Walking. Gossip. Travel.

Category: LDWA

  • LDWA – 2021 LDWA 100 (Interview with Kevin Marshall)

    LDWA – 2021 LDWA 100 (Interview with Kevin Marshall)

    On the 29 to 31 May 2021, the LDWA’s 100 mile event will be taking place. Unfortunately, national restrictions mean that the Y 100 Sir Fynwy won’t be taking place as hoped, when in more normal times the South Wales group would have welcomed hundreds of walkers. Instead, there is the chance for entrants to walk a 100-mile route of their choice anywhere in the country, so the event has more of a national feel this year. And it’s fine to enter to do a shorter distance, with anyone walking 50 miles in 24 hours qualifying for the 2022 Trans-Pennine 100.

    I’m taking part in the 100 and I’ve been compiling some resources relating to that. When the new LDWA web-site is launched, this and lots more other material relating to the event will be copied there. Over the next few weeks, I’m speaking (well, writing) to entrants on the 100 and following their efforts up to, and after, the big day. We’ll be using the text from these interviews and updates on social media and also perhaps in Strider, the LDWA’s rather excellent magazine which is sent to our 10,000 members. Hopefully it’ll help inform, educate and inspire others to take part or become involved with the LDWA in other ways.

    For anyone who wants to take part in the event, have a look at the SI Entries page, or further information at the LDWA’s web-site.

    And this fourth ‘interview’ is with Kevin Marshall, who is walking the event with Sara Mortimer. I must admit, Kevin is much braver than I am, not concerned by cows in fields and it’s clear he doesn’t even intend to consider giving up. And, that’s a lot of 100s completed, I’m not sure that I can ever be that brave! But, we all have to start somewhere…. (and I approve of all the pork pies) And, finally, the line about “ordinary people like me can do extraordinary things with the right preparation and total commitment” is really true, I might pinch that (and credit Kevin for it!).

    How many 100s have you completed in the past?

    I have completed 22, my first being the Cleveland 100 in 1983 and my latest Hadrian Hvndred in 2019,

    How did you convince your partner to take part in her first 100 attempt? Was that an easy sell?

    It was a evolutionary process, Sara has always enjoyed walking marathon distance events, she then successfully walked a 50km (which was a running event and finished within the cut offs).

    Last February we completed the Peddars Way, which was fifty miles because we continued into Hunstanton and our hotel. I paced the first half carefully as this was the longest she had attempted. After a stop at Castle Acre for refuelling Sara took the lead setting the pace and I was having to work to keep up! Throughout we were self sufficient and adopted a strategy of eating every 10 miles. Our diet was mainly pork pies! This obviously worked very well!

    In June last year we completed a 60 mile route around Suffolk, this was to celebrate my 60th birthday. Sara still hasn’t forgiven me for that one as I had the bright idea of starting at midnight! Lack of sleep, dark and torrential rain were not a good combination! But brilliant training mentally, she toughed it out and completed it! Though I had to almost force-feed her jelly babies at one point!

    Sara had planned on supporting my virtual 100 this year and walking bits with me. But gradually the conversation stopped being ‘you’ and became ‘we’ so I ceased the moment and signed her up!

    What route are you planning to take?

    We are planning on taking the Millennium Way from Pershore to Banbury in the heart of England, not an area either of us know but will hopefully get to know. To me that is what the 100’s are about, exploring new parts of the our wonderful country.

    Are you following a GPX route, a map, or do you already know your route well?

    We will be following a GPX , but will have laminated maps. Maps give more context enable you to see where you are heading and see clearly what to look for on the horizon etc.

    What training are you undertaking at the moment?

    I run, Nordic Walk and Cycle and Sara Nordic Walks, Sara signed up for the #walk1000miles and also the sub challenge of completing a 1000 miles in 100 days so has already walked over 700 miles this year! A lot of our preparation has been getting out at the weekend and doing at least 20 miles on a Saturday or Sunday or both! This weekend we are doing an overnight walk leaving home at 4pm and completing a route of around 40 miles. We also have a fifty mile route planned for April.

    Do you think this will be easier or harder than the actual 100 that is traditionally held?

    Mentally I think it will be tougher, as there is no checkpoints to look forward to, no breakfast awaiting at half way and lovely treats that the 100s are renowned for! But it is still a 100 mile challenge so that is the same. I suppose it will be mentally tougher. We will work together to keep the other going, this will work well as long as we don’t have ‘bad’ patches at the same time!

    What food treats are you taking with you?

    Pork pies and pasties and a few chocolate treats!

    What tactics do you think you’ll use if you feel like giving up on the walk?

    Give up! Once the Taxi drops us off in Pershore we are committed and no Plan B! The critical thing is to set off in the right mind set, relax and enjoy. If you start counting down the miles you will soon get fed up, set mini goals ie next ten miles, fuel often. If you are tired and hungry you will get fed up. Stay strong feed little and often. Stay focus, set realistic targets and the most important prepare well. You must respect that a 100 miles is no walk in the park, it is a challenge of the highest magnitude. You must believe in yourself, I suppose that is where the preparation comes in.

    Are there any wildlife that you’re concerned about meeting on the walk? Sheep, cows, snakes, pigs, or anything else?!

    Both Sara and I love connecting with the environment, looking for bird and animals along the route. Fields of cows don’t bother us just confidently stick to your route and talk to them, reassure them you are no threat.

    Do you have any foot care tips?

    All in the preparation. As you build up the mileage try out socks and footwear you plan on using, leave nothing to chance. In all the 100’s I have completed I have never changed socks at half way! Get it right before the big day!

    You’re aiming to be self-sufficient on this walk, what will this entail?

    Our strategy is to eat on the go every 10 miles, we usually munch on pork pies full of goodness and calories. We will have a major fuelling at 25 miles, 50 miles and 75 miles. We will carry a stove and freeze dry meals and coffee so totally self sufficient! I don’t foresee water being a major issue because the Millennium Way goes through numerous villages and church yards are always a good bet!

    Would you say you’re looking forward to it?

    Absolutely without question, it is an adventure, we both love the outdoors and being outside so what’s not to look forward to!

    Do you have a time in mind of how long it’ll take you to finish?

    It will unfold, our plan is to be back in Banbury before they stop serving food at the pub! We want to down a few Guinness and hopefully pie and chips!

    Do you have any advice for others, one top tip about long distance walking?

    Prepare well, build up the distances gradually, relax and enjoy and of course believe in yourself.

    What would you say to anyone thinking about entering the 100, or thinking about doing a 50 mile challenge event, who might be a bit nervous?

    The key thing is to commit, and once you have done that prepare well there is no substitute to clocking up the miles. Our bodies must adapt to being on the go for a long time! Ordinary people like me can do extraordinary things with the right preparation and total commitment.

  • LDWA – 2021 LDWA 100 (Interview with Nathan Hensley)

    LDWA – 2021 LDWA 100 (Interview with Nathan Hensley)

    On the 29 to 31 May 2021, the LDWA’s 100 mile event will be taking place. Unfortunately, national restrictions mean that the Y 100 Sir Fynwy won’t be taking place as hoped, when in more normal times the South Wales group would have welcomed hundreds of walkers. Instead, there is the chance for entrants to walk a 100-mile route of their choice anywhere in the country, so the event has more of a national feel this year. And it’s fine to enter to do a shorter distance, with anyone walking 50 miles in 24 hours qualifying for the 2022 Trans-Pennine 100.

