Bit of a long one today, wading through brambles and nettles, with a spot of wildlife rescue.
Wokefield Estate is clearly a popular location for lads golfing holidays. Sleep was little due to them coming and going throughout the night and holding phone calls in the corridors at 5am!
At 8.30am we made our way across the fields into Mortimer, calling at the shop for supplies. Unfortunately the pub with the stamp wasn’t open this early.
Over fields and through small woods led us into Silchester to collect the stamp at St. Mary’s church. Here is also the site of a Roman town, ‘Calleva Atrebatvm’.
It was a fairly large town for its time, the size evident from the remains of the surrounding wall that is still present.
The scenery that followed wasn’t very inspiring. The fields turned to metal structures where solar farms are being developed; power lines crisscrossed overhead. We were glad to reach Bramley, stopping for lunch at the farm shop and collecting the stamp from the church.
Then began the battle with brambles and nettles. The stinging, snagging tendrils grabbed at our bags and attacked my legs.
At Pamber End we called in at the pub for a cold drink and the stamp. The beer garden and sun enticed us to stay longer than we should have; we still had some way to go.
Fields and triffids continued to ‘Monk Sherborne’. While making our way along a wooded border, I spotted an owl that had its wing snared on barbed wire.
The poor thing was weak. I supported its weight off the wing and tried to untangle it, but the sharp metal had bored into its flesh. The wire would need cutting to free it – wire cutters are not a tool within a pilgrim’s arsenal.
I pulled its talons to the wire letting it hang like a bat to ease the pressure on the wing, and flagged down a dog walker. She knew the farmer and went to get his help to free the bird.
I left the owl in their capable hands; we couldn’t hang around as evening was approaching fast and we still had 5km to go.
The descent into Basingstoke passed the golf course, over a very busy road, through a farm and down a wooded tunnel into Worting, completing the stage at the church.
A long one today, but that is part of the journey.
Stu's Camino 