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Saturday, 28 June 2025

From the Tyne to the Wall, almost

 From the Tyne to the Wall. June 27th

Back in Northumberland after the Cotswolds Way today's  walk  starts and finishes in Corbridge. The small town on the banks of the Tyne has a Roman fort. Corstopitum, a bridge that withstood the great flood of 1771 and a book shop. It also has a free carpark on the south side of the river.

Well that was the plan and I had already written the title but the weatherman told us to expect rain all day near Corbridge so we made a quick change and walked from Earsdon.

Earsdon is a village east of Newcastle and slightly north of Whitley Bay. Close by is a garden centre where we met for breakfast. And close by the garden centre is a parking place on the roadside.

The Earsden Garden Centre, good for breakfast and plants, is on a narrow road parallel to the main link between Earsden and Holywell. At the north end is enough room for several cars to park.

                           Parking near Earsden Garden Centre.

Once booted, and lightly dressed on a warm morning we set off, walking the road back towards Holywell. Once across the road bridge we took the footpath back across the burn and into the dene on the south bank. The footpath through the woods wanders along, occasionally climbing up stairs then down again, passing a footbridge until we reached the road into Hartley.



                                   Holywell Dene and an old railway bridge.
At Hartley we crossed the road and took the path to the coast, passing the Delaval Arms and the Blue Stone.

The Blue Stone outside the Delaval Arms. It once marked the centre of Hartley Village. (Now gone) Weighing between 400 and 440 pounds (200 kg if you must) it was lifted in 1776 by Willy Carr, the strong man of Blyth. Also lifted more recently but unlikely to be stolen.
We followed the footpath on the cliff tops round Collywell Bay (Known as Collywobble Bay in our house), passing Charley's Garden, a lump of rock in the bay, before settling down on benches behind the Kings Arms for a Herbie. (Cherry Bakewell's, ginger biscuits, flapjacks and sweet and savoury from Mrs A.)


Charley's Garden and the lunch-spot view. St Mary's lighthouse just visible.
After a rest and and lunch we carried on round to the harbour at Seaton Sluice.
                   Seaton Sluice Harbour, once a busy port for coal and glass. The sluice, built toflush out the harbour is gone.

The mermaid at Seaton Sluice

            The cut, carved out to make a dock.
We took the footpath down to the harbour, crossed the dene on the footbridge and went under the road bridge to re-enter the dene on the north bank. We climbed the steps out of the dene near the famous Starlight Castle, built as a bet by one of the Delaval family in 1750 and now a ruin. We missed it.
Once out of the dene we followed what looks like, and probably is, an old wagon way, heading south west in a straight line, crossing the Tyne and Wear heritage Way and coming to a halt at the hide at Holywell Pond Nature Reserve.
Herons, geese, swans, gulls, grebes but not a Kingfisher to be seen.
Leaving the hide we continued to Holywell Village, past the Fat Ox and then turned left to find a gate back into the dene. After a stretch of woodland we left the dene and headed south on a track on the edge of the fields. Beyond Holywell Grange Farm we turned left. edging more fields, before we were back at the cars. Unusually we went to the garden centre for tea and cake before going home.
At one point on the walk we passed the house of a fellow gadgie who was away. Cheekily we rang his doorbell, it was one of those with a camera. We offered greetings but were surprised when the fellow gadgie replied. He was in a pub by the Tower of London! Amazing.

Contains OS data, copyright. Crown copyright and database-right 2025









 





Wednesday, 18 June 2025

Five walk the Cotswolds Way

 Five walk the Cotswolds Way. By Tony Bilden.

June 4th to 14th.

This summer's long walk is a trek on the Cotswolds Way between Chipping Camden and Bath. We have chosen to start at Chipping Camden and head south because as we all k ow going south is downhill! Just look at the map, north is always at the top.

The tour has been organised by Macs Adventures. As usual luggage is carried from hotel to hotel so all we need is in a rucsac.  Macs give an App for your journey which contains all you need, itinerary including accommodation, maps and points of interest on the way. Download able to phone, handy for the trip.

There are several guide books for the walk, each with notes on points of interest and maps. There is also a plastic covered map of the walk available. The Cotswolds Way is very well marked, relatively easy to follow.

Day one, June 4th

We shared two cars to take luggage, rucsacs and walkers from the North East to Chipping Camden. We spent the night in the Volunteer, walker friendly pub.  In the evening the  pub restaurant becomes The Maharajah, serving delicious curries. Nearby there is a car park which the local council recommends for people walking the way. Not secured but several people had already left there cars there.


    The Volunteer Inn Chipping Camden.

Day 2, first walking day

The beginning, or the end, depending which way you go, is at the old Market Hall in Chipping Camden, so we walked the short distance from the pub and set off. This is not a guide, just notes on our journey.



