The leader met a few members of the group on the train, but Danny was conspicuous by his absence.  I told them that it was his birthday the previous day and they said: “ Say no more!”.  But he got off the train in Hertford North and, after the obligatory loo stop and briefing, 10 Polyramblers set off towards Hertford town.  We walked through the castle grounds; only the gatehouse of the Royal Castle remains but it is quite impressive.  The route then visited several of Hertford’s other sights: Parliament Square, Shire Hall, the Salisbury Arms and the blue-coat Christ’s Hospital School.  We then reached the River Lee Navigation which we followed to Ware.  We stopped from time to time to feed the ducks, coots and moorhens and saw a pike laying in wait on the edge of the river.  The path along King’s Mead water meadows went around the New Gauge building and under the A10.  After passing Hertford Lock 1 and reaching Ware, we saw the gazebos along the river, a unique feature of Ware.  Another of Ware’s claim to fame is its Great Bed now housed in the V&A.  You can find some information here:  Heritage Trail V4 (waretourism.org.uk)

It was time for lunch and some had a picnic by the river and others went to the Waterside Inn.  Danny left us after lunch because he was feeling lazy (his words).  We continued along the high street where many of the buildings were inns in a former life; they are characterised by the wagonways for coach and horses.  Ware was a crossing point over the river Lee on the old road to the north.  We passed the huge site of GlaxosmithKline and, after a small climb, crossed the A10 bridge.  We followed a lane along and across pasture into woodland and descended to the valley before going up again to reach St Leonard’s Church, Bengeo, the oldest building in Hertford dating from the early twelfth century – but it was shut. After passing a lovely thatched cottage, we followed a path downhill on the edge of Hartham Common.  Back in Hertford, we passed an art galley with tables and chairs outside and the group rushed in at this sight hoping for a cup of tea.  After a relaxing break with a cuppa, we made our way along the river Beane (the fourth river we met today after the Mimram, Lee and Rib) back to Hertford North Station.  It was lovely to see fellow Polyramblers after such a long time.  Let’s hope we won’t have any more interruptions to our programme of walks.

Dominique

On a bright sunny morning, fourteen Polyramblers met up at Rickmansworth railway station. Following the mandatory safety briefing, the group walked round Batchworth and Bury lakes to cross the Grand Union Canal at Stockers Lock for Stockers Farm. This is where not only Black Beauty the ITV series of the early seventies was filmed but bits of Midsomer Murders, Withnail and I, Bridget Jones The Edge Of Reason, etc, as the leader then did not know.
Up and down the first of the promised gentle ascents and descents, the group made its way to the outskirts of Harefield, where an enterprising resident had just opened her garden as a teashop also selling icecreams, which a handful of members could not resist. Others were concerned it might spoil their lunch, unsuspecting that that would be another two hours off!
Over several stiles, past a desolate U.S. army truck and an apparently abandoned Chinese (?) taxi (?) or police car (?), we crossed Woodcock Hill and ambled on through Bishop’s Wood Country Park. From there we headed down to French Grove, where the more intrepid traversed a field with horses while the rest were led around it.
We crossed Ducks Hill Road into Copse Wood and reached eventually, at last, the covid-secure lunch spot of spaced-apart logs, which allowed social distancing.
Afterwards we skirted Ruislip Lido and Northwood golf course to reach Northwood itself and after some pavement plodding a footpath to Batchworth Heath. Here we entered Moor Park golf course and proceeded to cross it, witnessing some truly abysmal golf shots on the way.
Now in Batchworth proper, we made our way mostly in the shade of trees through Ricky back to the start, having covered the 11.5 miles (other estimates are available) at 2mph, somewhat short of the British Standard’s and the club’s standard 2.5mph [not sure the Club’s standard is that fast!-Ed]. The unseasonably warm weather didn’t help. On the other hand, the going was very firm and fast.

Andrew King (Photos by Ida)

Jennifer, a volunteer guide at Kew Gardens, gave 4 Poly Ramblers a tour of this arboretum with its royal history.  Two stunning examples of Eucalyptus met us in the Australian section.  From Argentine, we were equally impressed by a handsome Monkey Puzzle tree. These are either male or female, known as dioecious, and this species have existing since the age of the dinosaurs.  The rugged bark of a Spanish Cork Oak was admired and the method of harvesting the cork regrowth every 10 years.  In the Californian section, there were some young Redwoods, not a patch on the natives in USA where their trunks have been known to exceed 27’ or 8.2 m in diameter.  Other trees that also stood out were: an orange Mexican Swamp Cypress by the lakeside, the avenue of Holm oaks, the Ginkgoes and a Hornbeam.

In between these beautiful trees, we also visited the Bamboo garden, the Rhododendron Dell, the Woodland boardwalk, the Japanese garden and the Great Pagoda with its brightly coloured dragons on every roof level!

It was a mainly bright sunny day with just one short & heavy downpour.  A very pleasant and informative walk from 10.30- 3pm.

Sarah  Photos Ida and Sunita

This turned out to be our last walk before lockdown.  It was a shame that the group due to visit on Sunday missed out but we hope there will be opportunities for many more walks in 2021.

Wishing all our members a safe and happy festive season

Gillian

Five Polys set off from Clapham Common station for a gentle walk taking in three South London commons. Two members were waiting at the wrong Clapham station, there are five altogether, but fortunately they contacted the leader who directed them to the correct one! We set off across Clapham Common passing Holy Trinity Church where William Wilberforce and his friends in the ‘Clapham Sect’, who lived around Clapham Common, worshipped while campaigning for the abolition of slavery and the moral reformation of the nation. In Broomwood Road we admired the beautiful decorative tiles in the porches of all the houses in this long road which took us to Wandsworth Common. We proceeded across the common, past Wandsworth Common station into Balham. We noted the impressive Du Cane Court, a large art deco block of 677 flats built in 1937. A popular place to live for music hall stars in the 30s and 40s. It originally boasted a social club on the top floor and amongst other luxuries had a water softening system. It is the largest privately owned apartment building under one roof in Europe. We took in St. Mary and John the Divine church with its external baptistry. The original building was erected with funds from the wealthy members of the ‘Clapham Sect’. We stopped outside Balham station to look at the ‘Impressions of Balham’, four bronze reliefs which depict local life, before proceeding to Tooting Bec common. Here we stopped by the lake to eat our picnic lunch surrounded by geese and other wildlife. One member had to manage on a banana as her hot lunch box refused to open! One of the cons of this walk is the lack of public toilets but fortunately a helpful park warden allowed us to use theirs before we made our way towards Tooting Bec station. Although it was quite a grey day the rain held off until the end of the walk when it started to drizzle slightly.

Susan.  Photos by Ida