In the past week I’ve been away in the Cheltenham area with the idea that I do some walking in the Cotswold area. Didn’t work as hoped for. This was organised with Ramblers Worldwide
The first day started OK with a visit to Painswick. A nice wee village with narrow streets and some big cars. Went onto a grass path, managed to climb over three styles, then across a field. Unfortunately it had a big muddy patch that I failed to negotiate. Fell over into the mud, got help to get back onto my feet but things did not improve. I decided to carry on but there were further muddy bits. Even with 2 walking poles I was struggling to stay upright and relied on others in the group to catch me and keep me upright. We got past that first bit and came to a road. I agreed to give up as there were further muddy stretches to come. I got a taxi back to the hotel and rest up.
The second day the start of the walk was going to be muddy. I didn’t go on it and took the local bus into Cheltenham instead and spent several hours walking round the town centre.
The third day the walk was going to Winchcombe and I went on this trip. I did not do the walk however. I spent time in the town and walked up the road to Sudeley Castle and Gardens instead. You could pay some money and tour the exhibition inside the castle to take in the history, find out about the owners over the years and walk around the gardens. It was quite good. The animals in the grounds were made out of wood – bamboo I believe as it’s easier to bend into shape. There was a nice cafe. On my walk back into the village there was a good, hard, gravel like path. I walked along it for a wee bit then back into the village.
The fourth day the walk was not recommended for me owing to a steep, likely muddy path uphill. I was told they had to climb on “hands & knees” to get up. At least that’s what it felt like for some. Instead I went back into Cheltenham and visited bits I hadn’t done previously.
The big takeaway I take from this and the previous walking holiday is that I have problems walking over certain surfaces. On pavements, roads and hard, gravel paths I’m probably OK, just a bit slower than the main group. Over grass, especially when it’s wet , no I can’t do them, my balance becomes an issue. For any future walking holidays I need to do more research on the ground and paths to be walked on.
