eBoot – November 2015 This month’s edition includes: • Bristol Ramblers AGM • Big Pathwatch 2015 • Bristol Walking Alliance • Christmas lunches • Volunteer Development Days • What we did on our holidays • Forthcoming walks • Commercial corner Join us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/ bristolramblersgroup/ Annual General Meeting About 35 Bristol Ramblers enjoyed a convivial evening at the AGM on Tuesday 20th October. Many arrived early to take the opportunity to catch up with old friends, and again the Bowls club provided a friendly venue. The formal part of the evening was concluded swiftly, with the existing committee being re-elected with the addition of two new members Susan Carter and Nigel Andrews. The Annual Report, AGM Minutes and Annual Accounts will be posted on the website. The Chair thanked all the many members who in a variety of different ways have helped make the Group what it was but urged all to think about getting involved. The guest speaker was Cecile Gillard from Avon Wildlife Trust. She gave an entertaining and informative account of the work of the Trust, including a reminder of how lucky we are to be able to walk in an area of such rich ecological diversity. The Big Pathwatch This national project is using volunteers to survey the state of the country’s network of public rights of way. You can contribute to this by surveying one or more kilometre squares. About half of Bristol has been surveyed, and the Council has been quick to respond to problems that have been identified. But there is still a lot to do, both within the city and in the surrounding countryside. So please have a go and adopt a square. Within the city, we have some specific priorities, so if you are able to help, please contact [email protected]. !1 There are a number of ways of reporting your findings, ranging from paper (via Carew) to the internet or an app for your mobile devices. You can also submit digital photos, which Council staff find helpful. The project runs until the end of December. Bristol Walking Alliance We are in discussion with a number of other local groups to see whether it would be worth establishing an informal coalition to campaign for improvements to the walking environment, in the way that the Bristol Cycling Campaign has successfully campaigned for cyclists. If you have views about priorities for improvement to the local walking environment, please contact [email protected]. Notices Christmas lunches Wednesday walkers - 16th December There will be a choice of two walks (4/5 miles and 2/3 miles), starting at 10am (9.15am for the X3 bus from Bristol bus station), followed by lunch at the Rudgleigh Inn, Easton in Gordano at 1pm. Details of menus /prices etc are available from [email protected] (0117 9513513/07779 374648) or [email protected] (0117 9684140). Orders/payment by 25 November please. Sunday (B) walkers - 13 December Meet at St George’s at 10.30am. There will be a walk of 4/5 miles, with lunch around 1pm at a great pub at Iron Acton. Early bookings are required (to secure our free wine!), so the deadline for the £5 deposit is 9 November. You can either give Jill Bird cash or send her a cheque (address: 16 Lynmouth Road, Bristol, BS2 9YH). Volunteer Development Days To support a variety of volunteer roles, the national Ramblers have arranged another series of volunteer development days over the next 12 months. The events in 2015 were found very worthwhile by those who attended. The nearest to Bristol is in Gloucester on 4 June 2016. Bookings are now open at http://ramblersvolunteerdays.eventbrite.co.uk?s=31534915 !2 What we did on our holidays - California’s Sierra Nevada Carew Reynell visited his daughter in California, and took the opportunity to go hiking. He writes: They do things differently there. For one thing, the signs at the ‘trailheads’ warn of bears and mountain lions, poison oak and scorpions. But also, now, of ticks and lyme disease, and this has a more familiar air. Secondly, there is no network of rights of way, built up over the centuries. Private land is private. Public land is public, but much of it is designated as ‘wilderness’, and there are various restrictions on use/access. For example, access to some areas is limited by issuing passes, and ‘hikers’ are usually encouraged to stick to the limited number of maintained trails. There are millions of acres of genuinely unspoiled wilderness, whereas pretty much everywhere in the UK, the land has been actively managed for centuries. Many American hikers seem to have an almost mystical view of