Another night in London, leaving late to start this, the shortest section of the Capital Ring to date. The journey is a touch on the epic - tube to Liverpool Street and then overground to Stoke Newington, with the straggler commuters who look like they have had enough already. Still, it is a Thursday.
Simple walk today - we have around half a mile of streets - with ominous signs warning of potential muggings. Still, if it does happen, it will be on CCTV. I can always add it to the blog.
I appear to still be in the Jewish section of London - passing a Jewish School and a lot of men in natty full length coats and black hats. The weather is not good, prompting some to wear shower caps on top of their hats. Natty. Maybe I should have brought mine from the hotel for added protection from the wind and the rain.
I quickly walk through Springfield Park. I spoke last week with a Cockerney (well, he was from Yorkshire but lives down here). He says that Springfield Park is the finest in all of London. Its nice enough, but I dont think Regents, Hyde or St James have much to worry about.
Best Park in London?
A quick drop through the park brings me to the River Lea. At least this is what it says on the OS map. On the local signs, it seems to be called the Lee Navigation. I am sticking with Lea. There a lot of very well maintained micro caches along the route.
If you look really close, you can see the cache.
Cross over and I just have to follow the water all the way down to the Olympic Stadium and the end of Stage 13.
When setting out on this quest, I did set the rules that no pub shall be passed. This had to be compromised today, as the first of the day is slighty out of reach.
So Near, Yet so Far Away
I continue down to a bring that brings me onto the Pub Side. It looks like the locals didn't fully embrace the Olympics.
No Need for That
This side of the water does have a pub. All the hunting for 35mm film pots has meant the night is rapidly encroaching. Do I break my own rule and walk on by?
As well as letting myself down, it would be treasonous
It's a horrible gastro pub, so I should have probably have walked on by. Down my pint in ultra rapid fashion and get back to the caches.
The walk runs next to Hackney Marshes - legendary site of the most football pitches in one place in the world. You can only imagine the shouts of "can we have our ball back?" on a Sunday.
Only one ball on the pitch at a time
All that remains is to get the next couple of caches from under the noses of a new type of traveller who have setup home in a long stream of ramshackle barges along the water edge. The towpath is littered with makeshift BBQs and a fair amount of party evidence.
I know that I am at the end when I reach the Olympic Stadium. Impressive sight. The short walk to Hackney Wick Station shows how much renovation has been brought to the area.
The next Upton Park
Nothing in the Hackney Wick area for post walk sustenance. Not even a pub. So train / tube back to Southwark, glad to be out of the elements.
Last night's practice for this year's longest hike involved consuming red wine and expensive cheese under a jet engine heater at chez Gould. At least we did walk the mile home. Although at times, we did consider flagging down a taxi. A great night was had, but Sonia correctly got me home before I had too much cheese.
Today, I offered to fetch Ellie back from Manchester Uni, thus saving her from the trauma of public transport. I consulted my extensive library of walks and found something suitable from a very old Trail magazine. Looked just the job.
Up early and hit the M6, parking up at 9am, getting boots on and making the first of several back pocket calls. Sat Nav technology on Windows phones is ace, but not when you are on "Pay as you Go".
I have avoided the suggested parking, as I want to hit the pub at lunch time and with only one climb left. By parking at Lamaload Resevoir, I will walk for longer and hit the pub at 1pm. Always thinking, me
There is one other car here, and the fella is soon coming back with whatever he has caught from the lake in a plastic bag. We get into a conversation, which gets confused as he thinks I am a fellow worm dangler. Talks about stocking levels, nibbles and bait fall on confused ears.
I head off, anti clockwise around the reservoir. Cache within 10 minutes, guarded by two cute little lambs. Then I drop down. Then I climb back up. This is a feature of this walk. By the end of the walk, I will have ascended/descended 2816ft. And my legs can feel every foot. I really should have laid off the cheese last night.
First area of interest is the abadonded Higher and Lower Ballgreave farms. Just loads of rusting farm equipment and ramshackle buildings. Similar to most farms in fact. I take a breather and get the camera out.
Glorious Blue Skies (in Worcesteshire when I left)
Wheels
Looking back to Lamaload - resting on another piece of farmland junk.
Leave this playground and continue for another drop down and climb up to Chapel House Farm. This is in much better nick, and as expected, has it's own Church. Two fellas on bikes offer me a morning grunt.
You can tell it is a church by the Cross on top
It's about this time I get the first view of Shutlingsloe. This is an impressive (read, another bloody climb) hill that is known as the Matterhorn of Cheshire. Its profile dominates both this walk and my future nightmares.
