1^st May 2019 Spring Walk

This year Gwyndaf added a visit to a local church to our Spring Walk.

We all met at the Red Lion pub in Little Missenden at 10:00 to order our lunches for later. Then 22 walkers set off on a 3 mile walk in the hills around the village.

We started off following the River Misbourne and in the first field we passed we saw a curious collection of animals – pot-bellied Vietnamese pigs, funny looking sheep that turned out to be goats and a magnificent turkey displaying for his harem of females.

In the next field we discovered an archaeological party surveying the field. They explained that they had detected signs of very old buildings (possibly Roman) close to the river and were tracing out the shape of the building with a view to a future dig.

We then followed the South Bucks Way footpath up the hill with wild flowers on either side. Janet John pointed out some of the flowers, and when we reached the top of the hill, she introduced us to the flowers and explained their common names.

From here we were able to admire the views across the Misbourne Valley.

The weather continued to be fine and we didn’t need our coats, as we turned back towards the village pub, chatting and getting to know other members of the society.  We arrived back at the Red Lion just before 12:00 after walking about 3 miles. There we were met by others who had come for the church tour, and there were over 30 of us when we sat down to lunch.

The food proved to be very good, with a wide choice from sandwiches to belly pork and sea bass. We also had time to sample the beer and watch the carp in a pond in the back garden.

About 2pm we walked the hundred yards or so to the village church, The Church of St John the Baptist, where we were met by the vicar, the Reverend John Simpson.

We were treated to a guided tour of the church and told that the original church dates back to Saxon times (about 975 AD). It was then added to by the Normans and by successive villagers over the centuries. The original Saxon church is very visible and you can see where the exterior walls and windows were.

The highlight of the visit was to see the medieval paintings on the church walls. There are a number of pictures on various walls, but the main ones on the north wall of the church show St Christopher and cartoons of St Catherine showing scenes from her life. The paintings have been declared ‘of national importance’ by the Courtaulds Institute and have recently been restored after receiving a grant from the heritage fund. During the restoration even more fragments of paintings were found on other walls around the church, dating from the 13^th century and through to the reigns of Elizabethan and William and Mary.

The vicar made an excellent and enthusiastic tour guide, pointing out so many features of this old church that might otherwise have been missed. Our tour lasted about 1 hour and we were very impressed to see such artwork on our doorstep. You can find out more about the church and its paintings here: www.lmchurch.org

Many thanks to Gwyndaf and Janet John for organising such a fun and educational day.

Tuesday May 15th – Our Spring Walk & Pub Lunch took place on a gloriously sunny day. How could it have been otherwise!

The members gathered outside the Swan in Ley Hill. This attractive old pub faces the open land of Ley Hill Common and was originally three cottages dating from the 16^th Century.

Sam, the bubbly landlady, unlocked the pub and came out to meet us – so some much needed relief was had before we set off!

Thirteen members went off on the walk with another five joining us later for the lunch.

Passing the little village Memorial Hall the footpath led to Tyler’s Hill. This woodland is full of large deep holes from which clay was excavated for the local brick and tile making  industry. We wound our way past and through these dips and on through open fields with distant views across the Chess valley, then followed a long, wide, but fortunately shady, path along a typical Chilterns “bottom”.  Finally we strolled up through open parkland and woods to reach the far end of the Common.

Ley Hill Common is the home of a golf course, and here Ralph Broomby was delighted to re-make his acquaintance with a par three hole of particular difficulty with the green located in a valley well below the tees. After admiring this tricky golf hole we strolled back across the springy turf of the common to the pub.

During the walk we learnt how to distinguish the scented native bluebell from the oft-planted Spanish species, smelt and tasted the leaves of Garlic Mustard, and discovered the extraordinary reproductive strategy of the Cuckoo Pint (also known as Lords & Ladies).

Inside the Swan still has the wooden beams, inglenook fireplace and the old original stove. Fortunately padded cushioning has been fitted to the old beams though I still managed to bump my head on one beam. After a rest with drinks in the cool garden we went in for our meal. Tables had been thoughtfully arranged in a U shape for us. Very conveniently the landlady had taken main course orders previously and had set up a tab for the various couples and singles present. The meals were excellent and quite a few found the desserts irresistible. The Swan delivered good food and excellent service.

All in all it was a relaxed day out. We learned about bricks and how they are laid as well as some natural history. And we enjoyed the good weather in some lovely Chiltern countryside.

Gwyndaf John