    I’m taking part in the 100 and I’ve been compiling some resources relating to that. When the new LDWA web-site is launched, this and lots more other material relating to the event will be copied there. Over the next few weeks, I’m speaking (well, writing) to entrants on the 100 and following their efforts up to, and after, the big day. We’ll be using the text from these interviews and updates on social media and also perhaps in Strider, the LDWA’s rather excellent magazine which is sent to our 10,000 members. Hopefully it’ll help inform, educate and inspire others to take part or become involved with the LDWA in other ways.

    For anyone who wants to take part in the event, have a look at the SI Entries page, or further information at the LDWA’s web-site.

    And this third ‘interview’ is with Nathan Hensley, who is doing the event with me, so he has a huge advantage to the other entrants that he has my company, encouragement, initiative and engagement.

    Here’s Nathan as part our training programme.

    This is your first 100, what inspired you to take part?

    Like most great ideas in life this was borne out of a chat down the pub. Your (Julian’s) walking exploits were made to sound like an exciting challenge, and the 100 would be the pinnacle of them all. I liked the idea of pushing myself to achieve something a bit different too, so it all came together nicely.

    What route are you planning to take?

    Starting in Lowestoft and walking to Great Yarmouth, then taking the Wherryman’s Way into Norwich. With a few detours that should make us reach over 50 miles, then we’ll head north out of the city along Marriott’s Way and meander back. Ideally for the final few miles we’ll stay local to Norwich (probably doing smaller and smaller laps of the streets near our houses if I’m being honest).

    You’re walking the 100 route with one of the most professional members of the LDWA, does that give you lots more confidence?

    I am confident that we will keep each other entertained! Knowing us, I think we’ll want to look a bit braver than the other so that will spur us on too.

    Do you think this will be easier or harder than the actual 100 that is traditionally held?

    I think it will be easier than Y 100 Sir Fynwy would have been at least, primarily because we’re not tackling many hills. The lack of encouragement from other walkers will probably add a unique challenge though.

    What food treats are you taking with you?

    I’ll make sure I carry sweets and nuts with me at all times, I don’t tend to get hungry on a walk but I do need a pick-me-up at regular intervals.

    You have a support team, what food and drink will you be requesting that they supply you with?

    Some coffee during the night and a bacon roll for the second morning would be fine, though if someone fancies sorting out a fry-up instead then I’d be very grateful.

    Do you plan to have some decadent craft beer during the walk?

    I think it would be silly to rule out that possibility, especially if our spirits drop a bit. It will be important to not overdo it though, and I’ll probably stick to lighter beer as a stout might feel a little heavy.

    What tactics do you think you’ll use if you feel like giving up on the walk?

    The main thing will be to distract myself. If we can spend the time chatting and gossiping, or I can focus on the upcoming food then hopefully the thoughts of giving up won’t enter my mind.

    Are there any wildlife that you’re concerned about meeting on the walk? Sheep, cows, snakes, pigs, or anything else?!

    I’d rather not see a snake if I’m honest, and a night-time cow encounter could be problematic too, but I think I can deal with most of the expected wildlife. This is, of course, if my walking partner doesn’t decide to start saying the word ‘bull’ as I’m halfway across a field…. [can I just note, I was reading aloud the huge sign which said “DANGER – BULL IN FIELD” that Nathan had meandered by, it wasn’t my fault Nathan rushed back thinking I had actually seen a bull in the field]

    Would you say you’re looking forward to it?

    Yes and no. I’m looking forward to the experience and hopefully the achievement. I’m less enthused about the inevitable soreness, tiredness and all-round grumpiness.

    Do you have a time in mind of how long it’ll take you to finish?

    I will be more than happy with finishing within the 48 hours time limit, but I think aiming for 42 hours is achievable and sensible to give us leeway.

    How will you celebrate when you finish?

    With a very long lie-down!

    What would you say to anyone thinking about entering the 100, or thinking about doing a 50 mile challenge event, who might be a bit nervous?

    Even in these strange times, the walking community has been friendly and welcoming to a relative novice like me. It’s a great opportunity to learn about your limits, discover the places around you and to meet people from different walks of life. I’d also say that unlike a lot of other events, if you pull up short for whatever reason then it’s not a failure or a wasted day, you’ve still been able to enjoy a nice walk!

  • LDWA – 2021 LDWA 100 (Interview with Kathy Finkel)

    LDWA – 2021 LDWA 100 (Interview with Kathy Finkel)

    On the 29 to 31 May 2021, the LDWA’s 100 mile event will be taking place. Unfortunately, national restrictions mean that the Y 100 Sir Fynwy won’t be taking place as hoped, when in more normal times the South Wales group would have welcomed hundreds of walkers. Instead, there is the chance for entrants to walk a 100-mile route of their choice anywhere in the country, so the event has more of a national feel this year. And it’s fine to enter to do a shorter distance, with anyone walking 50 miles in 24 hours qualifying for the 2022 Trans-Pennine 100.

    I’m taking part in the 100 and I’ve been compiling some resources relating to that. When the new LDWA web-site is launched, this and lots more other material relating to the event will be copied there. Over the next few weeks, I’m speaking (well, writing) to entrants on the 100 and following their efforts up to, and after, the big day. We’ll be using the text from these interviews and updates on social media and also perhaps in Strider, the LDWA’s rather excellent magazine which is sent to our 10,000 members. Hopefully it’ll help inform, educate and inspire others to take part or become involved with the LDWA in other ways.

    For anyone who wants to take part in the event, have a look at the SI Entries page, or further information at the LDWA’s web-site.

    This interview is with Kathy Finkel, who is taking part with Dennis Johnson. I very much like the idea about throwing insults to build up a rage, I might try this with Nathan on our walk. That might encourage him on.

    Kathy and Dennis (that’s a V for victory!)
    Is this your first time on a 100?
    No I did the Hadrian 100, it rained all day Saturday and Saturday night. I did it alone but met up with another walker, we found a guy with exposure on Cross Fell and it took us 4 hours to get him to the road and off the moor. I went on to the breakfast stop but was way behind schedule and pulled out.
    You’ve convinced your partner to join the LDWA and take part in the 100, was that an easy sell?
    Yes and no! He’s up for a challenge though. I have sold it on the basis that at worst we can use it as a qualifier for next years 100. I have waxed lyrical about how wonderful the challenge events are…..atmosphere and camaraderie.
    What route are you planning to take?
    Not decided as yet, we live on the edge of the North Yorkshire Moors, I’m trying to find something as flat as possible, Julie Cribb will tell you how much I enjoy ascents and descents! I’m looking at doing the Lyke Wake Walk twice, that would be 80+ and then walking from the house.
    Are you following a GPX route, a map, or do you already know your route well?
    We’ll do a route I know.
    What training are you undertaking at the moment?
    Not enough!! At least one 20+ mile walk a week and increasing to around 30 miles once a week.
    Do you think this will be easier or harder than the actual 100 that is traditionally held?
    A lot harder, the camaraderie helps hugely on the organised walks.
    What food treats are you taking with you?
    Cold porridge with lots of honey and fruit in it, especially as Den will be carrying it!
    What tactics do you think you’ll use if you feel like giving up on the walk?
    Just do 5 more miles, that and encourage Den to hurl insults at me, the ensuing rage propels me on.
    Are there any wildlife that you’re concerned about meeting on the walk? Sheep, cows, snakes, pigs, or anything else?!
    Not fond of cows……..
    Do you have any foot care tips?
    Fresh socks and cooling spray.
    You’re doing the walk with your partner, do you have any other supporters cheering you on?
    We’ll persuade a friend to do a certain amount of back up.
    Would you say you’re looking forward to it?
    Yes, I love a challenge.
    Do you have a time in mind of how long it’ll take you to finish?
    If we manage 100 it will take us well over 40 hours.
    Do you have any advice for others, one top tip about long distance walking?
    Break the distance down into manageable chunks…….you can always do another 5 miles.
    What would you say to anyone thinking about entering the 100, or thinking about doing a 50 mile challenge event, who might be a bit nervous?
    Do it, just do it. COVID allowing if anyone wants to join us they are welcome.
  • LDWA – 2021 LDWA 100 (Interview with Tim Ryan)

