Day 54 - Pandy to Hay-on-Wye

Good breakfast and provision of chocolate and apples for the day ahead confirm that the Rising Sun would probably feature in the top five establishments at which we've stayed. Today's walk is not as taxing as we thought it was going to be. After the need to cross (very carefully) the Newport to Hereford railway line, it starts with a long ascent into the Black Mountains, ultimately to 2,300 feet - the highest point on the Path - but the weather is dry, and also cooler than yesterday, and the climb isn't particularly steep or testing under foot. So we manage it without undue difficulty and with the help of plenty of water and snacks. The path itself up to Hatterrall Hill and the ridge beyond is pretty featureless, but some of the views are spectacular. (These do not include Ben taking the first "dump au naturel" of the walk - there isn't a more delicate way of phrasing it - in the disturbingly close proximity of some sheep.) With perfect timing, the sun only appears when we've completed the climb and are approaching Hay Bluff. We therefore work up a bit of a sweat on the long descent into Hay-on-Wye where the Blue Boar is conveniently located for reviving purposes, and a relaxed lunch and postcard/admin session, before catching a bus to Hereford station. Train to Worcester, where we change for John to get to Evesham and Ben and Gary to continue to London.                                   

Day 53 - Monmouth to Pandy

Ben and Gary travel to Monmouth by train (to Newport) and cab, and John travels purely by cab. Remarkably, we arrive outside the Robin Hood within a few minutes of each other, around 10:15. The entertainment from John during the early part of today's walk is a series of 12 questions about the 1970's which, when posed in yesterday's edition of "Pointless", apparently secured a record high score of 600 (i.e. all wrong answers) from the 6 participating contestants. The author's modesty precludes him from recording the outcome of the questions being asked this morning, although the person who secured 12 correct answers didn't participate to any noticeable extent in the subsequent discussion about a tax issue. Anyway, back to the walk itself which is along a very picturesque and not too testing route. A few inclines and some short sections along roads, but essentially through fields close to or alongside the River Trothy, and with a couple of villages (Llantilio Crosseny and Llangattock-Lingoed) to pass through. Good progress is made, but a warm day combined with a desire not to reach our overnight stop too early, renders it advisable - if not necessary - to pause a while in the late afternoon sunshine at the Hunter's Moon Inn at Llangattock-Lingoed where we meet a couple of other people who are walking the same stretch of the Trail as us today and tomorrow - and staying at the same place overnight. They leave the Hunter's Moon before we do because our "pause" is one of about an hour which translates into a couple of ciders. Strangely, on the succeeding short stretch of the walk to Pandy, Gary falls off a plank into a shallow ditch, Ben doesn't spot a rather large hole in a field and almost trips over, and John nearly comes a cropper at a stile. These incidents do not prevent us from having a further cider when we get to the Rising Sun at Pandy, and yet another after we've freshened up and are ordering supper. Initial impressions of the Rising Sun are very favourable - comfortable rooms with copious free-flowing hot water in individual en suite facilities. Supper, with bottle of wine and followed by sticky, does nothing to change these impressions but, as always, then having a second sticky is probably a mistake!      

Day 52 - Tintern to Monmouth

News of the morning is that Nigel Davies has left Gloucester - shock horror. Good breakfast, a bright morning, and beautiful scenery as we leave Tintern - once again eschewing Offa's Dyke and following the Wye Valley route as far as Bigsweir. However, on leaving Bigsweir, we take an uphill road and paths which eventually lead to the Dyke trail. Through woods and a small plantation, we emerge into a field, and a steep descent into Redbrook. It's late morning, but a conveniently located pub (definitely The Boat) is open, and discussion is brief before we decide to take advantage of its hospitality. Ben and John sample a cider taken from a barrel "round the back" of the bar, the strength of which is such as to render the possibility of a second being deemed a potential impediment to our onward journey. This proves to be fully justified, first in terms of steadiness (the journey once more follows the banks of the Wye along a narrow and occasionally slippy path), and secondly in terms of timing (our arrival at the shelter of a bridge coincides with a short, but very heavy, rain shower). Typically efficient advance admin by John has established that a bus from Monmouth shortly after 3:00 p.m. should get us to Newport in time for our trains home, and enable us to repeat our Carwyn-free achievements of days 49 and 50. We arrive in Monmouth in time for a leisurely lunch opposite the bus station at The Robin Hood pub, the bus arrives on schedule, and there are no delays in getting to Newport. However, our train is delayed by 15 minutes and, just prior to its arrival, Ben announces that he can't find his ticket. His unsuccessful attempts to find it (by retracing his steps back to the barriers) mean that he almost misses the train but, having boarded, he then finds the ticket in some "folds" in his pocket. The train delay also means that John misses his intended connection at Bristol, but at least he can share a half bottle of red in the buffet and has only half an hour to wait for a later train at Parkway. Otherwise, incident free returns home.

