Saturday was going to be a bit tight for time, somewhat limiting my chances of getting out and about. Mainly because some idiot (me), had gone and booked an appointment at the bank for 11:00. I mean why would I do that, it pretty much writes off the whole day, and all for something that I could have just done over the internet if the bank knob had told me it was possible. On the positive side though, I got a reminder of how lucky I am not to have to spend my days trapped in a windowless office with nothing to look at but a computer screen. That will teach you for wasting my time bank worker type! Any way, I digress. Due to my poor time planning The Emma had volunteered to drop me off at Swallowfield (after a cheeky pub lunch, and more to get me out from under her feet than some random act of kindness), with the plan being to walk back down to Aldershot along the Blackwater Valley path, encompassing a cheeky overnight bivvy and then get the train home from Aldershot Sunday morning. I was on my way for 14:00, with the sun trying to break through and thoroughly enjoyed the first couple of hours walking. The route mainly follows quiet country lanes with diversions onto the river bank and a fairly long stint through what would have originally been gravel pits, but have now been flooded to make nature reserves and water sports areas. However, at about the 10 mile point it becomes a lot more urban, diverting into Camberly and Sandhurst, at which point I realised I might have a bit of a problem. Checking the map, the route continues to be quite urban all the way to Aldershot, and it looked like I was either going to struggle to find somewhere to camp, or if I pushed on, end up at the train station just after the last train departed. Bugger! Another brew stop and a bit of a rethink and I realised that I could cut the corner at Camberly, dive across to Fleet, and pick up the Basingstoke canal. Then from there either get a train home from Hook on Sunday morning, or, better still, just walk back. Not only would this increase the weekends mileage to 35 or so miles, but there are plenty of wild camping opportunities along the canal, so it looked like a winner all round. I managed to find a reasonable route from Camberly across to Fleet using the Minley MOD Training area and Fleet ponds (just 1/2 a mile dodging traffic along the link road) and after a quick food stop in Fleet was on the canal towpath by 21:00. Another hour in the dark saw me back out of Fleet and into open countryside, hammock up, and tucked up warm and toasty in bed before the witching hour. The temperature must have dropped pretty low in the night and it got quite chilly just before dawn. Up by 06:00, packed away, and off before anyone told me I couldn't stay there, the morning mist gently rising off the canal as the sun came up more than made up for the low temperatures (and I can't have been that cold in the night as I couldn't be bothered to get up and put any more clothes on). A couple of stops during the morning for breakfast, brews and biscuits, saw me back home for a few minutes after 13:00, with a total of 36 miles under my belt in 24 hours. That's not bad going in my opinion, especially considering I spent 7 hours of it in bed, although the walking's pan flat so it's not exactly hard going. So what's all this drivel got to do with apple scrumping I hear you ask? Well, as I was wandering along, I happened across an apple tree overhanging the path. Hoping that I wouldn't succumb to the same fate as Snow White, I helped myself to an apple, and delicious it was too.
This little act of theft (or scrumping as it's known) on my part, got me wondering how we have got from a point where children (and young adults) have gone from risking a thick ear or a punt up the arse in order to get there hands on a couple of apples, to the current situation. I would hazard a guess that now, most kids, and probably quite a few adults, wouldn't know an apple tree if it fell on them, let alone know where to go and find one to borrow a few apples from. Likewise in our current times of plenty and the all year round availability of out of season fruit and veg, most wouldn't know the simple joy of picking and eating a ripe, juicy, crisp apple straight off the tree. Beat's those cardboard ones from the supermarket hands down! I'll leave you to ponder that one whilst I go and plan my next adventure!
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Paul PerrattOld enough to know better, young enough to still feel invincible, stupid enough to keep on trying the same thing again and again. Cyclist, Gardener, Runner, Hiker, Cook, Woodworker, Engineer, Jack of all trades and master of none, Anti social old git and all round miserable bugger. Archives
March 2024
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