NWANT WALKS REPORTS 2016. Walk - Saturday 16th January 2016 - Chaddesley Corbett. Mud, mud, glorious mud! The day for our first walk of 2016 dawned cold, with a hard frost. After clearing the ice off the car windows, we made our way to The Talbot in Chaddesley Corbett, where 14 people gathered for the walk. As we set off, the ground was frozen hard, which made walking easier, although slippery in places. However, as the sun was shining brightly, the ground soon warmed, and the surface changed to mud, which was pitted with many puddles, some several inches deep. We saw three hot air balloons in the distance, and two of them seemed to land, before taking off again several minutes later. As we entered one field, we saw a horse in the distance, and thought back to our previous walk at Church Lench, where we had an encounter with an over friendly pony. This time, however, the horse kept well away from us. Two of the walkers were wearing wellies rather than walking boots, which most agreed was a good idea, especially at one gate where the ground was a huge puddle. In deep mud, however, wellies do tend to get stuck, but neither wellie wearer actually lost one. After walking just over 5 miles, we reached The Talbot again, and after changing our footwear, had a welcome lunch. Our thanks go again to Phil for leading an excellent walk. Walk - Saturday 20th February - Sarehole Mill. On a cloudy, but rather mild day, 13 of us met at the Sarehole Mill in Birmingham for this walk. Sarehole Mill is a 250 year old watermill only four miles from Birmingham city centre, just off the Stratford Road 10 minutes’ walk from Hall Green Station. JRR Tolkien lived within 300 yards of the mill between the ages of four and eight and said he used it in his books. Unfortunately, it was not open for visitors on the day. We started by walking alongside the River Cole, then through the Chinn Brook Recreation Ground. Next, we entered Billesley Common, from where we could see Moseley Rugby Club. We stopped here in a children's playground for a drink. Some of us could not resist having a quick go on the swings and see-saw! From here, we walked across Swanshurst Park, then entered Moseley Bog, which was the inspiration for Tolkien's Middle Earth. There are a series of raised wooden walkways through the bog, enabling visitors to see but not disturb the bog. At the end of the walk, 11 of us had a good meal in the Covered Wagon pub, a short distance from the Mill. Our thanks go to Joyce Rutter for leading the walk. Walk - Saturday 16th April 2016 - Dudmaston. Walk day! I jumped out of bed, and opened the curtains hoping for a nice day, but it was SNOWING! However, this was forecast, and it soon turned to light rain. So off to Dudmaston. Unfortunately, the weather had deterred most walkers, and there were only five of us on the walk. The rain had stopped while we were driving up, and it turned into a very nice day. North of Kidderminster, there was some snow on the ground, and some cars with a thick layer of snow on them. We parked in the Hampton Loade car park, and did Captain Geoffrey's Woodland Walk, which is 5.5 miles long. We set off alongside the River Severn, and were soon in woods, with many bluebells. Our path climbed, and soon we saw Dudmaston Hall on the opposite side of the Big Pool. We went through Comer Wood and passed the Old Sawmill. On our right we saw the Old Hall, although only a chimney stack remains with a later house built around it. We stopped in the village of Quatt, and went into St Andrew's Church, which was very interesting. We were joined by two others for lunch at the River and Rail in Hampton Loade, where the Faggots were a popular choice, and delicious! Walk - Saturday 21st May 2016 - Wasley Hills. Another walk day, but once again the weather isn't being kind to us as it's raining. Still, off we go to the Wesley Hills, and by the time we get there, the rain has all but stopped. Ten brave walkers, and Hugo the dog, set off, with no more than the occasional drizzle to bother us. We soon cross the M5, (by bridge not running over the road!!), and walk up into the hills. There are good views over to the Clent Hills, and Longbridge in the distance. Our route has us going up and down hills, although none are too steep. Hugo is soon let off his lead, and probably covered ten times the ground as the rest of us. He had to be on the lead through one field containing Highland cattle, who looked rather fierce, but did not come anywhere near us. The walk was only 4 miles this time, and we arrived back at our cars by 11:45. Then it was off the The Swallow's Nest for lunch, where we arrived a few minutes before opening time. It was a very nice lunch, where we were joined by one non-walker. Our thanks to Phil for leading the walk. Walk - Saturday 18th June 2016 - Aston Cantlow. Following torrential rain and floods on the Friday, we were anxious about the walk on Saturday. The day was cloudy, but warm, and eleven walkers set off from Aston Cantlow. The ground was surprisingly dry, with only the odd muddy patches. The walk was about 5 miles, with only gentle hills. Only a short way into the walk, disaster struck! Coming off a stile, the sole of my right boot split away from the upper, leaving the sole flapping as I walked. Rosemarie produced a spare shoelace, which I tied around the boot, and was able to complete the walk OK, my foot only getting slightly damp. Anyone want to buy a used left boot, size 7?? After the walk, we had a very nice lunch at The King's Head. Our thanks to Rosemarie Davies for leading the walk. Walk - Saturday 16th July 2016 - Bath Skyline Walk. We had an earlier than usual start to our day for the July walk, as we were going to Bath by coach to do the Bath Skyline walk. The Skyline Walk of about 6 miles looks down on the World Heritage City of Bath. The coach left on time, and after a short comfort stop at Michael Wood Services, arrived in Bath. The walkers were dropped off first, then continued into the city centre for the non-walkers. There were 19 walkers, which is the best we have had for some time. It was a warm, humid day, cloudy at first, but soon the sun was shining. The walk started across some fields, but there was soon a long steep uphill climb, with some impressive views over the city. Two further steep climbs followed, but after that all was fairly level, then downhill. Many of the paths in the earlier part of the walk were well maintained, but later there were some paths with many big stones and large roots, some of which were slippery, which made the going difficult. I was wearing new boots, and slipped over at one point, cutting my elbow, and required some first aid (thanks, Carol and Penny). The walkers were picked up after their walk, at the starting point, and taken into the city centre. We split up, going to lunch and shopping. There was a carnival in town, which many people saw. Everyone returned to the coach park in good time for the 17:00 departure. We all agreed that it had been a good day out, and that another similar trip would be arranged for next year. If anyone has any ideas of where to go, please get in touch with Steve Harper. Many thanks to Steve for organising the trip. Walk - Saturday 20th August 2016 - Broadheath. Our August walk was a joint event with the Droitwich Spa German Twinning Group. Of the 10 walkers, 5 were NWANT members, and 8 were twinning members (three of us are members of both). There had been heavy rain overnight, and it was still raining at breakfast time, but the forecast was for it to clear up, with the odd shower. For once, the forecast was right. Unfortunately, the early rain deterred some from walking. We met at the Bell Inn in Lower Broadheath, and the rain had stopped, although it was windy. The clouds parted, and we saw some blue sky. We set off, and were soon walking across fields which were remarkably dry. We went around the southern edge of Hallow, and had a good view of the church. Later, we saw two donkeys in a field. One of them was having a good time rolling over and over in the grass. We had to make one detour, as a field we should have crossed was planted with maize, which had grown to over head height. We had a very good lunch at the Bell, and were joined by 5 others. Peter Field had arranged for the "Pensioners Perks" menu to be available to us, even though it is not usually available on a Saturday. Most of us opted for two courses, including Roger Collins who ordered a starter and main. However, when he saw some of us eating a large Lemon Blizzard, he couldn't resist having one too! Many thanks to Peter Field for organising the trip.