Wandering under a clear blue sky – a perfect January day, though it didn’t quite go according to plan, and a full day’s walk further afield became an afternoon’s local walk. There’s colour in the sunshine, and a surprising amount of green.
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At home, we’re just on the edge of it; along the Wenlock Edge, we’re well above it. It’s pretty thick down in Apedale, but we can see the Hope Bowdler hills poking out through the fog. We’ll keep going! The forecast says the clear blue above the fog will be replaced by cloud later in the day, so we’ll set off in the morning (after scraping a very hard frost from the car) and find somewhere on the hill to eat our sandwiches (the Battlestones). As we head slowly back towards the car, the day is changing. We’ve had the best of it!
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Barely a cloud in the sky this afternoon – can’t stay in! A walk down to Coalport will fit the bill – it’ll certainly be worth avoiding the cold wind, though that will mean avoiding the sun too. Can’t have everything!
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25 December: a day when we get out, weather permitting, for a walk and a breath of fresh air. On this Christmas Day, there’s no shortage of the latter – quite a stiff breeze, though the route we’re following will be sheltered. It’s certainly not cold – 13C according to the Met Office. It’ll soon be dark though – better get back to the car, and head for home and Christmas tea (featuring, among other things, a rather fine locally hand-built pork pie). Merry Christmas everyone!
We were here (Streetmap): http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=365980&Y=298106&A=Y&Z=120
22 December: We’re past the shortest day now, though it will be weeks before the evenings become noticeably lighter. It’s a fine and breezy afternoon – a last chance for a good leg stretch before the weather deteriorates and the Christmas fun begins. Brown Clee beckons!
As ever, it’s quiet up here. Just as I leave the car, two families arrive, but I’m away, and won’t see them again. Other than a solitary photographer at the highest point, I’ve got the hills to myself (and the sheep, and a couple of small groups of wild horses). The breeze stiffens at Clee Burf, the secondary summit, but it’s quiet enough at the seat above the five springs for a lunch break.
I’m off again, following a soggy path to the summit at Abdon Burf, and for a few seconds (the wind is cold here) I’m the highest person in Shropshire. I’ll return to Cockshutford down the track towards the telephone box, before taking the contouring path back to the lane. There’s a glimpse of a red kite for a few moments, but try as I might, I won’t see him again. Until the next time, perhaps…
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We walked to Bannister’s Coppice in the autumn, on a beautiful golden day; today’s dull and colourless, but I need a leg-stretch. Perhaps, like last time, I’ll see deer? Perhaps not. If nothing else, I can check the existence of a footpath, not shown on the OS map, which will avoid muddy fields on the return leg. Yes, it’s there, winding through the trees – the views are better too, looking back along the Wenlock Edge, with the village of Homer prominent in the middle distance. By now the afternoon is getting late – the light’s gone. Time for home.
View OS map on Streetmap http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=362505&Y=302021&A=Y&Z=120
The days are really short now – just two weeks to the solstice. We’ll need to finish this walk before the sun sets – preferably an hour or so earlier, to give us time to enjoy the benefits of the tea room in the Carding Mill valley. It’s not cold today, though there’s a stiff breeze on top – it’s not easy holding the camera still for those long shots, but worth the effort (I think so, anyway) for those fading-distance views. To the south-west, the Black Mountains are anything but black – Pinky-Yellow Mountains? Perhaps not. Despite the breeze, it’s one of those afternoons when it would be good to stay up here indefinitely – but cake awaits! Come on!
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…so we’ll do it in black and white! It’s a pleasant circuit, down to Jackfield by hidden paths in the jungle, then across to Coalport and along the old railway track to Coalport bridge. We cross the Severn again and walk along the other old railway, before joining Pound Lane and heading for home.
View OS map on Streetmap http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=369350&Y=301556&A=Y&Z=120
There’s a stiff breeze, but it’s too good to stay in – we’ll walk up to Clee Burf, the southern summit of Brown Clee. Apart from the wind in the trees, it’s quiet up here. There’s no-one else about, apart from a solitary jogger, who doesn’t look happy. No shortage of sheep, of course. The forecast suggested there could be the odd shower, but we’re lucky today – bright sunshine throughout. There’s a big shower cloud to the north, and another, nearer, provides us with an unexpected rainbow. The end of it is just over there – no crocks though, just another sheep – taking on an appropriately golden tint in the late afternoon sunshine.
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The Shropshire Hills AONB is almost entirely south of the Severn – just one little bit spills over to the other side, almost to Wellington, to encompass the Wrekin, which in many ways is Wellington’s own hill. The first stretch from the Forest Glen can be busy (that’s a relative term, of course), and the summit was positively heaving – there must have been four other people there, plus two dogs. Most visitors seem to turn here and return the way they’ve come. Beyond lie the rocks (notable for the Needle’s Eye, which one must thread at least once in a lifetime) – and a different feel altogether. That’s perhaps because of the views – the ground drops away sharply, and the panorama in the south-westerly quarter is spectacular, especially on an afternoon like this. Unusually, the strong directional sunshine lasted while I stayed on top – the clouds gathered as I returned along the quiet woodland paths on the north-western flank. Did a few snowflakes drift gently down, or was I imagining things? It was certainly cold enough.
View OS map on Streetmap http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=362970&Y=308326&A=Y&Z=120
