09/08/14 - Birthday Bimble from Bourton

Distance - 7.72 Miles
Geocaches - 2
Walk from - Harry Hargreaves Cotswold Rambles Book 2

I was born, in a crossfire hurricane.  Well I exaggerate a touch but it was in a thunder storm.  And it was 45 years ago today.

How to celebrate - how about a walk and a pint?  Blogfans exclaim that its practically my birthday every week.

The route is chosen from a 1980's rambling book by Harry Hargreaves.  He wrote his last book when he was in his nineties.  I hope to still be walking then.

And its back to Bourton on the Water.  Venice of the Cotswolds.  Home of a model village and Birdland.  Home of the £5 car parks.  Unless you have been before and know where to park buckshee.

Last time I blogged from here, I walked North, so makes sense to walk South today.  The map has changed since Harry's day.  He shows fields, but 30 years on there is a Carp Farm.  The dyslexic in me had to read it twice, in case it was anything to do with Severn Trent.

They value their carp.  The lake is surrounded by high wired fencing which means there are few photo opps until we escape into the countryside.

Not just any countryside.  Cotswold Countryside

Birthday Boy off the leash

We walk through fields of gold to meet the church at Little Rissington.  One of only two caches of the day.

Church

Mrs Mappiman and a massive bush

Its not about the numbers

Little Rissington is nice.  People out tending their gardens.  A help yourself box full of massive marrows.  No pub.

We have to move on to Great Rissington for that.  And what fine walking it is.

Tuck into that

Views.  Obscured by a 45 year old man.

Whisper it quietly, but for all its beauty, the walk gets a touch monotonous.  No features, hills or caches to break up the long straight paths.  We get to Great Rissington and road walk around the outskirts - 11am is too early for the pub.  The tranquility is broken only by me swearing at a fool in a volvo who drives too fast, too close to us - the only other road users.  I could have took him as well.  I am bound to have had age on my side.

Then its back to town along the Donnington Way.  A long distance path that is sponsored by a brewery.  It really is my birthday.

The Way Home

We reach the town and I find a footpath that affords a view of Birdland.  It would appear that people have paid to go in and look at a goose.

Exotic Wildfowl

We are soon back with the hoards.  You can see what it is popular.  The low bridges over the shallow water - just right for kids and labradoodles to have a paddle.  The ice cream parlours.  The Pubs.  Its got the lot.

Advice - the Old New Inn is not only stupidly named but does not do cooked food.  The Kingsbridge does and is packed to the rafters but the staff are ultra efficient.

Bridge goes to the Old New Inn

But hot food is at the Kingsbridge

I have 45 years to fit in Harry's walks from Bourton that go East and West.