From All Saints Church near Hollybush we took an ancient sunken track, before turning south and passing under Ragged Stone Hill. Continuing through old woods we came to the Bromsberrow Estate where the lake made a great lunch stop. A short section of road leads to the climb up Chase End Hill where there were great views all around. After passing through the hamlet of Whiteleaved Oak, the route re-joined the outward leg back to the car park at All Saints Church.
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From the Mill Pond on Castlemorton Common, the ramble took us up to the Gullet Quarry lake. The area looking down on the Gullet Quarry Lake made a great coffee stop. We took great care on the track up The Gullet as it was very rough and there is a drop off! Once at the top it was not far to our lunch stop at the Obelisk with its fine views across Herefordshire.
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From Gardiner’s Quarry the route climbed steeply on rough track to the ridge at ‘Little Switzerland’. After enjoying the view to the east, we followed the line of the ridge south on the Herefordshire side of the hills to Black Hill. Crossing the A449 with care we followed a path on the Worcestershire side of the British Camp hill all the way to Broad Down and Hangman’s Hill for our lunch stop overlooking the Severn Plain, Bredon Hill and the Cotswolds.
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From the car park a narrow path led steeply to 'The Gold Mine' where we joined the ridge which forms the boundary between Herefordshire and Worcestershire giving great views for the rest of the ramble. Climbing steadily, we reached the summit of Worcestershire Beacon – the highest point in Worcestershire at 425 metres / 1,400 feet. Descending to the north, we passed the Sugarloaf Col with its stone direction marker mound and where the path flattens out. Following a good wide track, we circled North Hill until it descends to West Malvern Road and our lunch stop at the Sugarloaf Café. After lunch our route climbed back up to the direction stone mound on Sugarloaf Col. The rest of our route was a reverse of the morning’s path.
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Parking arrangements were changed in the week before the ramble and this resulted in the MSU and bigger vehicles parking in different places. This meant that the two groups had to meet up before the start of the ramble. Entering the Bromsberrow Estate at North Lodge, we follow a straight track leading into the parkland and cross to a lake for our delightfully situated coffee stop. Onwards to our lunch spot where some ramblers could not resist another hill climb and went to look at the view from the ridge. The estate is owned by Gilbert Greenall who has kindly invited us to wander his estate. Gilbert has quietly dedicated the last four decades of his life to helping others through forty humanitarian aid missions and the delivery of British emergency assistance in eighteen conflicts. A short section of road leads to the fairly steep climb up Chase End Hill where there are great views all around from this, the most southerly summit of the Malvern Hills. Our path now leads to the remote hamlet of Whiteleaved Oak where Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire meet. Passing through woodland, the route finally re-joins the outward leg back to North Lodge. Another lovely week of rambles ended with a parting of the ways as we split into two groups once more to return to our respective vehicles. Chris Southwood
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The four rambles along the Malverns took us from North Hill to Chase End Hill nine miles away. Thursday's ramble was from the Mill Pond on Hollybed Common to Pink Cottage close to the col between Swinyard Hill and Hangman's Hill giving great views over the Severn Valley.
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Today promised to not be quite so wet as yesterday afternoon and the hill climbs would not be as challenging or as long. We were soon going upwards from the car park to reach a lovely view at the top in the sunshine. Scooter motors and walkers legs were pleased to have a moment to enjoy the view. We turned back a little way and then kept to the ridge where we had views on both sides and much flatter but bumpy terrain. Crossing the main road was safely done and up we went from the pub car park with a few walkers needing to get their breath as well as ensuring all riders and their scooters were ok. The views once we reached the viewing points were superb in the sunshine and well worth the effort. We retraced our path to the pub car park and lunch and then on to our own vehicles, all in the dry. Chris Southwood
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From the car park a narrow path led steeply to 'The Gold Mine' where we joined the ridge which forms the boundary between Herefordshire and Worcestershire giving great views for the rest of the ramble. Climbing steadily, we reached the summit of Worcestershire Beacon – the highest point in Worcestershire at 425 metres / 1,400 feet. Descending to the north, we passed the Sugarloaf Col with its stone direction marker mound and the path flattened out. Following a good wide track, we circled North Hill until it descended towards West Malvern Road and our lunch stop at Westminster Quarry. After lunch our route climbed back up to the direction stone mound on Sugarloaf Col. The rest of our route was the reverse of the morning’s path.
