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Three short walks with two small dogs



 
 
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  #1  
Old October 17th, 2013, 11:14 AM posted to rec.travel.europe
Keith Fletcher
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Posts: 5
Default Three short walks with two small dogs

Spring is upon us again and what a great time it is to pull on a pair of walking boots and head off into the countryside. There’s nothing like a bit of sunshine and fresh air to blow way the winter blues and clear the cobwebs from the old grey matter.

As Max is now old enough to venture out with Poppy, my weekends are now spent exercising myself and two small Yorkies on our local walks. We’ve been lucky with the weather the last few weeks, which has allowed us to complete three of my favourite walks in the North Wiltshire countryside.

Walk 1

After a short drive along the A4 through Calne and on towards Avebury and Marlborough, the road climbs up through Cherhill with the Wiltshire downs on the right hand side. Near the top of the downs are several lay byes to park up and join one of the many footpath routes up to Oldbury Hill and it’s ancient hill fort and white horse carved into the chalk hillside. The walk up the hill is steep from the lower end of the hill, but more leisurely the higher up the road you decide to park. We chose the longer route from the base of the hill, as both the dogs and I needed plenty of exercise after the lazy winter months.

Once away from the road, and with no sheep in sight, the dogs were very pleased to get off their leads and chase along the steep chalky paths that lead up to the summit. The 125 foot high Lansdowne monument leaves you with no doubt which way to go and it’s a well worn route for locals and visitors up to the top. The views on the way up and at the summit make the effort of the climb well worth while, and once you reach the large plateau beyond the obelisk there are plenty of ways to explore the old earthwork remains of the iron age hill fort. From here on a good day you can see much of Wiltshire, from Swindon to Bristol as well as the neighbouring towns of Bath, Chippenham, Calne, and Marlborough.

The descent down past the Cherhill White Horse is much easier than the climb up, but still slippy in places so care is needed to avoid an embarrassing slide down the hill. After a short stroll down the footpath beside the A4, the circular route back to the car was completed and a very good few hours was had by all of us.

Walk 2

Castle Combe has to be one of the prettiest villages in England, and is perfect for a springtime walk along its narrow streets which can often be busy with day trippers and then down past the By Brook River and off up into the woods and hillside of the steep valley that the river has carved over thousands of years. Most of the visitors don’t venture far off the main road, leaving the footpaths free for locals and the more determined to stretch their legs and lungs.

After parking at the main visitor car park above the village, Poppy and Max were eager to get going on this familiar route although the first half a mile had to be kept on their leads as we walked down the steep road winding down into the village. Before getting to the busy main street and market cross, we turned left up a steep rocky path that takes you above the village to the east and through Parsonage Woods. The path gradually descends back down to meet the main path heading to Ford. This is a very picturesque walk, with old mills and farm houses in the valley far below, steep hillsides full of flowers and trees, and plenty of space for the dos to run freely and not interfere with too many other walkers or their dogs.

With enough time you can follow the route over the A420 at Ford and onto Colerne, but as we had ventured far enough for one day and my knees are not what they used to be, we turned back at Ford and retraced our steps back towards Castle Combe. As we got near to the village, we took the lower path this time taking us back onto the main street and past the luxury Manor House Hotel, the pubs in the village centre and the crowds sitting outside and around the market cross. After a steep walk up the road to the car park, the dogs were thirsty and we all enjoyed a long drink before heading home for tea.

Walk 3

Having walked from Castle Combe to Ford the weekend before, this weekend we decided to do the next leg of the walk from Ford along the By Brook River towards Slaughterford.

Car parking is a bit of a challenge in Ford, so we decided to make use of one of three car parks at the White Hart Inn and hope the owners didn’t take too much offence. We would return for a drink later and perhaps the offer of some free advertising on NeverBeBored would help keep them happy.

The weather wasn’t looking good as we started the walk and it felt like rain was heading in, but after a few minutes the sun decided to break through and the views along the river valley were stunning. The river meanders gently along the river valley and over several small weirs, and the footpath crosses from one side of the river to another over small wooden bridges. The stiles presented a few challenges for the dogs which, being so small, usually found a way underneath rather than following me over them.

