Signs of spring in the Cotswolds

Things are looking up.  The cold weather and icy winds of winter are still hanging on, but despite this there are cheerful signs of spring wherever you look.

Snowdrops blooming under trees, in hedgerows and in churchyards.  

Snowdrops have been cultivated since the middle ages and are associated with abbeys and churchyards as they are a symbol of the Catholic festival of Candlemas.  They are normally flowering  on 2nd February when Candlemas is celebrated and they are looking particularly fine this year.

A robin collecting material his or her their nest.

(male and female look the same)

According to folklore it is said that when Jesus was crucified on the cross, a robin flew down and removed a thorn from the crown on his head and sang to him, thus relieving his suffering.  The blood of Jesus stained his throat and chest, and ever since his breast has remained red.

 Lambs appearing in the fields.

These babies are sticking close to mum where there is always a constant supply of food.

Mum is a type of sheep known as a 'mule' and is a crossbreed between a hardy upland ewe and a lowland ram.

Best

Anne

Visit Ancient Cotswold Churches Steeped In History

On your walking tour through Cotswold towns and villages take the opportunity to visit ancient churches  

These historic buildings are steeped in history and are often the oldest building in the town or village, some dating back to before the Norman Conquest in 1066.

St Eadburga's church, Broadwayy.  This 12th century church is dedicated to St Eadburgha, the grand-daughter of Alfred the Great.  The legend goes that as a child, her father King Edward, tested her faith and when offered the choice of a gift of jewels or a bible, she chose the bible and subsequently dedicated her life to God's service. In the 19th century by a new building closer to the centre of the town, but St Eadburgha’s continued to be used in the summer, for special candlelit services over Christmas and for burial services.

Flower arrangement at St Nicholas, Oddington with the 14th century Doom painting on the wall behind.  Painted when most of the population could not read or write, when the service was in Latin, wall paintings told worshippers bible stories.  The Doom or Last Judgement painting shows God in Heaven with souls on their way to heaven on his right hand side and others on their way to hell on the left hand side. 

The chancel at St Michaels, Buckland, a beautiful small village church under the Cotswold edge.

St John the Baptist, Cirencester is one of the famous Cotswold ‘wool churches’.  In the middle ages, the fleeces of many thousands of sheep raised in the Cotswold were exported into Europe and the wool merchants in area became very rich indeed.   In the 15^th century some of this wealth was used to rebuild parish churches in grand style and the church as Cirencester is one such.    

Happy Hiking

Anne

A lovely day walk in the Cotswolds

Happy hiking

Anne

Shakespeare's 450th Birthday Procession

Stratford-upon-Avon, where William Shakespeare was born, is just a few miles from the beautiful town of Chipping Campden in the Cotswolds.

This year on Shakespeare's 450th  birthday, 23rd April, the annual procession was supported by hundreds of devotees from local schools, colleges and churches, national and international societies and organisations, as well as individuals, all wearing sprigs of rosemary for remembrance and carrying bouquets of flowers to lay at his grave. It also featured a very large birthday cake.

Band leading the Procession

The huge birthday cake celebrating Shakespeare's 450th birthday

A clergyman in the procession wearing a sprig of rosemary for remembrance

Flowers laid at Shakespeare's grave in Holy Trinity parish church
William Shakespeare is buried next to his family in front of the altar, and there is a bust of him on the left wall (see picture).   It is thought to have been modeled from a cast of his face taken shortly after his death on 23rd April, 1616, at the exact age  52.

You can also visit Shakespeare's birthplace and grave at the start of the Shakespeare's Way Trail, or as part of a customised walking tour through Classic Cotswold Towns and along the northern section of the Cotswold Way. Contact us to find out more.

Have a great summer of walks

Anne

Exploring Adlestrop

Wandering through Adlestrop in the spring sunshine.

A magical time of year to go walking.

Best

Anne

Walk the Landscape

Cotswold Way Landmarks: Broadway Tower

The Cotswold Way Walking Holiday 

enjoy superb rolling countryside with stunning views, 

pretty towns and villages and historic sites

Broadway Tower

This folly in the style of a Norman Keep was built by the Earl of Coventry for his wife on their Springhill Estate between 1797 and 1800.  It is in a prominent position with views over 16 of the original English counties and it can be seen from the family seat in Worcester. The Earl's wife took great trouble to find the most suitable location.   Before it was built she had a flaming beacon lit at the site, then drove around the surrounding area making sure that it could be seen.  

The hill was previously called the Beacon and Barrow Hill and was likely to have been a site for bonfires transmitting important national news such as the sighting of the Spanish Armada. For a short time in the 19th century the tower was home to William Morris, a founder of the Arts and Crafts Movement and was used a observation point during the Second World War.  There is also a Cold War nuclear bunker close by.  

Broadway Tower lies at the northern end of the Cotswold Way above the village of Broadway and about 5 miles south of Chipping Campden.  It now lies in a country park with a herd of red deer and a café.

Contact us to find out more about walking holidays along all or part of the Cotswold Way

Best

Anne

Cotswold Way Landmarks: The Market Hall, Chipping Campden

The Cotswold Way Walking Holiday 

enjoy superb rolling countryside with stunning views 

The Market Hall, Chipping Camdpen

The Market Hall on the High Street, Chipping Campden was built in 1627 by Sir Baptist Hicks, the town's generous benefactor, for a cost of £90.00. 

