The Kineton & 'Halfway House' walk

Wow what a start to a walk both Dave and I were extremely hung over and we also started a lot later than normal at 2 p.m..
Doc leaf Liz had a very different weekend with the sad lost of her gran (r.i.p.) So she was feeling pretty drained from the start of the walk, after saying that though she will feature most in this blog for the obvious 'day after the night before' feeling from Dave and I. Ironically we started at the 'Halfway house' and ate first but no alcohol was taken, but I did get a full 'rare' roast beef. I was so hungry that I started to eat before taking a pic for the blog, by the time I had remembered the picture did not do it justice, as the meal was one of the very best roast dinners that i've had in a public house. We will return very soon, sadly I was so hung over that I could not finish it. Now this never happens, so I think there is a lesson for me there somewhere.
The walk started in earnest and with some groans all round mainly from Liz and I.
Hazel nuts were found and gathered up by Liz, this walk was to prove a foodie one but more of that later. . . We passed over a ford first which is in a very lovely setting at the edge of Kineton, this week I've started to read a 'navigation for walkers' book, so with my new found map reading skills decided to lead the walk. Off we went in the general direction of the excellently named 'Upper Slaughter' we passed the Cotswold farm park that I remember going to as a kid on school trips. After by passing said village we then had a decision to make shall we extend the walk or go the way we had intended, country curry Dave thought we should extend it but Liz, like me said we shouldn't. This was very wise as we were eventually gone for over 4 and a half hours. The whole walk was fairly flat in comparison to our normal hilly stuff, just as well really! But Liz this is no time for a Larry Lie Down. So Onwards we went and small horse's seemed to be the order of the day as they took a likening to liz.
On reaching Naunton we decided to pop in the 'Black horse' for a pint of BB, not fazed or frightened off from last night, (fools!) Liz had a half, good girl! I like a girl that drinks bitter, or as she called it a 'Pale ale'

I think the rest did us good as the walk did liven up some what. I had forgot to mention that we picked up some amazing maize earlier (sorry that was a bit corny) :-) This walk did turn into a little foraging episode with an abundance of free fruit on offer. In recent years i've been getting in to free food such a garlic, watercress & mushrooms etc, but today was amazing.
And after reaching 'Guiting Power' with the swing Liz in toe, The more we looked for fruit the more we found. Blackberries are everywhere at this time of year, and I keep meaning to bring something to carry them home in but never seem to remember. We did not identify all the stuff we ate but they tasted nice so we presumed they were ok to eat. The best was some small yellow cherry types but also some red ones too that looked like cherries but tasted like plums, then there was the delicious apples, Yum!

Eventually we did make it back, everyone was very tired, some of us moaned a bit, but I'll mention no names (liz) But considering that none of us were in great sprits at the start of the walk, we ended up much fitter and happier by the end.
Well Done!! Thanks for your continued support and nice comments it's time for bed for me and a jolly good rest before a double shift tomorrow.
Cheers Carl.

The Cowley & 'Green Dragon' Walk

Well today our team of walkers were exactly the same as last week, Dave (aka Country Curry Dave,) Liz (aka Doc Leaf Liz,) Ben and his dogs Farley and Sofie and of course myself.
We started from 'The Green Dragon' near Cowley Manor which is in a small village on the outskirts of Cheltenham off the Cirencester road.Leaving at 10 am we were welcomed by brilliant sunshine and light cool winds, again ideal for walking for the second week on a trot.Farley got in to his stride quickly and proceeded to chase every bird in sight, but mainly pheasant, so Ben had to put him on the leash.Sofie is a lot more chilled and slow so she doesn't need one, though she does like to pretend that she is hunting.The tracks were easy to follow as they were very well 'Way-marked' which is not always the case out on a walk in the Cotswolds. We continued up through a wood then hit lots of freshly ploughed & stone walled fields. Before finding ourselves on a narrow road on the way to Elkstone. And being September there are lots of berries on bush's and nuts in trees, so we duly got stuck in to some black berries throughout the walk. That was before stumbling upon some corn, where by 'country curry' picked some and unravel the leaves to take a bite, 'Sweet' was his verdict, so duly again we all got stuck in and had a bite, so much so that I finished it off, Delicious! What a treat! Forward we then went into a small valley then onto Colesbourne and from there up and over the hill passing a small stream for the dogs to drink, The views up there were pretty spectacular so I had to take a panoramic picture for the blog. Then onward in the direction to 'Seven Springs' before cutting back down the hill for yet more berries, and No it wont ruin our lunch because we've now been walking for 3 hours now and are absolutely starving.
So would the food at the 'Green Dragon' be 'Treat' Or 'Tripe' ? The Green Dragon is a quintessential English public house beside a quite but fairly steep road, so you'll need to watch out if crossing after having too many beers as the cars can speed up in order to reach the top. Inside it is a very clean and tidy place with beautiful exposed beams and a massive fireplace, so I'll have to check it out in winter. For lunch I had marinated lamb on a bed of spring onion mash and veg. Though the lamb was slightly over cook (I like mine pink) it didn't detracted from the taste which exploded in the mouth and went down all too quickly. It is a bit more pricey than the Woolpack last week, you can expect to pay around 12 to 16 pounds for a main course. But it was defiantly 'Treat'
Dave and Doc Leaf had a burger with bacon and mozzarella both report back with favorable verdicts.
Thats it for now i hope you've enjoyed my second Blog. . . . . . . . . Cheers Carl.

