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This walk is a 15 mile walk and so we had been waiting for a good weather day - and recently it had been the extremes, far too hot or too wet to walk all day. We plumped for this day as it looked promising. We had also done a few longer walks in preparation as 15 miles in the day is a long one - our recent walks since the Wales Coast Path have been shorter - by design I might add!!
So off we set and though we were both looking forward to walking on this ancient track, we both knew it was a long one for us too. We arrived in Bishops Castle, the finish point for the day and awaited the taxi taking us to the start point, Cider House Farm, just south of Dolfor. The weather wasn't too promising - we were in the laps of the gods now.....It was a long drive to the car park at the start but made interesting by our conversation with our Latvian driver - a lovely young man.
Imagining the shouts and halloos from the vast number of drovers who had walked along here..... The Cider House is a traditionally shaped "long house" and which had been as so many houses along the drovers' trails had been, a stopping place for refreshments. This one is now a private house. The drovers were a little like us, walking at an average of 2 miles an hour and so it would have taken them 3 weeks to get from North Wales to Kent's markets!
This is the Kerry Hill breed of sheep...cute eh?
You can see that the views though far reaching were a bit on the hazy side - we were somewhat in the clouds...this was the view to the north east..
Just a little further and we came to TWO TUMPS, the site of 2 bronze age burial mounds where excavations have found tools and artefacts from the Mesolithic age - 8,000 years ago!
The Ridgeway runs as straight as an arrow for much of its distance and it is easy walking too, the grassy path gives way to forestry tracks for two thirds distance and the last third is on metalled lanes. As we followed the trail from here, we saw first of all a small flock of curlews take off in front of us! Amazing sight and sound..
...and then a black dog rushed across a field of sheep to our left making them all run and he just shot off into the heathland beyond. I wondered if in fact it was a puma, but Chris thought not! Oh and nearly forgot to show you the path sign - of which more in a little while....
Here looking up the Severn valley to the north west....
...and then getting a clearer view of the Breiddens....
And we almost saw the sun shining as we looked down at the little town of Kerry (Ceri)..
The next road crossing the straight track of the Ridgeway was at Kerry Pole. And here is the reason why the Ridgeway path has the running fox as its emblem. Just to the right of the path in a field is a telegraph pole with a fox weathervane on top. No-one knows how long he has been here or why but he makes a great path emblem!
The weather did brighten a little as we walked the next section, now on a lane - quad bikes shot past us! And to the north we could see the rain falling over Welshpool! Hope you can make out the cloud in the centre...falling to the ground..
Lots of flowers today again - it has been a stunning early summer in the end and everything s growing so fast, each flower following the next so quickly to make up for the lost time we had in the cold Spring...
And shortly Corndon Hill with Stapeley Hill to the left of the picture below, came into view. These hills are just close to Churchstoke, home of Kerry Vale vineyard....one of our favourite vineyards. It is on our wish list to walk Corndon and Stiperstones close by...
The next crossing was into the Kerry Forest, a huge piece of land owned by the Forestry covering 110 hectares. The Ridgeway is criss-crossed to the south and north all along its distance and each of these paths has its own history too - all used to link communities for so long!
Going into the forest here we should have had our last glimpse of the Brecon Beacons to the south west but today we just had to imagine it! We can always come back and walk parts where we now know these long views are possible. Up ahead we could see the next ancient ditch crossing a field. this is Upper Short Ditch reputedly a much younger ditch dating to 540-660AD - similar to its counterpart coming up soon, Offa's Dyke!
We had a few views again which won't last much longer once the trees regrow..this one looking towards the high hills of the north...
and then we were into the forest. We had a buzzard and a red kite watching over us...
It was quite muddy heading through the trees with enormous puddles - and for some reason there was lots of cuckoo spit in the hedgerows here...really lots...and it rained as we headed through the trees which was quite uncomfortable walking as we had to wrap up but it was really still warm so we felt like we were in the tropics!
So far we hadn't needed the signposts as we headed in a straight line but as we came to the end of the trees, a green track headed left leaving the forestry track - but with no signpost. We did need to retrace our steps briefly! My navigation skills aren't always that great...The "track" though was really a route for quad bikes and off roaders it seemed....
And at the end of the track, here was some of the harvest....
I can't seem to resist a picture of chopped down trees for some reason..The next ditch was here too, Lower Short ditch, but so overgrown that it wasn't easy to see but we did get more views of Corndon Hill..
The greenway drops down to a settlement at Pantglas, passing another bronze age mound on its way. We were actually quite hungry now but hadn't seen anywhere to sit and have lunch, especially as the rain kept coming and going so we decided to eat "on the hoof". From Pantglas the ridgeway becomes a metalled road so we did have to watch out for a few vehicles from here, not many though. Just as we finished our sandwiches, the rain started once more - the umbrella came into use as it had in earlier showers. I thought it a useful piece of kit on a still day....
. This time the rain did seem to be in for the rest of the day as we passed Offa's Dyke....
My memory of this crossing was not as clear as Chris's ...well it is a year now since we walked the way of Offa...and very nice it was too! I recommend it..
The Ridgeway now descends quite steeply to the Dog and Duck cottage - formerly an inn would you believe. Nice that they kept the name from its closure 150 years ago. And unbelievably, the sun had now come out and it was really very warm! Those stormy clouds to the east were missing us thank goodness!
Of course what goes down then goes up, so the only steep climb of the day was in hot sun! Typical! But at the top is the hillfort of Caer Din - in a field of turnips but quite discernible - though not a very big one...
It was a really pleasant walk with hedgerows full of wild rose, honeysuckle,
And the views of Corndon clearing.....
....before our very eyes...
We arrived at the junction at Bishop's Moat, once the site of a castle, Castle Ruht which took tolls from those passing on the medieval road from Montgomery to Gloucester. Soon we turned right now with the Long Mynd on the horizon ahead and dropped steeply into Bishops Castle. We decided it was another reason should we need one, to go West to East so that we wouldn't need to climb UP this hill...it was long and steep. We passed a hedge here divested of all its leaves, eaten by this strange caterpillar..
Still on the route of the Ridgeway we dropped into the very pretty, old town of Bishops Castle...job done!
What a fascinating track and a lovely day. We headed to our B & B for the night, the Porch House, an Elizabeth manor house which it was a privilege to stay in, magnificent (and with a super bath!). And Titania the fairy guards the house from outside...
and proof of its age is in one of its fireplaces...history had surrounded us all day
So the day ended with a lovely meal at the Three Tuns Brewery tap - perfect!
