Sandhurst and Horseshoe Lake

I can't believe it is 3 years since I last posted! We have continued to walk as a family, but perhaps not as often as I'd like. However, it looks as though we will soon have our Sundays back, so I am looking forward to a lot more walking. I am always on the look out for walks, locally and within an hour's drive of home, so I was really excited to find FancyFreeWalks.org. Our first walk for a while was their Sandhurst to Horseshoe Lake and Blackwater

which is 4.5 miles. Our previous average would be 3 to 3.5 miles, but this always left us wanting for more.

We were familiar with several parts of this walk but this was the first time we'd amalgamated this route. In August the heather is in bloom and we were greeted with purple carpet and green ferns almost immediately. This part of Edgbarrow Woods is far more interesting and varied than some of the areas deeper into Swinley. If you're lucky you may see slow worms or even adders.

More woods, which are less inspiring but then the most exciting part for the boys, and most heart-stopping for me.  The railway crossing.  The track is straight and long in each direction.  There really is no danger as long as you are sensible, but any mother can't help but fret!



I'm afraid I didn't take many pictures (as I only thought of reigniting my blog afterwards) but below you can see the lovely pastures of Ambarrow Farm where we all commented how lucky we are to live so close to such beautiful countryside. You really wouldn't know that you're only a 10 minute drive from Wokingham or Bracknell.

And the view back across the meadow....

Soon after here we cross the lane to the lake and take a right turn to start the circuit of the Horseshoe Lake.  This is where we get the first complaints and tired boys (who really are big enough to have the energy!) realise we are taking the long route.  We pass close to the horseshoe shaped island (where the lake gets its name) in full bloom with so many colours of wild flower, before turning left to walk alongside the river.

I always love this part of Blackwater River.  The sun passes through the trees creating patterns of dappled light through the shallows that look almost magical.  We spot a rope swing and make a note to ourselves to return purely to play on this at a later date.

Unfortunately, the play area at the watersports centre no longer exists so we just refresh ourselves at the cafe and have a coffee while watching the paddle-boarders and kayakers.  

The route back always seems a lot quicker, but with this being a 'there and back' walk it wasn't quite as varied as a circular would have been and so boredom soon gave way to tiredness and complaints and I decided the family (of varying levels of fitness) would benefit from a few more shorter walks.

Rapley Lake

Our first proper walk for 3 months held hope of sunshine and bluebells.  After so many months of snow, rain and just general chilliness, we were happy to get out and walk in the sun.

Lots of clear streams which were very enticing on such a lovely day.  We even saw some fish which, at 6 or 7 inches, seemed quite long for such a shallow brook.

http://www.bagshotvillage.org.uk/walks/rapley1.shtml This 3 mile walk was easy to follow, apart from the area closest to Bagshot Park which had been totally churned up by logging vehicles.  The paths were unrecognisable.  We were lucky enough to meet a couple who were doing our walk in reverse and advised us which way to go.

Churned up paths and not a bluebell in sight.

The state of the paths did add some interest and hilarity when the mud kept hold of DH's shoe!  He  regrets not wearing his boots!  It became quite obvious that this area was not going to be the stroll we'd expected so we short cut the right arm of the walk and followed the stream to catch the returning path.  The path improved greatly after this.

We reached the lake and the boys recognised the lake immediately, having usually approached from the opposite direction.  It's a shame that more of the lake isn't accessible, but perhaps it wouldn't be as unspoilt in that case.  We look forward to returning when there is more colour in the trees.

Waterlilies on the lake last August

A gentle stroll downhill returned us to the felled trees and more churned up paths, before following the track back to our car on Conaught Drive.  

It was a lovely day for a walk in the woods and I think we picked just the right walk (apart from the state of some of the paths).  It was close to home and short enough to get us back into the spirit   and leave enough time for everything else we had planned for the weekend.  Looking forward to next time - and hopefully we'll find some bluebells.

Wendy Booth - Portrait Artist

High Curley - Bagshot Heath

Surrey Hill - the inspiration for this walk

Having cycled to the "other" Bagshot Heath on the North side of the M3, I wanted to take the kids as it was really beautiful. I couldn't find a good spot to park though. I saw High Curley shown as a view point on the OS map and we decided to go along and have a look! We didn't follow a walk - or even a map in the first place. Just following the route Westerley from leisure centre car park we were rewarded with lovely views very from the start.

