Macmillan Way (Part 1)

24-28th April 2006

Introduction

Each spring for six out of the last eight years, Mike and I have spent four or five days walking around the South West Peninsula Coast Path. Starting at Minehead in 1998, we chipped away at over 100 miles per year to reach Poole in April 2005. Our task was finally done and our life felt empty. So how were we to continue? Onward around the south coast (we could not face all those towns and built up coastline) or overseas round France or Ireland (too far for a short break). Finally the solution became obvious. We had last year passed by the start of the Macmillan Way, not far back down the Dorset coast near Abbotsbury. My mother had been diagnosed with cancer and was using the Macmillan Nurses. So all signs pointed us back to Chesil Beach and the start of a long walk north.

Monday 24th April 2006

I was awakened by a 6.00am alarm so that I could get some breakfast before driving over to Congleton. Mike was ready as always and we were travelling south by 7.00am. No point in worrying about the Birmingham traffic. The usual tactic is to have plenty of time to spare, join the queue, keep calm and eventually you are onto the M5 and moving again. We used the new exit off the motorway near Barnwood to get round to Cirencester and thence to Kemble station. Here we parked up and left the car to its fate. The station had a great atmosphere about it, friendly staff, a notice of the ‘station of the year’ award and glorious music (Benjamin Britten) emanating from the café. The man that ran the café told us about the Tunnel House Inn, the projected end of this year’s walk. ‘My local’ he said. ‘See you on Friday’ we called back as we left.

The journey down to Weymouth was faultless. The trains came spot on time and by 2.15pm we were waiting on Weymouth promenade for the once-a-day bus to Abbotsbury. The bus driver went out of his way to get us near to the start on Chesil beach. He went beyond his destination and let us off at his turning point at the beach road. So we only had 0.6mile to get to the start, a wooden walkway over the pebbles at the western end of Chesil beach

The stress just dropped away as we finally got walking. The clouds cleared and the sun struggled to get through as we traversed a glorious section of sheep-cropped hills near the coast. It was so dry underfoot, especially for two northerners with web feet. Moving fast and easily we had only one problem finding the route (around Maiden Newton) before we were passing an evening cricket match and crossing the church yard at Cattistock just as 7pm was chiming, bang on schedule.

We stayed in a lovely old house with a smashing couple. Sam was an OBE so we were in good hands.

Top of beach road: 15.00
Chesil Beach: 15.10
Cattistock 19.05

GPS Reading 13.53 miles in 4.05.36 (on route 12.9ml)
Ascent 2101ft Descent 1932ft

Stayed at Cattistock House, Cattistock, nr Dorchester, Dorset
DT2 0HY. Ate at the Fox and Hounds; I had cod and chips whilst Mike sampled the lamb curry. Puddings were not beyond our capacity. Beers: Dorset Gold (4.5%) and Copper Ale (3.7%) from Palmers Brewery, Bridport, Dorset


Tuesday 25th April 2006

We were down early for breakfast, raring to go. By 8.45am we were on the move (is this a record?). As we climbed up the first few fields, the drizzle got heavy enough to put up the umbrellas. The first section was a bit dreary, over large fields in wet misty conditions, into Yetminster. The route to Knighton was not easy to follow but things rapidly got better as the walking and weather improved. We were chased by frisky bullocks on the descent into Sherbourne. After a quick look round the abbey, we adjourned to a café on the main street for a much needed break. It had been a long morning.

The route left Sherbourne up paths and narrow lanes passed the golf course before dropping through woods to an easy-to-miss exit stile into farm land. The best of the day was still to come however as we passed through Sanford Orcas and up onto Corton Ridge. Views of Cadbury opened up as did the surrounding vista, spoilt only by the aircraft noise from nearby Yeovilton. We had made such good time that we decided to go the long way round Cadbury Castle using the Leland Trail to the west rather than two miles of tarmac. We were in South Cadbury and at the B&B soon after 5pm. Here we left our rucksacks and set off to explore the top of the ancient fort.