    LDWA – 2021 LDWA 100 (Interview with Tim Ryan)

    On the 29 to 31 May 2021, the LDWA’s 100 mile event will be taking place. Unfortunately, national restrictions mean that the Y 100 Sir Fynwy won’t be taking place as hoped, when in more normal times the South Wales group would have welcomed hundreds of walkers. Instead, there is the chance for entrants to walk a 100-mile route of their choice anywhere in the country, so the event has more of a national feel this year. And it’s fine to enter to do a shorter distance, with anyone walking 50 miles in 24 hours qualifying for the 2022 Trans-Pennine 100.

    I’m taking part in the 100 and I’ve been compiling some resources relating to that. When the new LDWA web-site is launched, this and lots more other material relating to the event will be copied there. Over the next few weeks, I’m speaking (well, writing) to entrants on the 100 and following their efforts up to, and after, the big day. We’ll be using the text from these interviews and updates on social media and also perhaps in Strider, the LDWA’s rather excellent magazine which is sent to our 10,000 members. Hopefully it’ll help inform, educate and inspire others to take part or become involved with the LDWA in other ways.

    For anyone who wants to take part in the event, have a look at the SI Entries page, or further information at the LDWA’s web-site.

    This interview is with Tim Ryan, from the Cornwall & Devon group and his proposed route is on Komoot.

    Is this your first 100?

    No, although I was a late starter (and sometimes a late finisher) to the LDWA Challenges. My first LDWA challenge walk was the wonderful “Six Dales Circuit” organised by Staffordshire Group – which I completed on my 60th birthday. I have since completed 4 100’s – 5 if you count last years “virtual”, which I really enjoyed. The above picture is a “virtual” of me at the “virtual” start – wondering why it was so quiet! In reality of course I completed the event from my home in Mid-Devon.

    What route are you planning to take?

    I have a few options open, and a lot depends on local restrictions. However most likely I will be walking the “Exe 100” from home, a route which I have put together from bits of local walks, social walks which I managed to squeeze in to lead groups of 6 last year as well as parts of a couple of long-distance paths – The Two Moors Way and Exe Valley Way. Having started to put this together in case I needed a local option should restrictions demand, I began to see that this is not such a bad route, so why not do it anyhow? It is a circular route which includes the upper Exe valley in Mid Devon, visiting Exmoor’s highest point at Dunkery Beacon and the source of both the Exe and the Barle on Exmoor.

    Are you following a GPX route, a map, or do you already know your route well?

    All of the above. I have put the route together as described and have saved it as a gpx as well as posting it on the Virtual Hundred Komoot site. I am carrying out reccies using a map, on the few bits I don’t know – but will of course take a map on the event. But by and large am familiar with the route. I am in the process of writing a route description should anyone else wish to walk the route.

    What training are you undertaking at the moment?

    Nothing specific just now. I have been on reasonably high mileage since coming out of quarantine, averaging over 300 miles a month the past 3 months. Originally In December because I was leading social walks every weekend and reccie-ing the rest of the week. Since lockdown I have been taking on the various virtual challenges being put on by LDWA and local groups. Something I am very grateful for.

    Do you think this will be easier or harder than the actual 100 that is traditionally held?

    Too soon to say. It would be a mistake if I was to think it was going to be easy, they never are. Nor would I want them to be, I guess we do them because they are difficult not because they are easy. Route finding should be easier, but no village halls without a sit down, a warm welcome and excellent food. That is a different challenge.

    What food treats are you taking with you?

    Jelly babies will be involved. There are also a couple of potential pub stops (if open). Wouldn’t be the first pubs I had visited on Hundreds. I will have some support at “checkpoints” so should be ok for food.

    What tactics do you think you’ll use if you feel like giving up on the walk?

    Best not to think about it. But at the end of the day – we do this for fun and enjoyment. If that’s not happening anymore, leave it. Come back another day, do not make any injuries worse. I think this is a good opportunity for anyone thinking about a Hundred to give it a go – without the same pressures that walking with many potentially more experienced walkers may bring.

    Are there any wildlife that you’re concerned about meeting on the walk? Sheep, cows, snakes, pigs, or anything else?!

    No none, well not much. I was leading a Ramblers walk a couple of years back when I was attacked by a cow and knocked down twice. So I am more wary of cattle than I ever used to be. But that’s about all. Not keen on packs of dogs, but you don’t get those so much in this Country.

    Do you have any foot care tips?

    Good fitting boots and talc. Don’t skimp on the cost of boots any more than you have to. Get what feels most comfortable (if you can afford them).

    Will you have anyone cheering you on and giving encouragement during the walk?

    Yes I think there may be 2 or 3 of us on the walk (restrictions permitting) and with promise of some support and back-up. As well as witness testimonies!

    Would you say you’re looking forward to it?

    Yes, definitely.

    Do you have a time in mind of how long it’ll take you to finish?

    No not really. I have always tried to get back in daylight on day 2, so about 36 hours – but never quite managed it. Its not that big a deal though, just keep going – you have paid for 48 hours after all. Last year of the event was my first over 40 hours for reasons those taking part will fully understand! And those that didn’t will have heard about. I didn’t feel any less satisfied at that achievement than faster years. I would say the Hadrian’s Hundred was an excellent route and as usual with these events very well organised.

    Do you have any advice for others, one top tip about long distance walking?

    For the Hundred it is “don’t think about it as a hundred miles” – but a dozen or so medium length walks from one food stop to the next. 100 miles is just too daunting a prospect – until you’ve finished!

    What would you say to anyone thinking about entering the 100, or thinking about doing a 50 mile challenge event, who might be a bit nervous?

    Do it, but have as your primary objective to enjoy it. It’s 2 days of your holiday so have a great time, and good luck.

  • LDWA 100 – Training Walk 12

    LDWA 100 – Training Walk 12

    This was our twelfth walk in preparation for the 2021 LDWA 100.

    WALK NUMBER: 12 (The Wroxham Wander)

    DISTANCE COVERED: 18.5 miles

    NUMBER OF NATHAN’S FRIENDS WE “ACCIDENTALLY” BUMP INTO: 0 (but see below)

    SUFFICIENT BEER CONSUMED: No (all the pubs are shut)

    PUBS VISITED: 0 (not through choice)

    WEATHER CONDITIONS: Dry and surprisingly warm

    ATTACKED BY ANIMALS: No

    NUMBER OF SNAKES SEEN: 0

    The LDWA 100 in May is creeping up rather fast and so it was time for us to go on another little meander in the quiet Norfolk countryside. Above is what is currently Zaks American restaurant and they’ve been in these premises since 1979. Apologies for yet another mention of George Plunkett, but he has a photo of what this former tea pavilion looked like in 1931.

