26/9/11 - Capital Ring Stage 6 - Rutting and Wombles

Start - Wimbledon Park
Finish - Richmond
Distance - 8 miles
Caches - 2
Pubs - Loads of choice in Richmond.

Capital Ring Phase 6

The indian summer has provided a bonus in the quest and reaching the half way point at the river on the western side of the circle.

Both start and end point of the walk are on the District Line which has a stop opposite my hotel.  Getting dark at the end of the walk, so it may be the last of the year, but you never know.

I had high expectations for this and it didn't disappoint.  Some of the legs have had road walking and dodgy locations in south london but in Richmond Park, you feel like you are in the Scottish highlands.

Cross Wimbledon Park, with its large lake and onto the home of the Wombles.  The weather cannot make up its mind and a particulary strong downpour has me heading for the Windmill cafe for protection from the elements.  By the time I have ordered my coffee it has stopped.

Wimbledon Cafe

Take my coffee with me as I walk through the woodland on good paths.  First cache of the day is behind a tree next to kingston university playing fields.

Cross Kingston Vale Parkway.  This is like a motorway and then head into the wilds of Richmond Park.  Its rutting season and as you approach Pen Ponds, you can hear almost prehistoric bellowing.  It is like the start of Jurassic Park.  On the tube down, I read the Evening Standard that had the attached Story.  I didnt get close enough for a great picture - but you get the point.

Pen Ponds

Get off my land

Its quite a sight. I have a female come darting across the path and in the ferns you can see her persuer - well his antlers sticking out over the top at least.

This leads to a conversation with an incredibly nosey woman who insists on walking with me and repeating everything I say to her friend Sandra.  "Sandra - he's walking the capital ring".  It goes on.  She does ask me if I have lost weight by doing the walk.  I dont know if my trousers were hanging off me or she thought I was doing it in one go, but it seemed a strange question to ask a stranger.

Leave them behind at Pertersham where Cache number 2 is - next to a pub that is too posh for me.  Find the cache high in a tree and get showered in wood lice.  Nice.

Across Pertersham Meadows and I am back on the Thames on the run in to Richmond.  More nice views and quality places to eat that I am too smelly for.

Night fall over the Thames

There a cache at the end - found it last Jan

Richmond is a lovely place.  Even the tramp is popular and gets loads of people talking with him.  My first port of call is the White Cross.  Can't really avoid the call of the Neon.

Come in - we have Stella

Then its something to eat.... and an encounter with an amateur dramatics groups when I was looking for the loos.  They did ask if I would like to join, but I could have only accepted if they had a role for a man who needed a pee badly....

Best part of the Ring, so far.

25/9/11 - The odd caches left around Clent

Distance - 4.4 Miles
Walk from - 100 Walks in Warwickshire and West Midlands
(Even though Clent is in Worcestershire)
Geocaches - 6 and 1xDNF
Challenges - 1 and my first.

Clent

The geocaching community is up in arms over the introduction of a new concept of Challenges.  Rather than going out and finding hidden treasure, you are challenged to get out there and do something.  The nearest one to us is at Clent, to have your photo taken at the four standing stones, so I head on up there to do a structured walk from a book, take in some of the remaining caches and complete the challenge.

In a slight change of form, I have to drop Sonia off at work.  She has spent the last four weeks writing her phone number on bits of paper and attaching them to builders vans.  Some men may be concerned about this, but as all the little tricky jobs around the house are getting miraculously completed, I don't mind.

The fact that she is at work means I have to play mother.  From what I can tell this involves washing, buying provisions, cooking provisions and being a taxi driver.

Park up at the back of the fountain and have the stiff climb up to the top of Adams Hill to the stones.  Cache 1 is called Ouch and involves crawling through gorse to get at a film pot at the bottom of a tree.  Good job it is early and no one can see me.

Get up to the stones to complete the challenge.

Four Stones

Pick up two National Trust caches whilst heading in a North East direction to Nimmings car park and drop down across agricultural fields to St Kenelm Church, scene of a murdered boy king in the dark ages.

No sign of Regicide today

Head south and skirt the edges of Walton Hill.  There is a trail of caches named after members of the Walton family on this side of the hills.  I have found several of them before, but two are on paths that are not on the OS map and not well travelled.  Decide to have a look, dropping down a steep woodland.  After a hunt, I miss one and get the other.  So one still eludes me!

Continue down o Nag Hill and pick up the Vine Pub (Thresher Shark anyone?) and the Church, which has the service is full swing as they belt out the latest christian hits.

Road walking along Odnall Lane and back to the car. 

As expected, great walking.  Now for domesticity.

