A blustery morning for us as we stepped out for our walk which had been postponed for a fortnight due to bad weather.  It wasn’t too long before the sun shone on us which made it a lot more pleasant.    Chatting between ourselves, and with cheery greetings to oncoming fellow walkers and dogs, we made our way around the enclosure on gravel paths with fewer muddy patches than we expected.    That being so, we found ourselves back closer to the car park earlier than anticipated so branched off to a path that led down to a river which was quite fast-flowing due to the massive amounts of rain we’ve experienced in the last few weeks.    Retracing our steps and then  moving onto a grass track, we made our way back to our cars about 75 minutes from when we started, having put the world to rights in our conversations throughout the walk.   

With lungs full of fresh air we were all ready to face the rest of the day and enjoy the weekend ahead.    Come and join us next time, date and place not yet decided, for a morning of conviviality- guaranteed!

Charmian and Ken

 A bright, sunny but blustery morning saw 9 members meeting near Brockenhurst on Friday last for the first main walk of 2024.

Striking off from the Beachern car park area across the grass and a road, avoiding some rather large puddles, we made our way down a gravel road by some imposing houses with gardens sporting many daffodils and other spring flowers.    Skipping away from an approaching dust cart we continued to the end of the lane which brought us to Burley road and close to St Saviours church.    Continuing past the Brockenhurst ford we made our way to Meerut road and across Butts Lawn and Black Knowl by way of a long straight footpath of several hundred yards to  Bolderford Bridge and time to play Pooh sticks in the fast flowing river.  One or two of us were lucky to catch sight of a kingfisher darting along the water.    Going back slightly we struck right to Ober Corner where we picked up the road which led us back to the car park.  There were quite a few muddy patches to negotiate but puddles gave good opportunities to wash it off our wellies.

Two hours of steady walking and a lot of happy conversation provided an enjoyable morning spent with friends.    Thanks to Ingrid and Brian for organising it for us.

Driving back towards Brock it was sad to see that The Cloud Hotel (where we had enjoyed some U3A Christmas dinners) was now being converted into housing.    Life goes on.

Expect a short walk towards the end of March.  Details to follow.        Ken.