Off to the Cotswolds! It took me three trains: Leicester to Birmingham, Birmingham to Oxford, Oxford to Moreton-in-Marsh. Birmingham is a HUGE station. Oxford is home to the fictional detective Morse, of course, but there was no time for exploring or even viewing as I literally got off one train, figured out where to go, crossed platforms, and watched the new train pull in. All were really good though, and I was really impressed with the train from Birmingham which had an electric sign above each seat noting where that passenger boarded and would leave.
Moreton-in-Marsh was the starting and ending point for our tour, and surprise, Kati was on the same train. We headed toward town and our lodging, not quite sure what we were looking for but figuring it couldn't be that big and therefore we wouldn't be that far wrong. Pretty smart. And this is a double name, as mor means marsh.
The Redesdale Arms (that's Reeds-dale), where we spent the first and last nights of this tour. Pronunciation became a game; eventually we decided that if we brainstormed all possible ways of saying something we'd eliminate all the wrong ones, just leaving the right one, which we could never imagine.
We dropped our gear and went for a snack, too early to check in. What else but Cotswolds cheese? Great start. Once back at the inn, we picked up our tour info and settled in, repacking for the trip- the plan was to leave the luggage at the inn and just take a small bag and our backpacks with the gear we needed the next four days. Then we headed out to explore and have dinner. Yes, there was a duck pond, with the biggest ducks I think I've ever seen.
And the town was charming! In fact, charming was the word for this part of the world. The famous Cotswolds stone is stunning and every town is so pretty. The weather was now cool and clear, which was auspicious for us setting off to walk. We opted for dinner at the Bell Inn, why not start with a pub? This one apparently inspired the Prancing Pony in the Lord of the Rings films, so it's all Tolkien-themed inside. Fish and chips and a pint. I don't much care for fried food and it doesn't like me either, but being in England I thought I'd try.
Next morning, after a great breakfast and stowing our "extra" gear, we were off! We started at the duck pond, with 3.2 miles to Longborough, then 3.7 miles to Stow-on-the-Wold, then 4.1 miles through Lower Slaughter to Bourton on the Water. (stow = holy place, wold = forest)
We found our markers by the first field and were ready! The public footpath system is actually quite incredible. It's a sizable network of trails and paths, all public. But, as we were to learn, not all as well marked as others.
One of our first fields. I think fondly of this part, all eager and excited we were. And with directions like, "Turn right along a field track to head for a farm," it just sounds so fabulous.
The book touted the detour to Sizencote, an Indian-palace-country-house, so we took it. Adventure! But it ended here, with lots of locked gates, and just this little sentry-like house visible. So back we went.
And the fields were really nice, mostly agricultural, but a few with horses and cows. Not sure if this was wheat or rapeseed but we were surprised by the poppies growing randomly too.
In Longborough we checked out St. James Church. All of these villages seem to have a church this size and scope and this pretty.
We were doing grand, following paths, ignoring paths, crossing meadows, keeping along the right margins of fields, ascending slopes, entering woodlands, following the curve of the ornamental ditch ('ha-ha'), and crossing gates. There are so many different types of gates! We had a fox cross our path in one field and spied a deer in another.
After Donnington, we headed toward Stow. We were later than we'd planned and hadn't yet had lunch, so were very glad to see just 1.5 miles to go. Until we took the wrong turn, into a private field. And the calf took an interest, perhaps thinking we might be fun playmates. And the ENTIRE HERD followed. I knew not to run, but that was it. And there were probably 35 of them and only 2 of us, and they are lots bigger. It was a race to the cow grate and the driveway. And it was hugely unsettling. But then we were stuck. So we walked for a ways and soon realized that direction wasn't going to help us. We'd passed a few cottages, maybe someone was home. I did not want to go back through that pasture. But thankfully there was a very kind gentlemen, a "gardener" he said, and his son worked at the farm. We chatted for probably 20 minutes; he very much enjoyed our story and adventure, then sent us trespassing through the property and climbing over a gate and back to the road where, sure enough, just a slight bit further on, was our turn. Marked? No. Right distance? Doubt it. But just a bit later we pulled up into Stow-on-the-Wold.
Which also was lovely. Finding a place still serving lunch though.... Yay tea houses! We learned to like these British country establishments too. And after, tough decisions to make. It was nearly 4p- those two detours had been costly in time. And even though we'd left at 10a, we'd done 9.5 miles by that point and the terrain was certainly slower than we had anticipated. We had 4.1 miles to go to Bourton. I was feeling very cow-shy. We wanted to see Stow. We desperately wanted to see the Model Village in Bourton, which was only open 10a-6p. So we went to the library and tourist information center and the very helpful ladies there organized us a taxi. We got to our B&B and watched them shear the sheep next door. We had a big pretty room in a wing separate from the house, it was beautiful. And then we were off!
We're both big fans of Midsomer Murders, which I'm not convinced "takes place" in this part of the country because the stone on the buildings isn't the same, but the villages and tone feels the same. And one of both of our favorite episodes is the one with the model village. So this was a treat!
And it did not disappoint. I think we spent nearly an hour here, just wandering back and forth and around again, checking out all the detail and seeing what was in the town.
And the funniest part- there is a model village of the model village in the model village! (This is the model of the model and right in front is the model of the....) Someone here has a great sense of humor. We then wandered into town to see all the things we'd just seen in the model. Oh, and get some dinner eventually.
Bourton on the Water (that's like burton) was fantastic. There is a river that runs right through the town and we sat on a bench there for a while just watching people, the two dogs that thought this was the ultimate playground, and marveling at how beautiful it was. At dinner I had a plum cider- oh tasty! Even though we skipped the last part of the trail (and I was sad to miss Lower Slaughter), we still did over 12 miles. Once we accepted that some skipping was inevitable if we wanted to actually see anything along the way, we determined that such a switch would be likely on day 2 as well, as we both really wanted to see the Castle at Winchcombe.
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