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This Week's Walks - Archive

Please see the Saturday Walker's Club This Week's Walks page.

This is an archive of walks done by the Saturday Walker's Club. You should only need to use this page if the SWC website is down.

Saturday 1 August 2015

Third walk

L=3.254 Extra Walk - Salisbury Circular
Length: 32.2 km (20 miles). Toughness: 9/10
(Shortcut option I: 26.8 km Toughness: 8/10; Shortcut option II: 25 km Toughness: 7/10)

Catch the 9:20 from London Waterloo (CJ: 9:27) arrives Salisbury 10:42. Direct return trains xx:21, xx:47, 19:26, xx:26.  22:27 (change at Basingstoke).

For the first outing of this new walk by Thomas, we will be taking the opportunity to check the walk directions. From the text: "This long walk explores the Chalke Valley in the Cranborne Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty to the South West of the quintessentially English Cathedral City of Salisbury. It leads out of town through the Cathedral precinct, past some of England’s finest historic houses and through the Harnham Hill suburb into open fields with far views over the Chalke Valley to distant Downs. The morning route then largely follows the Ebble River upstream in the Chalke Valley through several pretty villages in this picturesque part of Wiltshire, with three good lunch pubs and two community stores conveniently spaced out along the route. Most of the climbing is left for the afternoon, starting with a steady ascent with splendid views into pretty coombes, from Broad Chalke up to an ancient Ox Drove on top of the Downs. A long stretch with more views from the Down into coombes and valleys follows, largely along the course of a Roman Road, before the descent back into the Chalke Valley, followed by an immediate re-ascent up another Down. A Drove Track with views into the Nadder and Wylye Valleys leads past Salisbury’s Race Course and through the steep Harnham Slope Nature Reserve to tea at Harnham’s charming Old Mill. From there the route back to the station goes through the town’s Water Meadows and provides ‘Britain’s Best View’ (Country Life magazine): Salisbury Cathedral across the meadows."  Link to walk directions.   gpx files

SWT Summer promotion booked in advance at £20 return (vs. on the day £25.30 NW Card return from Waterloo).

Since pointed out that 1st August is excluded from the promotion. It's well hidden in the T&C's: Summer Promotion 2015 terms and conditions
  1. Offer consists of Off Peak Day Return tickets between two stations for travel on South West Trains and Island Line services only.
  2. Excludes stations west of Salisbury (between Warminster – Bristol Temple Meads and Tisbury – Exeter St. Davids inclusive).
  3. Tickets are priced at £20 per adult and £8 per child. No further discount is available for Railcard holders and the offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other discount.
  4. Offer is valid Monday to Saturday between 20 July – 28 August 2015, excluding Saturday 1 and 15 August 2015.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Will definitely be joining the walk.

Thomas G said...

fyi:
- the webmaster has kindly set up the page for this new walk now (SWC 254), if you want to have a look at the overview route map (incl. the shortcuts), the elevation profile etc....
- for anyone not too impressed with the LDWA-type length of this walk: apart from the two shortcuts mentioned, there is also the number 29 bus back to Salisbury, calling at all three pubs en-route, as well as mid-afternoon in the village of Stratford Tony. That's after 24.8 km (for details on all of this: see the top of page 2 in the file).

Anonymous said...

Will go and do a short cut.

DAC said...

w=hot_and_sunny n=10 Some of the regulars are holidaying for the month of August in their southern European villas, which left just 10 of us on this most picturesque and enjoyable walk. Finished off with a drink and meal at the Old Mill.

Anonymous said...

It is holiday season, walker numbers are reduced for both long and short walks. However, sunny days like Saturday in summer often attract new walkers, net net it balances out.