thesweetcheat

After a very enjoyable visit to Salperton Park round barrow (26.4.2021), I head south along a surprisingly busy road to Hazleton long barrows.

I’ve been aware of these long barrows for years, but knowing that they were in a pretty bad state I’ve never made the effort to come. However, as I’m now walking the Gloucestershire Way less than a mile away, it seems rude not to finally come and have a look. Older StreetView images suggest that the southern barrow lies open to the road, but sadly someone with a penchant for barbed wire has put an end to that.

The site of the nothern barrow reveals nothing much, other than what appears to be a lighter scattering of limestone on the planted surface of the field. The southern barrow is better, a reasonable mound right next to the road. The barbed wire doesn’t invite a closer look, but it’s not really a monument you need to get up close and personal with, sadly.

Still, it’s an easy visit and I’m glad I’ve finally made the effort. Of course, post-visit the barrows have taken on a much wider fame, courtesy of careful DNA research. All this is still to come though.

From here I rejoin the Gloucestershire Way route, which will take me past Salperton Park, through Notgrove (Notgrove long barrow is sadly too much of a detour today), then onto Cold Aston, heading across the Cotswold plateau via a few minor ascents and descents. The final barrow of the day will be the best though...

The first of three new-to-me sites visited while walking the Gloucestershire Way from Shipton Oliffe to Stow-on-the-Wold (26.4.2021).

A grey morning start and a cold wind blowing across the Cotswolds plateau is slowly giving way to brighter skies as I head north-east from Shipton. There’s a good retrospective view towards the ridge surmounted by St Paul’s Epistle round barrow, prominent on the skyline to the west.

Salperton Park round barrow is in a narrow band of pleasant woodland immediately north of Penhill Road. The trees are a mix of deciduous species which provides a nice open canopy at this time of year, but unfortunately also allows plenty of light to support tangled vegetation at ground level. The barrow is quite overgrown, but also large enough to still be easily seen. In contrast to many ploughed down Cotswolds barrows, this is a large mound. It appears oval on plan, and I wouldn’t be entirely surprised to find that it was the remains of a truncated long barrow rather than a round barrow. As I poke about in the brambles and branches the sun breaks through the cloud, filtering a lovely Spring light through the canopy.

Well worth the detour from my route. Buoyed by decent barrow and improving weather I head off to Hazleton long barrows.

A revisit while walking the Gloucestershire Way (17.4.2021) after the usual dice with death crossing the road by the Air Balloon roundabout from Crickley Hill.

I last came here a year ago and was depressed by how overgrown everything was getting. It’s still knee-deep in vegetation this year, but there seem to be fewer nettles and the whole wood is beautifully pungent with wild garlic in the lovely Spring sunshine. It’s a cheering, restorative place to visit after the road crossing, and I look forward to the re-routing of the road in a few years that is planned to incorporate wildlife and pedestrian bridges.

From here my route will take me to an old favourite, Coberley long barrow. I set off with a renewed spring in my step.

Walked up from Shurdington at the start of my sixth section of the Gloucestershire Way (17.4.2021) on a beautiful Spring morning.

The walk has already had a set-back due to the farmer at Greenfield Farm blocking the path, which leads to an annoying detour west then south, followed by a steep climb up from the A417. I’m out of practice at hills after a couple of months of being largely inactive as the latest lockdown combined with rubbish weather has kept me at home. My Gloucestershire Way efforts resumed a couple of weeks back on the flatlands of the Severn, this is the first uphill section since leaving May Hill and the Forest of Dean.

I’ve not come up here on this route before, and I had never heard of a limestone block called the Devil’s Table until route-planning. Like the Devil’s Chimney at nearby Leckhampton Hill, this appears to be a remnant of quarrying rather than a natural feature. When I get up there, puffing and panting, I find it’s partially buried in brambles, but it offers an excellent place to stop for a while, cool down and take in the extensive views across the Severn vale. I idly wonder why the quarrymen were so keen on giving Devilish names to their workings.

From here it’s a short pull up to the fort itself and familiar territory. It’s great to be back here on such a beautiful morning and the fort is quiet.

After a wander around in the sunshine, my route heads off through the lovely beech woods to the Air Balloon and then to Emma’s Grove round barrows.