Day 50 - Clevedon to Avonmouth

Early brekker not a problem for Best Westin hotels - and it's "buffet style" which is probably a first among the 25 establishments where we've so far breakfasted. In fact 7:00 a.m. seems to be a popular time for many of the residents - probably because most of them put the three of us in the youth policy category. When we check out, the woman on the desk says that there's been a coach party staying, from "somewhere up north", but is happy to acknowledge that to her almost anywhere east of Bristol is "up north" - particularly when John points out that the coach parked outside is marked "Epsom Coaches". Once again, a very pleasant start to the walking day. Indeed, the first couple of hours towards Portishead are reminiscent of the SW Coast Path - close to the water, along woodland tracks, and past a few groupings of holiday homes. Then, beyond the newly developed marina complex after Portishead Point, it's inland diversion time once more - this time to get round Portbury Dock to the Avonmouth Bridge. This includes skirting a couple of huge outdoor compounds filled with new cars, but the walking is pretty easy, much of it being along bridleways and cycle trails. But eventually we approach the M5 and the Avonmouth Bridge. As the bridge comes into view, it seems that crossing it might be a test not so much of Ben's recent hypnotherapy sessions, as of John's and Gary's resolve. Indeed, a fleeting moment's consideration is given to walking into Bristol along the river instead. However, courage is screwed to the sticking place, and the bridge is crossed in about 20 minutes without undue concerns. Bring on the Severn Bridge next time......!! Ben has attempted to lure Jenny out to meet us for a lunchtime drink, but finishing an essay is of more immediate importance to her. A shame, but at least we can delay a decision on where to finish/lunch and how to get to Parkway station. The decision is, in fact, made quite quickly - i.e. shortly after getting over the bridge and into Avonmouth where, at the station, a train is about to leave for Temple Meads. We decide to catch it and then take another train to Parkway. This gives more than enough time for a spot of lunch in a very impressive buffet at Temple Meads and for us to establish (a) ways of returning to Avonmouth via Parkway on the next trip and (b) that this has been the first occasion on the walk so far when we have not taken a cab at any stage during a two day trip. The train we catch from Temple Meads continues beyond Parkway through Cheltenham, so John stays on board when Ben and Gary change at Parkway for the connection back to Paddington.

Day 49 - Weston-super-Mare to Clevedon

During the previous 48 days, we've missed a couple of "outbound" connections because of late train arrivals at Exeter, and one return journey due to ailing/delayed Colin at Widemouth Bay. It may be slightly surprising that, until now, none of us has done - or omitted to do - something which has resulted in failure to catch a train, but it's certainly surprising how that run is broken this morning. Ben arrives at Paddington in time for the outbound journey , but then boards the wrong train. The consequence is far more significant in terms of expense for Ben than delay to the walk. His arrival at Weston is only half an hour after John's and Gary's and we're all at the sea front by 10:15. It soon becomes apparent that there are a few unnecessary items in the bagging areas, namely waterproofs which we've all brought but which, contrary to forecasts during the last few days, are unlikely to be required. A pleasant enough start to the day along the coast outside Weston but then, around mid-day and just before St Thomas's Head, we start a series of inland diversions to get round/over the Rivers Banwell and Yeo. The early afternoon route also involves crossing and re-crossing the M5. John's not entirely serious suggestion that we wait for gaps in the traffic at least has the effect of managing expectations, and the fences, tunnel, fields and footbridge which we actually negotiate seem relatively tame. We eventually regain the coast shortly after Kingston Seymour and, by 4:30, are approaching our overnight stop at Clevedon. We decide against pre-arrival sharpeners (the pubs we pass aren't all that tempting) and get to the Walton Park - a Best Westin Hotel - around 5:00. The bad news is that the bar doesn't open until 6:00. The good news is that drinks can be ordered and brought to us in the lounge - a facility of which we take advantage twice, in the welcome form of a couple of pints of cider each. After changing, and taking the view that the dining room might be a bit too formal, we have supper in the bar - a window table with views over the Avon and Clevedon Pier. Pretty good food too (burger/steak pie/fish) accompanied by further ciders and two bottles of red. Cheese and biscuits to end the evening, along with a sticky each for John and Ben.