    Nathan guided us through Mousehold Heath through trial and error (mostly error), but I must confess that I still manage to get lost in this area so I wasn’t much help. Here’s a pile of big twigs constructed to build a shelter.

    A beehive sign, suitable given that the building behind was until relatively recently the Beehive pub. It’s now a Co-op, but the old web-site for the pub is being maintained as a community project, which is a marvellous idea. I’m not entirely taken by this habit of supermarkets taking over former pubs, once an asset like that is lost it’s going to nearly certainly be a permanent loss.

    This is the end of the pavement on the Norwich to Wroxham Road, beyond that pedestrians are expected to walk down the round. It’s not ideal…… We decided that we wouldn’t walk back this way, instead going via Rackheath, which proved to be a sensible decision. One day there will be proper access for walkers and cyclists on roads such as this, but I fear that we have a little bit of a wait for that.

    I’m very pro-rail and often grumble about new roads, but the council have done a good job here with the Northern Distributor Road (alternatively known as the Taverham-Postwick Road) in terms of footpaths and cycle access. The council were content not to make pedestrians to walk along the road here, so that made matters rather more pleasant.

    Moist roads….. Komoot wasn’t entirely helpful in the stretch beyond this, as its routings tried to send us down private paths that weren’t on the definitive map. That meant some backtracking was necessary and although Komoot are reliant on external data, it’s a situation that means significant caveats would have to be made before anyone uses Komoot in rural Norfolk. Nathan muttered about Komoot quite a lot today but I considered it to be user error. I didn’t say that though, I didn’t want to cast a dark cloud on proceedings.

    On the right is the railway line that runs from Norwich to Sheringham, and this point is just before entering Wroxham. There’s an amazing amount of earthworks that took place for this line to be constructed in what some people believe is a flat county. But, as Norfolk residents know, there are mountains and hills all over this area.

    Looking over the bridge towards to Norwich, although we managed to miss the trains today so there are no photos of the new Greater Anglia fleet.

    Here we are. A word of caution (I made have added jeopardy there, as it’s not really a problem to get this muddled up), the villages of Hoveton & Wroxham have effectively merged together, and the railway station is known as that, Hoveton & Wroxham (although that wasn’t the case before 1966, when it was just Wroxham). Roys of Wroxham is actually in Hoveton, along with most of the shops and food outlets.

    This was the Castle Hotel, the only pub in Wroxham, but it closed in November 1996 and is now a residential property. There isn’t much more of a choice in Hoveton, with the really average Greene King King’s Head pub being the most obvious one.

    They appear to have built Wroxham library on a floodplain (or where the river floods, I’m not sure of the geological term I’m supposed to use) but at least the stilts look sufficiently high to avoid damp books.

    The footbridge over the River Bure, that’s Hoveton in the background.

    This reminds me of days spent on Broads cruisers, although I found the driving the boat quite a hassle. I preferred the sitting down watching the scenery whilst eating sausage rolls.

    The old stone bridge and there has been some structure here since the early medieval period such is the importance of this crossing. This is a challenging bridge to get under, and I think Heidi guided operations when we did this in a Broads cruiser, but accidents here aren’t rare. For anyone who fancies having a look at proceedings, here’s a YouTube video, although there have been much worse incidents here. It’s recommended to use the pilot service to get through here, to avoid any scraping issues.

    And here’s another little video of what boating is like at Wroxham, involving an angry man from Broads Tours. I quite like this video.

    We opted for chips at Greys in Hoveton and they were priced towards the higher end of the scale, but met my expectations in terms of the taste and temperature. More on this in another post though. At this point we had a quick meander around Wroxham, but it was rather packed with tourists and so we decided not to linger. We did though have time for a mini game of GeoGuessr and more on that in another post. Nathan saw someone he thought he knew, but it was all a bit vague (he claimed he hadn’t met him in person and only on Zoom, but I like to think there’s some gossip behind the whole situation), so I’m not counting that one in the tally at the top of the page.

    This is St. Mary’s Church in Wroxham, unfortunately closed otherwise I could have seen the doorway which is apparently of considerable note. It’s a building rather marred by what I consider to be ugly additions, but its location near to the river gives it a peaceful feel. More on this Grade I listed (primarily for the doorway) church in another post, but it’s mainly fifteenth century although there are parts of the previous twelfth century church still in situ.

    Trafford Mausoleum which is located in the churchyard of St. Mary’s Church and was constructed for the Trafford family who lived in Wroxham Hall, which has now been demolished. It was constructed in around 1830 and was designed by Anthony Salvin, also known for his work on restoring castles.

    An interesting old property on Church Lane, which was once the heart of the medieval village but now feels a little more remote. It’s a really nice area of Wroxham, and there’s also a pleasant area by the river known as Caen Meadow. Nathan decided I was faffing about too much here taking photos, but I ignored those complaints because I couldn’t be bothered to walk any quicker.

    Aaaaah, a lamb, how very lovely.

    The walk was quite dry today, but there were areas of water to navigate.

    The Taverham-Postwick Road as I’m now calling it, with lots of trees planted on the side of the bank. This was like a wind tunnel though walking alongside it, which wasn’t entirely ideal.

    I’m not sure that I’ve been to Thorpe End Village, but it was nice to see the local LDWA treasurer here. As the name suggests there’s a village feel to this little settlement, which has rather now merged into the outskirts of Norwich.

    And walking back into Norwich, this is the same path that Nathan took us down on a previous GeoGuessr evening walk. It was less muddy on this occasion and, fortunately, I had more suitable shoes on which made matters easier.

    All told, this was another walk that went quickly and we didn’t encounter any medical issues on the expedition, which bodes rather well for the 100. The weather was quite balmy at lunchtime and we did debate getting an ice cream in Wroxham as a dessert for the chips, but the area was a bit busy and we thought it best to try and avoid people given the current health situation. So, another rather lovely day.

  • LDWA 100 – Training Walk 11

    LDWA 100 – Training Walk 11

    This was our eleventh walk in preparation for the 2021 LDWA 100.

    WALK NUMBER: 11 (Faffing about near Surlingham)

    DISTANCE COVERED: 17.8 miles

    NUMBER OF NATHAN’S FRIENDS WE “ACCIDENTALLY” BUMP INTO: 3

    SUFFICIENT BEER CONSUMED: No (all the pubs are shut)

    PUBS VISITED: 0 (not through choice)

    WEATHER CONDITIONS: Moist

    ATTACKED BY ANIMALS: No

    NUMBER OF SNAKES SEEN: 0

    We didn’t set out today with any particular route in mind, but we did want to walk some of the Wherryman’s Way, which will be the first half of the path we’re taking on our actual LDWA 100 effort. So, that’s where we started and since I didn’t take any food along with me, we couldn’t go anywhere too rural for the entire day.

    Nathan pointed this building out, which we’ve walked by many times, and I realised that I didn’t have a clue what it was. I’m not an urban explorer, as I’m not brave enough, but, fortunately, someone has done that already and taken photos of what’s there.

    Here’s a map from around a century ago, showing at the time that the site was the Norwich Corporation’s sewage works. The buildings were constructed between 1865 and 1871 under the supervision of Joseph Bazalgette, best known for his work on sewage systems in London. They’ve now been superseded by Whitlingham Sewage Works, but the buildings remain and are in a decent condition.

    One of the wooden sculptures at Whitlingham Lake.

