ON the cold, but damp morning of Sunday 12 December, a group of 11 Westbury Walkers, led by Lynda Croft, set off from the National Trust Car Park in Avebury, to complete a circular winter walk of 8-miles, in the Windmill Hill and Winterbourne Monkton area of Wiltshire.
The Walkers started by heading west, walking away from Avebury, passing the church of St James along the way. At Bray Cottage they turned north, into a lane that soon became a gravelled track, leading uphill towards Windmill Hill.
The walkers left the footpath at the National Trust information board and climbed to the top of Windmill Hill. It was cold and windy at the top, and the group descended from the hill, heading north again following a well-used, but very muddy farm track. Here, they continued their regular Christmas tradition for the club, which began in December 2008, of enjoying mince pies, home-made cheese straws, and warm mulled wine, kindly prepared in a Covid-safe way, by members of the group.
Setting off again, they followed an open and well-surfaced track. After a few hundred yards, they turned right and walked eastwards for approximately half a mile. They then joined a lane, which led into the centre of the village of Winterbourne Monkton. The group took a short detour to visit the village Church of St Mary Magdalene, which had been attractively decorated inside, for the Advent season.
Retracing their steps, they re-joined their original route and continued walking along the lane through the village, until they reached its junction with the A4361 road. The group crossed the busy main road, and then followed Mill Lane, which eventually became a track leading up to the Ridgeway Long Distance Path.
At the junction of two footpaths, the group stopped for lunch, seated on a grassy bank. Whilst they were there, they were lucky to see a strong rainbow in the distance, and luckier still, to avoid the heavy rain that was falling a few miles away.
Setting off again after lunch, and due to the short hours of daylight in December, they left the track that led to the Ridgeway, and instead, headed south and then west, finally following a very muddy farm track, which led back to the village of Avebury.
The group had enjoyed walking approximately eight miles in mixed winter conditions and rain showers, travelling through some renowned landmarks in Avebury, and in rural Wiltshire.
Walk report by Lynda Croft
