A Socially Distanced Holiday in Church Stretton, Shropshire10-17th July 2020
On Friday afternoon10th July, 14 ESW members arrived, in glorious sunshine, at Longmynd House, Church Stretton, set on a hillside in the heart of Shropshire, and surrounded by spectacular scenery and wonderful walking trails.
Unsure what to expect as the first visitors to arrive at the hotel after lockdown, we needn’t have worried, as the staff gave us a warm, but socially distanced, welcome, and it was clear they had worked very hard to try and cater for all our needs, whilst adhering to the Covid guidelines. We were initiated into the one way system, with particular emphasis around the bar area - unfortunately with mixed results, as some of us failed to notice the large, bright red, “NO ENTRY” signs, resulting in a few collisions...
After unpacking and drinks in the bar, we were shown to our own private dining room, with full table service, and dedicated staff attending to our every need, where we all enjoyed a 5 course taster menu. Staff were very forbearing, particularly with one person who was very exacting; on being asked whether they wanted their egg soft or hard boiled, the answer was “in between”, and it took the entire week before the “crispy bacon and burnt toast” order was achieved to satisfaction – someone suggested the person should have provided the staff with a coded colour chart.
Over coffee, Tony P went through the next day’s walks, dividing them into two groups of 6, plus leader, with staggered timings, to follow SD guidelines, and, with members opting each day which group to join, this worked very well.
On Saturday morning, we all set off on our first challenging walk up the hills to the top of the Long Mynd, with its dramatic, deeply cut valleys and fantastic panoramic views of the countryside. The views were breathtaking, and it was lovely to be out walking, post lockdown, with company, in the fresh air, on a beautifully sunny day. Sheep were everywhere on the peaceful hilltops. We came across Welsh mountain ponies with foals, interesting birds, and even an occasional glider. This walk went on to be rated the best by many at the end of the week.
Post dinner, we discovered that, due to Covid, we had to make our own entertainment, so Helen and I devised some pen and paper word games, which were fun, noisily contested, with plenty of wine and laughter to help us along. My quiz was ditched after two nights for being “too difficult”, so we continued with Helen’s quiz, which everyone seemed to enjoy, and with all of the group joining in by the end of the week.
Another beautiful day on Sunday, and a long walk to Wart Hill crowned by the ring of an Iron Age fort, with some steep climbs, and rewarded with stunning viewpoints.
On Monday, we tackled the Ragleth and Hope Bowdler Hills, going over two hills to the East of Church Stretton, and a 2,930ft ascent - again with some amazing views.
Tuesday’s walk to Ironbridge along woodland paths, a disused railway track, and hard surface lanes was a contrasting terrain to the previous hill walks, starting from the picturesque medieval town of Much Wenlock, and arriving for our picnic lunch at Ironbridge, a world-famous heritage site. A few of us came away with the feeling that this was a place to revisit and spend more time sightseeing in this beautiful area. Some indulged in ice creams and Eley’s of Ironbridge’s World Famous Pork Pies, in addition to the ample HF picnic bag of goodies – so generous that a number of us admitted to having a stockpile of treats in our rooms, to indulge in after the day’s walk.
Helen summed up the general feeling after the day’s walk, saying, “You always get that warm, fuzzy feeling afterwards....”
Wednesday’s walk was another challenging ascent to The Long Mynd via the Carding Mill Valley. Some of the group who took the longer route possibly regretted it as they found themselves having to fight their way uphill through an overgrown bracken path.I took a day off to meet my relatives who drove up from Staffordshire, and we thoroughly enjoyed pottering around the independent shops in Church Stretton, ending with a superb lunch at the medieval Ragleth Inn in Little Stretton, which is highly recommended.
It didn’t go unnoticed that I was permanently attached to my old red sunhat, so it was no surprise that, after losing it during Monday’s walk on the hills, I was bereft, and received support from the rest of the group. Two days later, having come to terms with the loss, something miraculous happened.
Everyone was relaxing with drinks in the bar on Wednesday evening, when Stephen T made a catwalk entrance, with a familiar looking red hat perched on his head, much to my wide-eyed and jaw-dropping amazement.Going on ahead of the group, and having taken a wrong turn, Stephen had walked 100 metres down a path, only to see the hat, which he immediately recognised, perched on a tree branch.
Within an area covering 3,500 acres, the hat had travelled 5.5 miles from where it was lost, having walked across a main road, a railway crossing, past 2 gates, over 4 stiles, and along a wooded valley footpath before arriving on the tree branch, presumably deposited by somebody who didn’t rate it sufficiently to keep it. HF now has a new nickname of “Hats Found” to replace the former “Husbands Found”..!.
On Thursday, we ascended The Lawley, one of the smaller hills, and an interesting walk. Some of the group chose the shorter route with the intention of shopping afterwards, and found themselves on an unintentionally different variation of the route, so it took longer than the other group’s long walk! All turned out alright in the end, and we reached the shops in time.
After dinner, there were some “thank yous”, and a particularly large box of chocolates was presented to Tony P for his hard work, while Helen thanked everyone for the daily bottles of red wine and Prosecco that landed on her table throughout the week as a thank you from the group. The evening ended with Rosie reciting her “Ode to Church Stretton”, a characterisation snapshot of all the walkers – brilliant.
Finally, our thanks to Tony for plotting the socially distanced routes, to all the leaders for their guidance, and to Helen of course for her excellent organisation of the holiday, and the lovely dresses she wore each day!
Patricia W