The route through the woods to High Curly is quite picturesque.  We were pleased we'd remembered the binoculars as there are places of interest to spot through the trees.  It's a shame I took no pictures at the top, but there wouldn't' be a lot to see (except, of course, the view) because things such as Wembley were only just visible to the naked eye.  It was quite fun to discover landmarks and familiar places.  Bagshot Park is nicely visible, I'd never seen that before.

There is a lot of MOD land and warnings signs. The boys couldn't resist playing armies.

Lots of beautiful woodland.  We really should have followed a walk or at least plotted a route beforehand because at one point we discovered the only reliable way back to the car was through some residential streets.  This was a rather grey part of the walk and not what we'd anticipated.  The boys were rewarded with a play in the park at the end though and I walked up the road to pick up the car.

We would return, but plan a better route next time.

Wendy Booth - Portrait Artist

Mill Pond, Swinley Forest

Our regular walk in the woods has been a favourite since we first discovered it a year ago. We were introduced to Mill Pond (not to be confused with its more urban namesake 2.5 miles directly North West) by the book Kiddiwalks in Berkshire. This is a fantastic book. My only gripe is the distance estimate on this walk – it is twice the distance stated. Anyway, that aside, our Mill Pond walk is a shortened version and at 2.5 miles is an easy stroll on a Sunday afternoon.

We'll never catch them at this rate!	A wood ants' nest - The boys insisted I took this picture!

Normally, we would walk this route, but today were cajoled into taking the boys’ bikes. As with any sunny weekend, the Look Out car park was heaving. However, we set off down the track past Go Ape and with the boys on their bikes we were quickly away from the crowds. Once past Bracknell Road (an unpaved road in the woods) we usually have the place to ourselves. It could have been because it was the only sunny day for weeks, or perhaps it was just the smell of spring in the air, but today was the busiest I’d seen this area. Of course, the runners competing in their forest race certainly didn’t help.

It was actually nice to see others sharing this area that we thought was a well kept secret. In our 12 years in the area, I can’t believe it took us so long to find this place.
We reached the Mill Pond sign (which takes you off the beaten track) quicker than usual. For a change we were limited only by the walking pace of the adults!  We insisted the boys get off their bikes as at some points it could be quite easy to go hurtling towards the lake. Negotiating roots and mud, it was perhaps just as well – they were already muddy enough.

	View across Mill Pond

As the sun shines on the lake you realise what a gem this little place is, so near to the hustle of the Look Out and a stone’s throw from the busy Bagshot Road. Everything slows down and it’s quite easy to forget we all have work and school tomorrow. This would be the perfect place to bring a picnic and spend a hot summer’s afternoon. The water looks very inviting, so you’d have to watch out for little ones.

Mine can spend hours here climbing the trees by the water’s edge and playing in the bushes. If we didn’t have the bikes we would have continued around the lake (over fallen trees) to the little footbridge. Wellies at the ready, another hour can be whiled away damming and undamming the stream, and usually leaving me worrying whether we’ve actually left the stream flowing more freely than when we arrived and that we may be responsible for emptying the lake!

There are some shallow clear spots perfect for pond dipping and we spotted plenty of tadpoles on this visit. We’ll be back in a few weeks to see if many survive into frog-hood. Returning to the main path by the same route (roughly!), we turned left and soon realised why horses and cycles are actually prohibited on this track. Oops! We had walked this route before and with a little care had managed to avoid the worst of the mud. However, we hadn’t banked on the combination of 6 and 8 year old boys, thick gooey mud and bikes! Needless to say, they both had to strip to their underwear before stepping foot in the car!

Stripping off again...	... and again! Will this weather ever make its mind up?!

Once we were back on Bracknell Road, the route back to the Look Out was pretty straight forward.

One of the drier tracks	Bracknell Road - a historic road through the forest

Somehow we managed to avoid most of the day’s rain – although DS3 did go through 4 sets of clothes! I’m not in the habit of carrying spare clothes but luckily when he fell headlong into the first puddle, I did have a fleece zipper in my bag which he wore on its own. This was soon covered with a waterproof jacket and then stripped right back to nothing and then his army gilet which was worn as a vest. It would be lovely to go on a walk where the weather is consistent. But, this doesn’t happen often in Britain, especially in April! And we are, of course, grateful that the heavens only truly opened once we were safely back home. Wendy Booth - Portrait Artist