We always like to stay close to a pub but we hit the jackpot in South Cadbury. The Verney house is directly opposite the Camelot (ex Red Lion). So after showers and tea and lots of convivial chat with the Julie and Robin, we hopped across the road for a very fine meal. The Verney's had been extolling the quality of their local cheese maker, Montgomery’s, so we broke our usual custom of a ‘pudding’ to end the meal and shared a Montgomery cheeseboard instead.

Stayed at Lower Camelot B&B, South Cadbury, Nr. Yeovil, Somerset, BA22 7HA

Cattistock dep. 08.45
Sherbourne (lunch) arr. 13.30
dep. 14.30
South Cadbury arr. 17.10

GPS Total: 23.5ml in 7.59.24 moving time
Ascent 2373ft Descent 2624ft
Ate at the Camelot. Steak and ale pie all round with the cheeseboard to finish.
Beers: Doombar, from Sharps Brewery in Wadebridge, Cornwall 4%
Golden Arrow, Cottage Brewing in Lovington, Somerset, 4.5%


Wednesday 26th April 2006

It was lovely sitting in the Verney’s conservatory having breakfast and listening to their conversation. Julie gave us each a slice of Montgomery Cheddar and a banana to see us on our way.

The route started with a road section across the A302 (like a motorway) and into North Cadbury. The highlight of the morning was the first view of Castle Cary and the Calvary and living cross planted in hawthorn high on the hillside above the town. We stopped only to read about the old castle foundations before we crossed over a ridge of hills in Bruton, entered down a most delightful wooded descent. Bruton looked a really nice little place although its narrow main street was totally inadequate for the size and amount of traffic. We popped our heads into the courtyard of Sexy’s Hospital before finding a tea shop for a sandwich and drink.

The next section started with a dead straight line, 3.5ml along an old coaching route. This led to a forest ridge where we turned left (north) beneath Alfred’s Tower. We were then a long time on wooded tracks before finally dropping back down into farm land and sunshine for the final few miles into Nunney.

This was the day we met our only other serious walkers. Four ladies were doing a multiple day trip of their own design across the south west. Later in the day, in the woods near Alfred’s Tower, a man strode towards us who had done most of the Macmillan way, but in out and back sections from his car.

We stayed at The Bell House, 2 Horn Street, Nunney, nr Frome, Somerset BA11 4NP. Our host had been born in Zimbabwe and still had family out in Southern Africa. The house had been a near ruin until the last war but had been rebuilt in the 1950’s and was fabulously situated at the heart of the village overlooking the castle. She was selling the house which would no longer be available to Macmillan Way walkers.

After a radox bath, we could just about manage a slow walk around the peaceful ruins of the castle on its moated island (French-style, so the notice told us). We ate in the George, the only poor pub we encountered. The beer was undrinkable. It is not often that I have to resort to red wine after a day’s walk. The food was ordinary, and that’s if you like Italian menus. The village had sadly lost a ‘local’ and it showed.

South Cadbury 09.04
Bruton (lunch) 12.30
Dep 13.15
Nunney arr 17.45

GPS Reading 24.18ml in 8.01.56 moving time plus 45 min lunch stop in Bruton
Ascent 3255ft descent 2987ft


Thursday 27th April 2006

We made a big effort to get up and breakfast early. We had two very long days ahead of us. So we were away from Nunney before 9am and off through the suitably named ‘Murder Combe’. It was really getting quite warm as we crossed Orchardleigh Golf Course with its poorly signed rights of way. But having managed the difficult bit, I made a total hash of the navigation on the next section and almost missed the path towards Beckington and the only section I had been on before. However we soon had the long road section through Rode behind us and I was back in the groove and unwilling to stop at Tellisford when Mike called me back to look at an old mill. It had seemed of little interest as I had passed it but Mike, with his usual nose for the unusual, had asked a builder what was happening and had uncovered a low head hydro scheme (55-60kW). I was soon in my element discussing kilowatts and voltages with the owner, a man who had already invested over £600k into a scheme with a 20-year payback.

