Carding Mill Valley and the Long Mynd

[cmcmck]

We've been away for a few days for the first time in over two years.

We stayed in Church Stretton which is a small town among the south Shropshire hills.

On our first day, we headed up into the hills via Carding Mill Valley.

Church Stretton is surrounded by the Shropshire Hills on all sides. The path into the hills.This is the easy bit. It gets interesting further up- experienced walker territory:



That's a bullfinch- shame I didn't have a zoom lens:



Onward and upward:



And into the rocky tops:



And you begin to climb up though the rocks. Unfortunately, the National Trust give information that this is 'easy' walking which can mislead the inexperienced- it certainly isn't 'easy' walking! You need the boots and the walking kit and you need to know what you are doing!



Looking back down the climb towards Church Stretton:



And we followed the stream  up:



Another shot looking back down the ways. We'd been rock climbing for a time when we reached this spot:



We reached the waterfall at Lightspout.



And at this point it gets to real rock climbing up the side of the fall to the higher ground on the Long Myynd:



A view from the top of the rock climb:



The view from the top of the Long Mynd:



More from the tops later

Comments

[pameladean]

How gorgeous! What does the walking kit consist of? I know what I take hiking, but we don't generally climb actual rocks unless we are doing it a bit illicitly; it's never been the only way up.

P.

[cmcmck]

Summer order tends to be hill walking boots, a fleece and a lightweight summer waterproof jacket over waterproof trousers. Layering is important even at this time of year as you can always take off but you can't put on if you don't have the kit with you- this time it was both wet and windy.

You obviously need the local OS map and a compass just in case, plus food and drink.

In this case, the rock climbs are part of the marked footpath.

[pameladean]

Thank you! I think I ran afoul of a slight difference between British and American usage -- when I think of a "kit" I think of a preassembled set of things probably all in one bag made just for them rather than a sensible assemblage of items necessary to be safe and dry during a walk. Either way, I am glad of the information. Your walks are more serious -- and certainly longer! -- than most of mine, but I have ambitions.

P.

[cmcmck]

We average about ten/twelve miles on our walks- sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less.