This weekend we packed up a picnic, threw on some comfy clothes and headed to Wye train station to follow a walk named the 'Natural Drama in Wye' walk. I will be honest and say that I was nervous before we left as not only am I a novice country hiker but also because the 'ascent information' gave 3 out of 3 triangles for difficulty! Eeek! Walking around a city? No Problem! Taking a short stroll to a country pub? Yep! I can do that! But I had visions of getting stuck mid way on this walk halfway up a hill lost in the darkness with no reception or possibly hanging on a stile somewhere! Still, the walk did sound beautiful and I really wanted to experience something new.
Wye station is about 1 hour on the train from London St Pancras or London Victoria. It is the most darling of stations where you feel like you have been transported back to the 1950's. There is a bookshelf in the station full of books to take and swap and window boxes bursting with bright flowers. We took a left when we came out of the station and passed 'The Tickled Trout' pub sitting right by the river. We have made a note to return to Wye at a later date. Not only do they tick my box of serving ploughmans lunches in a gorgeous pub garden but they also serve home made ice creams from a cute little van outside. I did reel off the full flavour list to hubby but he was sold at bannoffee!
We took the road on the right Bridge Street rather than Churchfield Way and kept going along this road enjoying the sights of the cute houses and the homely feel. This road eventually turned into Upper Bridge Street and at that point we took the first little road on the right - Cherry Garden Lane (even the road names are sweet!). Some of the houses really did make me feel like I was in a bygone era and we took our time taking it all in.
We kept moving ahead, crossing over a road and continuing along a path. It really opens up at this point and all you can see are green fields and on the day that we went, endless blue sky. From here we could also just spy the huge coronation crown encrusted onto the hillside to mark Edward VII situated high on the hills in the distance. My jaw dropped when I realised that was our destination!
Further down on the left we saw Withersdane Hall which seemed very grand and I was super delighted to spot a deer frolicking on the grounds. We kept moving forward, crossing another road and then following the track ahead. It was fairly flat here and dry but clearly it had been really muddy so if there has been some rain recently prepare for a bit of squelching! We passed several horses, country cottages that were dotted around and fields of brilliantly bright rapeseed flowers.
After a while the trail naturally shifts to the left and we ended up on a white path with green fields either side. It was peaceful, fresh and calm. Take it all in.
We walked beyond the trees and came to a road, immediately we turned to the right and a few steps later we saw our trail pick up again on the left hand side. It started to ascend quite a bit here so I started to pant a bit! We went up an incline and to the left where it levels off. through the gate we saw a winding staircase. It goes up quite sharply here and in truth if they hadn't put steps in I wouldn't have made it up. For me, no amount of step aerobics classes could have prepped me for the uneven steps and the climb! I suspect for seasoned walkers or those who don't have to cart around a ginormous bottom like mine the climb may not have been such an issue! The steps didn't take us too long to climb however and we made it to the top greeted by an old millstone and a view of the Wye Valley that was simply breathtaking. The sight of the patchwork fields and the fact that I had made the ascent was a moment of elation!
The next thought we had was one of food! There was a bench here and lots of spots to have a picnic, we walked away from the steps we had just climbed and on the right saw 'The Devil's Kneading Trough' which seemed to be a steep basin in the valley. I really did find it a stunning spectacle to behold and we decided that this was the view we wanted to hang onto while we tucked into our feast of sausage rolls and crisps.
After about an hour we acknowledged that it was time to press on and we slowly packed away blankets and drinks. We didn't see any bins on the entire walk so remember to bring a rubbish bag to put any waste in.
On the left hand side we saw a gate and kept to the left, past a handy picnic bench to go through another gate. Here there was a little forest area with some beautiful bluebells. The path divides and we took the path on the right which headed to a road. We crossed the road here and immediately took a left through another gate. I am aware that there are a lot of gates but I promise there is some distance between gates!
This part was an additional unexpected highlight of our walk, from here on the terrain kept changing in sections so it was such an engaging hike. The scenes on the left were gorgeous, there had been sheep grazing and they had left little presents all over the grass so please don't wear anything to precious!
The next fields was completely different with mossy grass and huge craters everywhere! It took a little navigation but nothing too taxing and we were left discussing why the terrain at that point was so different. Edit - a little research afterwards suggested that this part goes back about 1000 years when they were digging for iron! Beyond this field is the Wye Memorial Crown. We were a little disappointed as the crown looked so imposing from the distance but up close of course its hunks of carved chalk. There were seats here though and the views never stopped being impressive as our elevation was so high. The crown was made by students in 1902, it was covered in fairy lanterns on the eve of the coronation which must have been a really beautiful sight to see. It had to be covered up in WW2 to not make the village and the inhabitants a target of enemy bombing.
At this point of the walk we knew we were about three quarters of the way round and the next section was the descent back to Wye village. Walking parallel with the field away from the crown we came to another gate which took us into another terrain of woodland. Full of twisted trees and flowers it did become a bit tricky for me as the decline became steeper and the path was full of roots where the forest has tried to reclaim its dominance.
All of a sudden though we were out of the woods sitting on a bench overlooking another glorious field. We carried on the path and over the road to follow the country path meeting the odd friendly local or a fellow trough visitor. We saw we were on Wibberly Way which seemed an apt name for our legs at this point! We walked past a nursery and greenhouses that looked abandoned finally getting to Wye School on the righthand side.
We turned left onto Olantigh Road and then right onto the High Street passing the lovely St Gregory and St Martin Church on the right. Over the road there is a Co-op shop and a public toilet that was very clean and well maintained. This road was called Churchfield Way and we followed it all around back to The Tickled Trout pub and the train station.
This was a wonderful walk, it should take around 2.5 hours, it took us 4 but we took our time and stopped for periods to admire our surroundings. If you are taking our route I wouldn't advise it for young children (unless you are super fit and can carry a baby in a baby carrier) and those with walking difficulties may struggle. We did notice there was a car park right by The Devils Trough so if you are driving and don't fancy the walk this is also an option. It IS suitable for hiking novices and princesses like myself however! It was toally worth it, charming, natural and historical beauty of a hike that I would absolutely recommend.
*Travelling May 2021
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