Around Rhinefield

Date:
Location:
Walk Leader:
Participants:
Distance:
Parking:
Lunch:

8 February 2017
Rhine field
Ray
Ray, Peter
7.3 miles
Blackwater Car Park
Cat and Fiddle  ★★★☆☆

This walk follows Wet Weather Walk No.10.  The small mauve markers  on this map show the positions of some of the numbered cycle posts.
We started by heading along the road towards the entrance to Rhinefield House, following the road around so that there is a view of the house on the right of the road, crossing the cattle grid and then turning into Aldridgehill Inclosure.  It was good to get off the road though it had not been very busy.

Aldridgehill Inclosure

​Although this path is not a cycle track it is quite well made up.  It is however a little muddy in places as a result of all the logging work that is taking place.
We turned left onto the road at cycle marker 266 and then straight on for the cycle track where the road bends sharply right at Ober Corner.

The majority of this walk is through wooded areas but it feels a little different here as Black Knowl presents a large open space to the right of the path.  After Bolderford Bridge a little care needs to be taken to stay on the cycle track and ignore the one to New Park Farm.
​We found a well placed tree trunk to sit and have refreshments in Hursthill Inclosure a little before the marker 255.

Before The Roman Road!

The bridge shortly after marker 254 provided a good opportunity for a team photo.  The trees just off to the left of the path seemed to be in a very sorry state with most of them looking distinctly dead.  In fact it gave the area a rather spooky look.  The path after the bridge must be around 1km long and is almost dead straight just vanishing into the distance.

As we reached Poundhill Inclosure we were almost back at the car but that would have made the walk too short so we turned right at 250 following the cycle track to cross the road near Brock Hill.  We then took a circular route back to the car park passing through the Blackwater Arboretum. We met a couple of bird watchers who had just arrived there but their timing was a little off as it was just starting to spit with rain.  It was starting to get quite heavy by the time we had taken our boots off and got in the car.  Good timing for us!

There are some fairly long straight stretches of track that makes this walk a little less interesting than some others such as those one around Wilverley for example.  It is however pleasant enough and the paths are all dry so not a bad choice during wet periods.

Bolderford Bridge

Arboretum Entrance - Looking Back

We enjoyed another good lunch in the Cat and Fiddle at Hinton Admiral.