But first, I have a steep drop through the impressive Macclesfield Forest. Its a load of trees in tight formation, near Macclesfield and offers great walking - taking down, down, way on down to Trentabank Reservoir. There are another couple of caches to collect, including one at a place that makes a great stop for my favourite walking snack. Malt Loaf.
By the power of Malt Loaf, I will attack Shutlingsloe
What goes down must go back up. Its not as bad as expected, starting on forest trails and then opening up to moor land. Its a popular spot, as once the flagstones are in situ, I join a procession of families all making their way up.
She's a bit of a looker
Its nice easy walking to the top. I want to get a picture of the trig point, but this is proving too popular and is almost permanently covered in kids having their photo taken. After taking a couple with me in it, there is a break in the traffic.
There are fantastic views in all directions from this great peak
Other people's kids booted off.
I admire the views for as long as is reasonable and head off to get the cache just off the summit. Love it when my efforts are rewarded with well hidden tupperware. With some reluctance, I drop down steeply on the southern side, being able to see my next peak, Shining Tor, way in the distance.
Guess I will have to climb that next
Drop down and loop around north, passing the farm. There is a cache guarded by a gaggle of Duke of Edinburgh adventure kids messing around on social media. I have to wait, pretending to take photos of cows, before I can grab the most ingenious of the day.
To be fair, he was a very relaxed calf. Happily lay down having a munch
The walk up Cumberland Clough is excellent. More uphill paths, with a stream to the right and another abandoned cottage to the left. When I am down on my luck, I know where I can go squatting. Last Geocache of the day is found and then more, relentless uphill walking.
But there is promise of a better future. Paths meet at a T-Junction and for the first time, the pub is labelled.
If I leave no litter, can I go to the Cat and Fiddle
And there she is - way in the distance, flagged by a massive pole
From the amount of motorbikes and cars around the pub, I am expecting a massive queue. However, the bikers seem content to sit around revving their engines and the cars presumably belong to people who have gone walking.
I am soon served. I ask what beers are on offer. I should have suspected the worst when the choice included Old Rosie's Scrumpy. I take a pint of Cumberland Way. Its not the greatest to be fair, even to a man that has been slurping plastic tasting camel back water for the last 4 hours.
Still the sit down was nice.
Head out and start to tackle the final climb of the day, in a bid to make me the highest man in Cheshire. Again. I have been here before, but this was pre-blogging days and I remember nothing of the views. Weird, for they are exceptional.
Nice Views over Cheshire
For me, the first Trig was much nicer
That's it for the climbing. With increasingly stiff legs, I head down and keep on going down. It's a nice sight to see the water where the car is parked and know that it's nearly done.
Just got to get around those trees and feet up time.
Get back in the car and its 3pm. This gives me an hour to get to the mean streets of Didsbury. The drive is as entertaining as the walk, with some seriously good views and hairpin bends to negotiate.
I hit the interestingly named village of Pott Shrigley and there are three adults and about half a dozen kids staring intently into the field. I am genuinely fascinated by what has caught their interest and made them stop and stare.
There's a reason to be in this are today - St George's day marks the start of Asparagus season (2nd best veg after the majestic corn on the cob) and they take this very seriously in this part of the world.
Stuff your Glastonbury - we are off to Asparafest
There is another bonus reason to be in the area. Not just a Top 10 County Pub, but the best in the county - The Fleece at Bretforton. I look through my books for a suitable walk and in the main, the Jarrold series does not disappoint.
Until today.
We park up, a little too far from the pub, but we do get the to walk through the village and look at the properties that we will never be able to afford. The pub is on a little square, with perfect thatched cottages and an impressive church. You could not get a better slice of little England.
Start of the Walk
At the end of this road, we turn left and enter what will haunt me for a long, long time. Fields.
That's all this walk has to offer.... Green Field, Green Field, Brown Field, Green Field, Field full of Sheep, Green Field, Brown Field, Roped off field full of cabbages. There's not even a contour line to break up the monotony.
Sonia says that surely Jarrold should have told us. On our return, I checked the walk instructions and indeed it did say "Don't bother with this, unless you like fields."
We plod on. Get to Stoneford Bard on the map and get to cross the road, into some more fields. Even the Farm is called Willersley Fields Farm.
At this point, we have the unbridled excitement of an old railway line to break up the tedium. There are meant to be three caches along here but two appear missing and none have been found for nealy a year. Geocachers need more excitement than fields can offer.
