Pub Walk to The Wild Boar Inn

Distance 7.5 miles
Ascent 350m
Weather: cloudy, rain showers

Pub walks are a thing. There are many books about them on sale in outdoors shops. However it is not something we are accustomed to - our walks tend to be more cheese sarnies and flasky tea in the rain type affairs.

After a leisurely morning of bird watching and weasel spotting, we headed out of Bowness over Brant Fell. We walked over the fell to Lindeth Lane, stopping to put on waterproofs as the heavens opened. We passed a raven and a buzzard, and possibly a flock of goldfinches.

The going was wet, it has rained quite a lot lately,  and rained on and off all day, but there were no major puddles. The lane at Mitchelland was closed which was good for us as there was no traffic to worry about for most of the way.

We arrived at the pub and de-waterproofed, leaving our boots in the entrance porch. I don't know if they would have minded our boots, but I'd carried my daps so I was going to wear them. Lunch was very civilised, big comfy chairs, a log fire and good food and ale from their own brew house.

Eventually we had to leave as we had to get back before it got too dark to see. It rained a little but it was pleasant to walk back in the dusk over the moors along the Dales Way path with the birds roosting and the sheep grazing.

Around Rydal Water

Distance: 10.5 miles
Ascent:
Weather: overcast, heavy rain shower

We had planned to get the Windermere launch up to Ambleside and then follow the Windermere Way back to Bowness. However we ended up with return tickets for the ferry so decided to walk to Grasmere and back along the coffin route in time to catch the last return sailing.

On Windermere we saw oodles of coots and a mistlethrush as we walked around by the Roman Fort, which was surprisingly unflooded. Then we walked alongside the River Rothay to Rydal Water, where there were a lot of cormorants and a great crested grebe, along with a grey heron.

We had sit and a snack on one end of a bench overlooking the lake where somebody's ashes had been (not very effectively) scattered around it, or rather on it. Which is nice.

We stopped for lunch of sandwiches and tea from our swanky new thermos flask, bought yesterday from the hardware store in Ambleside after enthusiastic recommendations from a chap in a different shop. Our old flask had failed on us at the weekend, and although I would have said that it was quite new it was probaby at least a couple of years old, and possibly its quality had been indicated by its price tag. We'll see if Mr Thermos's flasks last any better than Mr Tesco's. We sat on a grassy bank at the lakeshore and had our tea huddled under a small umbrella.

Walking back along the riverside walk we saw a dipper and some mallards, making it back to the jetty at Waterhead just in time for a hot chocolate from the cafe before catching the ferry.

Sandstone Trail Day 3 - Kelsall to Frodsham

Distance: 14 miles
Ascent: 450m
Weather: overcast but warm
Blackthorn, elderberry, bramble, dogberry, hawthorn, rowan
Fieldfares, swallows, buzzards calling
Dirty bogs: 0
Close encounters: big dog, small cat, big hedge cutter, flies

The rain had stopped overnight and it was overcast as we set off from Kelsall and actually a bit warmer than expected, especially as the start of the walk was uphill.  We were accompanied part of the way by the vicar's cat who, while friendly, wasn't much help with finding the footpath.

Along the path through Nettleford Woods we spotted lots of trees coming into fruit, including blackthorn (sloe) and took a detour into Delamere Forest and the visitor centre - this started off as the Sandstone Trail Alternative Route but soon we took alternative alternative routes and made our own way back to the Trail along the side of Blakemere Moss. The lake had less water and more tree stumps in it than we'd expected but was definitely not a dirty bog. The signs were very clear on that.

Out of the forest, we stopped for tea and scones at a b&b on the edge of Manley Common then continued around the side of Simmonds Hill and Alvanley Cliffs. The wooded cliff edge was steep sided and rocky, with lots of steps up and down. We stayed high and emerged at the memorial and viewpoint, looking out over the Ellesmere Port and the Mersey estuary. The path zigzags down into Frodsham, we crossed a busy  road to visit the marker at the end of the Trail then headed to the railway station.

Sandstone Trail Day 2: Bickerton to Kelsall

Distance: 13.5 miles
Ascent: 400m
Weather: Rain, rain, drizzle, mist
Swallows, wet cows, wet goat-sheep

Day two started by heading back up uphill on to the Peckfordton Hills, it was already raining, a big bank of rain forecast to cross the entire country during the day.

We walked through the tall sweet chestnut trees over Bulkeley Hill then around under Peckfordton Point and Table Rock. From further along, we looked back to these hills to see Peckfordton Castle Hotel, flag flying, rising out of the trees.

Ahead of us was Beeston Castle on the next hilltop, we skirted it through the woods, then peered over the wall at the medieval reenacters sheltering under their tarpaulins in the grounds. We crossed the canal at Wharton's Lock then we were out into fields. The ground was deeply cracked from the long hot spell but today's rain had made it muddy and slippy underfoot. The route crossed many fields and narrow quiet lanes, the rain continued to fall all day. We had lunch at a partially sheltered bench under an oak tree on the edge of Willington Woods.

