Obelisk, Hollybush, Eastnor, the Malvern/Hereford border.

Obelisk in distance, as seen from path

Some interesting tree forms

 An easy to follow walk, absolutely no need for a map or sense of direction. Park in the Midsummerhill carpark, found just outside Hollybush on the road to Eastnor. You then walk over the cattle grid and just follow the road, you are not allowed to drive up the road unless you are living in one of the few houses. The walk to the obelisk probably just takes about twenty minutes, and this is one walk you could push a buggy along if you have toddlers. The obelisk is a memorial to relations of the Eastnor castle family. Each side has a different inscription to a different dead relative. The memorials are to :

The Obelisk

Edward Charles Cook

A couple of nice views

Lord Chancellor Somer who died in1812
James Cook who died in 1758
and John Lord Somer, Baron of Evesham.

A quite warm day the walk was gentle and although, as you can see, the skies were grey and cloudy, the views were still quite beautiful.

Horses with obelisk in background

I rather liked this whomping willow esq tree

Midsummer Hill, Eastnor, Herefordsahire

Eastnor Castle seen from hill

The Malvern Hills extend south from Malvern into Eastnor in Herefordshire. One of the southern most hills is Midsummer hill. The paths to it's summit is quite narrow and steep, and for most of the climb you are surrounded by woodland. At this time of year you can see clearly through them past Eastnor Castle and the obelisk and out across the gently undulating Herefordshire countryside.

 Near the top you leave the trees and find yourself on a shale and grassy mound with great views in 360 degrees. There are buzzards, sparrowhawks and kestrels living around here and you can see the distinctive birds of prey hovering and then swooping down, both over the hills and the surrounding farmland. There is an information post at the top which explains about the different plants and animals you may see.

I was absolutely the only soul on the hill, even though the car park was full. There is an easier walk from the car par to the obelisk and I could see many people had walked there.Being alone on the hill though meant there was no one to disturb the wildlife and I saw many smaller birds including a very inquisitive wren and a pair of nervous pheasants.

The Herefordshire obelisk

View through trees

View from summit

Tree root detail