Stottesdon to Cleehill

Day 2 Stottesdon to Cleehill  14.5 miles (but I think it should have been about 13 miles - read on!)
12 Stiles and a couple of barbed wire fences.

Last night we had a game of giant Jenga, which was quite fun.  It seemed John and Jacqui were the ones most likely to make it wobble and fall!

The day started dry again and was relatively straightforward, except that we walked down a road hill only to turn round again and walk back up it as we had missed the path; that happened twice!!  (chatting too much! added a bit extra mileage).  We followed the Simon Evans Way for some time - Simon Evans was a postman turned poet, born in 1895.  He had a route that was about 15 miles long that he walked every day delivering the mail.  It is estimated he walked a total of 75,000 miles in the time from 1926 to 1940.  He wrote several books while resting in a post hut in Stottesdon.

Inspecting the flowers and trying to learn the names of them.  We have seen lots of cowslips.

After about 5 miles we arrived in Cleobury Mortimer.  We had a coffee break sitting on benches in a school, and then the rain started again.

The next part of the walk was not so well marked - again - we spent quite a lot of time wondering where the path was, and whether to go through a farm that had clearly moved paths - after walking through a field of cows the farmer came to point us back and in the right direction.  This happened again a bit later on where we ended up on the wrong side of a stream and having to climb over barber wire fences, all because there was a horse farm in the way.  Anyway Tim and Walt managed to keep us all walking in the right direction, but it is becoming obvious that this walk is not going to be straightforward as it used paths that are not in constant use.   So all that added to distance and time.  Now to the important thing of lunch which was taken sheltering from rain in a wooded area, then Carol and

Stuey dressed for the rain.

The large golf ball in view

Phil walked up to meet us, they had parked in Hopton Wafers and started to walk along with us for a while until we had to climb over one of the previously mentioned barbed wire fences.  We carried on now beginning to climb up and up towards the radar station.  This seemed to go on for a long time and at the end heading for the road it was tough going on very lumpy ground.  Once reaching the road we decided not to walk right up to the top and we only had to turn round and walk back again!  The rain had finally stopped too, so we headed off down the road and met up with Phil and Carol again who had walked up to meet us.  They had found a path eventually after a few false starts from the bottom in Cleehill, so they were able to guide us back to the bus.  Then back to the house for Lyn’s mincemeat cake and tea - yum!

Tonight Walt and team are preparing beef bourgignon which is smelling good.
After dinner I think we are having a sing along with the ukuleles - we did have a bit of a practise yesterday evening.

Plodding upwards!