#sheepscombe

Our instructions this month were simple. Take a map of Gloucestershire and, blind-folded, stick a pin in and get there. The pin landed at grid reference SO902105 which put it, luckily, just off a footpath running between Beech Wood and Elder Hill near Sheepscombe. More fortunate still this is a beautiful place to walk and part of the Cotswold Commons and Beechwoods National Nature Reserve.

Well, you may think, "that sounds lovely but not exactly what I'd call adventurous." To which I would say "that's quite right but I don't make the rules." We did though decide to try and make things a little more interesting by getting the bus to our start point, walking to our destination and then getting the bus back thereby meeting three key objectives: using public transport, not walking in a (full) circle and getting successfully to the selected point. Furthermore this is merely the first of what we hope will be many more "random" adventures leading us further afield and further from comfort as we gain confidence and experience.

We left Cheltenham on the 61 bus to Stroud. Sitting, as seemed appropriate, at the back of the upper deck we enjoyed a panoramic view of the road to Painswick, Cooper's Hill and Brockworth as we left the town behind us.

  We alighted about a mile before reaching Painswick and headed off southeast on the Wysis Way looking towards Saltridge Hill which we would skirt southwards on our way to the beech woods of the Cotswold Commons National Nature Reserve. As promised the sun was shining as we began but, as threatened, rain clouds were looming and there was ice still on the ground in places.

Heading south-east with Saltridge Hill ahead to the right.

This brought us eventually to Lady's Wood and then Lord's Wood both part of the Cotswold Commons NNR. From these we emerged onto Sheepscombe Common with its belted Galloway cattle enjoying the grass.

It was then a short climb up Elder Hill past a rather forlorn and lonely looking snowman and into the beech woods containing our destination and a quick lunch-break.

X marks the spot

The return leg of our journey kept us in the beech woods for a while longer as we took a turn south and then westwards into Blackstable Wood. As we emerged from here we saw Painswick and its church in the distance as, once more the sun made an appearance.

Painswick

From Blackstable Wood we rejoined the Wysis Way for part of the way towards Bull's Cross before turning west and into Painswick where we stopped to admire the view while sitting in the garden of the Quaker Meeting House.

Sitting at the Quaker Meeting House in Painswick

Having spent just over 4 hours walking we felt that a hot drink and something good to eat were very much deserved so called in at the Patchwork Mouse for tea, coffee and some very good cake (gluten-free to boot.) We followed this with a gentle walk round Painswick and its church before catching the bus back home.

A well-deserved tea and cake at The Patchwork Mouse

Cotswold Commons & Beechwoods NNR is a series of ancient beechwoods and common land managed since at least the 12th century as a source of timber, firewood and charcoal. They are now managed actively as a resource and as a wildlife habitat with the grasslands being grazed as common-land.