Primrosehill Woods' deciduous trees, ferns and fungi looked primordial in the mist. We walked along Urchin's Kitchen, a narrow gorge formed by glacial runoff with mosses and ferns, swampy ponds in the bottom. The hum of the racing at nearby Oulton Park audible in the peace of the woods.

A last stretch of rocky sandstone path ended the day on the trail, before leaving the path and heading into Kelsall where we are staying at the Royal Oak.

Sandstone Trail Day 1: Whitchurch to Bickerton

Distance 15.5 miles
Ascent 400m
Weather: sunny
Kestrel, buzzards, long tailed tits, Mr Squirrels, bunnies, donkey, jay
Hangovers from hell: 1

After a delayed start (due to me nearly being murdered by a glass of wine) we caught the train from Manchester to Whitchurch and by 12.45 were on our way on the Sandstone Trail. The walk first crosses town, which is very attractive little streets, through the edge of a park and out along the Llangollen Canal.

The sunshine was warmer than we'd dressed for, but quite welcome.

Things we saw floating in the canal:  pretty boats, logs, rabbit.
Things we saw that had recently been in the canal: small boy and his scooter.

Lunch was had at a bench by Grindley Brook Lock no 5 watching the narrow boats navigated the waterway.

We crossed fields of cows, fields of maize and fields for fancy racehorse training. There are lots of big farms and estates here, you could tell it was proper countryside because of the bonfire and pungent smells.

The last part of the day was up on Bickerton Hill, which is actually two Bickerton Hills, sandstone hills rising high above the Cheshire plains. There were lots of views, plus the fort of Maiden Castle, Mad Alan's Hole and a deep tree covered ravine at Muskets Hole. The woods were also covered in young pheasants, they were everywhere.

It was getting towards dusk and we were getting very hungry indeed, me especially as I had not made it to breakfast, as we dropped down off the hill to the welcome of the Bickerton Poacher.

Pembrokeshire Coastal Path Summary

Total walked distance: 208 miles

Total ascent: 7800m

13 days walking

Day 0 - 6 miles - to Amroth, Wiseman's Bridge Inn

Day 1 - 15 miles, 570m - to Manorbier Beach, Castlemead

Day 2 - 19 miles, 620m - to Warren, Corston House

Day 3 - 21.5 miles, 650m - to Hundleton, Highgate

Day 4 - 15 miles, 360m - to Millford Haven, Lord Nelson

Day 5 - 13 miles, 450m - to Dale Village, Lobster Pot

Day 6 - 16 miles, 430m - to Musselwick Sands, Lobster Pot

Day 7 - 10 miles, 300m - to Broad Haven, Anchor

Day 8 - 12 miles, 650m - to Solva, Cambrian

Day 9 - 12.5 miles, 570m - to Whitesand (via Skomer and Ramsey islands), Grove Hotel

Day 10 - 15 miles, 750m - to Trevine, Cranog

Day 11 - 19.5 miles, 950m - to Goodwick, Seaview

Day 12 - 15 miles, 670m - to Newport Sands, Castle Inn

Day 13 - 18 miles, 900m - to St Dogmaels, Cardigan Castle

Pembrokeshire Coastal Path Day 13

Distance 18 miles
Ascent 900m
Weather bit cooler, overcast, few spots of rain
Stonechat, meadow pipits, buzzard
Horses in gorses 7

We left Newport this morning under cloudy skies but dry, walking via the Spar out to the estuary, where there were oyster catchers, snoozy swans and canada geese amidst the gulls and labradors.

This last section is described as a long, remote and rugged day's walk, dominated by two big climbs, although the rest of the way was hardly flat. A long steep climb started us off up on to the cliffs, which seem darker and more solid looking than those south of here.

At Godwr Mawr we stopped at the top to watch the guillemots, razorbills and house martins nesting. I've been informed that apparently yesterday there were also razorbills on the cliffs. The path to was narrow and grassy, often overgrown, with bracken dotted with bluebells. There was an odd hawthorn tree here and there, stunted and mishapen into the direction of the winds.

We has a sit down with some cows at Gerddi-bâch, they were most interested in us to start with but then wandered away.

The path veers steeply down near Carag Bica, there were choughs squawking loudly. Lots of sea birds but no fins or seals today. The shore started looking more rugged, with caves and a natural arch, thought one of the caves might be an archway but there were voices so I think it was people inside with a torch. At Bwn Bach, a steep decent into a narrow inlet took us over an impressive rock arch carved out by the waves underneath. A kestrel was circling around worrying the other birds. I expect  this place appears on Instagram a lot.

We stopped for lunch at Ceibwr Bay and then headed back up. The cliffs at Traeth Godir-côch are very geological indeed, huge waves of rock curved around and folded up, caused by the movement of tectonic plates. It looked like more recently there'd been a fire. We saw a fox and fox cubs (or possibly three cubs) playing on a scrubby section below is, they scattered into the bushes when they saw us. Cemaes Head is a nature reserve, but we're not sure what for, as it didn't seem much different to anywhere else, and then we joined a lane and walked down into St Dogmaels, which is the end of the Pembrokeshire Coastal trail.

Our day's walk carried on into Ceredigion, we are staying in Cardigan, at the castle. I have learned that bopty means bakery.