    We set off along Wherryman’s Way walking along the river and this is Woods End. It started to rain quite hard during this time, so this wasn’t looking like the more ideal of days for meandering around, but it stopped after about an hour and didn’t return. Perhaps quite usefully, the route wasn’t at all busy and we didn’t see that many people during the entire day.

    It has been a wet few months and much of the area was either flooded or quite damp.

    Well, and quite muddy as well.

    We had a little meander around St. Mary’s Church in Surlingham.

    When we were walking down the road a local resident mentioned that there was quite a flood up ahead. Always hunting for some form of adventure (OK, it’s true that walking down a flooded road isn’t that adventurous, but we are a bit limited at the moment) we thought this sounded more exciting than off-putting.

    I had my phone ready to capture anyone (and I won’t name names) who might have slipped over into the water and although that didn’t happen, this is how moist the area was. It’s certainly not ideal.

    After Nathan had climbed over the stile I helpfully said the words “bull in field” just to warn him of the potential danger. He interpreted that as my having seen a bull in the field, and I was impressed at how fast he was able to return. It shows what excellent reactions he has, which will prove useful in the event of a snake attack during the warmer months when adders and grass snakes flood into the area.

    Mud, which was really rather quite slippy. Not ideal. There were also numerous fields like this where the line of the public footpath isn’t marked out even in the most basic of forms.

    Walking past the solar farm at Yelverton, fiercely opposed by many residents when it was announced in 2014, but it certainly makes an impression of the landscape as it’s a pretty huge site.

    The Old Water Tower on Framingham Earl Lane, which appears to have been converted into a residential property given the letter box arrangement.

    We did think about getting chips, but the excitement of a One Stop meal deal proved just too much to turn down. We were quite impressed at the efforts made by One Stop to offer a selection of craft beer and although we didn’t get any today, there’s definitely a tide turning where shops are focusing more on decent beers and less on other alcoholic drinks and generic lagers.

    We had a choice of two routes back from Arminghall into the city, and we perhaps chose the wrong one as this one was rather muddier than we expected. But, neither of us complained….. Well, not for long anyway.

    This is the sand and gravel quarry near to Trowse, which is one hell of a hole in the ground now. I’m hoping that they turn this into some water park arrangement when they’ve finished their digging, perhaps with a Greggs and decent pub there as well to serve visitors.

    The collections box on Boudicca Way, which has some random pottery which has been found in the field and some feathers…..

    A horse which stared at me in what I thought was quite a disdainful manner. I think I need to get out more….

    And back into Norwich, this is one of the warehouses beside the River Wensum which I suspect will be transformed by property developers over the next couple of decades. It took us some time to get back into the city centre as we had to keep stopping so Nathan could talk to his friends that we kept bumping into. We had a variety of people on this one, including work colleagues and a former teacher…..

    In terms of the walk itself, it was only 18 miles and that’s obviously a long way short of the 100 miles LDWA challenge that we’re planning. But, there were no problems during the way and so it was useful to get some distance in given the current limitations that we have. We had hoped to walk Wherryman’s Way in its entirety again, but we can’t use public transport to get to Great Yarmouth at the moment, although hopefully that might change.

    As for the write-up of today, that’s the best I can do with the route we chose, which was quite a lot of wet footpaths and river banks and it’s territory that we’ve walked along before. It’s still what I’d call a training walk though, so I didn’t want it to pass by without making at least a brief reference to it.

  • LDWA 100 – Training Walk 10 (Finding the Source of the River Yare Part 2)

    LDWA 100 – Training Walk 10 (Finding the Source of the River Yare Part 2)

    This was our tenth walk in preparation for the 2021 LDWA 100.

    WALK NUMBER: 10 (Finding the Source of the River Yare Part 2)

    DISTANCE COVERED: 14.7 miles

    NUMBER OF NATHAN’S FRIENDS WE “ACCIDENTALLY” BUMP INTO: 1 (might have been someone I knew)

    SUFFICIENT BEER CONSUMED: No (all the pubs are shut)

    PUBS VISITED: 0 (not through choice)

    WEATHER CONDITIONS: Dry

    ATTACKED BY ANIMALS: No

    NUMBER OF SNAKES SEEN: 0

    The eagle eyed reader will note that the 14.7 miles has been split across two posts. Some might suspect that this was because I couldn’t be bothered to post about the entire walk in one go, but I repeat that it was to add suspense. Or something like that….. Anyway, the first post ended with Nathan faffing about crossing a puddle.

    At the moment, we’re on the right of the above map (moving left) and we were able to track the river for the first stretch.

    A frosty scene….

    We were able to continue by the river, although there were stretches that were particularly muddy. Slightly amazingly, neither of us fell over during the day. There weren’t that many other walkers along this little stretch, but that’s probably because they didn’t feel that sludging through this was ideal entertainment.

    Long before this health predicament I had been planning to be in Las Vegas at this time, accidentally ordering a sack of burgers at White Castle. As an aside, this is why the United States is so exciting, where else can you buy a sack of burgers? And yes, this is a real thing, anyone interested can Google it. I could have been playing video poker in Excalibur, getting free beer and popping into Banger Brewing later in the day after a ride on the Deuce (not Douce). Instead, I was walking on mud, but I think I was still enjoying it.

    Here we came across a little problem. That’s the path.

    The Yare had entirely burst its banks at this point and the footpath wasn’t even visible, let alone walkable. It’s evident in the map image, we could no longer walk by the river and instead had to head back inland (not sure that’s the right word there, but it sounds more exotic) towards Eaton Golf Course.

    Instead and so no-one feels that they’re missing out, here’s a photo of that exact stretch of flooded route that we walked last June. It was less moist then.

    Don’t fear, I didn’t linger on the railway line.

    On the above map, the blocked footpath meant we couldn’t track the river, but we did walk back down to it (on the left-hand side) to try and explore it a little bit. This was always a closed loop we’d have to go back up from, but it was part of our policy of walking by all the bits of river that we could. I got a bit muddled up here and tried to walk the wrong way along a path that looked interesting, and I’ll have to credit Nathan for noticing that I was trying to go back in the same direction we’d just walked from. He can be quite observant.

    For anyone who wants to see the map click on the above image (and to read about how one child said this area was “very wild”) to see where the footpath was meant to be.

    Nathan set off to explore the area and I pretended that I was Stewart Ainsworth from Time Team. For those who never watched that, Stewart is the guy who looked at the wider environment, often looking for evidence of raised land where historically people would have walked so that they didn’t get their feet wet. To cut a long story short, all the terrain was flat, I forgot that I was in Norfolk. So whilst Nathan was sinking into mud, I concluded this strategy of mine was failing. It wasn’t possible to get to the river here. Well, not without sinking anyway and although I wondered what Nathan would look like if he sank three feet into the ground, I thought it would all be too much hassle to fix. And that kid was right (not Nathan who is nearly 30, I meant the one who was featured on the sign), it was very wild around here.

    After spending some time helpfully smashing the ice to help the local wildlife (I’m not sure we worked out what help we actually were, but there’s something satisfying about making a hole in ice), we decided we’d seen enough of this meadow.

    We (well Nathan did, I was looking for a big stick to break the ice with) did spot the river and although it’s hard to see, it’s the water course at the back of this photo. We only knew it was the river as we could see it flowing at some speed.

    So, we retraced our steps (visible on the right of the above map) and then walked into the wealthy Norwich suburb of Eaton. We lost sight of the river at this stage, but it was nice to see civilisation again after our time in the wilderness. OK, I accept we had hardly been walking in the Amazon, but it’s all relative and I have to try and make a walk around Norwich sound as exotic as possible.

