Journal:
I went down
for the early 7am breakfast, joining seven
construction workers also staying at the pub. The
breakfast was fine except for the coffee which
easily took the prize for the worst of the trip so
far. I knew I had a fairly big day to reach
the Youth Hostel at Coalport, my target for the day,
and also knew that there was nothing available in
terms of food or drink until a pub at about 22km.
Accordingly, I stopped at a newsagent on the way out
of town and bought a couple of cans of Diet Coke and
two small Snickers Bars.
From Craven Arms, the
first hour or so involved climbing gradually to the
top of Wenlock Edge via some little-used country
lanes. I strode out determined to make good
time and enjoyed the cooler and overcast conditions
after the heat of the last few days. The lane passed
farms surrounded by low wooded hills and one tiny
village and I felt like I had it all to myself.
Wenlock Edge is a 30km
long limestone escarpment with a steep drop on on
side and a valley and hills to the other. My route
joined the Shropshire Way, a lesser-known long
distance footpath for its journey along Wenlock Edge
and beyond. There weren't all that many
opportunities for views on the steep side because of
the trees, but glimpses were had every now and then.
To the right, gentler side, I could see farms and
more wooded hills. Generally, the path was
easy to follow and easy walking as well, on soft
leaf-covered ground. Mostly it stayed in the
pretty woods but sometimes went the other side of
the fence to skirt the farmland.
I made good time to the
Wenlock Edge Inn, where I intended to have lunch,
arriving at 1pm to find that there was a power
outage from the apologetic innkeeper. I sadly
retired to a grassy patch across the road and drank
my remaining can of Diet Coke and my mini Snickers
Bar while if reviewed the afternoon's plans on the
map. As I packed up to move on the innkeeper came
out to tell me power had been restored, but I
decided to keep moving with the idea of getting a
substantial afternoon tea in the town of Much
Wenlock, a further 7km on. I arrived there
soon after 3pm and found a very well preserved
historic market town with many fascinating old
buildings. I found a cafe in the main street and
ordered soup and a roll for lunch. While
eating I read the flyer about the upcoming festival
week and saw that one of their guest speakers was to
be Dave Moorcroft, a phenomenal runner from my day
(who I think I met once), who incredibly still holds
the British National records for 5000m and 3000m.
After my break I passed
through some more of Much Wenlock including the very
old Guildhall and the even older ruined Wenlock
Priory, although I could only take pictures of the
latter over the fence without paying admission.
The Shropshire way then crossed more farmland and
traversed another escarpment, Benthall Edge, as it
approached the historic and still active industrial
area around Ironbridge. This area was really
the centre of the Industrial Revolution and had a
real sense of history, including the first cast iron
bridge and lots of old preserved mill buildings.
As I passed Ironbridge,
the last town I would pass for the day, I called
ahead to the Youth Hostel, 3km ahead, to make sure
they had room. No answer, but I knew it was a
big Hostel, so carried on, sure they would have a
bed. When I got there at 6:30pm it was
fully-booked for school groups! Curses!
I went to a nearby pub, but they were also full, so
I ordered dinner and bought a few drinks and candy
bars to take with me on the assumption I would
probably be camping. I continued on trying one
more pub which did have a room, but was too
expensive, and eventually found myself a spot to
camp in a small wood near a busy road. It
seems to be mosquito heaven. I called ahead
and booked myself a room in a pub at Penkridge for
tomorrow night and will aim to be there before 5pm
to collect my mail and my next set of maps.