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Clyffe Pyppard - 4 Nov 07
The numbers turning out for past November walks have been on the low side due mainly to wet weather, dark nights and walking conditions resembling something akin to the Somme on a bad day, but not so this year. The recent prolonged dry and sunny weather has been excellent for walking and, coupled with the promise of good views over the Marlborough Downs, it tempted out many who would normally have festered by their firesides. We had a good turnout, I believe someone said it was 23. Even Dave and Sandy Bedford thought about coming along for their annual walk, but they never showed. Rumour has it they got lost in the fog and couldn't find the start. Although we started in the fog, there was no wind and twas not too cold. It was odd really in that some people were kitted out for winter whilst others were dressed more for late spring as you'll see from the photos below. The fog was quite thick at times and I wondered if Bob might be tempted to just march us around the same field all day; I doubt we would've noticed. I mentioned this to Bob, he said he'd thought about it but knew he'd never get away with it because we'd keep lapping Melvyn and it would give the game away..... On route we passed a house that had it's own White Horse in the back garden ( see photo). How's that for status. Later, We tramped over an ancient hill fort that had commanding views as far as the eye could see. We could not actually see anything, of course, due to the fog; however, Bob, who had seen the view before, plugged the visibility gap with a vivid scenic narrative on what we would have seen on a clear day. And it was truly magnificent. There were a few quirked eyebrows though when we were asked to imagine the Marlborough Downs set against a a distant seascape of a Dorset coast with lighthouse, golden sands and azure sky. Bob promised the sun would chase away the fog by midday and, when this failed to happen, he and Alan Roberts did a sort of pagan version of "Strictly Come Prancing" (see photo below) to bring on the sun. And would you believe it ....... it worked. The young Walkers provided the supporting entertainment with a display of their trapeze skills (see photos). They tried to persuade a few of us to try our hand, but only Melvyn was up for it With the sun now winning its contest with the fog, we glimpsed a church in the distance and knew the end was nigh, or rather the Goddard Arms and lunch was. Great pub this with a really friendly and helpful landlord. Well done Bob & Sue for a fine walk with such incredible virtual landscapes.
Click on images to enlarge
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