Distance - 6 miles
Walk Inspiration - MeetUp Group Walk
I've been lurking in the MeetUp shadows for some time. Being too busy on weekends, is one of the lame excuses I tell myself for having previously not joined in with an organised walk. There is no excuse here, as the suitably named "Hike and Get Merry" group have arranged a mid week ramble. Tentatively, I ask Mrs M if she is interested in walking 6 miles to see a full moon in the middle of winter and I'm most surprised when she bites my hand off.
So we find ourselves nervously sitting in a Broadway short stay car park, looking for evidence of other ramblers. Do you flash your headlights to show arrival? What sort of people might that attract?
Putting my boots on is enough to flush the others out. In no time, 25 of us are booted and suited in chunky knitwear hats and scarves. Rucksacks full of chocolate and mince pies. Hip flasks full of sherry (Mrs M, at least). We're off and running for the pretty town centre festive lights.
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| Broadway Pretties |
The conditions are perfect. Sub zero temperatures, freezing most of the mud. A completely clear sky. Up the flanks of Fish Hill, with the expected tricky navigation that night walking brings. Through a woodland copse and across the crunchy frost laden grass onto the approaches for Broadway Tower. Other walk members to teach me astronomy. We only said "Betelgeuse" twice, out of fear of what may be summonsed.
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| Approaching Broadway Tower |
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| Broadway Tower at night |
The tower provides an obvious place for a picnic break. Until it got too cold to hang around. The return to town through more woodland and down Cowneygree Lane. Exotic local wildlife startled, statically.
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| They did not bolt |
The home straight delivers us to Broadway's finest pub - the Good Beer Guide regular, the Crown and Trumpet. I use my skills to take over the from the walk leader and am sent as an advance party to see if they are open.
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| Crown and Trumpet - a Good Beer Guide Regular |
Surprisingly, when you hear about all the troubles facing the hospitality industry, it takes all my powers of negotiation to convince them to stay open after 9:30pm. After some cajoling, they agree to serve me one drink. I have to inform them I have friends outside and I wonder how to reply to the query "how many friends". Will saying 25 convince them it's worth their effort in staying open? I'm unsure, so hedge my bets with a more conservative 10.
There is another indication of customer service not seen this side of Royston Vassey. How anyone can put a sign on a table that says "For Locals Only" with a straight face must have had a sense of humour by-pass in the early 2000s.
Ultimately, it was worth the sweet talking. A super interior, with low oak beams, a superb fire place and plenty of pubby nick-nack memorabilia. A fine space to get better acquainted with our new rambling friends and my estimate of 10 post walkers was far more accurate. Great to meet every one and a special shout out to Steve for organising and Rebecca, who is able to take night photos much better than me.
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| Timothy Taylor Landlord and Stowford Press |
And a smile from landlady, when I returned our empties. Everyone leaves on good terms. Especially when they have been brought up to follow the unwritten rules of pubbing.
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