I’ll have to use the phone instead. Not ideal, but… It’s a very pleasant evening on the Edge above Much Wenlock – bright, sunny, not particularly warm – perfect for this short wander.
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We’ve had some warm days – too warm to be out in the sun – but today’s different. There’s more cloud, and a stiff breeze makes it feel much more pleasant. The Hope Bowdler hills could be ideal… Looking down on the Cardingmill valley, we realised why we’d seen no-one else up here (we did see a runner, disappearing as we began our walk, and passed a lone walker setting out just before we arrived back at the start. I’m not complaining!) The kites, the buzzards and the sheep are sufficient company.
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We’ll be under the trees for much of the way – on this warm afternoon, it’s especially pleasant along the old railway trackbed on the south side of the river between Coalport bridge and Maw’s – cool and moist, just what’s needed!
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Expect the unexpected! For moderately complex reasons, we found ourselves in Leominster yesterday afternoon. The roads through the old town centre are all being dug up, so we wandered slightly further afield and found Grange Court. Formerly the town’s market hall, it was dismantled in the middle of the 19th century and, a year or two later, re-erected on its present site. The ground floor, formerly open, has been enclosed to make this fine and unexpected (we certainly weren’t expecting it!) building.
That evening, home again and fed, we enjoyed our regular wander around the lanes at Willey. We weren’t expecting the yellow crops in the field – not rape in July, surely, though the plant looks similar – what is it? This morning, my dependable source on such matters informed me that it’s mustard. It will be harvested, or ploughed in as green manure, depending on how things go. Expect the unexpected! (Douglas Adams, of course)
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A walk from Much Wenlock, across the fields to the derelict farm at Perkley, past the camp sites near Bourton Westwood Farm, then down to the old railway track leading back to the start.
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There may be no sunshine but the hedges beside Stanley Lane and the old railway track are colourful this evening
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… because it’s going to rain this afternoon. As ever at this time of year, there’s plenty of colour in the hedgerows around Willey
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Up here, on the Wenlock Edge, it’s predominantly at the blue, indigo and violet end of the spectrum. There are pyramidal orchids by the dozen, along with hairy bellflowers, vetch and some rather flamboyant knapweed. It’s a colourful month in these parts.
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It’s a fine July afternoon, occasionally warm in the sunshine and very pleasant in the lanes up to (and down from) Church Preen. There are one or two signs of the coming autumn (though it’s some way off yet) – swelling wild greengages and damsons, and the remarkable red leaves of herb robert.
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After a wet morning and a so-so afternoon, it would be a crime not to enjoy an evening like this!
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