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When? Started: 1993 Who? Started with staff and friends from U H S, Chester. Organiser: Martyn Harris We walk every Wednesday and Saturdays, New Years day and May Day. How many walk? Walks take place as long as there are at least 2 wanting to walk on that day. More walk on a Wednesday than on a Saturday. Most ever: 29. Current group size walking: 2-10 in mid-week and 2-4 on Saturday. Where do we walk? Saturday: Anywhere in North and Mid-Wales, Peak District, Shropshire and the Long Mynd and as far North as the Trough of Bowland. Thursday: Anywhere within about 40 miles of Chester. Type of walk: Distance: 6 – 14 miles (but usually under 10 miles). Climb: up to 4000’ (but usually very much less!). People involved on walks in 2020:- Martyn Harris, Fran Murphy, Sue and Michel Pelissier, Mike Dodd, David Savage, Wendy Peers, Celia de Mengle, Wendy and Ian Peers, Roger Smith, Paul Collinson, Ed Meads, Nigel and Elaine Taylor, Celia de Mengle, Sue Pearson.

Wednesday 6 August 2014

Pen-y-Ball, Pantasaph and the Gorsedd Round 6th August 2014

Our lunch spot, two old pews at Pantasaph Friary.
Our first view across the Dee Estuary towards Hilbre Island.
Heading towards the Pen-y-Ball trig point on a new path. 
Panorama looking North from the Pen-y-Ball trig point.
Panorama looking South from the Pen-y-Ball trig point.
"Come on, which one of you knows you are?"
Walk stats: Distance: 9.1 miles. Climb: 1048'.
Time: 5 hours 6 minutes. On the move walking average: 2.3 m.p.h. Overall walk average: 1.8 m.p.h
Group: Martyn, Roger, David S and Phil.
At the start of the week, the weather forecast for today was horrendous, thunder and lightening storms and heavy rain at best!  Thankfully the rain had passed through early, and the worst we got was a few spots of rain mid-morning that made some of us don waterproof jackets. I fact the wettest we got was when the path had overhanging wet vegetation that brushed us as we went through.
 Overall this was quite a varied route, allowing to take a few deviations from the described route to try out one or two new paths.
 On the Gorsedd Round the the West of Tre Eden Owain and the path around Coed Mertyn to Mertyn Downing are paths that we will probably use again.
 The path, part of the Pilgrims Way, leading to the friary at Pantasaph was blocked by garden refuse that made it difficult to get past. (Must remember not to use it next time we are on this walk!)
 Lunch was taken in the grounds of the Pantasaph Friary, where we were very grateful to take advantage of two old pews in the car park adjacent to the cemetery.
 After passing the Grange, heading towards Holywell we noticed two new stiles and decided to take this path as it seemed to head for the trig point on Pen-y-Ball. 
 It did eventually reach the trig point, but perhaps not as directly as we thought. At the trig point we then picked up the route described, only to find that one of the stiles we wanted to cross had been blocked off, making us retrace our steps a little back into the next field, and then heading South up the next field to pick up the route as described at the stile West of the one that had been blocked off.
 We had no problems for the rest of the walk.
 Today was a walk where every dog we encountered was friendly, as were their owners, not something that is always true!
 Birds seen or heard today included: Collared dove, Woodpigeon, Common blackbird, European robin, Winter wren, Mistle thrush, Barn swallow, House martin, Black-billed magpie, Jackdaw, Raven and Common buzzard.
  After walk drinks were enjoyed at the Britannia Inn, Pentre Halkyn, where the Lees bitter was tasted particularly good. 

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