Beacon Hill: peaty pools

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There’s a real sense of wilderness on these border hills. Shropshire lies on the opposite bank of the Teme, but Beacon Hill could easily be somewhere much more remote. It could have been quite tricky too, if Shropshire’s fog hadn’t given way to a cloudless sky as we headed west into Powys.

The walk would have been a very wet one a month ago – there’s plenty of evidence of February’s dyke-filling downpours, where animals have churned the ground in some of the wetter places. But mostly it’s really good underfoot – springy turf and heather moor, with delightful peaty pools reflecting the sky’s deep blue. It’s quiet too – apart from one or two vehicles on the lane up from Beguildy, the only sounds are from the sheep and the birds. And yes – this is red kite country, though they’re never quite close enough for the camera.

Bring me sunshine

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Two bright, sunny afternoons – too good to waste…

Monday: a walk from Linley to Bridgnorth. I had a lift to the starting point, for a walk which should be well-timed for a lift home again. Down in the valley, out of the wind, I began to wonder if I should have left my jacket behind. The old railway track would provide a reasonable surface if the river-bank path was too sticky – in the event, it wasn’t bad at all.

Tuesday: A walk to Benthall Hall – an old favourite. The tea-room at the hall was a bonus – hadn’t realised it was open mid-week, so early in the season…

Benthall Hall NT

 

Border Castles

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Goodrich, the White Castle, Grosmont – three impressive ruins with similarities and differences. Goodrich is in England, beside the Wye near Ross, in the care of English Heritage. There’s lots to see and explore here – spiralling ways up to the heights, dark dungeons and passageways. A walk around the dry moat reveals the rocky foundations.

Goodrich Castle EH

Further west, in Wales, are the “Three Castles”, from 1201 the property of one Hubert de Burgh. We’ve been to Skenfrith before – let’s look at the White Castle. It really was white once, apparently. Its deep moat is still water-filled, and the ruins are extensive, but there’s only the one tower which can be climbed for a fine (but today hazy) view to the west, where the Skirrid – “Ysgyryd Fawr” –  and the Black Mountains are prominent.

Grosmont Castle, third of the “Three Castles” would be on our way home, and there’s still plenty of time. Once again, there’s an entrance across a bridge (which originally would have been a drawbridge), and there’s one way up onto the walls for a good overall view. That chimney is amazing!

White Castle and Grosmont Castle CADW

The Pike

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Nothing fishy about this walk… The Pike is a rocky ridge which provides a quick route up to the Long Mynd plateau, for this (relatively) high level route. We look back to Badbury Ring, the hill fort on the edge of the golf course, before heading west to pick up the Portway and the path to Pole Bank, highest point of the Mynd. We can stay on the plateau until the last minutes of this walk, when the path descends steeply to the edge of the woods fringing Church Stretton. Now it’s just a short walk back to the car, descending the track back into Cardingmill Valley. It’s only six miles in total, but we spent most of the afternoon on it – it was too good to hurry, much better to stop and look around, and enjoy the day.

Upton Cressett

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A walk in quiet country between Bridgnorth and Ditton Priors. Things are improving underfoot, but slowly – much of this walk is on surfaced lanes, and where it isn’t, there’s no shortage of mud. Upton Cressett is a remarkable little hamlet. Its 12th century church, redundant since 1970, is in the care of the Churches Conservation Trust. We thought it might be open, but we couldn’t get in, and had to be content with squinting through the window.

Two summits

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A walk on Brown Clee – up to Abdon Burf, the county’s highest point, then across the high ground (squelchy in places) to the southern top, Clee Burf. It’s a fine breezy afternoon, though there are one or two showers about. We caught one briefly – it had blown over before the rain began to look serious. There were one or two more further west, creating some dramatic skies.

Sunshine, showers and snowdrops

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A short wander around Attingham park, near Shrewsbury, on an afternoon of bright sunshine (too good to stay at home) and sharp showers. We managed to avoid the latter, apart from one which had us scuttling into the bothy for shelter. The “Woodland Walk” is still closed after the recent high winds – there were numerous casualties of the storms in those parts of the park that remain open – and the website warns of mud, though the paths didn’t seem too bad. Perhaps we’re getting used to it…

Attingham Park (NT)

Quiet ways from Morville

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It’s a dry and mild afternoon, with the chance of some sunshine. The field paths continue to be worth avoiding, but there are quiet tracks and lanes north of Morville. The drive to Aldenham Park looks private, but it forms a public footpath, which leads to the unsurfaced track to the pools at Hurst Farm. From here onwards, we’re on a hard surface. We return to Morville along roads which, like so many others in these parts, are very quiet.

Fferm wynt

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That’s “wind farm” in Welsh – we’re at Llandinam farm, not far south of Newtown. The well-made shale roads around the site, which is almost entirely on access land, provide an excellent surface for walking in these wet times. It wasn’t wet this afternoon though – it was fine and sunny, with enough wind for the turbines but just a gentle breeze at ground level. Whatever their pros and cons, a wander around this large site is enjoyable – the views are extensive, and the turbines make interesting graphic shapes against the sky. And there’s undoubtedly something graceful about their synchronised twirling.