18/9/11 - Fit for the Queen of the Walshes

Distance - 9.5 Miles
Starting Point - Marlborough Drive
Geocaches - 2
Conversation with - A retired Monk
Walk from - Country Walking Magazine, October 09

Shrawley

Today, I must be back in time for the boy's football.  And I want to do a decent walk.  I have a short drive over to the badlands of town and park up with a view of where Sonia learnt to terrorise the local boys, the Snipes.  I have no idea what the old concrete builiding used to be, but it is my first landmark.

Question 1:  What's the building for?

I have never walked over these fields/woodland before and its an impressive start.  Realise that I have left the dog's lead in the car, but it doesn't matter so much, as the majority of this walk is in the wilds.  Where there are roads, there are no cars on them.

The path leads to Larford Farm and their fishing facilities.  There is a competiton on and its packed with brummies.... overhear a conversation that goes"Oi borrowed it of my mate but it was no good, all of the rubber split".  Hope it wasn't spawning season in Brierly hill or we would have more fishermen to worry about.  This place is like the place that time forgot, and I cannot believe anyone has ever been down here without a rod is their hand.

Some wild paths where we disturb a fox and have to forces our way through those bushes that leave you with spiky balls all over you.  I am covered, the dog is covered and we emerge at the place that I learned to drink at on a Friday night in the mid 80s.  Nice to emerge from the footpath but a) i have no money and b) its about 9am.  Not much chance of a drink then.

Jukebox, scratchings and beer - 80s style

Some fantastic walking down alongside the river on a broad path taking me into Shrawley woods.  This is a fantastic place to walk, especially in May when the bluebells are out.  There is not a soul here today and I complete my circuit looking for the one Geocache.  Find it.

View from a cache - what a big tree.

The walking is a complete loop of the woods and the official route tries to take you back to the small bridge that I have already crossed.  As if I was going to miss the chance to have a lark around on the stepping stones.

Elf an Safety have decreed a rope is required

Walk west, going past the forge that now has a sign saying "1652".  Impressive.  There isn't a lot left of it. 

Again, I decide to amend the route, as I really want to walk up to Glasshampton Monastery.  This is one weird place.  In a middle of nowhere a comminity of monks tend the fields and shun all the pressures of modern life.  I need to investigate to see if they are hiring.

I meet a retired monk who has come back for the first time since 1951.  He reminisces about how much it has changed.  I challenge on this and ask how.  He tells me the trees are a bit taller.

The quiet life of reflection

After sorting out which path I need (for the 3rd walk in a row, I am on the Geopark way) and I disappear into some dark, unfrequented with people, woodland.  It really is quite strange here.  There are good paths and an impressive bridge that crosses over the dribble of a stream that is Dick Brook.... but I never, ever see anyone here.  This leads me to the 2nd and final cache of the day, but I admit, I get distracted and forget to look for it.

Question 2 - what is the dog thinking?

This leads me out to Astley Church.  I have never been around here and I find it interesting.  I am like an explorer in my own backyard and its strangely weird sensation.  All around me I can see the familar hills and landmarks but these paths, hamlets and the church have never been visted before.

I work my way through Syntley Farm and across fields before I get a really familar view of my second house at Seven Hills Drive.

House #2 had better views than House #3

Soon back to the edge of civilisation and I have to fashion a dog lead out of my belt.  No need to worry - a man with a dog on a piece of string and his trousers at half mast blends into the Walshes rather well.

This was a fantastic walk.  Will be one of the best of the year without a doubt - we had great paths, riverside rambling, scary woods, retired monks and new paths to explore - all within spitting distance of where I live.

Question 3 - did the doodle appreciate it?

11/9/11 - What a lot in Quatt

Distance - 6.25 Miles
Caches - 28 in Trail, 27 Found, 2 DNF in the Trail

Quatt

13 days without a cache.  Had a great walk yesterday with no caches on route so thought that today, I would do something to keep the numbers up.

I bit of more than I could chew!

Up at 8am to take Ellie to work and a look on http://www.geocaching.com/ to see a decent place to go.  Stourbridge was considered but a recent log about the caches being vandalised (bloody west midlands) meant that I went up to Shropshire for a new trail.  A hasily assembled GPX download and I hadn't really taken note of just how many there were in the trail.

Provided a great opportunity to walk some favourite paths and a chance to discover some new ones.

Park up at the overflow parking for Dudmaston Hall.  No other cars there.  Just a pile of broken car window glass.  A concern.  There is a cache here somewhere but I had no joy.  Not part of the series.  Head out east across farmland.  2nd cache of the day is a 4.5 dificulty/terrain by Fungimanforager.  Last time I tried to find one of his it required a small child and a pair of step ladders.  So seemed a bit too challenging for my needs today.  A quick look at the gallery shows a man emerging from a water culvert with a pot holing helmet on.  Don't think this was for me.

