Newsletter January to April 2012
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Quick Links:
Report on Aldeburgh Weekend October 2011
Report on Bath Coach Walk September 2011
Flyers: Skittles Evening 2 March 2012; Bellevaux June 2012; Isle of Wight September 2012; Llangattock October 2012
(The booklet form of this newsletter will be sent out to members during week commencing 12 Dec 2011)
From our Chairman
At this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) on 2nd November, we did not have a speaker and that allowed more time for socialising and the chance to discuss the activities of the group over the last year. I would welcome feedback from those that attended on what they thought of this new format.
At the AGM some changes were made to the committee. Pat Perridge has been managing the website for three years and editing the newsletter for five years. He has made a number of improvements to both and my thanks to Pat for so expertly fitting the content of our newsletter into the limited space available. He has often received articles at the very last minute, and has always produced a professional looking newsletter. He has decided to stand down as newsletter editor, but the good news is that Daphne has agreed to become our newsletter editor and as Pat’s wife, she should have all the support needed to maintain the high standard that has been set by Pat. This change means that Daphne has given up her role as publicity officer and I am pleased to say that David Moffett has joined the committee as our new publicity officer. You will remember that David has been responsible for organising the coach walks this summer and I am delighted to welcome him on to the committee. All the other members of the committee have agreed to continue for another year and I’m pleased to say that the committee with these changes was voted in at the AGM.
As a new benefit to our members, we have enabled you to buy the excellent Cicerone Guides at 20% discount, which is generally cheaper than Amazon. This deal is available direct from Cicerone at www.cicerone.co.uk and to obtain the discount, all you have to do is to enter the Voucher code LODDON at checkout. There is no additional charge for postage, making this a really super deal. You will probably know these guides for walkers by reputation and you may have copies on your bookshelves, but if you are in any doubt, just check out the reviews on Amazon.
Based on last year’s programme of events, your new committee intends to offer an attractive range of activities in the coming year. In addition to the usual programme of a short Thursday walk and the long and short Sunday walks, you will notice that two Tuesday long walks have been included in March and April. This is thanks to Richard Hatton who has offered to lead these. The Wroxeter weekend has proved very popular and is now fully booked, but if you missed out on this weekend, then you could consider the Llangattock weekend* being organised by Richard Kenton in Wales next October. During the summer there will be another two coach walks that are being planned by David Moffett and in June Barbara Curtis has organised a week’s walking holiday in the French Alps staying in Bellevaux*. For the more adventurous, you could walk the length of the Isle of Wight* by joining the weekend organised for next September by Nick Price. Also, you can look forward to the skittles evening*. Flyers with this programme give booking information for activities marked * above.
A Merry Christmas to all Loddon Valley Ramblers and I hope some of you will join me on the traditional mince pie and mulled wine walk on Sunday 18th December.
David Turner
Chairman
Forthcoming Events
- SKITTLES EVENING Friday 2nd March 2012 See the enclosed flyer for details of this annual event at the Jack O’Newbury in Binfield. It’s often over-subscribed so book early!
- WROXETER , 20-22 April 2012 Now fully booked.
- BELLEVAUX, 9-16 June 2012 Barbara Curtis is arranging another holiday in this popular destination. See the flyer for details
- COACH WALK TO SOUTH DOWNS WAY & BRIGHTON Sunday 24th June 2012, 2 September 2012 By popular demand two coach walks are planned for 2012. Flyers will appear with the next programme.
- ISLE OF WIGHT September 15-17 2012 Nick Price is planning a three-day trip walking 25 miles across the IOW from Brading in the east to Yarmouth in the west. See the flyer for details and note that bags will be transported for us.
-
LLANGATTOCK, Powys, 19-21 October 2012
The Autumn 2012 Weekend Break will be based in Wales, in the village of Llangattock, on the eastern side of the Brecon Beacons, near Crickhowell.
Llangattock was the venue for the first ever LVR weekend away in October 1996 and although we are using different accommodation this time it would be nice to see as many original weekenders as possible.
We will be staying at the Old Rectory Country Hotel & Golf Club, on the edge of the village, and a round of golf is FREE to residents of the hotel. The hotel has made generous arrangements for those wishing to stay three nights - see the flyer for details.
As usual, a choice of walks will be offered, but being in Wales, there are bound to be some hills! See booking form for details.
New Members
We welcome these new members, who have recently joined our group:
Cherry Butler, Mary Ede, Elaine Holloway, Paula Montie, Isabelle and Dougal Munro, Mrs H Tranter, Liz Ware, Sally Wilkin.
We hope you have started walking with us, and are finding the walks enjoyable and sociable. Do say hello if you meet one of the committee members on a walk, and let us know if we can help you in any way.