              The start in Chipping Camden and an encouraging post.
         They're off without me. Why doesn't someone invent the selfie

The first of many Cotswolds Hills we climbed, short but steep was Dover's Hill. Named for a gentleman named Dover who organised some "Olympic "  games there in 1612. The games included knee kicking, so rumour has it.

      The site of Captain Robert Dover's Olympics.
 The next hill was Fish Hill, looked very dry. Then on to Broadway Tower where we met Paul, the man from Ohio, walking solo and hoping to do the Coast to Coast when he had knocked off the Cotswolds.


The view from and the view of Broadway Tower. Designed in 1798 by James Wyatt for the Sixth Earl of Coventry. The top of the tower is said to be the highest point in the Cotswolds.
Having admired the view and the tower we walked down and into the small town of Broadway, stopping for afternoon tea before pushing on to Stanton.


          Stanton, "the perfect Cotswolds Village" . There has been a settlement here since 3500BC . Most of the cottages are 16th century. However I must say it was so quiet. A few cars around but little sign of life. Inhabited at the weekend perhaps?
A prearranged taxi took us back to Broadway for the night, staying at the Broadway Hotel and eating at the Crown and Trumpet.

                    Broadway Hotel and Crown and Trumpet.
Distance today 10.4 miles.                                                                         Total so far 10.4 miles 

            
                              Chipping Camden to Stanton

Day 3, second walking day.
After breakfast we were taken by taxi back to SAtanton to continue our walk.
On the way we met a number of teenagers doing the Duke of Edinburgh award. Laden down with gear most looked happy and eventually we met a lady who was shepherding them along. She reckoned that in total there were about 80. Who says the young are wimps?

                   Stanway house, flying a Ukrainian flag.
Beyond Stanway we passed close to Stump Cross, Hailes Abbey and the village of Winchcombe, once the capital of a Saxon shire. 
Then we climbed to Belas Knap.



Belas Knap, 5500 year old burial mound or long barrow. Excavated in 1863, remains of children were found and an adult skull. Belas Knap means "hilltop beacon", so possibly it was used by Saxons. It is one of many long barrows in the Cotswolds, as we discovered.
Beyond this point we climbed to Cleve Common, the highest land point in the Cotswolds, much of the plateau being a golf course. We stayed at Cleeve Hill Hotel, run by Lyndsey who madeus very welcome and we ate at the Rising Sun not far away. We were joined at dinner by Paul, the man from Ohio.

                            Cleeve Hill Hotel

                              Stanton to Cleeve Hill


Today:  17.4 miles                                                                                      Running total 27.8 miles

Day 4, 3rd walking day
Leaving the hotel we climbed back to the golf course. We walked through Prestbury Hill Nature reserve which specialises in butterflies, not that there were many. We also walked through an ancient hill fort, Cleeve Hill Camp Hill, before descending to Dowdeswell Reservoir where we stopped for lunch. Refreshed we continued on the way to the golf course at  Ullenwood where we were to be picked up by taxi. The golf club steward was from Newcastle, finding a group from Tyneside he made us welcome and invited us into the club house for tea or coffee. Free!!! Wherever you gan you're bound to meet a Geordie.
The taxi took us to Cheltenham and we stayed at the Cotswold Grange Hotel. The receptionist offered tips on eating places and not far away we found the Kemble. A small pub, friendly too but they had just stopped serving. Seeing there were five of us the landlord asked his wife if she would reopen and so she did. Several others in the pub decided they were hungry too.
            Cotswold Grange Hotel, Cheltenham


Distance today 12.8 miles                                                             Running total 40,6 miles


Cleeve Hill to Ullenwood
Day 5, day 4 walking.

By taxi back to Ullenwood, no morning tea at the clubhouse ! 
The two features of today's stretch are Crickley Hill and Cooper's Hill.
Crickley Hill has been a settlement for approximately 5500 years, occupied in the neolithic era, the iron age, post Roman times too. Now an open site with information boards and views.


 Crickley Hill .and a view.
Further on we came to Cooper's Hill, the site of that peculiar English sport of "chase the cheese".



Cooper's Hill from below and above. Every year a large number of people chase a round of cheese down the hill. Not sure it's ever caught but it always makes the news on TV. Health and Safety have tried to ban it but the event still takes place.
Then we got to Troy House in Painswick. We stayed there once before on the Cotswold Round. Run by Denise a lady who hails from Whitley Bay and attended Ridley High School but fortunately before I went to work there. Lovely outspoken lady, ruled the roost with the proverbial rod of iron!
Dinner at St. Michael's Bistro, run by a Rumanian couple, TTL in bottles!



The church in Painswick, St. Mary's. The church yard still bears the scars of  cannon balls from the Civil War and the grounds have a number of beautifully clipped yew trees. The spire is not quite vertical.

Distance for the day 11.5 miles                                                   Running total 52.1 miles.(half way)

Day 6, walking day 5.