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Salcey Forest Salcey Forest is a medieval hunting forest managed by the Forestry Commission. It was grey skies in which we started our ramble this morning, but it soon brightened up, and the heavy showers didn’t arrive until the end of the ramble Twelve, including several new members, joined Bernard and I today as we set off from the visitor centre around the morning route along the gravel tracks and through the trees passing the Tree Walk. It was a different view I had today from riding a tramper instead of walking owing to my fall in the car park at the end of the Beacon Hill ramble the previous week and having to go to A & E for stitches. We had a coffee break mid-morning before setting off around the perimeter of the forest collecting ‘conkers’ on the way then back to the visitor centre for lunch. The afternoon route took us across the road and close to and parallel with the M1 motorway which we could hear but not see. We continued along a disused road before crossing Forest Road and Wootton Road and back into the forest area where we had been in the morning. We arrived back at the car park loaded the scooters when went back to visitor centre café for refreshments. Judy
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Donisthorpe Friday’s ramble at Donisthorpe Woodland Park went ahead without our leader Judy, who unfortunately had a fall at the end of the Beacon Hill ramble. Many thanks to John Cuthbertson for stepping in at the last minute to cover. The ramble started in good weather travelling through the wooded area containing native oak, ash, silver birch and Corsican pine, towards the Ashby Woulds Heritage Trail where we read the information on signs and saw photos of the old colliery. We stopped along the way for a photo calls and coffee break. We then proceeded towards Conkers, an outdoor children’s adventure centre. We were forced to stop at the level crossing for the site train to pass across which caused some amusement. We continued through Sarah’s Wood which was opened by Alan Titchmarsh in 1995 where we had a short sharp shower, the first of the week. We joined the Ashby canal towpath, arriving a Moira Furnace for our lunch. Here there are shops, a museum, toilets and a café where some of the group enjoyed the food and drinks. The afternoon started by heading towards Butterfly area and the Lime Kilns before re-joining the canal tow path for a short section. We left the canal see more to open spaces, wooded areas and wildlife and returned to the café in the car park for tea and cakes. Bernard
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Beacon Hill (2) We were greeted today with sunshine again as we started off around the perimeter of Beacon Hill Country Park. We had our coffee break at a small hut, a good spot just in case it rained, with seats for the walkers to rest after the long climb up the hill. Just before lunch we reached the Beacon where we had fabulous views of 180° over the countryside towards Loughborough and East Midlands airport and we could also see the Old John monument at Bradgate Park. Lunch was at a picnic area before setting off again downhill and having a group photo by the rugged rocks on our way towards the road. We crossed over, with the help of the walkers to hold both gates whilst Bernard and I stopped the traffic on the road into Woodhouse Eaves and we then headed towards the old Windmill and down the very rocky track into Woodhouse Eaves. We left the pavement and turned onto Broom Bridge Farm track across the fields, back to the road and into Beacon Hill Country Park. Bernard went ahead to the café in the car park to ask them to remain open for a few more minutes until we were able to get there to buy tea, cakes, and ice creams. Judy