Footpaths
I can just picture you reading this in the gloom and maybe even the rain, but hey what a lovely autumn we had! I had some great walking and I hope you managed some as well. The expected explosion of brambles and stinging nettles did arrive but Wokingham’s countryside rangers managed very well and we played our part in snipping bramble leaders when we could. The Wokingham Borough footpath network remains in very good condition although we will always have odd problem areas. If you were able to attend our AGM in November you will be aware that the outstanding issues were down to single figures but we have to be vigilant. A 100% clear up rate is probably not achievable or as I say ‘impossibilities we can deal with, the miracles take a little longer’. The real reason we are able to report so many defects is of course down to you and our footpath officers, so please keep it up.
At this time of the year our main focus is on footpaths that have been ploughed out and not reinstated. If you come across any of these please let us know with as much detail about location as you can.
I have not seen anything written but a reliable source has said that the Wokingham Countryside Service did not suffer in the budget cuts and I do hope that is the case. Our local footpath network depends on this department remaining robust.
Please don’t forget I and my fellow footpath officers are only an e-mail or phone call away if you encounter any problems. Our contact details are inside the back cover of this programme. Happy walking.
Ray Sharp
Report on Aldeburgh Weekend, 21-23 October 2011
An intrepid band of 37 braved the rigours of the M25 on a Friday afternoon to strike out along the A12, eventually reaching the small town of Aldeburgh in Suffolk, not far south of Southwold and also close to Thorpeness, a fantasy Tudor and Jacobean village created from the hamlet of Thorpe by Stuart Ogilvy, a Scottish adventurer.
We were billeted at the White Lion, a splendid hotel whose location on the seafront under the big East Anglian sky, with winds blowing straight in from the Low Countries, could not have been better.
Those of us who did not know Aldeburgh were all charmed by it. It seemed very distant from the bustle of the Home Counties, more like the England of fifty years ago. A pretty and distinctive High Street had tea rooms, a plethora of smart shops and an eccentric cinema, which looked like a converted tea room, but has been screening films continuously since 1924. Near to our hotel was the ancient Moot Hall, and, close by, the former home of Aldeburgh's most famous resident, Benjamin Britten. Opposite the hotel was a series of small fisherman's businesses (it's the biting east wind that makes 'em small) with flocks of hopeful gulls sitting on the roofs.
We dined that evening in the hotel's function room, where a celebratory Trafalgar Night dinner was scheduled (H Nelson being a local lad, born in the rectory at Burnham Thorpe, Norfolk, so a certain amount of local pride was understandable). The room was bedecked with Nelsoniana, and a former mayor and Nelson specialist, assisted by the coxswain of the local lifeboat, had been recruited to give what turned out to be a most spirited account of the Battle of Trafalgar. It seems that usual naval practice had been to engage the enemy ships broadside on, and to bang away at each other until one (or frequently both) sank. Nelson, however, hit on the innovatory wheeze of sailing his ships in a line through the enemy’s vessels blasting away at the sterns of their ships, where they were unarmed and vulnerable. This caused considerable confusion and nervous depression amongst the enemy, who retreated to open bars and cheap hotels along the Costa Brava. Nelson, was therefore, a Good Thing. He was also unfortunately a dead admiral, as he insisted on being where the fighting was fiercest, and was mortally wounded in the heat of the battle.
We were all sufficiently moved by this account to fall on our tots of rum with some enthusiasm and to join in the toast to 'the immortal memory'.
The following day dawned bright, and we organised ourselves into car-sharing groups to drive to Southwold, where our walk was to start. John issued us with instructions to take us to the assembly point by a highly visible large water tower, which was fortunate as the instructions were a little haphazard. Eventually we all met up, and commemorative photographs were taken of the group while we still looked keen.
We walked south to Walberswick, where the longer walkers continued to Dunwich, the site of an old port long since reclaimed by the sea, and also of one of the RSPB's principal bird reserves. The other group, keen to explore the fleshpots of Southwold, turned north along the beach path back to Walberswick and on to Southwold.. This group had lots of time to explore the quirky shops, lighthouse and idiosyncratic pier.
Saturday evening was a jolly affair in the hotel's main restaurant, where the group enjoyed fine wines, Adnam’s ales, an excellent dinner and delightful service. David Turner stood up and thanked John and Chris Kingdom for finding such a good destination for us to visit, as well as such an excellent hotel.
The plan on Sunday was to walk to the Maltings at Snape and return by bus. Unfortunately the bus did not run on Sundays, but undeterred by this minor setback, some drivers took their cars to the Maltings and parked and were ferried back to Aldeburgh for the walk.
