I didn't want to travel far today as we were setting off the next day for our long Dales Way walk and I had last minute packing to do, but it seemed a waste of a day not to get out somewhere - always my philosophy - so I chose Halstock as I still had some squares to fill in there, despite having walked from there several times.
Phew! That was a long sentence! I parked on the street and set off in a south-westerly direction down Common Lane.
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| House on Common Lane, Halstock - ST5307 |
This is a lovely wooded lane that runs for about two miles between Halstock and Corscombe and was probably used to drive cattle in days of yore. It also passes the site of a Roman villa near the village golf course, but that's quite a common thing in these parts so nothing to get excited about, particularly as there's nothing left to see anyway.
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| Common Lane, Halstock - ST5207 |
I turned right at Ocean Hill and headed for Brackett's Coppice, a reserve managed by the Dorset Wildlife Trust in an area of mixed woodland with a river running through it. It's a lovely pocket of land and largely unvisited compared with other more popular sites.
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| Near Ocean Hill - ST5206 |
I entered the next gridsquare before turning right into the reserve proper.
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| Near Brackett's Coppice - ST5106 |
I was not alone in the reserve; some of DWT staff were monitoring the success of the Marsh Fritillary butterfly by counting their caterpillars. I was surprised to see anybody else out that day, but pleased that the site was being managed and watched and enjoyed by others. We have sometimes wondered if we were the only people other than dog walkers to come here.
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| Brackett's Coppice - ST5107 |
There's only one flaw with Brackett's Coppice that I can see and that is the lack of anywhere to sit with your picnic. We have encountered this problem before and ended up sitting on the bridge with our sandwiches - and that's exactly what I did today in the hope that, as with the last visit, a Kingfisher would fly by. It didn't. But I sat enchanted by the orchestral sound of the river, listening for each ripple and deep boom and laughter of the river as it flowed eternally on. There is something very soothing about a river's course. I think, for me, it has something to do with its energy, its life and its temporal nature; there is nothing stagnant about a river (unless there's been a drought); it is always moving, always going somewhere and never lingering, dwelling on obstacles. It is a metaphor for life - or should be. I find a river at once inspiring to and energising and yet soothing and quietening. I'm not sure how that is possible,but it is and I found it so today as I sat and listened to its message.
After deciding that the Kingfisher was not going to honour me with a visit that day, I exited the reserve via the route I am familiar with and turned right at the triangle, northwards towards Sydney Farm. I'd never walked along this bit before and i always find new territory exciting.
I turned left at Baker's Farm and entered a new gridsquare, a very muddy one in parts too. With Paul's written words ringing in my ears ("Don't get muddy!") I managed to swerve most of the mud keeping the newly cleaned and waxed boots as pristine as I could ready for our holiday.
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| Gate near Baker's Farm - ST5007 |
I walked under the pylons and into the next gridsquare - the one which contains the Dorset/Somerset border - ST5008. A gap in the hedge made an adequate subject for a photograph of this square, albeit not a very exciting one!
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| Near Higher Halstock Leigh and the Somerset border - ST5008 |
I deliberately detoured so as to enter another bordering gridsquare - ST5108, using a new build at Pear Tree House as my subject for this square.
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| Pear Tree House - ST5108 |
There is only about a mile between Higher and Lower Halstock Leigh and I walked most of it on the road, returning to the Brackett's Coppice square between the two hamlets and passing Winford Farm.
Overland Farm had an attractive barn to photograph for ST5207.
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| Barn at Overland Farm - ST5207 |
I was supposed to walk through a field here but there was an electric fence and horses in the way, so I walked round the field and briefly entered ST5208 near Halstock Mill.
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| Field near Halstock Mill - ST5208 |
I turned right towards Halstock instead of left to Halstock Mill.
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| Sign to Halstock Mill - ST5308 |
I was near my beginning now and walked across a final field to the church, pausing to take a photograph of a rather broken footpath sign.
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| Footpath sign near Halstock Church - ST5308 |
The last time I visited St Juthware and St Mary's Church in Halstock, there had been a wedding there and I had been mightily disappointed not to be able to look round and shelter from the snow shower. This time I lingered longer, taking time to work out the clues for the microcache that is hidden nearby and to look once more at John Pitt's grave and muse on longevity, on villages and forthcoming holidays - then away I must for my next walk would be a long one!
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| St Juthware and St Mary's Church, Halstock - ST5308 |
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| The grave of John Pitt whose life spanned three centuries, Halstock churchyard - ST5308 |
Number of new gridsquares: 6
Number of miles: 7.6
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