    This is St. Andrew’s Church in Eaton and it’s rare to see a thatched church in the area around Norwich. The bulk of the church dates from the thirteenth century and there are some wall paintings inside which I’ve looked at before and had no idea what they were portraying.

    I think I annoyed Nathan by applauding an extension they had put on the back as meeting my design requirements (where the old meets the new….), whereas I didn’t like the one at the church where he got married. He’s getting very protective of that church….

    We might have seen someone we knew at this stage, as we saw someone waving and calling out. Then they looked grumpy and walked off before we worked out who it was. Hopefully it was one of Nathan’s friends who was annoyed and not someone that I might know. If it was someone I knew calling over, then hello   🙂

    We thought at this stage that we’d pop into Waitrose. Now, given that Nathan and I are hardened walkers ready to take on the 100 in a few months, we feel that we’re competent navigators who are experienced and confident. We then couldn’t find our way into Waitrose and got entirely muddled up, which frankly wasn’t ideal. As an aside, and without being rude, whoever is in charge of signage at this Waitrose is a bloody idiot. Right, moan over.

    The true measure of a shop is the quality of their craft beer selection. Although not world class and lagging behind Morrison’s, this wasn’t a bad effort. Anyway, Nathan and I decided that Waitrose was too decadent for us (I still feel I’m an imposter going into M&S, let alone Waitrose) and so we continued on our walking expedition.

    This was the path at the rear of Waitrose and there is a path which leads from here to the UEA. We were a little concerned at first as this was not an ideal situation in terms of the mud, but it transpired that this was the only problematic stretch.

    This is the stretch to the A11 and it hadn’t flooded at all, which was rather lovely.

    I’m not a bike expert, but this could have done with a service, perhaps using the scheme promoted by the Government which nearly no-one was able to get.

    The bridge looks quite ugly here with the graffiti and rickety metal structure shoved on the side.

    It’s more pleasant from the other side and this is Cringleford Bridge which was built in 1520 and extended in 1780. The previous bridge had been lost to floods in 1519, which probably annoyed the locals at the time. This was once on the main road, but there’s a new road bridge on the nearby A11 to relieve the traffic on this one. Of relevance to our walk, the listed building records notes that “the southern bank of the river Yare is now the boundary of the City of Norwich”.

    A previous flood level marker on the bridge. Fortunately, the water wasn’t quite that high when we meandered along the route.

    The bench didn’t seem correctly proportioned to me.

    This is the next stretch of the path, which sticks by the river and leads into the University of East Anglia (UEA).

    This was our final stretch on this walk, and that stretch from the bridge to the lake is visible on the above map. The big lump of water is the UEA lake, with the university buildings just above it towards the top of the map.

    I’ve never seen a dog entry point into a river, but it didn’t seem like a bad idea. I thought at first it was something that snakes had created for themselves, so I was pleased it was a less dangerous type of animal (although knowing someone that has been bitten by a dog recently, she might not agree).

    I noticed there was a little stretch off the main path which stuck close to the river. We went down there, but didn’t get far as there was a tree in the way further down.

    A little pier on the lake with the UEA buildings behind. As one of the university’s leading alumni, I didn’t note Nathan gazing longingly at the buildings, but perhaps he was inwardly excited to be back.

    This is the ‘Man of Stones’ bronze sculpture designed by Laurence Edwards and installed here in 2019.

    We didn’t need to cross over here for the purposes of our walk, although we might have had a little meander on the other side if it had been open.

    I was quite glad that it was shut, as it’s called the Mathematical Bridge and this might have over-excited Nathan given his maths degree. I can imagine him walking over 25 times to celebrate just how mathematical it was.

    It is called the Mathematical Bridge due to its construction being comprised of only straight lines and this mathematical structure is meant to surprise and delight people as the average person might think from its design that it would collapse. Anyway, it’s closed as it’s collapsing, but once they’ve fixed the foundations it’ll be open again. I hope the bridge that my civil engineer friend Liam is currently building doesn’t suffer from the same fate, but I’m sure he’s got that under control.

    I wanted to carry on by the river, but it was getting muddier.

    At this point, we’re on the left-hand side of the lake. The path that was too muddy to follow would have allowed us to carry on by the river, but instead we took a parallel route (well, sort of parallel) route towards Earlham.

    This was too difficult to cross as the water was deeper that it looks in the photo. I know this as I tried to walk across it. Nathan, who can sometimes be more sensible than me, held back looking concerned. He was right (hopefully he won’t notice me writing that).

    A bushy tree. Anyway, at this point we had gone off track and so we’ll be back soon to try and carry on along the path that we couldn’t walk this time. And then we’ll walk further down the River Yare and I can imagine how excited everyone must be to read about that……

  • LDWA 100 – Training Walk 9 (Finding the Source of the River Yare Part 1)

    LDWA 100 – Training Walk 9 (Finding the Source of the River Yare Part 1)

    This was our ninth walk in preparation for the 2021 LDWA 100.

    WALK NUMBER: 9 (Finding the Source of the River Yare Part 1)

    DISTANCE COVERED: 14.7 miles

    NUMBER OF NATHAN’S FRIENDS WE “ACCIDENTALLY” BUMP INTO: 1 (might have been someone I knew)

    SUFFICIENT BEER CONSUMED: No (all the pubs are shut)

    PUBS VISITED: 0 (not through choice)

    WEATHER CONDITIONS: Dry

    ATTACKED BY ANIMALS: No

    NUMBER OF SNAKES SEEN: 0

    Above is a photo of the railway lines in Norwich. I had tried to get a photo of a train in, but the bloody thing moved too quickly. I don’t think a career in photography is really for me, unless I specialise in taking photos of train lines.

    Anyway, an explanation of our plan. A couple of weeks ago we started our walk to find the source of the River Wensum. The lockdown means that we can’t use public transport or really walk that far from Norwich, so later parts of that expedition (I say expedition as we’ll likely make it one, everyone else would call it a walk) are for the future. Today, we decided to start a similar project to follow the route of the River Yare to its source somewhere near Dereham.

    I’ve split the walk from today into two parts, mainly to increase the suspense of the whole thing for anyone reading. As a spoiler, don’t get too excited for part two. Nathan refused to investigate a seemingly mystical water feature which was bubbling (I thought if he put his head in it then he might find a solution to the problem) and neither of us fell over. We did have a couple of incidents in Waitrose (including a moderately embarrassing navigational error), but that might be as exciting as the second part gets. Anyway, let’s focus on the first part of today for now.

    For anyone wanting to follow along, we started walking along the river just past Redwell Brewing’s Taproom.

    It was a frosty morning and this is the Yare near to where Bev lives (not that near, I don’t want to encourage sightseers to her property) which is in a rather decadent part of Norwich. If anyone does want to know where Bev lives, she’s got a reputation in the village, so just knock on a random door and ask.

    This stretch of the River Yare is by Mill House, at Trowse Millgate.

    I took a lot of photos today of river scenes, probably too many if I’m being completely honest. Here are some of the frosty ground as I thought that it might look a little mystical. Our policy for the day was to stick as near to the river where we could, although in places that was obviously impossible. We don’t try and stick by the river if there’s a chance of falling into it or being arrested for trespass.

    The river splits before Old Lakenham, the River Tas goes off south and the Yare cuts through the village. Above is Mill House on Mansfield Lane in Old Lakenham.

