Saturday 26 May – Lichfield to Abbots Bromley
Today took us from the cathedral city of Lichfield to the village of Abbots Bromley – or, rather, just outside, to the Marsh Farm B&B.
The first part was mostly lanes, through to Cannock Chase, an extensive woodland area. We met up with Debs and Jo and walked through the woodlands, dodging the puddles from the previous day’s rain. Cannock Chase is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB)- actually, the smallest such area in the UK – and much is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. It has mixture of natural deciduous woodland, coniferous plantations, open heathland and the remains of early industry, such as coal mining. By UK standards, it is a special place indeed.
All too soon we were out of the forest, through the town of Rugeley, a short stretch of canalside walking, some lane walking – then following the Staffordshire Way along footpaths across farmland to Abbots Bromley.
To NZ readers, ‘footpaths’ may conjure up images of reasonably well-formed tracks. In practice, a footpath in the UK is merely a right of way. Depending on usage, maintenance and the support or otherwise of the farmer, they can range from the delightful, easy to walk, through cropland or perhaps sheep fields, to the abysmal – generally those involving cattle. The latter are treacherous, uneven, always threatening to twist an unwary ankle. This afternoon fell into that camp, a slow, careful, tiring walk, carefully picking our way through dense grass, looking for a level bit of ground to put our next footstep. So… not our favourite!
We met up with Debs and Jo at our B&B, then drove a short way in their campervan to a bank overlooking a large reservoir. Debs and Jo then took great delight in cooking for us (we are possibly their first “guests”) and produced a wonderful pasta dish, complete with plenty of vegetables. We sat in the early evening sun, thoroughly enjoying both the setting and our really tasty and healthy meal. A feast indeed!
To complete the day, we repaired to the Crown Inn in Abbots Bromley to watch the European Champions League final between Liverpool and Real Madrid. If you are going to watch a football match on TV then doing so in a pub, full of locals with everyone in good spirits, is a great way to do it – and so it proved. Whilst the result did not go the way we all wanted, it was still an absolutely enjoyable evening. We returned to Marsh Farm, a really warm, comfortable and welcoming B&B, for a good night’s sleep.
Finally, just a special mention for Debs and Jo who have been just simply legendary – transporting our packs and providing lunch and cooking dinner and being great company! And what’s more, they are going to do more of the same tomorrow! Thanks so much.
Distance: 27km
Scrumpy to Scotch 