Hiking Shropshire

I was scanning the farmer’s fields that doubled as a campsite for a small grey tent. I spotted it just as I saw an arm wave in the air. I had found Jitske, and she had found me. Time for a hug! Then I plonked down my bag and sat down in the grass. It was a lovely evening. Jitske had been to the shop so there was beer, crisps and grapes. Lovely. 

The first things I got out of my bag were her new shoes. They were important! She showed me the state of her old ones. I could see the urgency of their replacement. And she tried the new ones on straight away. They were good!

She gave me something in return: a bilingual poetry collection! Her route had taken her through Hay on Wye, and she had noticed on the blog I only read prose in Welsh. So she thought she was in the right place to fill a void in my life. That was really sweet of her!

I pitched my tent and we caught up over the foodstuffs. It was a really nice evening. And after a shower we went to bed. 

The next day we got up at a reasonable time and had breakfast. We were off about 8am. The hike began! We started in the shade, but were soon in an open field. In the sun. That was a bit hot! I was soon hiking in a singlet, even though that makes the shoulder straps chafe a bit. But it was beautiful. Jitske navigated on her Cicerone LEJOG guide. 

Hiking in the Shropshire fields

Shropshire is a bit like the shire. Rolling fields with hedgerows, and cute villages. Very well-maintained villages. A well-off county, by the looks of it! 

We had coffee at a random picnic table. And later, lunch by Hopton Castle. That was a nice bonus: a pretty ruin only a stone’s throw from the route. And over lunch we discussed options for the rest of the day.

Hiking selfie

Hopton Castle 

When I go camping I’m always wild camping. It’s the best way! You only need a flat spot the size of your tent, and a stream. But that’s in Eryri. We were now in Shropshire! There you can’t assume you can drink the surface water. So we decided to find a camping again. There seemed to be loads of them on our side of Craven Arms. That would do! 

We walked on; Jitske doing the last part of it on Crocs, as she hates walking in hiking boots on asphalt. But the boots had done a fine job! They got Jitske’s approval. I’m glad as they have to carry her a long way.  And we hit Broome, where the campsite of our choice was. It wasn't scenic like the previous one, with its ancient farm buildings, but it had an empty field with a view over the hills. And, of course, drinking water. Good enough! We pitched up. 

Our home for the night

When the tents stood we decided to check out the local(ish) shop. It was in the next village along, but it was closed. Bummer! We walked back and I got my mini bottle of whisky out. And then I looked at the weather forecast. It looked like it could start raining any time, and then it wouldn’t stop. So we decided to have a shower and start cooking straight away. A good call! After dinner we had two short chats when the rain wasn’t all too heavy, but otherwise we just retreated into our respective tents. So it was an early night! 

The next day I woke up at 5:30, probably because we had gone to bed so early. I didn't think Jitske would appreciate that sort of time to get up so I dozed for a bit. But I thought 6 am was acceptable. She had mentioned leaving the campsite at seven, and in order to do that you pretty much have to get up at six. So I got out of my tent and woke her up. And I started water for coffee.

It was a bit grey but dry, and fine walking weather. We had breakfast and packed up, and were gone by 7:15. The fields soon took us to Stokesay Castle, which was gorgeous. We had hoped to be able to go in, but it was 8:30, and it wasn’t open yet. So we kept walking.

The landscape

Stokesay Castle from the adjacent cemetery 

We walked to Craven Arms, where we had coffee and biscuits by the river. From there we made our way to Wenlock Edge; basically it’s a Silurian coral reef tilted a bit, with its western side eroded off and the eastern side vanishing into the subsurface. So we made it up the steep edge, and then had an easy ridge walk from there. 

The ridge is forested, so you don’t actually get much of a view over the much lower land on the west. And you don’t see much limestone. But it’s pleasant enough! And I wanted to at least have experienced it before I would swing off. I had to make my way back to north Wales! My next visitor was imminent. 

On Wenlock Edge

We had lunch in a sunny spot, and then we followed the path until it crossed a road. And there we said goodbye! That road would take me back to the railroad. And that would take me home. It was only 12:30, but we had done 15 km already. Jitske would do a that again, and then some, in the afternoon! She’s tough. 

It had been good to see each other! We’re all caught up now. And now that I’d left she could do her usual 20-mile-plus days again. I can do that, but I would end up with very sore feet, and quite unlike Jitske, I mind. She just keeps going. She’s done much tougher hikes than this. 

I’ll keep an eye on her progress, and vicariously hike along, through her blog. So if you want to know how she experienced these two days (days 34 and 35 for her) you can check yourself…