    The Cock pub is still abandoned and there have clearly been intrusions inside, so I wonder whether the building can ever re-open as a licensed premises.

    This was a stretch of the river where we struggled to stay near to, as buildings in Lakenham are built to the river’s frontage. We went down Sandy Lane and Cooper Lane to try and see a bit of river, but we were conscious that a railway line meant we’d have to backtrack.

    We didn’t expect such a long stretch of boardwalk, which was slightly worn in places, but it is clearly still being repaired. Breaking the ice never loses its appeal, probably the sign of a feeble mind or something, but there we go. I presented some rather fascinating bits of ice to Nathan, who carried them about for a bit before throwing them away. We discovered some interesting mini piers that jutted out into the River Yare, and pretended that one was Great Yarmouth Pier. It was a little pathetic, but imagination is the key as they always say.

    This stretch took us from Asda (well, the Greggs next to Asda) and down Hall Road. It’s evident from the above map how far we strayed from the river at this point.

    Nathan’s doing his vegan thing so he made do with a vegan sausage roll and a vegan steak bake. I went for a chicken bake with chicken, as it seemed wrong to pass by Greggs and not to quickly pop in. Service was quick, the food was delicious and the chicken bake was hot. All rather lovely.

    The route of Hall Road has changed slightly as the railway bridge can’t support the volume of traffic that today is rushing hurriedly towards Greggs. So, they changed that bit of the road to be called “Old Hall Road”. Clever thinking…..

    This photo was taken from the Ipswich Road, near to the Marsh Harrier pub. It looks scenic, but behind me was a road that seemed to have more cars on than the M25. I exaggerate slightly, but this wasn’t quite the rural idyll it might appear.

    I like the language used here. “If the cows become a bit lively”…. By this, they mean the bloody things are charging towards you at some considerable pace. Fortunately, the cows were hibernating so they didn’t cause us a problem.

     

    These photos are all of Marston Marsh and some of the paths here were inaccessible, so we got pushed back from the river a little in places.

    Good job that Clive wasn’t here. He’s still annoyed at the swan that knocked him out of a canoe about five years ago and that story still lives on in Hike Norfolk. Not least because people keep writing about it.

    Marston Marsh is a floodplain that covers 26 hectares, which is also used as grazing land in the summer.

    I had a look at what the city council said about this site, which included:

    “Also included in the site are some small areas of damp woodland.”

    I can confirm that there were small areas of damp woodland. Indeed, there were large areas of damp everything.

    “There are five wildlife ponds.”

    To be honest, there was one big huge pond.

    “Species of interest include: water voles, otters (probable), orchids, as well as general good marsh flora, dragonflies. Geese use site in winter and a snipe was also recorded this winter.”

    And what you can expect to see….. Nathan has found some binoculars at his house, but forgot to bring them. I don’t know what he was expecting to see through them anyway other than a flood. There were some people looking like they were bird spotters and although that’s an admirable interest no doubt, it’s not one which overly intrigues me. Unless they’re penguins or something in the marshes, that would have attracted my interest. Anyway, I digress. I’m still pondering what this “probable otter” is, he sounds challenging.

    Here comes Bear Grylls.

    Nathan lifted his arms up so they didn’t get wet in the water. I didn’t say anything, I didn’t want to sound judgemental. The observant reader will note how moist the whole area was.

    Anyway, on this bombshell, I shall save the second half of the walk for another post.

  • LDWA 100 – Training Walk 8 (Finding the Source of the River Wensum Part 1)

    LDWA 100 – Training Walk 8 (Finding the Source of the River Wensum Part 1)

    This was our eighth walk in preparation for the 2021 LDWA 100.

    WALK NUMBER: 8 (Finding the Source of the River Wensum Part 1)

    DISTANCE COVERED: 15.1 miles

    NUMBER OF NATHAN’S FRIENDS WE “ACCIDENTALLY” BUMP INTO: 1 (they didn’t recognise Nathan)

    SUFFICIENT BEER CONSUMED: No (all the pubs are shut)

    PUBS VISITED: 0 (not through choice)

    WEATHER CONDITIONS: Sun

    ATTACKED BY ANIMALS: No

    NUMBER OF SNAKES SEEN: 0

    Finding the source of the River Wensum. It’s not exactly the exploration of the Amazon I will admit and I’m not sure that Michael Palin will be making a television series of this. But, travel is limited at the moment and so Nathan and I had this plan to walk to the source of the Wensum which is off somewhere near Fakenham.

    However, it became apparent that using public transport or getting a lift back from Fakenham isn’t really within the current rules on travel. So, we decided to split the walk up into different sections and today we followed the River Wensum from Norwich, where it ends when it meets the Yare, to a point a few miles away and then we planned just to walk back. I thought we saw more history and river than we had anticipated, so it was a useful exercise. It means that there will be a part two (and maybe part three) to this plan, but it won’t be until we’re allowed to use public transport again.

    This was the starting point of the walk, part of the city wall and it’s actually not far from the River Wensum. We didn’t follow the Wensum for the first part of this walk, instead joining it further along as we wanted to avoid the city centre at the moment.

    These photos are all from the river section at Wensum Park, which looks rather beautiful in the morning. Best known now as where Nathan dumps his unwanted bread into the river, this stretch of land was purchased by the city council in 1907. This was rather forward thinking of them, a useful amenity for the people of Norwich and they built a swimming pool, paddling pool and wading pools for the locals to use. The locals responded to this by using the swimming pool as a refuse tip, so a new plan was put forwards by the council to use the area as a public park. Designed by Captain Sandys-Winsch and constructed with unemployed labour, the park was opened in 1925 and it remains in use for that purpose today.

    Just a little further along the river, this looks quite remote, but it’s actually next to the Recycling Centre at Mile Cross.

    We did plan, many years ago, to come to the Gatehouse Pub at some point, partly as it’s on the CAMRA Regionally Important Historic Interiors list. Now that we finally get here the damn thing is of course shut, but we’ll go back when pubs re-open. The pub has a large beer garden which stretches down to the Wensum and it’s built on the site of a former toll-house.

    A stretch of the Wensum just off Hellesdon Road. It was around here that I started to try and break the iced up sections at the side of the river like some kid…. I got bored of that quite quickly when I realised that I might fall into the mud.

    I read the other day in the newspaper that there are parakeets flying about all over England, which is giving some concern as they’re not a native species. And there were several in the trees here, I think they’re rather interesting birds which add some character, but maybe their invasive behaviours upset seagulls or something. Nathan used his wooing skills, which seemed to be similar to the random noises he makes to his cat, to charm the parakeets down. It didn’t work. I pretended that I thought Nathan was like Bill Oddie and it was very surprising to me the birds didn’t flock down.

    A little collection of cut down trees.

    This is the river at the junction with Hellesdon Road, near to where Marriott’s Way is. We didn’t walk on Marriott’s Way (the former railway line that got shut down in the 1960s) on the way out, instead remaining on the other side of the river bank.

    This was rather lovely for Nathan, back to where he got married last year.

    The medieval standing cross in the churchyard. The lower section is thought to have been in situ for over 700 years.

    The village sign.

    It’s now been converted into residential properties, but this was Hellesdon Mill, a formidable building.

    We did have a plan to investigate this area as it’s by the river, but it’s owned by the Environment Agency and they’ve kept their bridge firmly locked to discourage anyone from crossing it. We didn’t try.