The Slad & Woolpack Walk.

Well today I can finally start this blog with a walk, and what a walk it is too.
We, i.e. Dave (aka Country Curry Dave,) Liz (aka Doc Leaf Liz,) Ben and his dogs Farley and Sofie and myself did my favorite walk which is in Slad.
Slad is a small village just outside Stroud in Gloucestershire, and about a 20 minute drive from my home in Cheltenham.
It's well known as Laurie Lee country a famous author of 'Cider with Rosie' If you ever get the chance to read this book then I highly recommend it. Slad is also famed for it's lush green valleys, woodlands and open spaces, idilic for a walk.

We set off from the Woolpack at 10 am, incidentally it is also my favorite Pubs but more of that later, we proceed to walk through the village pass some squawking ducks and start our first clime into the woodland area, it had been a bit stormy the night before so we were greeted with lovely fresh winds and sunny sky but with dark clouds traveling speedily across the landscape. Farley and Sofie started off as if they were pups again, unlike us humans who were feeling a little of the affects of a Saturday night out, but we all got quickly into our stride and pass the test of the first few hills and the odd rocky brook.

I seem to have been waiting for this time of year for a long while as i've been keeping my eye on some wild garlic that grow around here in abundance, in fact i've been waiting since the start of spring and now it is the end of summer.
In spring though you can eat the flowers and green shoots/leafs which are delicious and can be the perfect substitute to a normal portion of vegetables, and of course are completely free.
It is hard to see exactly where to dig as the leafs have long since gone now, but I guessed right straight away and started to dig with a stick I had found, also aided by Dave, We were soon rewarded with a bounty of small garlic cloves, they may need even more time to grow so I shall go back and check later in the year to see, but these will defiantly do.


Onwards we went and Farley nearly got into trouble as he bolted for Pheasant, dogs are shot for less in these parts, but Farley could not help himself even at the tender age of 67(doggy years that is) Liz then duly got her customary nettle sting, so a doc leaf was sort to sort her out,

and then we came to a very beautiful valley with a farm that is always admired by us. . . . . . . . . Very idilic indeed!

Of course we then needed to walk up and out of the valley so then began the long clime after 2 hours of walking and at least another 30 minuets to go, a few of us were getting tired, I'll mention no names. Needless to say the Woolpacks hearty roast dinner was upper most in our minds, so we continued through the farm over the brow of the hill and began to descend into the Slad valley and past some gorgeous house's that Laurie Lee would have appreciated in his day.



A narrow winding road lead us passed some horses and we arrived back at the Woolpack at 12:30 just as they started to serve up the roast.
Lamb and beef was had by us lot and a prawn salad for doc leaf Liz.
The food at the Woolpack is excellent but I always tend to eat the same thing Roast on Sundays or white Bait on Saturday but it is always delicious never the less.
A couple of my friends jointed me there about an hour later (Tom & Shelly) and had said as good as the food was, the salad he had with his trout was a tad gritty and could do with more of a wash. (we'll keep an eye on this)

We also stubbled upon what looked like a prize winning onion contest, what ever it was everyone seem to be having a lot of fun with it and raised a bit of money for charity. It also looked like a very English thing to and a nice way to round off this Blog. . . . . .
Thanks for reading my first Blog I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed doing it!!?? Why not add me to your bookmarks and check back every so often for more walks and pubs? Or get involved and leave me/us a comment.
Oh I nearly forgot to mention as well as my Fav pub & Fav walk, the Woolpack also does my Fav beer which is Ulay's 'Gloucester Old Spot' and for the record Dave's is the 'Pigs Ear'
A must for any walker!
You might be amazed to know that all these pictures were taken on my new mobile phone A Sony Ericsson K800i
Thanks Carl x

Country Walking and Pubs in the U.K.

Hi I'm Carl,
Shortly there will a new exciting Blog about walking and pubs in the U.K.
It will be aimed at the fun loving people of the UK and world who love their walking, beer and of course good food!
I'm or we, i.e.- (my friend Dave) are hoping to get a pod-cast going as well to complement this blog.
We will initially cover are own area which is the Beautiful and stunning Cotswolds.
We will also hope this will inspire people to get out of the armchair and cites and get into the countryside, or just have a laugh at our expence.
Trust me there is nothing better for the soul than a jolly good walk, and of course, it is one of the very best things for your health and fitness.
I hope you like the sound of this so check back in a week or two and we should be up and running.
Thanks.

These Boots were made for Walking