Day 4

 What a difference a day makes. I didn’t sleep particularly well, as I woke up several times feeling quite chilly, but I didn’t want an early start. I eventually got up about 7:45 and took my time packing away. I left camp at 9:30 and walked back up the hill into Painswick. 

I met my fellow camper (from last night) in the arts centre cafe, where I had a bacon roll for breakfast. After a good chat with him, I set off again at 10:30. It was an overcast day with a chilly north easterly wind. I went through the churchyard of St Michael’s with its famous Yew Trees. Apparently, 99 were planted because the devil would destroy the hundredth, but an additional tree was planted for the millennium to destroy that myth! 

I made my way out of the village towards Scottsquar Hill. My goodness, it was a tough climb! Initially, there was no view back to where I had come from, partly because drizzle came down, but mostly because of vegetation. I then entered some woodland, which was a relief from the drizzle.  I was still slightly miffed at having done all that climbing without seeing a view, but this brief glimpse helped ease those grumbles! 
I continued on towards Haresfield Beacon, where there was a 300 degree vista looking over the Vale of Berkeley. 

I could just make out the Severn bridge in the distance. 
It was bitterly cold on that beacon, so I didn’t hang about too long and headed back into the woods. 

At one point, the path approached at farm yard, where it appeared that a young child was stood at a first floor doorway. 

However, it turned out that it was a doll! 
It certainly had me fooled for a bit 😂

After a bit more woodland walking, i was getting hungry. I decided to divert from the trail to the Vine Tree Inn in Randwick, where I had a really friendly welcome and a tasty burger. 

I made the decision to book a room in a pub in Stroud, as my feet were still feeling quite achy. So I continued off trail into Stroud, where I tried unsuccessfully to buy a new inflatable pillow, as mine has developed an annoying leak on a seam, so that it needs inflating 3 times during the night. 

What can I say about Stroud? There’s probably a reason why the CW doesn’t come through the town, because whilst not ugly, it doesn’t compare to all the other places I have visited so far! It has also got more than its fair share of drop outs and street drinkers. 

I checked into the Clothiers Arms at 4:30 and was pleasantly surprised to find the room also had a bath, so I’ve had a nice long hot soak! 



Even though I wanted an easier day, I’ve still walked over 11 miles and climbed 1740ft. I’ve also gone past the half way mark for the trail. 

It was quite chilly and damp earlier today, but the sun had come back out and it should be quite warm again for the next couple of days. 

Tomorrow, I aim to walk to North Nibley between Dursley and Wotton-Under-Edge, roughly 15 miles. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Day One

Image
 It’s time for another hike, so as the blog name suggests, I’m attempting to walk the 102 mile Cotswold Way (CW for future abbreviations).  The path is a National Trail between the market town of Chipping Campden in the north of Gloucestershire to Bath in Somerset. There is approximately 12000ft of climbing to be done by the time I finish, so it will be a fairly tough challenge.  Even though Chiiping Campden is only 65 miles north of home ( in a direct line) it took over 5 hours to travel there by public transport. Firstly, I caught the train from Warminster, which was 20 minutes late! Luckily, I had a 35 minute stopover at Bristol Temple Meads. I then caught a cattle train to Cheltenham! It was standing room only in a corridor next to the luggage rack. By the time I arrived in Cheltenham, I was glad to stretch my legs, with a two mile walk along a nice pathway to the city centre. I then caught a bus to Chipping Campden. You could tell you were heading to a wealthy a...
Read more

Day 2

Image
 I slept quite well considering it was my first night under canvas. I’d invested in some ear plugs and an eye mask, meaning I didn’t get woken up by the dawn chorus or sunrise.  I packed up and set off at 8:45 for the 2 mile walk into Winchcombe, where I had a breakfast bap at a cafe. In comparison to yesterday’s towns/villages, Winchcombe was nothing to write home about! Yes there were some quaint bits, but parts were quite tatty.  After Winchcombe, there was a steep 200m ( 650ft) climb up to Belas Knap Long Barrow. I had a good chat with various walkers on the way up. Firstly an Australian couple, who were also doing the CW and also a local man from Cleeve, which made the  climb more endurable! The views on the way up were worth it.  There was a short walk along the plateau before a descent through the woods into Postlip.  Of course, what goes down must go back up again! There was then a steep climb up to Cleeve Common, although thankfully the CW didn’t g...
Read more

Day 3

Image
 I’m not going to lie, today has been a tough slog.  The third day of a multi-day hike tends to be like that. Your body says “What? Not this sh*t again! Bugger off”!  Anyway, I slept fairly well again at Big Skies Cotswold Glamping. A lovely site which I can heartily recommend.  On a Lay-by just a few hundred metres from the site is a butty wagon, so I stopped for a breakfast roll! It really filled the fuel tank and was well worth the £6.  After that it was a climb up Leckhampton Hill with far reaching views looking north over Cheltenham.  I then walked over to National Star College, which is a place for young people with disabilities to get assistance in working skills. They have an excellent cafe, so well worth a visit.  I then walked over to Crickley Hill country park, where yet again there is a small cafe. I stopped and had an ice cream and chatted to other hikers.  There were some more spectacular views from Crickley Hill looking down to the ...
Read more