First of the series proper comes with a good clue and is a classic of its type.  This is what we need when attempting so many on a route.... nothing too complex.

Skirt around the Old Hall and then head south on good paths alongside various coppices, picking up the caches along the way.  First great views over the Clee Hills come at SO764870. where we head to cross the motorbike racetrack and head down towards the river.



Clee Hills

Cross over the road, heading west towards the river and then go further away from the car (time is getting on!) heading south to the pools and waterfalls at Doggets Batch.  This next section of walking represents the best on route and I have been here before.  The paths take you through the well hidden hamlet of Hampton Loade.

Staring at the sun, sweaty and brown.

Come through Hampton Loade.  Actually see the foot passenger ferry today - but its not taking punters.  The fella is sat on his boat/raft having a cup of tea.  I do like the country's first "Sat Nav" error signs that are at the top of the road here.  Apparently TomTom thinks you can get your Mondeo to Highley by taking Huckleberry Finn's raft.

Follow the river upstream.  Proud of myself that I retrieve a cache that is directly where two fishermen are partaking in their completely pointless hobby.  Have to hide the other side of a big old tree but I am determined to get 100% on this route.

Alas, once passing the waterworks, this has all been futile.  Muggled twice at Number 23, so give up and head up the great path that is Long Covert. 

I am being followed by a berghaus clad dog walker, so get a bit of a sprint on to find the four that are just off path along here.  After number to, I stop and allow her to overtake.  It was either that or hide behind a tree and I am not built for hiding.

We are now in the grounds of Dudmaston Hall.  I have been caching here before, last January I think, when the lakes were completely frozen over.  There are still loads of others to find here and I do manage to pick up another Wacky Racers cache which is well off piste.  Look at the route on Everytrail and you will see that I end up struggling to get out of the grounds of Dudmaston, having chosen a path that came to an abrupt stop. 

Ended up dragging the labradoodle down a bit of a stiff incline, to pick up the main path out.

A few more on the road back to the carpark - including the last of the series.  I am a bit cached out by this point and my quick caching trip has taken 3.25 hours.  Didn't fancy hunting in a road - so had a cursory look and will log as a second dnf.  One day I will get 100% on one of these mega trails!

Thanks to spekey for setting up this trail.  The paths and views are excellent - so cachers get a really good walk for their money as well.

10/9/11 - Back in Blighty

Distance - 6.7 Miles
Animals - Cows, bulls, sheep, squirrels, pheasants, rabbits and llamas
Geocaches - 0

Knightwick

Greece has many great things going for it, the food, the weather, the frozen beer glasses and the laws that encourage you to carry large dogs on motorbikes.  I myself love England and have missed my walks. 

Back to it today and see a real walker as I am loading the reluctant labradoodle into the car.  Mrs Bish is out again on a relentless 20 mile walk to stourbridge and back to prepare for her china marathon.  Good luck.  Makes my 6 miler look like a stroll in the Park.

First weekend of every month, I am completing in order a walk from Julie Royle's Worcestershire Walks book.  This is another cracker.

The drive to Knightwick is worth it in itself.  Park up just over the footbridge from the Talbot - home of award winning English Breakfasts and follow the Worcestershire Way signs down a country lane before picking up the River Teme at Osebury Rock.  We stop for consideration about whether to continue.

Risk it for a Biscuit?

The bulls were only babies

Work our way around Lulsley Court and set their dogs off in the garden.  They are jealous because Molly is out on a walk and they are in the garden.  Lulsley Court is up for sale and can be yours for a cool £845K.  Thought about putting an offer in, but there is no shop or pub local.  What are you going to do when you run out of Oxo Cubes then?

We then have a lovely sunken path that we follow adjacent to the hop fields.  Like the sign on Hoppickers cottage. 

That's £2, right?

After crossing a disused railway line, we follow Folly Road around Folly Farm.  Llamas are becoming a bit passe these days.... they are all over the place.



What are they for?

This leads me to Alfrick.  Now, I don't think that I have ever been to Alfrick before.  And its only 13 miles away.  Agree with the sentiments on the Wiki page.  The memorial cross had too many names on it for a place of this size and 5 from the same family.  Sobering.

Nice place.  Wouldn't want to live there.  It has a shop.  The pub is out the village.

Births, deaths, marriages

Stiff climb up out of Alfrick onto Crews Hill where we hit the finest part of the walk, the Worcestershire Way.  I have travelled this country walking and this path is one of my favorite places.  Broad ridge with great views east and west.  Lovely.

I am a silhouette.... scaraboosh... fandango

So I've had a nice day and the ladies have been out spending the cash.  Ellie thinks she is the proud owner of a bright red fiesta.... her mom may have a different opinion of ownership.  Alex pee'd on her chips a little by mentioning she just needs to pass her test now.