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Calke Abbey (2) We were greeted again with another sunny day as we started our ramble towards the Abbey for a group photo before heading off across the road and fields. At the top of the hill, we rested a few minutes at our coffee break before heading towards Ticknall and the old tramway trail. On entering the tunnel with lights and hazards on one of the trampers ‘died’ in the middle of the tunnel in the dark with several other trampers trapped behind. However, Bernard came to the rescue and within a couple of minutes we were off again, crossed the road and continued along the tramway with no more problems. At Box Lane we left the tramway and headed back towards Calke Abbey for lunch. Here we had numerous members of the public very interested in our group and came to chat with us. After lunch we went to see the deer that are kept in the field behind the visitor centre. Then we continued, passing the Old Deer Shelter and the church on our way along the road to Staunton Harold Reservoir. We had another break here overlooking the water in the sunshine and had difficulty encouraging the group that it was time to go back along the road and to the visitor centre where there was a café to end an enjoyable day. Judy
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Elvaston Castle 2 We started our week at Elvaston Castle Country Park with a large group of scooters, walkers, guests and 3 MSU trainees on a glorious warm sunny day. Several members today were new to Disabled Ramblers and we welcomed them warmly. We set off towards the lake, where there were many ducks and a dog enjoying the water as we passed the castle and through the woodlands to the road. We had to stop on the left on several occasions throughout the ramble for a works vehicle, horses, and cyclists. Our coffee break was overlooking the weir on the River Derwent where Bernard was allowed by one of our members to try out his Mountain Trike, so our coffee break was longer than planned. We continued alongside the river before heading back to the castle for our lunch break. Before we had our lunch the trainees were given a demonstration on putting up and packing away the toilet tent which we didn’t need today as there were accessible toilets provided. We finished our lunch, had an ice cream to cool off, and then set off again passing the castle and Italian Gardens and on towards the Golden Gate where we had a photocall. On then through the woods alongside the road and around the far side of the lake before returning to the car park. Thus ending an enjoyable day. Judy
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15th September 2021: Regional Ramble Tatton Park. Our route was a six-mile circular that set off through woodland before reaching the open parkland, passing alongside the historic avenue of beech trees, originally planted in 1739, before reaching the Knutsford Gate at the south end of the park. It was here we spotted a group of red deer with the bucks displaying very impressive headgear. These red deer must be so used to being around people as it was amazing how close we could get to them without causing disturbance. From here our ramble continued along the west side of Tatton Mere before stopping for lunch. After lunch our route took us into a more remote area of the park with a large herd of red deer that moved at a pace when a large low flying plane took off from nearby Manchester Airport. Our final stop off was by the memorial to No:1 Parachute Regiment who used Tatton Park as a training drop zone when they were based at Ringway Airport (now Manchester Airport) during WW2. The memorial is on one of the highest points of the park, so the fine weather meant we had extensive views across to the Peak District. From the memorial we crossed an open area of the park, where sheep and fallow deer were grazing, to reach our finishing point at the Stable Yard. Thank you to Ranger Darren for his support and for providing gate keys. Thanks too to everyone who came, making this such and enjoyable ramble. Marian & Barry.
