RAMBLERS from near and far headed to Malvern and helped make the town’s eighth annual walking festival a huge success.

Organiser Ray Roberts said the event had been the biggest and best to date, with a total of 572 walks booked and participants covering a record total distance of almost 5,000 miles.

There were dozens of walks for all ages and abilities at the festival, which ran from Saturday, May 26, to Sunday, June 3.

Challenges for the serious walker included the 18-mile Malvern Hills Endto- End Both Ways walk and another trek covering the complete 31 miles of the Worcestershire Way in just one day.

Many particularly keen walkers also took the opportunity to extend the festival by two extra days by participating in the five-day Jubilee Discover Walk from Chipping Campden in the Cotswolds and back to Malvern. This took place over the Jubilee weekend.

“The whole festival has been very successful, certainly the best we’ve ever had in terms of numbers,” said Mr Roberts.

“Every single walk we organised worked very well.”