A few thoughts....

Millennium walk 1. (9 Jan 1999)
Well, we started off with a very nice bright day. The Lord Mayor of Bradford turned up OK, the newspaper photographer turned up late but managed to catch us by chance. About 65 people started the walk, a few people dropped out intentionally, and about 60 people completed the walk. About a dozen well-wishers also turned up to see us off.

We walked just about half a mile, into Bowling Park and then to the cemetery, from which there were dramatic views all around Bradford. We went along path just east of Euroway Estate to have lunch by a pond with picnic tables. Then we went down the side of Cleckheaton onto the Bronte way and finally through very muddy fields down to the Three Nuns Hotel.

So we made our way through possibly the most industrial part of our journey. Yet most of this walk was very pleasant. The next section should be much more rural.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 2. (30 Jan 1999)
Forty nine people completed at millennium walk 2. About forty of these people said they are fairly determined to do every walk! This looks to be a successful project! The walk from Mirfield to Shepley was very pleasant although a bit muddy.

The route was Mirfield-Upper Hopton-Lepton-East of Kirk Burton-Shelley-Shepley.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 3. (13 Feb 1999)
This walk was from Shepley via the Kirklees way towards at Dunford Bridge. We then followed if the old railway track to Flouch.

We had a nice misty and sunny day and about 45 people completed the walk. We nicely filled the otherwise empty bus back to Huddersfield!

For those of the who have missed this walk, Shepley is easily accessible by train. There is an occasional bus service from Flouch. Stronger walkers could carry on to Penistone which is on a train service.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 4 (21 Feb 1999)
The first Sunday millennium walk required a Double Decker bus as 68 people turned up. It was also the first walk where we were unlucky with the weather. On the high moorland sections of the walk we were faced with a severe vigorous cold front which preceded it to give us a good battering! After lunch we were in the sheltered Derwent Valley.

The whole walk was dramatically scenic and very pleasant despite the weather. We have now left Yorkshire behind and the next few walks will be in Derbyshire.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walks 5 and 6. (19 & 20 March 1999)
These walks were done during the club's weekend at Castleton.

Walk 5 started at Lady Bower reservoir and went across the hills to Eyam. After a short visit to a pub we then continued across Longstone Edge and into Bakewell. This walk crossed a lot of valleys and was perhaps the hardest walk of the series. We had very fine views.

People who missed this walk could go by car or public transport to Castleton and use buses to get to the start and from the finish of the walk.

Walk 6 continued from Bakewell via Bradford (!) and Robin Hood's Stride to Middleton and Wirksworth. We had a little rain on this walk and there was a fair amount of mud but it was very scenic.

People who missed this walk could go by car or public transport to Matlock and use buses to get to the start and from the finish of the walk.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 7. ( 11 April 1999)
From Wirksworth we walked via Alport Height, with its excellent and wide-ranging views over the Southern Peak District and the Midlands, across to Belper. We then went via Holbrook to Morley. The section was surprisingly beautiful with lovely woods and spring flowers.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 8. (9 May 1999)
This walk saw out at the last of the Pennine hills. We went via Stanley to Dale Abbey and then across to Risley where we visited a pub. This section of the walk had lovely Bluebell woods and some interesting sandstone cliffs, one of which had been carved to produce a Hermitage. The near ground was rolling farmland with woods, very pleasant. In the distance we got glimpses of Derby and Nottingham, reminding us that we were in a fairly urban part of England, despite the beauty of the countryside. Towards the end of the walk we were in flat lands which are part of the flood plain of the River Trent.

We had set out on walk 4 from Flouch in wintry weather and followed the river Derwent down through Derbyshire to where it joins the Trent. Now on walk 8 we were in the height of spring.

At Flouch we left Yorkshire behind, our next walk we would leave the counties of Derby and Nottingham behind.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 9. (13 June 1999)
Shardlow to Wysall

This was a very hot and pleasant day with nice scenery and lots of flowers. The start was unpromising, the initial three miles was derelict gravel pits, motorways, and a power station with its pylons. Fortunately, the gravel pits were reclaimed with vegetation and the hedgerows hid the nasty bits. What we saw were lots of flowers and dragonflies! Then, after a few difficult fields, with abundant nettles, we crossed the river at Soar and came into more promising gently rolling countryside with my nice woodlands and wide-ranging views. At East Leake we flagged down at an ice-cream van, probably doubling the man's sales for the day! The village of Wysall had a very welcoming pub with nice beer. It turned out that this was going to be a feature of the next few walks.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 10. (4 July 1999)
Wysall to Gaddesby