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10th September: Donisthorpe Ten members and guests headed off along the Ashby Woulds Heritage trail with overcast skies and the threat of heavy downpours in the afternoon, but as the clouds lifted, we had sunshine and light clouds for the rest of the day. After leaving the heritage trail we turned off and had our coffee break on the outskirts of Conkers Adventure Park, we proceeded across the level crossing where the trains for visitors pass by frequently. We continued into Sarah’s Wood on the edge of Moira. This was named after a little girl who suffered from Cerebral Palsy, this area was opened by Alan Titchmarsh who planted the first trees. We crossed the Ashby canal and onto the tow path passing a disused lock heading towards Moira Furnace. This was built by Sir Rawdon Hastings, The Earl of Moira, and played a significant part of the industrial revolution, it is probably one of the most important blast furnaces still in existence throughout Europe. We had lunch in this spacious area where there is ancient woodland, lime kilns, café, shops, and narrow boat trips during the summer for visitors to enjoy as they watch the local wildlife. After lunch we passed the lime kilns before returning along the canal and meandered through the trees back to the car park where some had tea and cakes at the café. We would like to thank all those who participated in making it an enjoyable week. Judy and Bernard
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9th September: Beacon Hill Today the weatherman had forecast afternoon rain but as we started our ramble the skies cleared, the low cloud lifted and 13 of us headed off on a much cooler, pleasant day. The route started on a level surface but soon climbed steeper the further around the park we went, through the trees with peeps of the surrounding countryside, to our morning coffee break. After our break we continued and decided to slightly change the route to take full advantage of the glorious sunshine and climb to the top of Beacon Hill to look at the fabulous views of the countryside. The mist was still lingering in the distance so today we couldn’t see the aircraft taking off from East Midlands airport. After lunch at a picnic area under the trees, we set off downhill passing the granite rock formations, lamas and highland cattle in the fields before heading across the road towards the windmill. This was the most rocky, uneven section for us before reaching the road and along the footpath causing locals in Woodhouse Eaves to stop and chat. We soon turned off the path and across the fields where we felt miles away from anywhere before returning to the road and heading back to the car park without any sign of rain. Judy
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7th September: Calke Abbey A completely clear blue sky met us as we headed off on our ramble with low flying aircraft taking off from East Midlands airport. We paused for a group photo with the House in the background before turning right across the fields and up the hill for our coffee break. We had visions of using the trailer for a casualty today as a rambler went the wrong way, he climbed over a fence, tripped on wire netting, and finished up on the ground fortunately he was uninjured. We continued past many ancient trees towards the old tramway heading towards the tunnel where our lights were needed as it was completely unlit. After crossing the road, we continued to Box Lane, turned left past the Art Gallery to the road and back into the grounds of Calke Abbey. Our lunch break was at the visitor centre where we managed to find some shade and cooled off with an ice-cream. The afternoon started by viewing a few deer who were trying to shelter in the shade. The route took us in the same direction as this morning but then turned left past the Deer Barn we saw long horns cows grazing. We continued past the church on the hill and went through the woods to the road. A short distance along the road brought us to Staunton Harold reservoir where we had a peaceful break under the trees looking across the water watching the wildlife before returning to the visitor centre at the end of the day. Judy
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6th September: Elvaston Castle Twelve members, volunteers and guests started our ramble today from the main car park at Elvaston Castle Country Park in warm sunshine which gradually got warmer during the day. We headed off alongside the lake opposite the castle, where there were a variety of ducks and geese and fortunately not too many people. We passed huge old trees in the park and gardens and unusual rock formations. We then headed along the perimeter of the park to the road and onto the pavement to join the River Derwent where we had our coffee stop by the weir. We continued along the river towards Alveston before heading back into the park for our lunch break near the castle where there were toilets and a café, and some had a well-deserved ice cream. In the afternoon after passing the front of the castle, we went into the Italian garden for a photo call and then headed out towards the Golden Gate. We passed the English garden on our way along the perimeter track on the other side of the park, before returning to the far side of the lake where we had another short break before completing our very enjoyable 7mile ramble. Judy
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7th August Bredon Hill via Overbury. Starting from Kemerton, we first had to follow the footpath alongside the road to Overbury. From here it is a steady climb on a tarmacked estate road to Lalu Farm where we turned left, soon to reach the tower on the summit of Bredon Hill. So far the forecast rain had held off – we even had some sun – but lunch was interrupted by a light rain shower which had us making our way back downhill past Bell’s Castle and on to Kemerton. A very enjoyable ramble in the company of seventeen members, family & friends plus Bel Cornwell and some of her family and friends. Bel, who was born at the foot of Bredon Hill, has MND and is raising funds for her local hospice by undertaking various challenges such as this.
