The county of Herefordshire is one of the most rural and least densely populated in England, being a largely agricultural area in the west of the country, which has been historically pastoral. It is famous for its apple and pear orchards, and of course its cider and perries, hence the title; there are many orchards around the county but not as many as there once were.
The county capital is the city of Hereford with its magnificient cathedral, which is home to a 13th century map, the Mappa Mundi. The city is also home to the Three Choirs festival (which it shares with nearby Worcester and Gloucester) every three years. Other important towns in the county are Leominster to the north, Kington and Hay-on-Wye in the west, Bromyard in the northeast, Ross-on-Wye in the south and Ledbury in the southeast. There are two main rivers, the Wye and the Lugg, both of which used to be navigable. There were also two canals linking Hereford to Gloucester and Bromyard to Stourport but these were never successful and fell into disrepair; it is hoped to reopen the former and land has been retained over the route. Travel by road tends to be slow due to the rural and hilly nature of the landscape.
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County Symbol - Apple
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Herefordshire Trail
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Marcle Ridge Loop
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County Flower - Mistletoe
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When trying to choose a location for this cache we were not sure which area would be most appropriate and there was lots of choice because there are not many caches around. We could have gone for The Black and White Villages but that was a bit far for us to maintain. So we looked to the southeast and Big Apple Country. Ledbury and Much Marcle are towns that are typically Herefordshire and well worth a visit but with the county bordered on the west by the Black Mountains and on the east by the Malvern Hills and its the agricultural nature, a high spot in a rural area seemed best. So we decided upon Marcle Ridge which is fairly remote (not a sole around when H has been there), certainly rural (lots of tractors on nearby roads!) and there are views over the whole of the south of the county (a TV mast nearby testifies to that).
Park at the picnic area at the coordinates provided and walk the 1 km to the cache along the ridge. There are great views of the Malverns and Bredon Hill on the way and when you arrive there is a panarama over the fields looking out towards the Black Mountains and Brecon Beacons.
As you walk along the ridge you are standing on Silurian limestone formed more than 400 millions years ago. Had you been here then you would be in an area much like the Great Barrier reef with the Malvern Hills forming an archepelago of islands. Herefordshire has the most areas of this stone in the country and wild flowers, such as the wild daffidil, flourish bacause of it. In more recent times the ridge and surroundings were an important route for the Romans and before and after this there were many farmsteads and forts, such as Oldbury fort nearby to the south.
The path itself is part of the Herefordshire Trail, a 150 mile walk around the whole of Herefordshire. That may be a bit too much of a walk for one cache but the walk is also part of the 2.5 or 4 mile Marcle Ridge Loop. If that still seems too far you can go back the way you came.
Note, although there is a path marked going up the side of the ridge it peaters out near the top so may be difficult to follow. Also, there is a trig point nearby and it is one of Ye Ole Survey Monuments so you can claim two caches and a trig for the same walk 
Finally, do not forget to take a note of the numbers on the inside front cover of the log book so you can get the final cache of Little Quest when you have done the caches in every county.