    These photos are of Drayton Green Lanes, an area of walking that we hadn’t noticed on the map, but which let us get close to the river. It’s really nicely looked after and some volunteers from Norwich Fringe Countryside Management Project recently fixed some damaged boardwalk under the supervision of Drayton Parish Council. This bit of land, which it appears no-one ever claimed ownership of, was a quite welcome surprise.

    The walk into Drayton along Low Road, which meant that we could see the river on our left. I must admit to getting quite into this whole project by this point as although I live near to the River Wensum, it suddenly seemed to be quite magical as we walked along it towards its source. To be honest, I think I need to get out more……

    I had hoped that E Pratt and Co were doing some delicious sausage rolls as their reviews looked rather positive. They’re a local butcher, but the situation was confused (well, I was confused, which doesn’t take much) and I came to the conclusion they weren’t selling hot food as despite a carvery sign the menu boards were all for raw meat. Delicious as that probably was, I thought better of it. Marginally disappointing, I was hoping it’d be as good as Greggs.

    I did try and find some food in the Applegreen petrol station instead, but it appeared to me from the pricing that Harrods had done a take-over of the premises. There was a Tesco next door, but I didn’t want to go shopping for the sake of it at the moment when all I had wanted was chips or a sausage roll. So, I bravely left Drayton with no food.

    This is the stretch of the Wensum between Drayton and Costessey Mill. The river has been diverted, likely a very long time ago, so there are two stretches here, one which is likely the original course of the Wensum and another which is what powers the mill.

    The mill here has gone, destroyed in a fire in the 1920s.

    Nathan navigating a minor tributary of the Wensum.

    This is St. Edmund’s Church in Costessey, which I visited briefly on Steve’s walk last year. The building’s history puzzled me, I’ll have to read up about it as there seem to be numerous additions from different periods. In short, there has likely been a church here since Saxon times, but the current one is mostly from the thirteenth century, albeit with a Victorian restoration.

    I hadn’t noticed this before, in memory of 10 members of 564 Bomb Squadron who crashed in Carr’s Hill Wood in Costessey on 7 March 1945. There was a campaign for the footpath to this site to be kept open, as it was on permissive land and the owner wanted it closed off. I don’t know what came of that, as the permissive path ceased in 2017, but I’ll find out.

    An unusual positioning of some of the older graves.

    Nathan was fascinated with the grave of Wandering Wal, and it sounds like this man had an eventful and interesting life.

    I assumed when walking by this building that it was a Victorian school, but it’s actually a hall which I think is linked to the Our Lady and St Walstan Roman Catholic Church which is located opposite.

    Although we had to walk back to Norwich at this point, nothing of huge interest happened although we discovered just how many people are walking along Marriott’s Way. And, the point of this walk was to follow the route of the River Wensum, so in a future blog post, we will continue our trail from where we finished and pick up the story again as we head off from the Taverham area. For anyone who looks on a map, they might notice that we didn’t get very far along the River Wensum, but there’s no need to rush adventure….

    As for our training for the LDWA 100….. This seems to be creeping up on us if I’m being honest and I’m not entirely sure that we’re filled with optimism. We’re confident of completing 60 miles, but more than that will be down to the Gods. Well, I say Gods, but I more mean our feet. Anyway, we’ll see what happens, but we’ve been very brave so far. There were no injuries today, other than Nathan’s slightly dodgy knee, and at least that bodes well (the no injuries part that is)

  • LDWA 100 – Bad and Good News

    LDWA 100 – Bad and Good News

    This is another in my series of posts about walking the LDWA 100 in 2021.

    The bad news is that the LDWA 100 won’t be taking place in Wales, which is a great shame for the organisers who had already put back their event by one year due to the health crisis. At the time, it seemed almost implausible that things wouldn’t have returned to normal by a year later, but events have gone in a direction that couldn’t be expected. So much time spent by the organising committee, but hopefully members will experience the route suggested in the future as a walk across a few days (unless they want to go round it in 48 hours…).

    But, enough negativity as this is a positive event! It all means that there’s a Plan B, and this was the announcement from the LDWA:

    “Due to the continued uncertainty about the COVID-19 pandemic the organising committee of the Y 100 Sir Fynwy have reluctantly concluded that it is impossible to hold the original Y 100 Sir Fynwy with any confidence that it will be able to take place.

    To avoid a second year without a 100 mile event, with the agreement of the LDWA National Executive Committee, it has been decided to hold a Virtual Y 100 Sir Fynwy event. The main points are:

    To be held on the weekend of 29th to 31st May 2021
    Entrants to choose their own route of at least 100 miles
    The 100 mile route to be completed in 48 elapsed hours
    Open to all LDWA members
    No qualifying event required
    No limit on number of entrants
    Successful completion will count towards 10/20/30/40 Hundred awards
    Entry via SI Entries only, entry fee £20
    Entrants will be required to provide evidence that 100 miles has been covered
    Certificate and badge for successful completion
    Completion of at least 50 miles in 24 elapsed hours will qualify for the 2022 Trans Pennine 100″

    Virtual in this sense is being used to mean that people can follow their friends (or people who aren’t their friends) take part in their own personal 100-mile route. It still means that there will be a lot of brave people walking the 100 miles, that bit unfortunately isn’t virtual…. The plan that Nathan and I have is to walk Wherryman’s Way, meander around Whitlingham Lake a few times, go back home for a little rest (since we live nearby which is handy), then walk along some former railway lines. They’re handy these railway lines, flat and everything…. And there’s a lot of flat on this route, which makes things so much easier in my view. And our route will ensure that there are Greggs and pubs along the way, so we’ll have to time that carefully.

    Dave Morgan, the courageous and energetic national chair, has made clear that walking on flat for 100 miles is very difficult. Well, he’s right, anyone can walk up and down hills, this will be a true challenge for those of us completing it in Norfolk…. But we don’t go on about our bravery.

    So, this all means that our plan to complete the event will unfold during early 2021, including the route that we propose. I’m intending to see how many friends can line the route (to reward and comment on our bravery), becoming the new checkpoint crew and offering us food and drinks (and praise). I shall be spending a lot of time on ensuring that the food is nutritional and healthy, so there will be absolutely no junk. Indeed, this will require the bulk of our planning time, but food and drink is essential to finish a walk like this.

    Will we complete it? Who knows, but there are some advantages for us walking it like this. This is my first 100, and to be honest, maybe my last. Remember Adam Dawson’s 100 interview? I subscribe to that theory. But, maybe I’ll become all “I must do this every year, it’s so fun”. But I doubt it, because 100 miles is a long way….

    Anyway, I digress. Doing it this way means that we are unlikely (although I don’t put it past us) to get lost, since we’ll know the route. We can change the route to suit our needs and also, I understand, start a little earlier in the day than the usual fixed time. Home will be on the route, which helps in terms of having more socks, shoes and anything else to change into, giving that bit more flexibility than the actual event. I mentioned I hadn’t done a 100 before, and this is what will be useful here, I don’t have to carry everything ‘just in case’ I need it which is what I’d have done in Wales.

    Checkpoints are wonderful to get moral support on, but we’ll do our best to recreate that experience with friends and anyone who else who is nearby and bemused. I’ll be taking photos and making short videos around the event, so people can compare my efforts with that of Dave Morgan, who will be doing the same. He’ll be all inspirational and have videos of valleys and lakes (and rain, he’s doing it in Wales) whereas I will concentrate on food and drink, as well as being grumpy. But, as they say (I don’t know who they are here) everyone walks the 100 in their own way.

    Anyway, what can possibly go wrong?