Friday 5th September 2025

We travelled early from MK to the pretty village of Terrington St.Clement (Norfolk) for our next house-sitting assignment. This is providing us with the opportunity to complete a 35 mile stretch of ‘The Wash’ and so filling a gap we have between Lincolnshire and Norfolk. Janet, the lovely house owner, gave us a tour of the house and introduced us to Colin – you can tell she absolutely adores him, and why not, he’s gorgeous. Great name!

Gedney Drove End to Sutton Bridge

We decided to get an easy 6 miler in today while we had the benefit of a lift, from Janet, to Gedney Drove End (Lincolnshire) – this is why we have the gap as it’s a stretch not easily accessed by public transport. A beautiful spot but it felt like the back of beyond. It didn’t take long to find the embankment wall, today’s start to the coastal path. This county has a beauty all of its own – miles and miles of flat land, lush green and arable golds and enhanced today with stunning blue skies. For the first mile we had potatoes to our left and cabbages to our right – that’s dinner sorted!!

A construction diversion took us off the path and we had some very manageable path and road walking for a while. Then onto an estuary path where some particularly inquisitive cows didn’t seem at all phased with us walking between them – just close up staring! This took us all the way to Sutton Bridge where we had clocked up 6.5 miles.

A fabulously easy walk, delicious lunch at Pippa’s Pantry and a pleasant bus ride home.

All went so smoothly … that is, until we hit the Co-op! We stocked up on all the Members’ bargains only to find out at the till that, although the offers are identical nationally, your Membership card is only regional. After much discussion, a little time and some stress, we managed to download the app to become local members … and saved ourselves £12!!

Saturday 6th September 2025

After a comfortable night’s sleep in our temporary abode, we were up with the larks to drive to Sandringham for today’s Parkrun. A beautifully flat and picturesque course – no Royal runners but a very friendly bunch.

Friday 9th May 2025

Oh yes please, what fun!! A nice easy start, catching the regular train from Thorpe Bay station into Benfleet and from there a 200 yard walk to the path onto Canvey Island.

Neither of us had any idea of what to expect and we were both immediately struck by the organised signage, the well maintained paths, the incredibly stylish houses and the general neatness …. I’m talking Stepford Wives neatness. Nothing out of place and signs saying ‘not to do this and not to do that ..’ – we felt we needed to be on our best behaviour.

It was mostly sea defence wall walking but with pleasant views of the island itself and also across the water we could enjoy the spectacle of the Kent countryside. The sky was so blue today, practically cloudless, the sun was shining although a little breezy too. We rambled on quite contentedly, lapping up the flat and easy terrain. We came across Shell’s Marina Tearoom after 5 miles and treated ourselves to an early break – Steve had a mid morning snack of bacon and cheese toasted flatbread and I resisted, just had a caffeine top up!

There was a more touristy section of the island with bars, cafes, amusements and funfairs – I’m sure this is popular in the summer months. And there is a man made beach and promenade which made for a pretty stroll, plenty of people about. At said beach, 6.5 miles in, we considered stopping for our picnic lunch but then decided to get a little further. Of course, big mistake, hindsight and all that … it was another 3 miles before we found a suitable spot to stop. The main reason being that we hit a stretch of industrial eyesore with an unpleasant stench of gas, not conducive to tucking into sandwiches and fruit.

Feeling replete once again, we headed on, leaving the heavy industry behind and enjoying an area of countryside. Some beautiful birds today and wild flowers but a noticeable lack of butterflies. Sadly, this is where the day’s enjoyment took a bit of a turn. We came across one of those gates with the dreaded ‘beware of the bull’ warnings! My anxiety immediately went up a couple of notches while Steve came out with his typical country boy confidence, saying “well, do you really want to turn back!? After 11 miles of walking you find you don’t give the response you think you might!! I stayed close on Steve’s heels for the next couple of miles, constantly scanning the area and trying to come up with a contingency plan. I’d seen a solo magpie earlier and, although I’d said “Good morning Mr. Magpie,” I just felt there was an element of sorrow looming. Suffice to say, no bull showed up and we lived to tell the tale.

Then, after a mile or two of that angst, the coastal path turned into the narrowest of high paths that became increasingly overgrown the further we went. There was nothing we could do, we just had to suffer it in silence, I absolutely hated it. You have to close your mind off to what might be lurking below and tread carefully so that nothing trips you up. Eventually, after what seemed like hours, we broke free and made our way to the road and off the island.

So a day of mixed terrain and mixed emotions … but we did complete the 14.5 mile loop. It certainly hasn’t shifted this illness that I seem to have so, change of plan – I am now going to rest for a few days … apart from an easygoing Parkrun tomorrow.

Saturday 10th May 2025