Leaving the lovely Denise behind we set off again. Most of the day was spent walking through farmland, climbing hills and descending hills. 
                        What's that over there? The pointers tell you

                     Chateau de Kings Stanley on the way.
Reaching Kings Stanley we walked along the canal bank to Stonehouse for the night and walked into town for dinner.
I love canal bank walks. They are such easy going but also take me back to childhood living near the Leeds Liverpool Canal and later the Lancaster Canal. The Stroud water Canal is only 8 miles long and was built in 1789 to provide water for a mill in Kings Stanley.

              

                                            Great

Today's distance 10.5 miles                                                                Running total 62.6 miles


Day 7 walking day 6
For a few miles we walked along the canal bank (heaven) before leaving it for the hills, and there were several and several of them had the remains of hill forts, mostly earth embankments remaining.
We passed several other long barrows but to be honest, when you've seen one you've seen nearly all of them.
We stopped in the small town of Dursley for afternoon tea. The young lady at the next table asked if we were from the north east and when we said yes she was amazed, especially when we told her we drank in the same pub as Sam Fender the Low Lights in North Shields. Amazing she cried, "I've met some people who have had a drink where Sam drinks. Must rush off and tell my husband." I told her I had seen the Beatles and the Everlys but it meant nothing.




                       
Dursley market and church. Amazing

                             Tyndale Tower. Built in 1866 in memory of William Tyndale who translated the Bible into English.
Walking on we spent the night in the Swan Inn in Wotton-under-Edge, a good name it was downhill.

                    Swan Inn, Wotton-under edge.


Today's distance 17.4 miles                                                        Running total 80 miles

Day 8 walking day 7
Fortunately the day got off to a flat start. Then there were several climbs. At least the climbs provide panoramic views of the area when you get to the top, before having to struggle down. Mostly farmland and woodland on this section but we walked through the Sodbury Hill Fort which covers 11 acres. Again it's the outer embankments that remain.
Eventually we made it to the night's accommodation, Old Sodbury House, run by Guy, an informative and entertaining Cockney with no desire to return to London.
                              Old Sodbury House

                  We ate in The Dog, one of the Old Sodbury pubs




Distance today 13.4 miles                                                            Running total 93.4 miles

Day 9 walking day 8
Leaving Old Sodbury we walked farmland in very heavy rain, the first (and only) wet day of the trip. Taking shelter in a rather dilapidated barn for lunch we waited for the rain to clear before moving on.
We had taken advice and cut out a short section of the official Cotswolds Way as we had been told on the real route there was a popular all day dogging site!
Reaching Dyrham Hall, run by the National Trust we went to admire the gardens and have tea.
Beautiful old house too.


                     Dyrham Hall and its own church.
At Cold Aston we were separated. Dave, John and I stayed with Lucy at Hill Farm, Margaret and Brian stayed with Sharon at Keystone Cottage.
Hill farm was a great little place.  The old low level barn had been converted into rooms. The dining room was in the main farm house and Lucy had prepared meals for us all ready to heat up in the micro wave! And bottled beer.

Hill Farm
Distance for the day  10.4 miles                                               Running total 103.8 miles



Day 10, walking day 9
It's getting very near the end.
Leaving Cold Ashton we walked mostly through fields, having reached just about the end of the Cotswold Hills, happily. On one of the few hills we climbed  we got a grand view of Bath below us.            We passed the site of the Battle of Lansdown, July 5th 1643 in the Civil War. The Royalists, led by Sir Bevil Grenville  claimed the day with a late penalty in time added on. Unfortunately Sir Bevil was shot at almost the last moment.



                        Sir Bevil's memorial at the site of the Battle of Lansdown.
 As we reached the suburb of Weston we stopped for tea before the sting in the tail. A rather long and rather steep climb in the town before descending to the Royal Crescent. Robbie Williams was due to give a concert that night, the stage erected in front of the famous crescent and closed to non ticket holders so we walked round the park before finding Bath Abbey and the large plaque in the ground that marked the end (or the beginning ) of the Cotswolds Way. Having taken triumphant pictures, helped by two young American ladies, we found a packed Wetherspoons for a celebratory drink before heading for the Kennard Hotel for the night. We ate in an Italian restaurant, there was some disagreement over the bill!

                                  We made it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
                              Bath Abbey
Day's walk 11.2 miles                                                                             Total for walk 115 miles

ALL MAPS Contain OS Data Copyright. Crown copyright and data base right 2025

Going Home
We were booked on a train from Bath, Unknown to us when we booked it, several thousand Bath Rugby supporters were on their way to Twickenham for the RFU final against Leicester. The tyrain was packed, hot and uncomfortable. We travelled as far as Didcot where we managed to squeeze through fans to get off. Then a train to Oxford, them Morton in the Marsh, then a taxi to Chipping Camden and the long drive home.

A few more pictures