Old Sodbury

The word of the day is ‘mud’. Yesterday’s rain has caused the paths to form a claggy muddy mess. Each step caused my foot to slide, then it would stick to my boots! Several times I almost did the stranded turtle pose!

As I wouldn’t be camping for the rest of the trip and to lighten the load enabling me to pick up the pace, I sent my tent and sleeping bag back home. Only snag was the post office didn’t open until 0900hrs. By the time I got it all sorted it had gone 0930hrs.

The late start and the mud underfoot slowed me down, however the uphills where now easier! Straight out of Dursley the ascent was devilish. Already offloading the tent had paid off.

The path then went immediately downhill into North Nibly with its huge monument looking over the village. I just knew I would be climbing up to it, and I was correct!

After the steep incline I got to the top where I was presented with panoramic views and the river Severn in the distance; I could even see the white towers of the ‘Severn Bridge’!

I then descended into Wotton under Edge just as I had the first and only rain shower of the day. Other than that it remained sunny. A stark difference from the day before; I put my umbrella to good use.

Coming out of Wotton was my third steep incline; that’s three in 6 miles! I got chatting to a fellow walker following the route northwards. Thankfully he said it’s mostly downhill into Bath.

As it is Saturday, there were plenty of people out enjoying the good weather. Seeing me with my big backpack peaked their interest and I stopped to chat with them. It was great to have a friendly chat to spur me on.

From here on it undulated but no more big climbs. As I descended into Wortley the path followed a narrow muddy ravine that was blocked by a fallen tree; another casualty from the storms.

After a bit of a muddy scramble I circumnavigated it before reaching Wortley and Alderley where I stopped to eat my sandwiches.

I continued on into Hawksbury Upton where there was a field of lambs chasing each other. I paused to take in the moment before plodding on. It wasn’t long before I entered Little Sudbury where two lovely elderly ladies walking their dogs spotted my backpack.

I’m glad I stopped to chat with them as they gave me an alternative route to my BnB that avoided walking along a busy ‘A’ road; a bit of Cotswold magic?!

Despite starting very late I arrived just after 1630hrs. It had been a good day on the way, only one more to go. Tomorrow Bath.