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15th July: Coombe Abbey. We started our leisurely ramble today from the visitor centre at Coombe Abbey Park. The Park was designed by Capability Brown and has over 500 acres of beautiful gardens, woodland, and lakeside walks. It was very busy today on the approach to the lake as several groups of children and foreign tourist had arrived to enjoy the weather. However, after passing the house we soon found the areas around the redwood trees and on the approach to Top Pool and Duck Decoy very quiet. We had our morning coffee break at ‘Bee & Bee’ which is an old hut surrounded with fallen trees where the walkers sat and had a chat. We then continued towards the heronry and bird hide near the lake before seeing some of the young people revelling in the climbing areas at Go Ape. After leaving the wooded area we enjoyed our lunch in a large open field in the sunshine and then headed back towards the house passing the lake to the Old Deer Park where we could see the outskirts of Coventry, grazing livestock, numerous rabbits, and low flying geese but no deer. We ended the day back at the visitor centre where some of us had a well-deserved ice cream. Judy & Gordon
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9th July: RSPB Arne . A beautiful sunny day for our final ramble at RSPB Arne. Before the ramble we had an interesting talk from Sam Dallimore, she was the visitor experience officer for Arne. She talked about the site and what birds we may see and hear on our way round. The ramble was a figure of 8 ramble, as the tide was due to be low in the afternoon, we started off on the Shipstall side of Arne. We went through some woodland, which had some amazing views over the Poole Estuary. The heather was out and looked beautiful. We saw a few squirrels and heard some birds, but I think the sight of 12 scooters must have scared them off! We had our morning coffee at the junction to go up to the viewing point at Shipstall Point. Some of us went up in small groups to the point as it wasn’t big enough for all of us. After coffee we went around Big Wood, where I saw a buzzard, feeding on the ground. It flew off as soon as I saw it though, so no picture. We had lunch back at the start. In the afternoon, we went over onto Coombe Heath, there are some lovely viewing spots along this route and you could see for miles. We arrived at the hide and some intrepid scooters went in. It was a bit tight but doable. Unfortunately, there were very few birds apart from a flock of Canada Geese and an oyster catcher. When everyone who had wanted to had been in the hide, we headed back. This was a very enjoyable ramble for our final day.
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8th July: Nine Barrow Down. The penultimate day started at Rollingstone Farm, where the farmer had kindly let us park on his grass verge. We set off up a steep path from the farm towards Nine Barrow Down. At the top of the hill we turned right to our coffee stop. This was overlooking a very picturesque view of Corfe Castle. The steam trains were very busy going from Corfe to Swanage and back very regularly. After coffee, we went back the way we came heading towards the Swanage end of the downs. Again the flowers and heather looked very pretty. We passed the round barrows and the long barrow, where some of our group went to have a look and take photos. The 9 barrows are said to be the burial mounds of 9 Kings, who fought in a battle. As the long barrow is Neolithic and the round barrows bronze age, it must have been quite a battle, potentially over a 1000years! We had lunch overlooking Poole Harbour in the distance. We were lucky with the weather again and could see the ferry for Jersey leaving. After lunch, we continued up to the Swanage end of the down to get the views over Swanage and then returned along the same route back to the farm.
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6th July : Old Harry Rocks. There was a large group of 25 with a few more walkers. We were very keen to set off on our walk up Old Harry Rocks. After a short walk on the road, we started the climb up to the cliffs. We had spectacular views going up to the cliffs of Poole Harbour. When we got to the section where the path opened up to the cliffs, we stopped near the top for a very blustery coffee break. Most people went to explore the top and look at the views of Old Harry. It was a very clear day and you could also see The Needles and the Isle of Wight. After coffee, we continued on our climb towards the Obelisk further on, along Ballard Down. Due to the extreme winds, forecast gusts of 45mph, the going got very difficult for all, but particularly affected the walkers. It became obvious we weren’t going to be able to make it to the obelisk for lunch . We managed to find an area that was a bit less windy on a path going down into the village, where we had lunch. There was great amusement at the volunteers, trying to assemble the toilet tent, but it was apparent this was not going to work! An alternative solution was created, much to the amusement of all! After lunch, we took a vote on what everyone wanted to do. By then we knew we wouldn’t get to the obelisk, so we could either go back to the top and return the way we came, or continue down the path back to the car park. There was an almost unanimous decision to go down the path back to the National Trust car park. This made the ramble a bit shorter, but was definitely a lot easier for the walkers. At the end of the ramble we had arranged with the local pub to go for a drink. This proved an “almost” impossible task, ordering everything and paying on the pubs website. Fortunately, we succeeded! Despite the changes, everyone enjoyed the day and loved the spectacular views.
