or to the pub, by women going to the local shop or town and by families going to church. Most of these people now go on wheels and the need for footpaths has changed. They have become an essential part of our recreational facilities and, as such, are the envy of many countries which have no such system.

For detailed advice on following these and other walks see 'Ten Short Walks - Upton-upon-Severn', on sale in the town.