Shropshire Hills 2013 Day 3
Day 3 Thursday 22nd August 2013
I was told, by Janet, that there was a path
from the hotel on the hill over to Little Stretton, and planned on walking
it. But, after a wrong turn near the
hotel, and wasting time going around and around in circles, but seeing some interesting wooden carvings, I ended up heading
down to the road and just walking along there.
I have since, found and walked the path over the hills between Church Stretton and Little Stretton a number of times, so please don’t leave me comments on how to do it.
I have since, found and walked the path over the hills between Church Stretton and Little Stretton a number of times, so please don’t leave me comments on how to do it.
At Little Stretton I turned up a track south
of Ashes Hollow near Small Batch. Two
guys were ahead of me, so that made navigation easy, until they disappeared
from sight. Somehow I veered off the
path and ended up on a hill (perhaps Grindle hill) surrounded by heather.
After checking the map and compass, it was time for a little cross country bounding through the heather to get back to where I should have been. At one point I saw what was an old dyke.
I walked up past Pole Cottage (another location used by Mr. Saville) amongst the trees to the right in the following photo
and along the track to Pole Bank: the trig point indicating the highest point of the Mynd.
From there I headed north up the Mynd where I achieved some stunning views.
Veering North West I came down off the Mynd above All Stretton.
Shortly before coming off the Long Mynd, I had run into a woman, Erica, who stopped to chat. She was a recently ordained minister (I think). Her husband, Richard, wandered up a short while later.
From there I descended down below Jonathan’s Rock at The Batch to a lane near All Stretton, where I found a stream to sit and eat my lunch with another cider.
After eating lunch, I walked down that lane (past, what I would years later realise was (and stay in), the All Stretton bunkhouse). I found a track that ran roughly parallel to the road, and turned along it to head back to Church Stretton, but accidentally coming out onto the road about halfway back.
After checking the map and compass, it was time for a little cross country bounding through the heather to get back to where I should have been. At one point I saw what was an old dyke.
I walked up past Pole Cottage (another location used by Mr. Saville) amongst the trees to the right in the following photo
and along the track to Pole Bank: the trig point indicating the highest point of the Mynd.
From there I headed north up the Mynd where I achieved some stunning views.
Veering North West I came down off the Mynd above All Stretton.
Shortly before coming off the Long Mynd, I had run into a woman, Erica, who stopped to chat. She was a recently ordained minister (I think). Her husband, Richard, wandered up a short while later.
From there I descended down below Jonathan’s Rock at The Batch to a lane near All Stretton, where I found a stream to sit and eat my lunch with another cider.
After eating lunch, I walked down that lane (past, what I would years later realise was (and stay in), the All Stretton bunkhouse). I found a track that ran roughly parallel to the road, and turned along it to head back to Church Stretton, but accidentally coming out onto the road about halfway back.
In Church Stretton I returned to the bookshop
to talk with Roz, and that was when I discovered more locations that were used in
the Lone Pine books. I planned on
visiting some in the morning before I leave Church Stretton, but having learned
that the reservoir is the inspiration for Hatchholt, I returned up Carding Mill
valley for a second look.
On my way back down, I stopped at the National
Trust café to get an ice cream (eating these about as often as I have fish ‘n’
chips), see Richard and Erica again, then I go and sit beside the stream to
drink a cider.
I returned to the BnB for a shower, and ran
into Richard and Erica a third time, as they were walking past on their way
back to their cottage. I wandered into
the village with the intention of having a meal and a cider at a pub. I wandered into the Buck’s Head and ordered a
cider, which I drank sitting in their garden.
I did not get a good vibe for the place, and could find no other place
to eat, so ended up in Rectory Field having fish ‘n’ chips for the fourth night
running. Just a note: when I returned to
Church Stretton in 2019 I found it had a lot more places to eat (numerous cafes,
for example) but had become a bit trendier and pricey - luckily the King’s Arms
is still reasonable.
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