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5th July: The Sika Trail. The ramble started on a bit of a grey note but we had a few new members and also some keen new volunteers to give a hand. The Sika trail is a SSSI which, for those that don’t know, is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. This was due to flora and fauna on the site. As we went through the forest, there was some beautiful scenery. The ferns had grown since our last reccy and the heather was starting to come out too. After a bit of a delayed start we had coffee not far from the Morden Bog. The bog is one of the oldest valley bogs in the UK and has some of the oldest heather in England. We continued around the edge of the bog and then started to go up through a wooded area. We stopped in a pretty glade in the woods for lunch. After lunch, we continued through the wooded area. There had been a huge forest fire in the forest in 2020 and we saw evidence of this. However, the regrowth had started, the ferns, heather and rhododendrons all looked particularly healthy. Unfortunately, a lot of the trees were black up the sides from the fire. Great fun was had by all getting through a small wet ditch and I think it was possibly the highlight of the day. The new members all seemed to enjoy it. One last hill near to the end nearly killed one of our loan scooters, not to mention all the walkers! We were extremely lucky with the weather, the sun came out and it only started raining, just as the MSU doors were being locked, ready to leave after a successful day out.
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Thursday 24th June 2021. Andy Jaynes Memorial Ramble on Bredon Hill. Andy was a great supporter of the Disabled Ramblers and his death from COVID 19 was a great blow to all who knew him. Together with his wife, Linda, and his family, eight members of the Disabled Ramblers made the trip to the summit of Bredon Hill, a place which Andy loved and visited at least once a week on his Tramper - so much so that he wore one Tramper out! Also with us was Becky Jones and Margret Reid from the Cotswolds AONB who were delighted to see how we are able to tackle such rough routes. After the challenging climb ‘up the Pad’ and then past the King & Queen stones, our route took us through ‘The Warren’, a delightful area of woodland – with lots of roots to negotiate. Entering the Iron-Age Hill Fort known as Kemerton Camp, we made our way to the small stone tower called Parsons Folly. Built in the mid-18th Century by the then land owner, John Parsons MP, it is believed that he had it built so that he could boast that Bredon Hill was over 1,000ft high when it is actually 965ft. The edge of Bredon Hill makes a great lunch stop with views across the Seven Plain and into Wales. Continuing along the edge to the east, we skirted the woods of Long Plantation and made our way past Lalu Farm. Our descent took us past Bell’s Castle. Princess Margaret was a frequent visitor to Lady Holland-Martin's home at Bell's Castle, Kemerton. The pair had a mutual interest in the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children of which Lady Holland-Martin was for many years the president. Continuing our descent, we passed several splendid dwellings built from delightful Cotswold stone and wondered just how much they must cost. Finally, back at our cars, we once again thought of Andy and all the wonderful rambles we had enjoyed with him in the past few years. John Cuthbertson
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29th June 2021: Delamere Forest and Pale Heights Regional Ramble. Delamere Forest, situated between Liverpool and Manchester, forms part of the Mersey Forest. The area includes Old Pale Hill (Pale Heights) the highest point on the northern end of the Mid Cheshire Ridge and Blakemere Moss, a restored wetland lake and a haven for wildlife. Five scooter riders and six walkers, including new member Julie with husband Vance, joined us for our first regional ramble. Setting off from the stunning new Visitor Centre our morning ramble on gravel forest tracks was a figure of eight route taking us through the forest with its variety of trees and round Blakemere Moss. Although, at this time of the year the lake is not particularly visible because of the surrounding trees, we knew when we were in the vicinity of it by the noise coming from the birds that have made the lake their home. Lunch break was back at the Visitor Centre before four Class 3 scooter riders and accompanying walkers set off on more open forest tracks flanked with wild flowers for the ascent of Pale Heights. The climb to the top is surprisingly steep in places and with sun, little shade or breeze even some scooter riders were saying it was hot! Resting at the top, our efforts were rewarded with views, albeit it little hazy, over seven counties. The final leg of our ramble was a careful descent back to the Visitor Centre. After such a long time it was lovely to be out group rambling again. Marian & Barry