On both days the walks were greatly appreciated. The East Anglian landscape is distinctive, beautiful, large and peaceful and there are opportunities to see birds and wild habitats. The National Trust estate of Sutton Hoo is nearby, and some of us took the opportunity to visit there on the way home, and to hear about the discovery of the priceless treasure from the Anglo-Saxon ship burial found there in 1939.
Many of us left resolving to return soon.
Pat Perridge
The Two Moors Way
On 19 September 2011 we set off from Ivybridge on the southern edge of Dartmoor to walk across Dartmoor and Exmoor to Lynmouth on the north coast of Devon. That first day we were led to believe there would be extensive views as far as Cornwall. Unfortunately all we saw was mist, drizzle, and one man and his bedraggled dog, until we reached our B & B in Scorriton.
The next day, we set off again; this time not only did we see wall-to-wall mist, but also incessant rain. By the time we reached our B & B in Lower Hookner we were drenched and our hosts were not at home. However there was a sunshade (!) for us to shelter under. We later learnt that a trip to the back door would have given us access to the property.
At this point we should apologise for the lack of a scenic description of glorious Dartmoor!
Having dried out, we set out on Day 3 to the northern edge of the moor, and this time the weather allowed us to take in the views of heather-bound hills stretching to the horizon. We stayed at the pub in Drewsteignton, in the 2-3 man bunkhouse. Interesting and cheap!
Next day, with good weather again, we set off for Morchard Road in the area between the moors. This involved quite a lot of road walking and it must have been rush hour, because we saw two cars in as many hours.
On Day 5, it was off to Witheridge, a small town, with two shops and a pub, as opposed to some of the hamlets and villages we had come through, with neither shop nor pub, or at best one of each.
Day 6 saw the longest day’s walking to Hawkridge on Exmoor. As there was no B & B in Hawkridge we had arranged to phone the B & B in Withypool (4 miles up the road) to come and pick us up. We knew there would be no mobile coverage but there was a phone box in the village (the OS map said so). And so it proved, but unfortunately, there was no phone in it! But, we were rescued by a kindly couple who had just finished a walk, and seeing two gentlemen (looking like the cast from Last of the Summer Wine perhaps), took pity on us and drove us to Withypool, for which we are eternally grateful.
The next day we were driven back to Hawkridge and started walking to the well-known beauty spot, Tarr Steps (an ancient clapper bridge), and then north along the river. This eventually took us to Simonsbath, after what seemed to be a rather tiring day.
The last day, over some glorious moorland, was harder still, as the ground was extremely boggy and there was a distinct lack of waymarks. This led to some serious map, compass and GPS work to ensure we ended up in Lynmouth, which we did on a beautiful autumn afternoon. As is now customary, we celebrated the completion of our 101-mile walk with a pint on the waterfront.
Richard Kenton
Nick Price
Bath Coach Walk, 4 September 2011
The first coach walk to Winchester in June was well received and we followed this with a walk along the Cotswold Way to Bath in September. After an initial flurry returned forms dried up and it seemed that the breakeven point might not be reached, but in the event numbers carried on rising (with welcome help from Barbara Curtis’s Wargrave circle) and 50 ramblers boarded the coach from Broad Street on the Sunday morning.
The threat of inclement weather from the tail of Hurricane Irene abated, and we rode down the M4 towards blue skies. Once again we were indebted to the skills and experience of John, the coach driver, as we negotiated the narrow lanes of Gloucestershire towards the first drop off near Dyrham Park where Graham Croucher assembled his ramblers to tackle the 12½ mile walk along The Cotswold Way.
The second drop off was near the Civil War battlefield of Landsdown Hill. We crossed the road to join the well-signed Cotswold Way and followed the limestone escarpment with brilliant views of both Severn Bridges. The Way then crossed a Roman fort and rounded the starting line of Bath Racecourse. At the viewpoint near Prospect Stile, we stopped for a short break and chatted with amateur radio hams taking part in a competition to make contact with the largest number of call signs.
Next followed a gentle downhill walk into Bath, which lulled some of us into a false sense of security, until we were confronted with a final mile of steep street climbs through the city suburbs, but it was worth it to see the grandeur of the Royal Crescent and the splendid architecture of Georgian Bath. The Way continued towards the Abbey and the group dispersed to spend a few hours in this World Heritage City.
On the return ride to Wokingham, we carried out a simple survey of possible future coach walks and based on the results we have planned our next walks ....
Dates for your Diary:
Coach Walk to South Downs Way & Brighton Sunday 24th June 2012
Coach Walk to Clarendon Way & Salisbury Sunday 2nd September 2012
[The Walks Programme can be found under the 'Walks' menu, left hand navigation, above.]