The Wednesday Walk 31st August 2011

The Plan
We intended to walk from Tynham but the military ranges were closed and we could not get to the village. Instead, we opted for an Osmington Mills walk.

The Leader
Wendy

Who Turned Up
Wendy, Sue, Trudy H, Trudy B, Beatrice, Diane and Tony R, Trisha, Jackie (nice to see you out walking again, Jackie) and David

The Walk
We drove to the hilltop parking area with the glorious view overlooking Weymouth Bay. At that time of the morning the sky was still overcast, but we could see blue skies creeping in from the English Channel. We then took the marked footpath that led us down to the cute little church called St Catherine's by the Sea. That's the one with the etched glass windows. It was being refurbished last time we stopped here. As usual, we took time to sit in the quiet garden and enjoy the view. We then trotted on down to the shore where we saw many small yachts sailing out in the bay. A race? We weren't sure. We stopped at the beach cafe where half the group enjoyed a cup of coffee. The walk on to Osmington Mills was peaceful and pleasant.
After lunch we took the alternative route back up the hill past Spring Bottom. Three walkers opted to stop half way and wait for a car to come back down the hill to pick them up. The other seven trudged on up the steep climb to the car park. It served to wipe away the calories gained over lunch.
It was a very pleasant walk and by afternoon we had blue skies overhead. We finished off with tea and cakes at Sue's. It must be mentiond that Sue is famous for her sponges and, once again, she was well up to the mark deserving of a round of applause.

The Pub
The Smugglers at Osmington Mills. We have eaten here before and never been disatisfied. This time was no exception. The food was good and the only minor quibble was the amount of candle-light we had to see our crossword clues.

Next Week
Meet at Diane and Tony's for a Sturminster Newton walk.

The Wednesday Walk 24th August 2011

The Plan
A Salisbury walk

Who Turned Up
Sue, Wendy, Trudy H, Trudy B, Beatrice and Tony H, Diane and Tony R, David

The Walk
Sorry I missed last week's walk in the rain. I was enjoying a party in warm sunshine at the time. Anyhow, today we had perfect weather for a walk. We drove to the Salisbury Park-and-Ride car park. Parking cost us nothing. We then rode on the bus into Salisbury using our free bus passes. Couldn't be better. The bus dropped us in the city centre and we walked out through the shopping mall to the River Avon and followed it as it made its was out of the city. The views were magnificent, covering the cathedral and the calm water meadows. We saw numerous swans on the river, but only two cygnets. We met a minor hiccup where a new land owner has blocked off part of the public footpath. This will need to be investigated. A small detour took us around the blockage and we walked on to Old Sarum in warm sunshine.
After lunch, our route back to the city took us along the Portway path and through the meadows until we got back to the river. From the city centre, our free bus passes took us to the Park-and-Ride car park. All-in-all, a very pleasant walk. We finished off with tea and cakes courtesy of Beatrice and Tony.

The Pub
The Harvester at Old Sarum. We have eaten here before and found it good value. Most of us had the early-bird selcetion. No pies, but no problems.

Next Week
Meet at Sue's for a Tyneham walk.

The Wednesday Walk 10th August 2011

The Plan
A walk to Compton Abbas

The Leader
Nominally Trudy as the rest of us didn't want to volunteer

Who Turned Up
Trudy, Sue, Tony and Diane R, Tony and Beatrice H, David

The Walk
With abject apologies to those who live north of the Midlands (where it was tiddling down with heavy rain) we had a perfect day for a country walk. The skies were clear and the sun was shining. We also had enough of a breeze to keep us from getting too hot... well most of the time anyway. We parked by the village pond in pretty little Ashford village. That's reputed to be the highest village in Dorset. We then took the footpath through Shepherd's Bottom (yes, it seems he has one) and Fontmell Wood to Compton Abbas Aerodrome. Along the way we stopped to watch aerobatic aircraft from the airfield practising their distinctly dodgy manoeuvres. Rather them than us!
After lunch we walked over to Fontmell Down nature reserve and took the narrow path along the steeply pitched hillside. One or two people kept their eyes glued to the path for fear of falling down the steep hillside! We went a little farther than we normally go along that path and eventually came back out onto the Ashmore road. We followed the road until we got to Washer's Pit Coppice and then took the steep climb up to Ashmore Wood. From there it was a level walk back to the village. By now, people were stripping off their coats and jerseys as we were so hot from our exercise.
We finished off with tea and cakes courtesy of (and thanks to) Beatrice and Tony.

The Pub
No pub this week. We ate at the restaurant at Compton Abbas aerodrome. The food was good and plentiful and we got to watch the aircraft landing and taking off as we ate.

The Wednesday Walk 3rd August 2011

The Plan
A New Forest walk

The Leader
Trudy

Who Turned Up
Trudy, Trisha, Margaret (welcome to the Wednesday Walkers, Margaret) Wendy, Sue, Beatrice and Tony H, Ros, David

The Walk
Today, we were blessed with beautiful weather and temperatures up in the high twenties. We began by driving to the Long Cross car park near Stony Cross. One or two people couldn't believe their luck with the weather and queried taking a waterproof coat (!). They were quickly talked out of that idea. From the car park we headed north through the woodland including Bramshaw wood. The going was generally easy and we were glad of the tree cover to give us shade from the sun. At Nomansland we went straight to the Lamb Pub.
After lunch we took a more westerly route back through woodland and over open heath until we got back to the cars. By then we were all agreed on it being an excellent walk, but we were thankful we had the woodland shade.

The Pub
The Lamb at Nomansland. We booked a table for nine in the pub garden. It was a riot of colour from the masses of flowers planted around the tables (see Trudy's photos). A glorious setting for an outdoor meal on a brilliant day. The food was good. They even had home-made pies. Probably not the best meal to precede the second half of a sweaty walk, but it was excellent food.

Next Week
Meet and Beatrice and Tony's for a Compton Abbas walk.