We reached the small road at Slaughterford and as the weather still couldn’t decide if it was going to stay sunny or not, we decided to make today’s walk a shorter one than planned and headed back up the road through the little village and over the fields past the Church of St. Nicholas.

We picked up the narrow single track road again from Slaughterford back to Ford, which is not much more than a muddy track and very few cars venture this way so it was fine for the last leg of our walk. After a nice cold drink at the White Hart Inn, and a bowl of water for the dogs, we headed back to the car feeling very pleased with ourselves.

For details of more good walks and things to do in Wiltshire, and across the UK, please visit my website at:

http://www.neverbebored.co.uk/things...wiltshire.html
  #2  
Old October 17th, 2013, 05:55 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Erilar
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Posts: 599
Default Three short walks with two small dogs

Martin wrote:
On Thu, 17 Oct 2013 03:14:03 -0700 (PDT), Keith Fletcher
wrote:

Spring is upon us again


It's autumn.


My favorite season. Jasper(bigger than a Yorkie but still small) gets me
out to enjoy the color, but I don't write long descriptions of them
--
Erilar, biblioholic medievalist with iPad
  #3  
Old October 17th, 2013, 09:13 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Gregory Morrow[_204_]
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Posts: 17
Default Three short walks with two small dogs

Martin wrote:


On Thu, 17 Oct 2013 03:14:03 -0700 (PDT), Keith Fletcher

wrote:



Spring is upon us again




It's autumn.



Autumn has sprung...???


--
Best
Greg
  #4  
Old November 3rd, 2013, 07:34 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Gregory Morrow[_204_]
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Posts: 17
Default Three short walks with two small dogs

M@gd@ wrote:

On Thu, 17 Oct 2013 12:44:04 +0200, in rec.travel.europe, Martin

arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:



... On Thu, 17 Oct 2013 03:14:03 -0700 (PDT), Keith Fletcher

... wrote:

...

... Spring is upon us again

...

... It's autumn.



Maybe she is in the south hemisphere.



M@gd@...!!!


;-D

--
Best
Greg
  #5  
Old November 13th, 2013, 04:21 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Gregory Morrow[_204_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 17
Default Three short walks with two small dogs

M@gd@ wrote:


On Sun, 3 Nov 2013 10:34:43 -0800 (PST), in rec.travel.europe, Gregory Morrow

arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:



... M@gd@ wrote:

...

... On Thu, 17 Oct 2013 12:44:04 +0200, in rec.travel.europe, Martin

...

... arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:

...

...

...

... ... On Thu, 17 Oct 2013 03:14:03 -0700 (PDT), Keith Fletcher

...

... ... wrote:

...

... ...

...

... ... Spring is upon us again

...

... ...

...

... ... It's autumn.

...

...

...

... Maybe she is in the south hemisphere.

...

...

... M@gd@...!!!

...

...

... ;-D



Hi, cutie!



8-D

--
Best
Greg
  #6  
Old November 13th, 2013, 04:53 PM posted to rec.travel.europe
Gregory Morrow[_204_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 17
Default Three short walks with two small dogs

Martin wrote:

On Wed, 13 Nov 2013 07:21:38 -0800 (PST), Gregory Morrow

wrote:



M@gd@ wrote:






On Sun, 3 Nov 2013 10:34:43 -0800 (PST), in rec.travel.europe, Gregory Morrow




arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:








... M@gd@ wrote:




...




... On Thu, 17 Oct 2013 12:44:04 +0200, in rec.travel.europe, Martin




... ... On Thu, 17 Oct 2013 03:14:03 -0700 (PDT), Keith Fletcher




...




... ... wrote:




...




... ...




...




... ... Spring is upon us again




...




... ...




...




... ... It's autumn.




...




...




...




... Maybe she is in the south hemisphere.




...




...




... M@gd@...!!!




...




...




... ;-D








Hi, cutie!






8-D




Time you told Magda that Keith is a man and that this group is about

Europe.

--



Martin in Zuid Holland




"Like the US Republican Party, this group has drifted off - topic..."


;-)


--
Best
Greg
 




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