Another hot day. Following the mid-shires way we walk through the villages of Willoughby, old Old Dalby, Grimston, Hoby to Gaddesby. Old Dalby was a particularly attractive place and it is a pity we had not time to look round it more. Hoby was another picture postcard village and was having some kind of the fete, enabling some well earned ice creams to be bought.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 11. (25 July 1999)
Gaddesby-Tugby

Notes still to come

Millennium walk 12. (15 Aug 1999)
Tugby-Braybrooke

A sunny day but quite cool. Setting off from Tugby, we walked along the pleasant ridge for a few miles. From the leafy village of Cranoe we followed a very narrow lane through Welham and then to Lodge Farm. We crossed at the young River Welland where frog was inadvertently executed! Someone, who will remain anonymous, poured out a flask of tea and was surprised to find that a frog jumped into it. Sadly, it was killed instantly. The walk them became more and hilly and wooded before dropping down into Braybrooke.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 13. (5 Sept 1999)
Braybrooke-Chapel Brampton

Now it is September, we were expecting cooler weather, but this was the hottest walk so far. It was the easiest to navigate as it mostly followed an old railway line. We had the unusual experience of walking through quite a long tunnel where we appreciated the fact that he was very cool. The views were very pleasant, although walking an old railway line one has to make an effort not to look dead ahead all the time. The walk finish at Brampton Halt, an old railway station which had been converted into very pleasant pub. The railway is in the process of being a restored.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 14. (26 Sept 1999)
Chapel Brampton -Bugbrooke (Northants)

This walk went through a succession of extremely beautiful villages started Chapel Brampton and continuing through Church Brampton, then some pleasant woodland and then the exceptionally beautiful village of Harlestone. We then walked three miles of pleasant fields in rolling countryside and more woodland. Passing through the strangely named village of Nobottle we went through some fairly hilly countryside before crossing the M1 in to Nether Heyford. A short section of canal walking took us to another lovely village Bugbrooke.

This day the coach was driven by Russell Wilkes. This is the first time since we had our own coach that it has been driven by a club member!

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 15. (24 Oct 1999)
Bugbrooke-Yardley Gobion (Stoke Buerne).

For the first time since millennium walk we had bad weather. The last walk of this millennium was also the last walk of what seemed like a long hot summer as far as the millennium walks were concerned. The weather was much better than had been predicted until mid-afternoon but then we had real end of year rain. The canal side war was very pretty, in undulating wooded countryside, and the only time we left the towpath was on the section with Blisworth tunnel, which is the longest canal tunnel currently in use. The next village was Stoke Bruerne. We did not really have time to visit the Canal Museum, although some people found time to visit the pub! Yardley Gobion, the end of today's walk was another lovely village with thatched cottages and a nice pub.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 16 (16 April 2000)
Starting at Old Wharf Farm, near Yardley Gobion we walked down the Grand Union Canal through Cosgrove and across the River Ouse aqueduct to Wolverton. One of our members are identified 27 different species of plants and flowers along the section of canal! It was certainly a reminder that Spring was here. We then had a couple of miles in the suburbs of Milton Keynes. This was mostly on cycleways surrounded by bushes and greenery but we did see one or two squalid little cul-de-sacs. We then joined the North Buckinghamshire way, which took us down to the A 421 near Wood Pond Farm. This section was very nice, green lanes with hedges down each side. A field full of cowslips. Pleasant views out to the West. Although we were very close to Milton Keynes, it was well hidden by bushes and trees. A few more lanes took us into Newton Longville chair, which had a very interesting church clock, with a very ancient clock and it also had a good pub. This was the last of our day trips on our Millennium project.

Ray Wilkes

May Day weekend at 2000

We used Cranfield University as a base for this holiday, it turned out to be very luxurious.