It was used to shelter the local market traders selling cheese, butter and poultry and the worn stone floor is a reminder of its regular use through 400 years. On market days wooden pens were also erected around the hall to hold sheep driven down from the hills for sale.  Imagine the hustle and bustle of a market day when people from the town and surrounding areas turned out to sell their produce or to buy a fat chicken for dinner or a few sheep for their flock. 

Chipping Campden lies at the northern end of the Cotswold Way so this lovely building in honey coloured limestone, is one of the first or last landmarks that walkers will have of the Cotswolds.

Contact us to find out more about walking holidays along all or part of the Cotswold Way

Best

Anne

Coln Saint Denis in the Coln Valley, one of the loveliest valleys in the Cotswolds

Coln Saint Denis

The Coln Valley is one of the most beautiful valleys in the Cotswolds.  A tributary of the River Thames, it lies on low ground to the south of Northleach and meets the great river near Lechlade-on-Thames.
It is best walked on foot, starting from the source at Withington in the north and passing through picturesque villages like Chedworth, Coln Saint Denis and Bibury.
A quiet walk north of Bibury, which is one of the main tourist attractions in the Cotswolds.

Good walking
Anne
Walk the Landscape

Late afternoon shadows over Snowshill

A lovely view of sheep on the hillside above Snowshill, taken in late afternoon just as the sun was going down.

Happy hiking
Anne
WalkTheLandscape.co.uk

Snowdrops, a sign that spring is round the corner

Snowdrops coming into bloom in a Cotswold churchyard

Make most of the bright, crisp, sunny days of late winter.
Good walking
Anne
Walk the Landscape

The Cotswold Lion

The Cotswold Lion

During the middle ages, wool from Cotswold sheep was amongst the the finest in Europe, and the reign of Henry VII (1485 - 1509) woollen cloth contributed half of England's wealth. Hence, the sheep producing the wool was called the 'Cotswold Lion'.

St James, the 'wool church' in Chipping Campden

The wool trade made the merchants living in the Cotswolds very rich indeed, as wealthy as Bill Gates is today.  The merchants funded impressive 'wool churches' in towns like Chipping Campden, Northleach and Burford, hoping their charity and benevolence would ease their path to heaven on their death.  

These 15th century churches are the lasting legacy of the times. 

Enjoy your walking.
Anne
Walk the Landscape

The Cotswold Way in midsummer

The Cotswold Way runs north-south along the Cotswold Edge for 102 miles / 164 km, from Chipping Campden to the city of Bath in the west of England.

It offers great views to the west along the full length.  Across the Severn Valley, to the Malvern Hills, the Severn estuary and south Wales.

The trail follows the sinuous route of the Cotswold edge and passes up and down the escarpment slope. The full length (102 miles / 164 km) is normally walked in 5 (strenuous) to 10 (relaxing) days - although shorter tours over part of the route are also available. 

If you are thinking of walking the  Cotswold Way, why not Contact us to arrange a walking tour.   We book accommodation, arrange luggage transfer, provide maps, directions and guide books, give advice on travelling to and from the holiday within the UK, and provide support in the unlikely event of an emergency.

Wishing you a great walking year in 2014

Anne
Walk the Landscape

Looking over Long Compton on a frosty morning

Long Compton from the Jurassic Way 

Long Compton, in the north east Cotswolds, is famous for its witches.  Perhaps the most notorious was Anne Tennant, the wife of a farm worker who on 15 September 1875 came to a bloody end.   Cruelly executed by a neighbour in the traditional manner for witches, this killing sent shock waves through 19th century England.  

Long Compton lies below the Jurassic Way, one of the ancient tracks across southern England.   It's just one mile away from the Rollright Stones, a Bronze Age stone circle, which in folklore is thought to be an invading Viking army turned into stone by a local witch.

Two of our long distance trails pass through Long Compton and by the Rollright Stones:

- Shakespeare's Way which follows the route from Shakespeare’s birthplace at Stratford-upon-Avon to his workplace at the Globe Theatre, next to the Thames in the centre of London.

- Cross Cotswold Pathway that starts at Banbury in Oxfordshire and wends its way south-west to the city of Bath. 

Contact us if you would like to know more.

Happy hiking
Anne 
Walk the Landscape

PS: check out Warwickshire Life to find out more about Long Compton and its witches. 

Golden, bronze ash - The last autumn colour

In a few days time we will move into winter and the trees will be leafless, their bare skeletal branches allowing wonderful uninterrupted views across hill and vale.

Walking on a cool, frosty winter day with blue sky and bright sunshine is simply the best!

Anne
Walk the Landscape

Dappled light along a Cotswold footpath

Happy hiking
Anne
Walk the Landscape

A Family Outing in the Cotswolds

Happy hiking.
Anne
Walk the Landscape

Autumn in a Cotswold Woodland

Happy hiking
Anne
Walk the Landscape

Halloween in the Cotswolds

Wonderful walking
Anne
Walk the Landscape

Black Sheep

Black sheep under a heavy sky

Walking down to Broadway along the Cotswold Way.

Happy hiking

Anne

walkthelandscape.co.uk

Donnington Brewery: The most picturesque in the country?

Donnington Brewery one of the most picturesque in the country, is located in the narrow Dikler Valley, near Stow-on-the-Wold in the Cotswolds.

And it's beers are good as well!  16 beautiful Cotswold pubs sell the ales and it was voted the 'Best Brewery 2010' by the Good Pub Guide.

Happy Hiking
Anne
Walk the Landscape