Nine walkers met at Uxbridge station in the sunshine, sadly minus our main leader who had succumbed to the ‘flu, get well soon Sunita. We learnt that Valeria was still en route, and Gillian kindly decided to wait for her eventually catching us up just before the lunch stop.
21 walkers turned out for this unusual walk. Well, it was amazing weather! Sunshine all day, not too cold, no wind. What more could we have asked for! No clouds for Mike to explain to us! Most of the leaves had now fallen, so the forest was carpeted with gold and reddish-brown, soft underfoot as we climbed between the beech trees up to Loughton Camp, an Iron Age hill fort, (~500 BC), possibly used by the Trinovantes in defence against the Catuvellauni tribe. In those days there would have been none of the circles of tall pollarded trees all round us now and it would have been a good lookout point or a fortification for the protection of cattle. Continue reading 18th November. Epping Forest and Forest Bathing→
Fifteen Polyramblers met at Paddington to join the 0942 GWR train to Twyford. This train gathered up 5 more members at Ealing and one more at West Drayton. At Twyford the 21 of us crossed the footbridge where we joined the little train to Shiplake. From the unstaffed halt at Shiplake (actually at Lower Shiplake), I phoned our numbers through to the lunch pub. Then we proceeded straight off the platform down a few steps onto a gravel path, then south down a lane and a path onto the Thames Path. Soon we were passing the rugby field pitches of Shiplake School, with rugby players in action, situated by the riverside. Continue reading 3rd November. Shiplake circular→
For the second walk on a hot and sunny weekend, thirteen ramblers gathered at Watford Tube Station for a ‘strollers’ walk towards Rickmansworth. The length of five miles was immediately added to by a few hundred yards taken in the wrong direction by the leader before he realised his mistake! After the false start, we entered a busy Cassiobury Park and went towards the Grand Union Canal which runs through it. We joined the towpath and headed south. The promised kingfishers did not appear but we did see a moorhen and a dead carp! Continue reading Sunday 1st July. Watford to Rickmansworth→
It was supposed to rain only in the afternoon, but it rained all day. It was however not as muddy as it could have been, compared with other recent walks. The pub was nice, and the scenery was very pleasant for a walk so close to London. On the way back through Bulstrode Park, we were greeted by a large herd of horses. Continue reading Saturday 10th February. Gerrards Cross circular.→
The Polytechnic Rambling Club – Walking with friends
