Wenlock Edge & The Long Mynd - Day 1 (Sat Sep 28th)

Monty the motorhome is sitting on a pitch at The Caravan Club campsite on Wenlock Edge. It is the weekend and we decided on Friday night just to go somewhere for the weekend as the weather forecast is good. There was only one criteria - it should not be too far from home.

So on Saturday morning we set off and one hour later arrived at the site.

On arrival we encountered our first big problem with Monty. Having filled up with fresh water we discovered the water pump was not pumping the water through. It was making a pumping sound, but that was all. After lots of head scratching we gave up and filled up a big plastic water container, which we had luckily bought in case of difficulties with remote filling taps. However it meant we were consigned to an overnight stay with no ready supply of water - on a campsite with no toilet block and hence no washing facilities! Ruth was not amused.

Some things cannot be helped in life, so with a gallic shrug of the shoulders we left the problem behind and walked along Wenlock Edge to Much Wenlock. The Edge is a limestone escarpment 19 miles long, with many silurian fossils, especially at the northern end. The Shropshire Way passes along the top, with views out across the county. Much Wenlock is about 2.5 miles from the campsite and we wandered around a bit, admiring some of the old buildings. Much Wenlock is the birthplace of Dr William Penny Brookes, who back in 1850 decided to revive the ancient tradition of Olympic Games. This was the inspiration that led to the modern Olympic Movement. To this day there is an annual Olympic tournament in one of the Shropshire towns, with local athletes taking place. In 1981 I took part in one at Much Wenlock, without much success. However I can very loosely call myself an Olympian!

Much Wenlock town centre, with half timbered Guildhall centre picture

Back at the site we tucked into a chicken korma I had made yesterday from Rick Stein's book - very tasty.