Highest Part of the Cotswolds
A new website discovery. A rail-trail enthusiast from the West Country is plotting routes between stations. That's right on track for me.
Ashchurch (for Tewkesbury) to Cheltenham looked interesting, but on reflection I should have waited for a better day weather-wise. It wasn't raining but climbing to the Cotswold ceiling in the mist kind of missed the point of the potential views.
From the station, low agricultural land of no merit leads to the Gloucestershire way and the sleepy villages of Oxenton and Gotherington.
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| Gloucestershire Way short on thrills |
Only Iron Age Hillforts can save the day. Nottingham Hill and Cleeve Cloud are part of the same escarpment, each with an ancient hillfort. The former wooded, with an arrow-straight footpath running up and over. The later is wild common land with a rather dramatic golf course. It appears that you can walk anywhere. With the inclement weather, there are no worries about being hit by flying golf balls.
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| Nothing to see on Cleeve Cloud. Biting wind to feel |
A drop down to Cheltenham Racecourse for a handily placed bench providing a perfect lunch stop. The festival starts in 6 weeks, and many memories were made from the 15 years consecutive attendance until Covid got in the way. The live music was always better than the horses.
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| Of course, the mist clears once I am off the hills |
My route avoids the town centre, utilising the disused Honeybourne Rail line as a corridor back to the train station. Fortunately, 2024 has seen a pub/pizzeria open adjacent. Here serve better post-walk refreshments than previously found at the only alternative, Tesco Express.
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| Jubilee bridge on the disused railway line |
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| Steam and Whistle, in battleship grey |
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| Surprisingly good cask - Bristol Beer Factory Fortitude |
Walk Details
Distance - 14 miles
Geocaches - 4
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