NORTH DEAN WALKING GROUP

NEWSLETTER October 2017

WALKING INTO 2018

Valerie and Gareph are not planning to lead a walking

weekend in 2018, so if YOU are keen to put forward an idea

please do so. With so many members why not let us try some

new areas of our lovely land, e.g., Dorset, Leicestershire,

Essex, or Shropshire. Which are YOUR favourite places?

There are so many places yet to explore and you may know

the perfect venue for the group to visit. We do not need to

limit the programme to just one weekend. A spring weekend

and an autumn one would be lovely to look forward to. If you

do not feel confident to lead walks over a whole weekend why

not consider joining forces with one or two friends to share the

fun. It has worked well in recent years.

This year, as ever, David has put together varied programmes

of lovely walks. This is only possible because you, the loyal

members, have come up with some great ideas. What a good

variety we have enjoyed: the Cotswold hills and valleys, the

Forest of Dean, riversides, railways, meadows and moorlands.

We have even explored a few historic urban landscapes during

the Derbyshire weekend back in June.

We are always delighted to add new names to the list of walk

leaders so, if you have a good idea, please submit it for the

next programme. Many members are very happy with longer

walks, and long may this be so, but others are finding that

shorter walks, perhaps with a pub or tea shop visit afterwards,

are just right. A good variety is what we need. (Valerie

Boxley)

WALKING THROUGH HISTORY

Look out this autumn for some walks around National Trust

and English Heritage venues. These are our Walking Through

History walks.

Many Group members are also members of the NT and/or EH,

so don’t forget to bring your membership cards and

windscreen badges for free parking before you walk. Non-

members will need to pay a modest car park charge. The walks

will be in beautiful landscapes and tea and cakes can be

enjoyed afterwards. There may also be time for tour of the

beautiful historic property!

Newark Park (see photo), on the brink of the Cotswold

escarpment, will be the first Walk Through History on 4

November. (Valerie Boxley)

I see that some of the other walks in the current programme

take in features of historic interest, including the disused

Coombe Hill Canal, Odda’s Chapel at Deerhurst, the Tyndale

Monument and the Norman castle at St Briavels.(Ed.)

CHRISTMAS SOCIAL

We have arranged the Christmas social for Friday 8 December

at the King's Arms, Ross Road, Newent GL18 1BD, at 7.15

for 7.30pm. For £10 per head we will have a buffet supper

with hot and cold food, including vegetarian items. We will

also have the use of the skittle alley for the evening. So there

will be no food to take, no setting out, and no clearing up

afterwards!

NEW YEAR LUNCH

We have not yet fixed a date or a venue for the New Year

walk and lunch, but expect to do so shortly. Members will be

informed by e-mail or mail when the details are available.

SUMMER BARBEQUE

The annual summer barbeque took place at Margo’s farm at

Abenhall and was a great success, with good weather for

outdoor activities. John T led a morning walk up to the

Wilderness, returning via St Anthony’s Well and the gardens

of the Asha Centre. Once again we record our thanks to Margo

for welcoming us to her delightful garden, to John for leading

the walk, and to David for managing the cooking

arrangements. What a delightful day we had, and with autumn

walks and Christmas festivities to look forward to, the Group

goes from strength to strength. (Valerie Boxley)

Photo: Barry Gilbert

WALKING WEEKEND IN DERBYSHIRE

During a glorious summer weekend in June, 18 Group

members enjoyed a varied mixture of walks and visits in

eastern Derbyshire. The theme for the weekend was the

landscapes that made possible the rise of industry.

Meeting on Friday at the hilltop village of Winster, we

followed the rural paths and trackways that enabled ore from

the surrounding lead mines to be brought, by pannier ponies

over centuries, for sale in the village centre.

Saturday morning saw the group exploring the model town

established by Sir Richard Arkwright to house the work force

employed in his ground-breaking cotton spinning Cromford

Mill. Having later toiled to the hilltop, we were rewarded with

wonderful views of Derbyshire landscapes before descending

the inclined plane which once connected the hilltop railway to

the Cromford canal in the valley below. Tea in the family

home of the great industrialist (now a holiday center) rounded

off an interesting and enjoyable day.

Sunday proved to be one of the hottest days of the year and

most of the group enjoyed exploring the newly-extended

Monsal Trail, which follows the line of another of the

transport links (a railway) vital to the success of industry. A

few members opted for a quieter visit to the nearby Crich

Tramway Museum, full of fun and interest, with working

trams.

On Monday we managed two more walks on our way home.

The first, a town walk, was to see the remarkable mill complex

and exemplary housing scheme by which the Strutt family

brought prosperity to Belper. After lunch we stopped at the

small village of Shardlow. Here we walked the route of the

lower Cromford Canal as it joined the River Derwent,

providing a power source for all the mills, and on to the

confluence with the mighty River Trent. This was the

industrial gateway to the world and the creation of modern

Britain. (Valerie Boxley)

CUMBRIA WAY

Three intrepid Group members (David, Phil and the Editor)

have just finished walking the Cumbria Way, a 75 mile-long

route across the Lake District from Ulverston to Carlisle. It is

a relatively low-level walk, apart from Stake Pass, at the end

of the Langdale Valley, and High Pike, near Caldbeck (2157

ft). It passes many well-known beauty spots, including

Coniston Water, Tarn Hows, Elterwater, the Langdale Valley,

Borrowdale, and Derwentwater, before heading north past

Skiddaw, to Caldbeck and the Caldew Valley into Carlisle.

We covered the distance in five days, largely because of

finding suitable B&Bs for overnight stops. However, we had

an extra two days in Keswick, when we did some easier walks

around Walla Crag–Ashness Bridge and the Rydal Water–

Grasmere area. The Lake District has walks for all tastes: long

or short, hilly or flat. Maybe this would be a suitable area for a

Group holiday?

The photos show Colwith Force, Grasmere and a misty

Elterwater. (David Bignell)

(John Sheraton, Editor)