Welcome to Halesowen Ramblers

A fine day beckoned as the goodly crowd of Halesowen Ramblers trippers awaited driver Dave and his pristine "Green Line" coach, for the eagerly awaited trip to Windsor. Both driver and coach arrived promptly for the 8am start, and a pleasant and uneventful trip to our destination ensued.

On arrival, the party split into those intending to sample the historical and resplendent delights of the Castle, with the more zestful individuals opting for John's guided walk round the town, with its notable features. Prior to the walk, this group were, by happy chance, able to witness the initial stages of the "Changing of the Guard" at the Castle gates.

Windsor Castle is the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world, it was founded by William the Conqueror in the 11th century, and has since been the home of 40 monarchs. So plenty of English history and eccentricities on show for the 30+ ‘ramblers’ who opted for the castle tour. 

Electronic guides were provided which guided participants through the various apartments and state rooms at a leisurely pace. 

Highlights were Queen Mary’s Dolls House, the beautifully restored Grand Reception Room and innumerable treasures and works of art from around the globe.

Windsor Castle contains an incredible collection of art, ceramics and sculpture, and the impressive Chapel contains the last resting places of many of our monarchs, including Henry  VIII, and Queen Elizabeth II.

The guided walk round this historic town was, of course, full of interest at every turn, including notable civic buildings, significant landmark pubs, and monuments. Propitiously, also to be observed was the latter stages of the "Guard Changing" procedure where the previous Guard detail made their departure from the Castle. A wander along part of the 2.5mile "Long Walk" in Windsor Great Park followed.  

After a short "alfresco" meal break on the opposite riverside, an afternoon stroll took us through the environs of Eton school and its attendant playing fields. There was a paucity of pupils, however, as our trip corresponded to the mid-term break. So we were not able to "spot" any future Prime Ministers! Ha! 

Wending our way back to the Thames, and following a riverside path returning to Windsor town, the party then split into subgroups of "shoppers" and "Wetherspooners", the latter for some much-needed refreshment, there meeting up with a number of the "Castle visitors" in the party, to swap experiences and anecdotes before returning to the coach for what would hopefully be another uneventful journey back to Halesowen. 

Many thanks to John, for organising such an enjoyable day!

Wednesday 18th October was the big day on which John's organised trip to the botanically famed Westonburt Arboretum, in deepest Gloucestershire, was to take place.

Weatherwise, the day was a rather sullen one from the outset, but no matter! A rather smart and pristine Greenline coach arrived on time at Halesowen to collect the eager and anticipatory throng, for a good time to be had by all, no matter what!

An uneventful journey got the party to its destination well before lunch, then decanting into two groups, one to undertake a bracing walk in the surrounding countryside, the other to undertake more detailed botanical studies in the Arboretum, John having first obtained the necessary authorisation for entry.

Although the dullness of the day persisted, fortunately what rainfall there was remained sparse.

The thirteen strong walking party then set off on its scheduled eight mile circular route, with progress initially being slow, with, moreover, wet weather gear needing to be deployed at an early stage. A coffee break was subsequently taken in the shelter of a wood chip shed.  

Thereafter the pace quickened and by lunchtime the Cotswold village of Doughton had been reached. Here, advantage was taken of lunch in the luxury of a sheltered area featuring table tennis and snooker facilities, which were duly sampled! This was followed by a photoshoot at the manor house at Doughton, currently on the market, a snip at £4m!

An improvement in the weather then occurred, with a relaxation of the dull conditions, and the sun even deigning to put in an appearance. Quite possibly by order!...as the next port of call was the environs of Highgrove House, home of HM himself, who, by the appearance of the Royal Standard flying there, was actually in residence. To everyone's disappointment, though, no flunkey appeared with an invite to step inside for afternoon tea! 

The final leg of the walk was completed back to the Arboretum just in the nick of time before persistent and heavy rain set in, with some of the walking party repairing to the shelter of the restaurant there, the more resilient members opting to traverse the "skywalk" feature, at treetop level, to view some of the Arboretum's remarkable trees and their formation from above.

Those of the party of a less strenuous disposition fragmented into smaller groups at the outset, in order to savour at leisure the impressive array of arboreal wonders, for which Westonbirt is renowned. A botanical expert would have been a great asset to assist in the identification and categorization of the vast numbers of trees around this enormous scenic site. Some of them almost defied adequate description!

Due to area covered by Westonbirt, those minded to do a complete coverage of all of its ramifications could quite easily have covered six miles or so, thus rivalling the distance undertaken by the walking element of the party!

Towards mid-afternoon, in concert with the weather conditions experienced by the walking group, intermittent showers began to give way to progressively heavier rainfall, resulting in shelter and refreshments at the restaurant being the preferred option for most prior to the coach pickup time for the return to Halesowen.

Our coach driver rendered a stalwart performance on the return journey, with weather conditions and failing light combining to give him a less than easy time, exacerbated by an advance warning of the prospect of M5 traffic congestion south of our destination. This we deftly avoided with a detour via Bromsgrove and Hagley. A slightly late return, but no drama!

Thanks to everyone who conceived, organised, and participated in making this outing such a success, particularly John, and also his cohorts who designed and recce'd the walking route.

Here's to the next one!