Millennium walk 17 (29 April 2000)
First couple of miles out of Newton Longville were very boggy and not very inspiring. However, on reaching the Grand Union Canal things looked up. Great Brickhill was a lovely village and there were lots of bluebells. We then picked up the Greensand Ridge Walk, which took us through more lovely woods, and into the grounds of Woburn Abbey. This was magnificent and beautiful. Lots of deer! We finished at a place called every short with another fine pub.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 18 (30 April 2000)
Down another lane to Tingrith, and then across the motorway to Harlington Wood end, another pleasant lane and up to Harlington. From then on we had lovely views of the Chiltern Hills. It was now very summery, although we did have some light showers. Up some steep banks in woodland and then along to Streatley. Along a lane eastwards and south to Galley Hill, where we crossed the Icknield Way. Now we were being treated to a lot more bluebells, Stars of Bethlehem, and many other nice flowers. Near Wards Wood there were lots of cowslips. We went through the village of Lilley and along a minor road to Great Offley.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 19 (1 May 2000)
From Great Offley we went past more bluebell woods took Austage End. Then along paths, lanes and footpaths to Frogmore. Some of this was a magnificent wooded parkland. More fields and woods brought us to Whitwell and after a little difficulty with the route finding, along a pleasant path to Kimpton. This village was having extensive Mayday celebrations and we took the chance of a couple of pints. We then followed some pleasant field paths to Priors Wood and then Ayot St Lawrence, with George Bernard Shaw's house. We then followed a path south-east until we reach the Lea Valley walk. We had been treated to a stretch of delightful woodland full of all kinds of lovely flowers including that the rare and ancient Archangel. The last couple of miles along the River Lea were very pleasant but increasingly overshadowed by the traffic noise from the A1. We finish the walk at Stanborough Park, near Hatfield. Only two weekends and 30 miles to go!.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 20 (1 July 2000)
Stanborough Park - Chain Walk - Cheshunt station 13 m.

The walk started in Stanborough Park, but soon we were beside a very busy road for about three-quarters of a mile. However, we then travelled south-east across lovely cornfield paths to West End. The walk then became more wooded and we went along wooded lanes to Newgate Street, where there was a very nice pub. Until then it was very hard to believe that we were in the boundaries of one of the world's biggest cities . We then had a fairly urban stretch with not many paths until we got to the Lea Navigation which we followed beside a busy railway line to Cheshunt. Route:-Stanborough Park- Lea Valley Way -to Lodge at GR 251098-S & E to West End-S & E to Newgate Street GR 300050-E on road to Chain Walk-S on road then E on path to Andrews Lane-through built up area (paths & lanes partly)-to Cheshunt Lake N end-S on Lea Valley Way to Cheshunt station 13 m

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 21 (2 July 2000)
Cheshunt station to Lea Bridge car park 11 m

From Cheshunt, after meeting Lance Bourne and his photographer, we walked south down the River Lea navigation all the way to Lea Bridge. The initial stretch was parkland but after passing under the North Circular Road we were in a fairly industrial stretch where we were pleased to see our first London bus stop! However, we could see green hills to the left and dominating our field of view were lovely summer flowers, butterflies and dragonflies that surrounded the canal. It was a very hot day and it was very idyllic watching the river birds and the fish. There were one or two short low points where we passed through a few industrial yards and a bus garage, but then we were back in greenery again and we came to a very nice canal side pub. From then on we were in wooded parkland again, where the suburbia came right to the edge of the park. Lots of Londoners were out walking, sunbathing or playing games. Finally we came to Lea Bridge which was the end of that day's walk.

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 22(9 Sept 2000)

From Lea Bridge we walked on canal towpaths to the Thames at Limehouse Basin. The canals go through parkland so it was rural right to the Thames. We then walked by the Thames which has spectacular city views and through the Canary Wharf area of Docklands which is futuristically magnificent. Then through Cubit Town urban farm - back to sheep, wild flowers and trees! Finally through the Greenwich Foot Tunnel & out to the Cutty Sark at Greenwich.

Route:-A104 Lea Bridge car park-S on Lea Valley Way using Hertford Union Canal & Grand Union Canal to Limehouse basin-Thames Path to Westferry Circus-West India Dockside-Millwall Docks east side-Cubit Town Park to Greenwich tunnel Cutty Sark 8 m

Ray Wilkes

Millennium walk 23
Sunday 10th September had arrived after one and a half years and and nearly 300 miles of walking...

From the Cutty Sark along the Thames past the wonderful Naval College and then a mixture of Georgian houses, old industry with magnificent river views of Canary Wharf & the Dome.

Such a nice day, difficult to find enough superlatives!

We were met & congratulated by the Mayor of Greenwich, Councillor Jagir Sekhon, and the ITV camera crew.

Thames bank at Cutty Sark to Dome 2 m

Ray Wilkes

Walk 1

Walk 4

Walk 7

Walk 8