Rambling Pete on Walking Places

The Wessex Ridgeway 2014

Day Eight: 13th September

Weather: Dull morning but very dry again, misty sunshine.

Route: Cattistock to Broadwindsor - 14.7 Miles

A really lovely start to the day in a big homely kitchen, sharing the breakfast table and a big pot of Earl Grey tea. Breakfast taken watching the birds on the feeders and having a nice chat as well. It was another misty start, quite a dull morning but very dry again. No snacks bought today as Beaminster was on the route and provided a suitable lunch stop. Out into the fresh air and it was an easy walk down from B&B through Cattistock village passing the church and the pub. I managed the day without a backpack as I was reunited with my car and drove over to the end point of Broadwindsor, dropped the car and was driven back. My knees rejoiced at the reduced weight of using a bumbag and what a difference it made. Out along a riverside path and onto the road for a long, long 2 1/2 mile stretch of Tarmac - no views from the top between high hedges but the odd few buildings to look at here and there. It was a necessary evil and thankfully not too busy, but there wasn’t another way to walk west and at least it was direct, straight and didn’t waste any extra distance. By the time I’d reached and crossed the main A356 road it was time to drop down into the River Hooke valley floor to Lower Kingcombe, passing the 0utdoor nature reserve centre and setting out down a muddy green lane that took me a valley and on to higher ground once more. The views ahead were to Rampisham Down with its many aerial towers littering the landscape for about a mile - It’s a transmitting station of some sort. No sooner after reaching the top at Higher Kingcombe Barn it was time to drop down to the valley floor once more to the hamlet of Hooke. This had some fish farming, with many tanks of small trout, and a large pond that had fish jumping out of the water every minute or so. It would be a glorious setting in the sunshine, but it was still quite grey, so I didn’t hang around the small jetty. Up along the road passing the old building of Hooke Court, and out on more pasture, the route continued to go west on the lanes to Toller Whelme, with more ponds, swallows swooping swiftly for the many flies buzzing around. Another old manor house in a lovely setting – there’s a lot of water to be seen today. Out of Toller Whelme the road ascends to a lane at Dirty Gate and from there runs along the higher ground for the next 2 ½ miles to reach Mintern’s Hill. There were good views down over Beaminster to the south and plenty of pheasants bolting in and out of the hedgerows. A short section of lane and it was time to drop steeply down to the valley floor once more and the town of Beaminster, the largest place that I’d been to for a week. A jazz band played merrily away to celebrate a 60th birthday party which added to the pleasure of walking into the town. As you would expect there was plenty of cafes to choose from and I opted for the one that looked most welcoming near to the square, where there were plenty of off road vehicles lined up that were actually used off road. I liked the atmosphere in the town centre and it was getting brighter for the second part of the day. A short walk through the back streets , past the church and out onto pasture led to a delightful allotment carved out of a field before the steep climb up Gerrard’s Hill. I enjoyed this bit of the day as there were open views back over Beaminster and south towards the coastal hills and a very hazy sea – the first time I could actually see the sea. This is more of what I expected the Wessex Ridgeway to be like, but it didn’t last too long. Passing by Chart Knolle farm, there were some swales to the north and a really pleasant light to finish the day. I was surprised to find a field of corn growing well up on the higher ground, and beyond this big field a farm track dropped me down to a tumbledown wreck of a place at Stoke Knap Farm. From there it was about a mile remaining to Broadwindsor, up to Lewesdon Hill and down through the fields into Broadwindsor and the car. There is a B&B in the village and Beaminster is only a few miles down the lanes, but I had trouble booking a single room for one night at the weekend. So I drove back to Cattistock for a second night there and enjoyed a meal and a pint at the Fox and Hounds Inn. There was a concert on with a modern jazz three piece playing at the old church hall, so I stopped to listen for a while. I thought it was ok but the local dog population started up howling which was quite amusing. It was dark as night as I made my way back through the village, but I had my torch handy and the end of another dry satisfying walk.