All this delayed our entry into Bradford-on-Avon and our lunch. Our very expensive crumpets and cheese were spoilt somewhat by the volume and content of the conversation (monologue) from the next table. A loud woman complained to the whole tea-shop about her unhappy love life and her hatred of all things male. Perhaps her feet were as sore as ours.

The batteries had failed in my GPS so our mileages from now on were depended on the guidebook. It got hillier again as we approached Box and the busy A4. The riverside walk up By Brook turned out to be a drag across untrodden fields of long grass and marsh. By the time that Jill phoned to report my mother’s state of health, ours was not a lot better. Finally however we climbed into the final wood towards Slaughterford where we turned up the hill to our B&B in Biddestone. It was more than the suggested mile off route to Home Farm and our beds for the night. Quick showers (no time to wallow tonight) and we crossed back over the village green to the White Horse and a most welcome Woolly Bully Pie. We slept well.

Nunney dep. 08.49
Bradford-on-Avon arr. 14.30
dep. 15.15
Biddestone arr. 18.50

Estimated mileage 28 miles in 9hrs 15 min plus 45 mins for lunch. Ascent unmeasured.

Stayed at Home Farm, Biddestone, Chippenham, Wiltshire SN14 7DG.
Ate at the White Horse Inn, Woolly Bully Pie all round followed by some form of tart (real puddings were not a feature of this trip).
Beer was Butcombe Bitter 4.0%


Friday 28th April 2006

We spent a little too long talking to Mrs Smith so it was gone 8.45am when we pulled on our walking shoes for the last time and set off down the long lane leading to Slaughterford and the official route. I clocked 1.3 miles on the GPS before we were able to turn up By Brook and onto Ford and Castle Combe. Briefly stopping in the village to ring Felicity, we then crossed the most delightful of golf courses. Soon we could hear the roar of the M4 but this quickly faded after we had passed under it and into a long field-crossing section. A bench outside Luckington Church proved too tempting and we took our first rest of the day. This was fortuitous because Sherston, my original target for lunch, proved devoid of all cafes and tea-shops (this may have been because street closures forced us to by-pass the main street).

I had never been to Westonbirt before, a failing that we were soon to correct. The owners, who charge substantial entry fees, keep quiet about the right of way traversing the arboretum. So we got a free taster of the wonderful woodland, set out in rolling parkland. After this beautiful section it was out onto the roads once more and thence to dry dusty tracks passed Chavenage House. I was praying for afternoon tea by the time we dropped into Avening but, once again, the route took us away from the shopping area. However the last shop, a post office with a bench outside, proved our salvation. We sat beside the road for 15 minutes eating Belgian buns and doughnuts. This was just the boost we needed to face the final section and we eventually took the welcome turn towards Tarlton and the finish.

We only had one more decision to make. To plod the 2 miles odd down the road to Kemble and the car, or complete our planned route to the Tunnel House Inn and phone a taxi. It was a difficult choice to ask two tired thirsty men to make. We arrived at the Tunnel House Inn at 6.20pm. We walked directly up to the bar and there, downing a lovely looking pint was our friend from the café at Kemble station, just as he said he would be five days previously. He introduced us to the landlord who listened with interest to oure tale of our week. 120 miles in 4 days and 3 hours. We quickly disposed of a pint of Uley Bitter 4% whilst the landlord ordered us a taxi. When this arrived, we wished our new friends au revoir and promised to be back next year to continue our walk north along the Macmillan Way.

The taxi took us to Kemble station where we found the car safe and sound but very dusty. It started first time. So by 7.10pm we were away and heading for the M5 and home. An easy drive saw us in Congleton by 9.30pm. I dropped off Mike and came straight home for a welcome shower and cheese on toast. I felt in relatively good condition and was soon falling asleep dreaming about the logistics of getting from Kemble to Oakham next spring.

Biddestone dep. 08.50
Tunnel House Inn arr. 18.20

9hrs 30mins for 28 miles (estimated).