Friday 11th November 2016
Barton-Under-Needwood to Abbots Bromley - 11 miles ish
Today saw the first of our daily 'hops', driving out from Telford in 2 cars, leaving one at our end point and then the other at our starting point.
We left early (for us!) and drove to Abbots Bromley in Staffordshire which turned out to be a delightful village. Apparently it's rated the best place to live in the Midlands by The Sunday Times 2016 (Wikepedia) and it's not hard to see why.
Leaving one car here, we headed on to Barton-Under-Needwood for today's start.
'Hopping' always takes longer than expected - finding somewhere to park, boots, maps, directions, deciding how many layers the weather suggests.....
Anyway, away just before 11 am, just in time for the Remembrance Day silence at the war memorial. It really didn't seem appropriate to take a starting photo at this point - but that's where we were - honest!
Yet again we were blessed with a beautiful day as we left the village and walked up through old and new woodland. The sun was bright and everything glowed!
The route then dropped us onto a section of lane walking before heading off on footpaths again through Yoxall Park.
We eventually stopped for lunch just before Braken Hurst Wood.The only patch of sunshine we could find was at the base of an electricity pylon, much to the amusement of a gamekeeper who came to feed his pheasants!
On then to Hoar Cross, with its Grade 1 Listed church and The Hall - now a spa resort. The church is lovely, well worth stopping to look inside.
Onward, until we reached a point where the waymarks went one way and the directions said another! From the map it was obvious that both ways ended up in the same place, so we opted to follow the waymarks as they took us 'off-road'. After crossing several very dodgy stiles - narrow, wobbly and at one point covered in very prickly, hawthorn-hedge trimmings - we could see why the directions might suggest a different route! But hey-ho, we made it!
With our destination in sight, our final leg was again on footpaths, crossing more stiles than you'd care for at this end of a walk , some looking more like some of the jumps you'd get on a cross-country horse trial (but at least they were sturdy).
Our final excitement was meeting a sheep stuck on its back, legs flailing. As we were deciding to find someone in the village to report this to, Linda took matters into her own hands - literally - and righted said sheep, none the worse for wear. You can tell Linda deals with beer barrels!
Anyway, as the light was fading, we walked into Abbots Bromley, in time for a photo call at 14th Century Buttercross and customary debate over mileage.
We left early (for us!) and drove to Abbots Bromley in Staffordshire which turned out to be a delightful village. Apparently it's rated the best place to live in the Midlands by The Sunday Times 2016 (Wikepedia) and it's not hard to see why.
Leaving one car here, we headed on to Barton-Under-Needwood for today's start.
'Hopping' always takes longer than expected - finding somewhere to park, boots, maps, directions, deciding how many layers the weather suggests.....
Anyway, away just before 11 am, just in time for the Remembrance Day silence at the war memorial. It really didn't seem appropriate to take a starting photo at this point - but that's where we were - honest!
Yet again we were blessed with a beautiful day as we left the village and walked up through old and new woodland. The sun was bright and everything glowed!
The route then dropped us onto a section of lane walking before heading off on footpaths again through Yoxall Park.
We eventually stopped for lunch just before Braken Hurst Wood.The only patch of sunshine we could find was at the base of an electricity pylon, much to the amusement of a gamekeeper who came to feed his pheasants!
On then to Hoar Cross, with its Grade 1 Listed church and The Hall - now a spa resort. The church is lovely, well worth stopping to look inside.
Onward, until we reached a point where the waymarks went one way and the directions said another! From the map it was obvious that both ways ended up in the same place, so we opted to follow the waymarks as they took us 'off-road'. After crossing several very dodgy stiles - narrow, wobbly and at one point covered in very prickly, hawthorn-hedge trimmings - we could see why the directions might suggest a different route! But hey-ho, we made it!
With our destination in sight, our final leg was again on footpaths, crossing more stiles than you'd care for at this end of a walk , some looking more like some of the jumps you'd get on a cross-country horse trial (but at least they were sturdy).
Our final excitement was meeting a sheep stuck on its back, legs flailing. As we were deciding to find someone in the village to report this to, Linda took matters into her own hands - literally - and righted said sheep, none the worse for wear. You can tell Linda deals with beer barrels!
Anyway, as the light was fading, we walked into Abbots Bromley, in time for a photo call at 14th Century Buttercross and customary debate over mileage.
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