The detour to get the caches means we have a short amount of nasty road walking. The farmer has bigger problems, as he is trying to get his sheep from his farm out across the road.
We are pleased to see the footpath sigh - but it leads us into a great big dirty brown field.
Some fields are worse than other fields
We are being brought out to Honeybourne. This, at least, offers some respite. We get a cache on entering and exiting the village. We also think long and hard about stopping for refreshments. There is no tea shop, but an interesting looking pub. We need to save out pennies for the County #1.
Pottery, but no Tea Pots
On any other day, a 13th Century Thatched Pub would have been perfect
We make a mistake, as the heaven's open if the form of a hailstorm. Shelter with the sheep under some branches. Mercifully, it doesn't last long.
The walk is nearly done and our stomachs are rumbling. The fields deteriorate to the point where we have a roped off cabbage field that we cannot even enter. This leads to more road walking.... at least the road takes us to the pub.
Uniquely owned by the National Trust
The Fleece Inn is a rambling old pub, converted from a 17th Century Barn. It was left to the National Trust in 1977 and lost its thatched roof in a fire in 2004. Its also very busy.
Doesn't matter, as we can sit outside and enjoy our sandwiches and (my) pint of Pig's Ear.
I would recommend reading Ian McEwan's book and watching Joe Wright's film. If you complete this walk by Julie Royle, you can also just about see the film location.
After the 7.5 miler yesterday, no-one is up for joining me. Sonia at least takes a cup of tea, whereas the dog keeps a distinctly low profile. Just me then, with the new Depeche Mode album for company on the 40 minute drive.
Get into the thick of things quickly. There is a geocache at the layby where I park and then I am immediately at architectural highlight 1 of the walk - Stokesay Castle. The finest example of a 13th Century fortified manor house in England. And I love it.
Repels the Welsh Raiders.... plus geocachers in Berghaus
Stop for a few photos and then grab the cache in the church grounds. Pick up the Shropshire Way for the first climb of the day, as I make my way up to View Edge. This is one of those walks where you can take breathers by getting the camera out.... views at all times, in every direction.
The Shropshire Way turns into the Marches Way - without you really noticing. The woodland is replaced by farmland as I work my way to my favourite stretch of the walk - Brandhill Gutter.
This is really the valley that time forgot. It's all downhill on tight little paths next to a stream. The further we get down, the less accesible the homesteads are and it allows you to ponder the questions such as "where do they go for milk", "what time does the paper boy get here" and "just how scary is it down here at night". It does make for fine walking.
There are houses down the Gutter
Brandhill Gutter turns into Aldon Gutter. Meet my first human of the day - a two dogged walker. She says nothing but her dogs at least bark acknowledgement of my presence.
As it opens out, I can just about pick out Stokesay Manor, hoping to get a glimpse of Keira Knightly coming out of the fountain. The trees are mature and the drive at the front is curved. The super rich certainly like their privacy - so no decent photos. And this pile was built by a Glove Manufacturer. He must have sold a hell of a lot of gloves to get a house like that.
On the road, I meet a hoarde of OAP ramblers coming the other way. Ask them if I can join their gang when I grow up. Arrive at Onibury and having driven across the bridge many times, I walk it for the first time.
Onibury the Lonely
Quick cache at the bus shelter and pass an interesting looking pub that I have never noticed before - The Apple Tree. You can tell it is untouched by time, as the window carries a large etched advertisement for "Players Please". A newer pub would have "No smoking, thank you".
A short climb up onto farm land for more superb views and arrive at the foot of Whettleton Hill for the forth cache of the day.
Have a couple of flat fields - there's a big hill coming up
Julie then does me.... I thought I had all the climbing out the way but she wants me to huff and puff my way up to steepest bits of the day, 7 miles into the walk. There is the enticement of an Iron Age Hillfort to keep me going.
Sweat poring out of me, we circle Norton Camp Hill fort and emerge out the trees for more special views. If I had any breath left, it would have been taken away.
Lush
All downhill and the walk just misses off Craven Arms, by looping around the back of the Shropshire Secret Hills Experience Centre. Not sure what is so secret about it, as there is a sign on the main road.
Its open access land, so I cross the River Omney to get a couple of final cache of the day. Muggles at one cache, so I pretend to want to take a photo. Might as well pop it up.
Hoodwinking Muggles
Get the final cache of the day - the rains are just coming. Loved the walk, but I have to say the Geowagon was a sight for sore legs.