Day 48 - West Huntspill to Weston-super-Mare

Excellent - and early - brekker, with a bit of flak directed at the one person who goes for just the "full-ish" English, rather than the Full Tudor English. We're collected by Clare at 8 a.m. and she takes us back to the Parrett end of the path at West Huntspill, so we're walking well before 8:30. A misty morning, and a bit damp under foot with the river quite high. But after an hour or so, and having wended our way through the lanes of Highbridge, high tide has gone and, once we've passed what is advertised as being Britain's shortest pier at Burnham on Sea, we can walk along the beach. Indeed, in ever brighter conditions as the sun burns off the mist, we walk a long way along the beach - about 5 miles from Burnham, through Berrow, and along to Brean. Just before noon, we reach the end of the sand at the foot of the cliffs of Brean Down and, at the National Trust cafe, we stop for pasties (very good ones) which are accompanied by.....mugs of tea! Truly, a couple of days replete with extraordinary events. A gentle climb up the cliffs and an equally gentle walk around Brean Down passing Brean Fort at the far end. How we now get to Weston-super-Mare depends on where we can cross the River Exe. Brean Sluice, a couple of miles upstream has been identified as a possibility but, as we get into the second mile, the riverside field path becomes rougher indicating less than regular use. So it's no real surprise that, when we reach a field gate alongside the sluice and a caravan park, we're informed by a farmer that we've been walking over his land, and that the gates on either side of the sluice are locked. However, the farmer is sanguine about the situation ("It happens") and, at that moment, an Environment Agency van appears. We ask the driver whether he can open the gates for us to walk across the sluice. His initial reaction is no - so it looks as though we'll have to take a far longer inland route to Weston via the main road. But just as we're heading for the caravan park, the van driver calls us back and unlocks the gates so that we can walk over the sluice. All in all, a few minutes of chat and reaction which have been somewhat different to those with the vet yesterday! The walk back downstream towards Weston is unremarkable until, just before Uphill Church, John pulls up lame with a shooting pain in an ankle. Gradually, when some pain killers have got to work and we've rounded the marina, things seem to improve, and we stroll for a mile or so along Weston beach, finishing before 4:00 at the Seaquarium. Like yesterday, we've walked almost 20 miles which, since our days on the Thames Path, is the most we've done on a second day. There's still plenty of time to walk to the station and have cans of cider in the station bar before John catches a rattler for a change of trains at Temple Meads, and Ben and Gary get a direct train back to Paddington.

Day 47 - Steart to West Huntspill

Train to Bridgwater - via Temple Meads - where we are collected by the same Colin (or Clare) who drove us from Steart to Taunton on the last trip. We arrive at Steart in time to get under way around 10:15. Study of the log later in the day shows this to be our earliest walking start time since day 1 of the SW Coast Path. Shortly after leaving Steart, a throw away remark by Gary about the level of the Thames a few days earlier leads to lengthy and ultimately inconclusive discussion about tides, the equinox, gravitational pulls, and the valves and ends of rugby balls. The discussion lasts for a goodly part of our morning walk down the south/west side of the River Parrett. Although the level of the river is low, there's unsurprisingly extensive evidence of the effects of the recent floods. We arrive (back) in Bridgwater early afternoon, and lunch consists of pies and sausage rolls purchased at a local shop, and eaten on the hoof. Light rain accompanies part of our return up the north/east side of the Parrett, which includes carefully considered - and wholly justifiable - "short cuts" across (or denobbings of) a couple of curves in the river at Dunball and Pawlett Hams. Our subsequent attempts to regain the river via some fields at Stretcholt are met with the resistance of a local vet who appears from his surgery to inform us in no uncertain terms that there's no way through to the river at the far side of the fields and that he doesn't want us scrambling through his hedges to try and get there. After he's bid us a not too fond farewell, and having consulted maps, we decide to go and point out to him that our intended route is shown as being a public right of way. However, as we approach his surgery, we encounter one of his colleagues who is more helpful, simply saying that she hasn't seen anyone go over the fields before and pointing out the route which is usually taken to get back to the river. We therefore decide (some more reluctantly than others!) that we should avoid further veterinary confrontation and follow the "usual" route. Back by the river, it's not too far to the end of our walk for the day at the top of a path leading to West Huntspill where the Crossways Inn and pints of rather strong Rich's cider are an excellent way of whiling away the 20 minutes before Clare picks us up and returns us to Bridgwater and the Tudor Hotel. Baths are hot and reviving, and ciders and supper follow. We've walked almost 20 miles today which is more than we've achieved since the Kimmeridge to Chipperville (Weymouth) stretch on day 3 of the SW Coast Path. John reckons it's the first time he's underestimated our likely mileage for a day. And this probably accounts for the next point of note, namely what we believe to be our record low for evening alcohol consumption. Just two pints of cider each (including the Rich's at Crossways), one bottle of red between us, and no stickies. But we sleep well!