Loughborough, 27 January 2013

All the snow had melted overnight, so having done this very walk in icy conditions previously it was a bit of a surprise to find ourselves gathering under blue skies at Loughborough railway station – the destination of Thomas Cook’s very first package tour (no, really).

Four legs good, two legs... covered in goo anyway.

Heading off with a large crowd, we soon ran into serious mud, but after a minor creative detour we were soon back on track and en route for the first pub of the day at one of the Leakes (East Leake, West Leake or somewhere in between).  The sun had got a bit tired by then, so we were saved from any risk of a post-lunch snooze by a fizzy micro-squall of gusty hail, followed by a sudden wind which wafted us along the canal at the end of the route faster than a sail-barge with a crew of thirsty coal-scuttlers (whatever they are).  Of course, the end-of-walk pub was right on the towpath, so it was raffish backdraft hairdos and halves of mild all ‘round.  Many thanks to Ian for a very circuitous circumnavigation of bush and Brush.

There’s no business like snow business - Shepshed, 20 January 2013

Firstly, before we forget, OSB has to issue major thanks for the planner of today’s walk in the snow - it was a bit of a stonker.  OK, that’s an understatement...

Due to snow-related contingencies we were technically without an official leader today, but having found the relevant map and declared an anarcho-syndicalist commune for the day, we set off into the white stuff.  The world looked like one giant meringue, and squeaked every time we stepped on it.

Frosty the Snowman

Bonus credits have to go to the first LRWGer to set out on a route in cross-country skis – and he completed it in them, too.  That gives you a clue just how much snow there was!  But, for the rest of us, standard walking gear was just fine, and with a fluffy carpet over frozen ground it was even easier terrain than some of the muddier walks of recent weeks.

Making rapid time through Leicestershire’s suddenly surprisingly Arctic scenery took us quickly to Long Whatton, where the awesome pub had just opened.  The decor looked so much better with a pair of skis parked inside, and since we were bending a few rules today we paused for a spot of Lebanese grub – that may sound an odd choice for a snowy day, but it definitely hit the spot.

Frosty surveys the scenery

By the time we’d finished attacking the houmous and chips (oh come on, why not?), there were even more flurries of snowflakes floating from the clouds, so we stopped after another couple of miles to build a monument to Frosty the Snowman, decorated with Five-A-Day and some headgear you may just recognise.  Then most of us strode, and one of us slithered, all the way home.  What a day!

Shearsby, 13 January 2013

Glancing out of the window after the alarm went off, the darkness looked a lot whiter than usual – yes, snow!  So, out with enthusiasm for a walk, only to find that the flake-bearing clouds hadn’t got as far as today’s ramble-zone.  But, never mind, this was an official new members' walk, and we did indeed have new members (and no officials).  In fact, we had quite a few people returning for their second walk, so something’s clearly tempting people back!

Sally took us on a very civilised sort of circuit today, with some frosty rural vistas, a very good pub stop at lunch, and only one new member accidentally submerged in a gargantuan bottomless pit of squelching ooze (don’t worry, we fished her out before oxygen was required).  Other walkers nearly recruited today included several small horses and an exceedingly bouncy black labrador; well, we’re open to everyone.

Claybrooke Magna, 6 January 2012

After a drive in the fog, we all pitched up in the deceptively not-actually-that-big village of Claybrooke Magna, whose founders presumably hoped that not too many visitors knew any Latin.  Having assembled the party in front of the Pig in Muck pub, and posed the obvious candidate in front of the signage, Chris took us all off into the mud for real.

We’re pleased to have Chris back leading walks - so there was no moaning about the mud, although by golly there was rather a lot of it on this occasion.  But, once the fog lifted there were some good views of the rolling countryside, and the fresh intake of New Year’s Resolution ramblers all seemed happy to be there.  So, as traditional, jolly banter ensured at the pub afterwards – then, it being Twelfth Night, back home to take down Christmas trees, for us stick-in-the-muds.