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7TH JUNE 2021: LEE VALLEY REGIONAL PARK This was a gentle and easy ramble, mostly on surfaced and level paths, on a very warm and rather humid summer’s day. Starting from the Lee Valley Animal Adventure Park, our fairly small group of 6 scooter riders and 3 walkers (including new members Graham and Suzanne) meandered through the 1,000 acre wetland park on the northern edge of London. The Lee was London’s working river and was known as London’s ‘privy, workshop and backyard’. The valley was home to railway sidings, rubbish dumps, gravel pits, sewage works and factories producing explosives, furniture, chemicals, railway engines, electronics – among other things. In his Greater London Plan of 1944, Sir Patrick Abercrombie suggested that ‘the Lee Valley gives the opportunity for a great piece of regenerative planning – every piece of land welded into a great regional reservation.’ This idea lay dormant until the early 1960s and finally the Lee Valley Regional Park Bill received royal assent in December 1966. The Lee Valley Regional Park Authority was constituted on 1 Jan 1967. Since then, rubbish dumps, gravel pits, scrap yards and industrial sites have been transformed into award winning open spaces and world class sports venues, including the 2012 Olympics White Water Centre. The park covers 10,000 acres and stretches 26 miles from north to south. Our route took us past lakes, alongside parts of the River Lee, through grassland and meadows; the Park is a haven for all manner of wildlife, including otters and especially birds. At various points on our ramble we came upon interesting and unusual sculptures – the Boulders sculpture was of particular interest to some of our group, who found it to be reminiscent of something unmentionable here!! Unfortunately we were not able to see the Lee Valley White Water Centre (home of the white water events in the 2012 Olympics), which was closed at the time of our ramble due to Covid restrictions. Mark and Bee
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8TH JUNE 2021: EPPING FOREST Epping Forest stretches over 12 miles from east London into Essex and covers over 2,500 hectares (nearly 6,200 acres). A former Royal Forest, it was used by Kings and Queens of England as a hunting ground. Our party of 8 scooter riders and 11 walkers (including new members Wendy and John) for this ramble was supplemented by 6 new volunteer/potential towers, who had come to be trained by Judy and Bernard Cunningham on the intricacies of the MSU, FSU and the toilet tent! It was another glorious summer day and thankfully much of this ramble was along forest paths providing lovely dappled shade. From the Bury Road car park we crossed the somewhat bumpy and very open Chingford Plain before moving into the welcome shade of the forest proper. Our route took us on mostly compacted tracks and grass land. We had to cross the busy Epping New Road, but with the help of our army of helpers, suitably decked out in DR Hi-Viz jackets, the crossing was negotiated without incident. The final section of the morning’s route took us along the appropriately named (and fairly steep) Ups and Downs, before we stopped for lunch in some welcome shade at Rushey Plain, close to the Epping Forest Visitor Centre at High Beech. After lunch we embarked on the long incline (luckily mostly downwards), crossing the main road safely once more, towards the beautiful Connaught Water, with its abundance of water birds. From here we crossed open grassland up to Queen Elizabeth’s Hunting Lodge, dating from 1543 and the Chingford Visitor Centre. From here it was a short trek down to Chingford Plain to return to our starting point. Mark and Bee
