An accident with a wheelie bin caused damage to my hand and a long pause between stage 1 and 2 because I couldn't drive. By early July my fingers could operate the gear lever and handbrake well enough to get me back to Hampshire.
New Alresford
Part of a large plaque on a wall near St John the Baptist church shows part of its long history; it was granted to the church at Winchester by Kenwalc, a 7th century king of Wessex.
The small, attractive town of New Alresford was bustling with people on the sunny Wednesday morning of 9th July. On Google Maps there had been spaces in the bird's-eye view of the small car park. Today the were none.
There are those who pray for car park spaces, so I sent up an urgent prayer. Arriving at the exit and just about to leave, I stared in amazement as a car pulled out in front of me. All I had to do was roll forward and straight in to the vacated space. A prayer answered? I said thank you, just in case.
Even before getting to the main road, I got distracted by a magnificent display of cakes and buns in a shop window. A slab of ginger cake with lemon icing tucked in my rucksack, I set off to walk back to where I'd left the St Swithun's Way nearly 2 months before.
Watercress
The path ran to the south of the town, and past what this area is famous for: watercress beds.
The fast flowing, clear water is idea for the growing of watercress which looked so green and healthy, and induced thoughts of watercress and orange salad, watercress soup, and other watercressy delights, but approaching footsteps diverted me from this pleasant reverie.
Wildlife!
Solitary walkers seldom pass each other without some exchange. As we chatted, the elderly chap said he'd once done a 22 hour overnight run and his knees had never been the same afterwards. But he managed an hour walk everyday with Connie. I looked round and could see no one; then a shaggy, golden head appeared over the side of the stream. Connie was a golden labrador and had been walking along the shallow, fast-flowing stream alongside the path.
One of the pleasures of walking is finding a good picnic spot for lunch. A grassy bank next to a watercress bed looked ideal, so I got out my food and flask and the ginger cake. Word had gone out, or maybe it was just the smell, and the local wildlife turned out in force. Ants were suddenly swarming over everything! They wanted my cake but anything would do - including me. It was a peculiarly Hitchcockian moment. Preferable, thought, to the scenes of picnics in Tom and Jerry - do you remember? The ants picking up all the food and disappearing with it in a line, food held high. I grabbed my food, removing squadrons of ants, and repacked everything in my rucksac. It doesn't do to sit on an ants nest! Lunch was delayed.
Wildlife, though, is one of the joys of walking especially in spring. This walk was full of wild flowers, butterflies, damselflies, buzzards and kites.
A chance sighting, and the only ones seen on the walk, of wild orchids. Their pale, delicate beauty nestling in a patch of grass was a delight.
St Nicholas' church, Bishop's Sutton
A welcome bench opposite the porch of St Nicholas' church provided a good spot for lunch.
Flint walls, brick porch and wooden tower made for a pleasing and strangely harmonious whole. The church dates back to Norman times; the small, round-topped windows indicate their great age.
A closed bible on the lectern had a pink sticky marking Matthew 10 v. 9 - 11
"Do not get any gold, or silver, or copper to take with you in your belts - no bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff, for the worker is worth his keep."
St Peter's church, Ropley
Coming off St Swithun's Way and walking up the road a little way, thick evergreen foliage hid the church so it wasn't until I'd opened the gate and gone into the churchyard that the shocking sight brought me to a halt. It was one of those moments to make one stop and stare with incomprehension at the totally unexpected.
Later I found out that the fire had happened only two weeks ago. It started in the morning, caused by an electrical fault. I walked on, shocked and saddened by the loss.
Lost in the Woods
Early on, the paths had been wide and easy going, like the one next to the watercress beds.
and finally became a confused muddle in the depths of a wood.
On the map, two paths were marked going through the wood. There were four paths. One area had been logged, with the tree trunks still laying around in disorder obliterating St Swithun's Way.
I got well and truly lost!
This is where a sat nav would be useful but I choose not to carry one. Part of the fun of walking alone is trying to map read accurately, but woods seem always to pose problems. Today the compass wasn't necessary as the sun was shining, and I kept it behind me making my way to the other side of the wood. Coming along the edge of the wood I searched for signs of the St Swithun's Way...and found it.
It sounds simple but wasn't. There were brambles to snag and catch at the legs, felled trees blocked the path. The path branched occasionally and a couple of times I ended up in an impassable dead end. Flies buzzed around in the still, humid air, and I got hotter and hotter. Doubt and dismay drove away the pleasure of being out in the country. And an absurd amount of relief felt when, emerging from the wood and walking down the side of it, I got back on the path. A stile out of the wood, a finger post proclaiming 'St Swithun's Way' and the clear path, snaking across a wheatfield, which I swung onto, back on track, happy again and glad to be out in the fresh air.
All too soon the hours passed and it was time to leave St Swithun's Way to go north to the main road.
This path took me across fields and then between high garden hedges.
Late afternoon and flies enjoyed the still air. It pays to walk with the mouth closed in such places.
The path emerged onto the main road, opposite a Co-op store - a source of water and a bag of tangy satsumas which kept me going while I waited for the bus back to New Alresford.
Back in New Alresford I went to look at the church, drowsing in the early evening sunshine. Too late; it was locked.
New Alresford, market place with St John the Baptist church in the background
Wandering back towards the car, the smell of fish and chips beckoned. The young woman behind the counter said she was going walking soon, to the Lake District. We chatted about walking and she gave me an enormous helping of chips with the fish. Perhaps I looked hungry? I was hungry. Back in the car I ate the whole lot - and very good they were too!
Stage 2 completed.
Distance on path: 8.4 miles
Total distance : 9.9 miles
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