I left at 9 having had a leisurely breakfast and thinking through supply for next 2 days. Amazing where the time goes - I was up at 7. But I do always like to keep airbnbs as tidy as when I arrived and to triple check I’ve not left anything behind.
A pleasant walk along the course of the River ensued, to be topped off by the sight of sand martins - a colony of at least 20 flying around the river near their burrows in the sand banks - it was hard to tell actual numbers as they kept going into their holes! And I’d been keeping my eye out for dippers and kingfishers …. No sign of those!
Came to Strefford with a couple of attractive timber framed cottages but was soon out and heading for the limestone escarpment of Wenlock Edge. I’m told once you’re on there it is pretty flat and straightforward walking - I was keeping my fingers crossed as it was a fair step to Lower Farm campsite, my destination for the night.
I crossed the footbridge by the ford and then to my surprise spotted a dipper totally unconcerned by me - followed by its partner. I was thrilled - they are such handsome birds and fascinating to watch as they bob up and down on the rocks and surprise you by how able they are swimming under water.
A gentleman came past who was an avid birdwatcher. Apparently the sandmartins must have only arrived this morning as he’d only seen a few passing through - these would be the colony that returns each year so he was going to take a look. He told me that the dippers have a nest just by the footbridge. There are otters but you rarely see them and a kingfishers does nest downstream. Ah well, I’m very satisfied with what I’ve seen today. Plenty more time for other sightings! What a joy this walk is.
He had also given me some tips for avoiding the quagmire going up onto the Edge; his tip was certainly welcome when I saw the quagmire. Following his small deviation and in true John O’Groats plodder style, as I’ve come to call my uphill speed, I slowly but surely reached the top of the scarp and wandered on a bit further to find a nice spot for an elevenses break. I certainly won’t be winning any prizes for speed!
The smell of wild garlic started to rise up as the day warmed, the bluebells really coming into flower and the beech trees were just breaking into leaf. Even so the trees largely masked the views across to the hills around Church Stratton and the Wrekin.
There were carpets of wood anemones along the walk - I’ve never seen them like this before. They were quite outdoing the bluebells! And the blackcaps were in full song.
I was flagging so stopped for lunch at 13:00 on a beautiful moss covered hollow at the base of a beech tree. Going on there were a fair number of trees blown down mainly the firs rather than the beech but providing some interesting obstacles to the path.
For awhile the path followed the edge of some cultivated fields but then started to drop down and undulate along the scarp face. When the choice came, I chose to follow the Shropshire Way along an old railway line. In the end this became a bit tedious so wasn’t necessarily the best choice, but it did mean I arrived at the campsite to set up a rather wet tent and dry it out before cooking supper and settling out for an early night. Ideally, I want to set out early tomorrow as rain is forecast later in the day.
I am so excited to meet up with Georgie and Maria and hope to be well in my way to Ironbridge by the time they’ve been able to navigate the Easter traffic. Time for birthday celebrations!. And then it’s three nights in one place as we will use Cannock Chase as our base - bliss! I won’t be doing that again until Martin joins me in Scotland in June!!
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