29/08/11 - The Death of Summer

Distance - 6 Miles
Geocaches - 24 found, 2 DNF
Historical Building

Drayton

12 Degrees.  Stourport Carnival is 5 days away.  Fleece is required for the first time in an age.  Large bills from random school footwear shops appear on the credit card bill.  This all points to one thing and one thing only.  Soon, walking will only be possible of weekends.  I blame the Swedish Crime fiction I am reading at the moment, but it seams I am suffering from SAD syndrome earlier than usual.

Late on Thursday, a new series of 25 cache appeared courtesy of local cachers, The Vaughans.  Since my career in caching started, I have been following their laminated wii calling cards around the country.  Last year, I was up on Dartmoor and struggled to find a cache amongst all of the letterboxes strewn around and after a lengthy search and pop of the Tupperware, there was one of their cards.

I knew that they would be popular and the logs are mounting up already.  I thought more would be out today, so I am out at 6:30 to get a headstart.

Always grateful for the inspiration of new footpaths and trails.  After walking for 8 years, this is only the second time that I have come past Harvington Hall on the Monarchs Way.  After a plague pit on Saturday, I have a key building in the English Civil War on a Monday.  History on my doorstep.

May contain hidden Catholic Priests

The walk starts off from a parking area in front of the building.  There is an old cache that is not part of the trail that advises not to do this on Bank Holidays.  No one likes being told what to do.

Head out on the Monarchs Way and get the 1st in the series.  I know that there will be some that I do not find, but I had hoped to get further than Cache 2 before making a labradoodle cry.  Oh well, I wasn't the first to struggle with this one.

Continue on the Monarch's Way picking up regular caches.  Particulary like Cache 5 which is a classic of its type.  Its a cache that just keeps on coming.

Working my way to Hillpool, which is nice little hamlet that has a myriad selection of paths, some looking they go through people's gardens.  Unlike Shropshire, they are well signposted.

Even a lazy labradoodle couldn't get lost

Follow the stream eest until I find the hamlet of Drayton.  It has some nice buildings, the robin hood pub and is home to the smallest people in Worcestershire.

Drayton, home to Ken Dodd's mates.

Get told to sling my hook by one of the Severn Dwarfs (grumpy, I think) and head to my next DNF.  I genuinely do not have a scooby where this is, but they fact that the clue is in italics makes me think it was an ironic hint.

Head over Barrow Hill.  This is an ancient burial ground, so quite appropriate that we have our buried treasure here.

I then have to work my way through a field of Sweetcorn.  The footpath goes straight through, but its easier to keep to the hedgerows.  All I needed was a an angry bi-plane and I could have recreated North by Northwest.

Cary Grant, or a Fat Liam Neeson?

This just leaves the footpaths back through Woodrow to the car.  Pass the fantastically named "Mabel Sabel's cottage".  She either married into this name or had the cruelest parents since Gary and Phil Neville's Grandparents.  Some nice views demonstrating how The Malvern Escarpement turns into Habberley Hill.

Get back to the outlier cache at Harvington Hall.  There are a gang of people approaching and we exchange hellos.  Could be walkers, but from the GPS around necks and the fact that one of them leaps over the rope for a delve in the bushes, it can only mean one thing.  I decide that I should also have a delve and return for a nice little cache, as they make their way on the round.  Thinking about it now, I should have followed and seen where the hell number 2 was.   

Nice way to spend a bank holiday and keeps the numbers up before we head into the gloom.  Thanks to the Vaughans for another well executed series.