Aynho Long Walk 20th April 2017

Fifteen walkers set off down Portway and through the tunnel . Drizzle was in the air, but there was very little wind, so it was quite pleasant walking weather. We overtook the medium walkers and followed the path downhill along the field edge. Even the lower end of the field was bone dry. We continued towards Souldern but branched off and climbed up to the B4100 which we crossed with care. As we walked towards Upper Aynho Grounds buildings a heavy truck came towards us, but caused no problems. We had permission to walk along by the lakes. There was one angler there on the verge of a successful catch, but the most pleasing sight was the swan sitting on her nest on the island. She will appear in lots of photos. We continued out to the bridleway and then up through the Warren Farm woods and across to Mill Lane in Croughton. As we approached the church two horses approached us hopefully. We crossed the churchyard and then the road and walked up Wheelers Rise. The path then crossed the fields to the single track lane from the Charlton Road where we turned right and took the path that brought us out to Camp Farm. We skirted the camp and took the track along the ridge to Green Lane and back to the pavilion for a chat and refreshments.