Obviously! (We need to make an even number of crossings of the Severn…) It’s a pleasant and easy walk – the only tricky bit is to avoid retracing our steps. The bridges are of some significance – the Coalport bridge (1818) is one of the oldest iron bridges still carrying vehicular traffic, while the Jackfield (foot)bridge is a first world war memorial (1922) to local dead. The new ‘Free Bridge’ (which replaced the old free bridge, oddly enough, in 1994) is strikingly different from the much better-known 1779 bridge – which was a toll bridge – about half a mile upstream.

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Late afternoon, on the last day of October, and the sky has cleared. Let’s get out for a quick leg stretch – up the lower end of Shirlett Lane, just a couple of miles. Well, the sky may have cleared, but the air hasn’t – it’s still very hazy. No views of the Wenlock Edge; no chance of seeing the Welsh mountains in the distance (instead there’s an ominous-looking fog bank). It’s very pleasant out anyway, if rather cool – it would be good to think November could provide us more days like this.

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Familiar ground, but not an everyday sight. We turn the corner at the bottom of Bould Lane – and there’s a fine set of handlebars heading away up the hill. It’s a large male fallow deer – quite a sight. He’s seen us and he’s not too worried, but he’s soon off into the fields. Elsewhere, despite the stormy winds of the last couple of days, there are lots of autumn colours. We’ll enjoy them while we can – in another few weeks, the trees will be bare for the winter.

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A walk from home, making the most of fresh air on a fine afternoon. Caughley Road (a rough track for much of its length) descends gradually – by about 125ft! – in the almost two mile walk to a field where there’s usually a flock of sheep*. Beyond, rough underfoot, it drops steeply, over 200ft in just under half-a-mile. Given that, if we went further, we’d have to come back up the hill, the sheep field is a good spot to pause for a minute or two, lean on the gate, survey the scene and check our chocolate stocks…

*Speaking of chocolate, the chocolate brown sheep would appear to be a coloured ryeland, according to Mr Google

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This time last week: Portree, Skye – 500 miles to the north. Today: Willey, just a mile or two down the road. Quite a contrast: both attractive in their own ways, and after the long drive home, and several very busy days since, we need a leg stretch.   The Willey lanes are ideal, and very enjoyable on this fine and bright October afternoon.

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A slightly damp dry afternoon… Less than 5% chance of rain, the Met Office said. That’s not necessarily zero – the air wasn’t wet enough to describe as drizzle, but it wasn’t completely dry (see the mini rainbow…). Not a problem- quite seasonal. No need to hurry on this otherwise pleasant outing.

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Day after tomorrow… Nevertheless, and despite the lack of sunshine, it’s warm in the woods on Benthall Edge. We’re into the season of interesting fungi, and there are plenty of them, from a splendid solitary parasol to huge colonies of little mushrooms. Once again, the squirrels are busy too, and the autumn colours are increasingly noticeable.

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They’re out in force! Must be the fine weather – perfect nut-gathering conditions? Many are just a rustle in the hedgerow and a glimpse of a furry tail, others we see scuttling along ahead of us, or looping across our path and up into their 3-D world. Only one pauses and poses, at a safe distance, and one’s probably enough. We’ve walked down Stanley Lane, then north for a couple of miles along the old SVR railway trackbed, before cutting up a side valley to Colemore Green and back to the car. There are one or two others out enjoying the September sunshine, but it’s not exactly crowded.

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They’re big enough, but we certainly wouldn’t wish to kick a giant puffball. We found three this afternoon, as we wandered around Willey. The one seen below was the biggest, the others were smaller and partially hidden. It’s a fine breezy afternoon – very pleasant conditions for a walk around these very quiet lanes.

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Tigger’s Ickle Shop is no more.

Where shall we go? “How about Tigger’s Ickle Shop?”  We’ve enjoyed several good walks from this quiet spot in Corvedale. We’ve also had jars of chutney, some very good local garden produce – and wonderful sweet and sticky cakes and flapjacks, all from the aforementioned wayside shop. It was a solid wooden cabinet filled with the various home made/grown goodies, with an honesty cashbox. We felt a real sense of loss this afternoon.
Nevertheless, our walk was enjoyable. The view to Brown Clee and Wenlock Edge are good; there’s hardly any traffic on the little-used lanes, and no-one else on foot on this strangely-still and humid afternoon. This is a very quiet corner of the county. Shame about the cakes.

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