Off the roads at last

Today for the first time in months we have been able to walk on tracks instead of the roads. Down through the woods it was still rather muddy and we could see where the river has scoured the banks and field edges during the floods. High winds have also been a problem these last few weeks. The wet soil and winds have resulted in falling trees. We ducked under one wedged across the track, then came on this group. They were actually fairly easy to get under and over and the rest of the walk was quite good. If the sun would shine more and the weather warm up then the hedges would soon be green and more spring flowers would come out.

Practise and packing

The bad weather continued but on the occasional fine days we have managed a few walks. Mostly of about 7kms and nearly all still on the lanes. The fields were just drying up when the next band of bad weather arrived.

After a walk this morning, with a steep hill, we decided it was time to have a practise packing session for this year, using the lists below. The only substitute item was the older heavy sleeping bag instead of the two lighter ones, but it saved getting them out of their winter storage.

The only other point to note is that we have a reflective vest each, but mine was already in the pack and the Crocs (not shown) will go in Terry's pack. In addition we will each be wearing one set of clothing ie:- vest, shirt, underwear, trousers, socks and boots. The fleeces are in the pack.

The packing laid out

Packing rolled ready to pack

The packed bags