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Gussage All Saints

25/7/2017

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Date:
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Lunch:

25 July 2017
Aussage All Saints
Ray, Peter
6.7 miles
Beside the church
Table Table, Holes Bay, Poole ★★★☆☆

The observant may notice this walk was on a Tuesday.  With only two of us walking we have morphed from Wednesday Walkers to any day when the weather looks good walkers!  Thanks to the Thursday Walkers for their good wishes to Clive.  He is making progress - slowly.  We are sometimes the Thirsty Walkers is that the same?

This is a great walk, at this time of year, if you like wild flowers and butterflies. 
It is not however suitable for a large group as there is really only parking for one car at our starting point beside the church.  We have not tried this but it would be worth asking if it was possible to start and finish a walk at the Drovers Inn, but be aware that they only serve lunch until 2pm.  Starting at Knowlton Church (remains) might be another possibility and that is always worth a visit.

It is an easy route to follow and there is a marked absence of styles or other obstacles.  It was a bright and very warm day so we were quite pleased to be travelling along easy paths.  We stopped for a break fairly early when we reached Harley gap.  This was prompted by the heat and the fact that there were numerous sections of tree trunk ideal two sit on or to use as occasional tables.
At this junction you can see the memorial stone to John Ironmonger 1919-1986.  A somewhat unusual thing to find out in the 
countryside.
​Just the other side of Harley Gap there was a beautiful field full of poppies and other wild flowers and so we had a small excursion to take a few pictures.  It was lovely to see the variety especially as there were some really bright cornflowers which seem to have vanished from so many places.
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The Red Carpet
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A Too Seldom Seen Sight
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The Open Country
Dropping down from the high point on Gussage Hill, from where there are some wonderful panoramic views, we were surrounded by a great selection of butterflies.  They were mostly moving far to quickly to get any decent photos but it was fun trying all the same.

We thought the walk would be a bit too short so we headed North agin along the old Roman Road but as it was up hill all the way it seemed rather more of a challenge than it was coming down in the other direction.  Never mind we achieved our objective and crossing over to the woods at Burtt’s Harley and then back to the church we had walked 6.7 miles.
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John Ironmonger Memorial
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Feeling Warm
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Gussage All Saints Church
As Ray had a voucher we headed back to Table Table beside Holes Bay and had a good lunch of fish and chips at a most acceptable price.
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Wilverley

19/7/2017

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Date:
Location:
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Participants:
Distance:
Parking:
Lunch:

19 July 2017
Wilverley
Peter
Peter, Ray
6.1 miles
Lower car park at Wilverley
The Cat and Fiddle, Hinton Admiral ★★★☆☆

​The Walkers Blog has been rather quiet for the last couple of months as a result of a series of holidays.  Unfortunately while on holiday, with the family, Clive had a very serious stroke and has been in hospital(s) ever since.  His recovery has been slow and very much an up and down affair.  Every day we hope and wait for some positive news.


This Wednesday Ray and I headed off to an area we have walked a few times before.  The weather was looking rather uncertain and we were not sure what the ground was going to be like.  After four or five weeks of virtually no rain last night it bucketed down.

We have tried on one or two occasions to cross Avon Water but as you can see from the map we failed to make it this time as well.  Next time we attempt this we plan to take some good sturdy and deep plastic bags to act as temporary waders - yes - really.  We tried with Iceland bags but the water was just too deep!

We had two plans one assumed we could get across and the other we could not so this is the “could not option”.

We were quite surprised to find a man and his daughter with a fishing rod by the Avon Water.  We were even more surprised when after a very short time they caught a small brown trout.

We retraced our steps back into Wilverley Inclosure and headed towards the corner where it is possible to leave the Inclosure and walk down to the Tea Rooms.  Crossing the road we then continued along the disused railway.  This is a very pleasant stroll and as you pass the old platform you can just imagine a train puffing its way along here before the avenue of trees started closing in.

We stopped for a break just before reaching Holmsley Lodge by which time it was becoming slightly misty and there seemed to be rain just hanging in the air.  Although not shown on the map there is quite a decent path along the outside of Holmsley Inclosure at this point.

We decided to turn left off the road and back down the hill leaving the Inclosure at north east edge.  This is another easy path that crosses three bridges in quick succession towards the end.  A great place for posing.


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Three Bridges
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Two Posers
We crossed the road, west through a gate and into a field where we had to look quite hard to find the footbridge.  It is very close to the road.  We then tried to find a way through the car park.  This was not such a good idea and it would be far better to simply walk around the road to reach the path back into Wilverley Inclosure.

We arrived back at the car at the surprisingly early time of 13:30 and drove to the Cat and Fiddle where we enjoyed a half rack of ribs.  They were tasty and tender but the portions were somewhat small.  Nevertheless with some chips, a slice of grilled pineapple and large bowls of salad it was a very pleasant lunch.
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