their relationship to the wilderness. The emphasis on protection of the wilderness, as opposed to visitor access, feels very different from the management of our National Parks. Thirdly, there are far fewer walkers per acre. Once you are off the main trails, meeting another walker becomes a major social event. There are hardly any hostels. The National Forest Service provides some ‘primitive campgrounds’. It was explained to me that the (western) American way is to unfold your blanket and sleep under the stars - or, nowadays, to park your massive RV (residential vehicle). But I love it: • the sun always shines. Perhaps a slight exaggeration, and no doubt only true of the summer months, but in about three months, I have only had to put on a waterproof twice; • it is definitely a foreign country, but English, of a sort, is spoken. People are, on the whole, keen to help you to enjoy your visit. Things generally happen when and how they are supposed to, which makes it easy to organise things; • as suggested above, you really can get away from it all; • and these are real mountains, with lots of summits above 13,000’. Paths are sketchy at best, route finding is tricky, and the terrain is challenging, with plenty of scrambling. Sometimes, perhaps too challenging, but that’s another story. If you would be willing to share what you did on your holidays with our walking community, please contact Carew. Forthcoming walks !3 Full details of the walks programme are in the published programme and on our website and also on the national Ramblers Walkfinder. But note the additional A walk on 27 December, and a switch of B walks between 29 November and 6 December. Further information about some walks is set out below 1 November - Secret Valley and Y Grib (A Hill walk, 13 miles) The walk starts at Capel-y-ffyn and takes a beautiful path up a so-called secret valley towards the north edge of the Black Mountains, from where we head for a spectacular view point. The route traverses Y Grib and then ascends steeply up a shoulder towards Waun Fach. We will then cross the dam at Grwyne Fawr reservoir from where a path climbs to the Blacksmith’s Anvil and back down to Capel-y-ffyn. 3,740 feet (1139m) of ascent. This is a hill walk with two very steep descents and a particularly long steep climb on pathless and rough terrain. There is some reprieve around Waun Fach where a new made up path means an end to the usual bog hopping and the ugly concrete block has been removed. Remember to meet at the Water Tower on the Downs for the walks on Sunday 8 November. 8 November - from Burrington (long A walk, 19 miles) Note the 7.30am start, and please bring a torch. From Burrington Combe lower car park, we climb steeply up to the ‘settlement’ of Burrington Ham to pick up the Limestone Link through to Dolebury Warren. We visit Row- berrow and Shipham to skirt the Cheddar Woods. From Cheddar we climb the gorge walking through some of the most picturesque parts of the Mendips. An old favourite, but it is to be hoped that there will be a few footpaths that are new to some people. 8 November - Chepstow (A walk, 13 miles) The last time this walk appeared on the programme Tintern was recover- ing from flooding and it rained all afternoon. Hopefully we shall be blessed with autumnal sunshine for this comparatively gentle 13 mile A walk. We head north using sections of Offa’s Dyke Path and the Gloucestershire Way before visiting the Devil’s Pulpit. From here we descend to Tintern and lunch. A short steep climb then leads us to the quiet countryside to the west of the Wye. Turning south, we reach a good vantage point above St Arvans before joining a short section of the Wye Valley Walk. We then pass the ruined house of Piercefield to reach the rails of the back straight of the racecourse. As this is not a hill walk we shall not attempt the jumps but instead the route leads us back to Chepstow without any undue exer- tion.Chepstow 8 November 2015 (Meet at the Water Tower) 8 November - Avebury (B walk, 10.5 miles) The walk from Avebury features historic stones and barrows, Silbury Hill, part of the Ridgeway and views across the Wiltshire countryside. The !4 route includes only gentle hills. This is a figure of eight walk, so the break will be in the village, where you can choose between pub, cafe or exploring the stones. 11 November - Mendips (midweek A/B walk, 12 miles) The route of Susan Carter's walk on 11 November is still a mystery. It will certainly start from the car park in Burrington Combe and will go over Dolebury Warren at some point.