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10TH JUNE 2021: HUNSDON AIRFIELD LOOP Another fine day for rambling, thankfully slightly cooler than the previous days. Today’s party was made up of 7 scooter riders and 6 walkers. From the Playing Field in the centre of Hunsdon village we followed the farm track leading to Fillets Farm. Continuing on this track we descended across arable land, giving us a delightful long view towards Widford Church, where we stopped for our coffee break, overlooking the River Ash valley. Widford Church boasts a Hertfordshire spike, which is a short spire, with its base concealed by a low parapet, rising from a square tower. From here we took a section of road until we reached Levenage Lane, a bridleway that took us on a winding track through woodland. We then followed field edges and farm tracks to the open landscape of the site of the former WW2 Hunsdon Airfield, now largely used as arable farmland, but also home to the Hunsdon Microlight Club. RAF Hunsdon became operational in 1941. It was particularly noted for its squadrons of de Havilland Mosquito fighter-bombers, and for being the base from which Operation Jericho (the Amiens Prison Raid) was launched in February 1944. Continuing along the side of Black Hut Wood we came to the microlight flying club, where we stopped for lunch. From here we paused at the memorial to the 126 air and ground crew who died while flying from or serving at the base – many from Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Taking the airfield roadway led us to Cockrobin Lane, a charming ancient green lane and bridleway, providing shade and shelter. From the bottom of Cockrobin Lane we moved along a farm track past Eastwick Hall Farm and into a planted wooded area, passing close to Hunsdon House (a former estate and hunting lodge of King Henry VIII, here Princess Mary spent much of her early life). We crossed a section of a filed planted with rape – although the path had been kept well cleared by the farmer, the weight of the ripening rapeseed meant that the plants were falling across the pathway – it was like going through a tropical forest! We came out at the Nine Ashes Fishing Pond and after a short section of road, we move onto the airfield again and returned by way of Drury Lane. The day ended with tea and cakes at Mark and Bee’s house in Drury Lane.
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11TH JUNE 2021: HATFIELD FOREST & FLITCH WAY Hatfield Forest is the best surviving example in Britain of an almost complete Royal Hunting Forest, declared as such by Henry I in 1100. It was acquired by the National Trust in 1923. It is a managed landscape, created by centuries of human intervention and continues to be managed with traditional woodland techniques of coppicing, pollarding and grazing. The wood pasture is a rare habitat in the UK. Today we welcomed 8 scooter riders and 9 walkers, including new members Dave and Helen with Lara, and Richard Walsh with his son James. Cooper and Islay , very well behaved dogs, joined us too. Our ramble was prefaced by a short talk from Ian, one of the National Trust Rangers who has worked at Hatfield Forest for 27 years. His very informative talk filled us in on the history and forestry management practices used at Hatfield Forest. Our route took us in a figure of eight from the Café and Visitor Centre by the lake on a mix of boardwalks, surfaced pathways, broad grassy rides and narrower woodland paths. We started by crossing the dam at the end of the lake and follow a long section of boardwalk before coming to a wide, open grass area alongside Elgin Coppice. Crossing this, we left the Forest and continued for about a mile along the firm-surfaced Flitch Way, a linear country park which follows the line of the former Bishop’s Stortford to Braintree railway line, before returning to the coppices and rides of the Forest. We passed Hangman’s Coppice and the Portingbury Hills Iron Age settlement. After stopping for lunch at the hub, we resumed our ramble around the southern part of the Forest, passing through Collin’s Coppice, Emblem’s Coppice and Lodge Coppice before returning to the Café and Visitor Centre. We are very grateful to Niamh Carton, the NT’s Welcome Manager, Ian and their colleagues for the assistance they gave in organising this ramble and in the day itself. Bee and Mark
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