AWW 11.03.2009 Hedley and Hilke’s Hike

A wonderful warm Spring day for a debut walk led by an exciting pairing of occasional leaders, Hedley and Hilke.  And not being a married couple there was  less probability of conflict over directions and timings!!

Track of the walk (click to enlarge)

Stats: Total Distance: 16.0 km; Moving Time: 3 hr 34 min.; Total Time: 4 hrs 23 min.; Moving Avg.: 4.5 km/hr; Overall Avg: 3.7 km/hr; Total Ascent: 554 m.; Max. Elev.: 306 m.

Head Hikers: Hedley and Hilke (how’s that for alliteration!)

Hikers: Chris; Ian W.; Terry M.; Paul; Alex; Ian S.; Antje; Mike; Ingrid; Frank; Rod; Tina; Sonia; Dina; Andrew F.; Lindsey; David; Myriam.

Dogs; Tiggy; Rosie; Maddy

The Café is not as blue as it was!!

Here is the report from Hedley and Hilke:-

20 walkers gathered at the blue café in Moinho da Rocha where, despite the offer of a free coffee, nobody managed to get a smile out of our landlady. Well, Frank did, but only half a smile, so that did not count (he did not want any sugar in his coffee.)

At the top of the 1st climb, the co-leader decided to get her knees brown!

So on a perfect spring morning we set off up the valley heading north. A series of climbs followed passing two sets of bees without incident and a large area of brand new eucalyptus planting.

The Chief Scout ‘Bee prepared’ !!

It seems that the pressure from the environmentalists to stop this crop has had no effect. After about 4 Km we descended into the valley of the Ribeira da Senhora do Verde. Alas the cottages that were inhabited up to 2 years ago are now derelict along with the previously thriving watercress beds. Here we met a decision point : do we try to cross the rickety bridge at a height of 2+ metres or wimp out and ford the river.

Some took the low road!………

One of our stepping stones was an old trunk, rocking slightly when you put your foot on. We had sent Paul across first so that he might be able to take some interesting photos, but nobody fell in.

…and an expendable volunteer took the High Road

It was suggested that we send the lightest member across first as a test but Myriam was nowhere to be seen so half the intrepid (?foolhardy) crew took the test while the rest scrambled down and up the bank.

Myriam gloats as the ‘row loaders’  struggle up the bank

    On southwards where we turned off just before the Dung Man’s cottage. (again long gone). After about 300 m. we hit the only real problem of the day – David’s dog Rosie had disappeared. David returned down the trail with Mike to try and find the hound while the rest of the group voted for an early lunch to fill the waiting time.

Not much shade!

After 20 minutes the pair returned with the miscreant to be told that they had missed their lunch break. David’s response was that “he would have to get his nuts out” !! (sorry David I could not resist – especially as only half the group heard the suggestion). 

    After this contretemps, a long haul uphill to the most northerly point of the walk, where we turned south along the ridge down into a valley and up again past the abandoned cars – which have miraculously reduced in number from 4 to 2.

Needs some attention!

More beehives on the way : the four groups that we passed on the walk all seemed remarkably quiet which considering a temperature of 23˚ seemed unnatural. It is to be hoped that the dreaded bee disease which is wiping out hives in the UK and, more particularly the USA, has not reached Portugal.

The Ladies’ Excuse-me – and the 3 bitches!! Please don’t ask!!

On to the trig point for the obligatory photo where the leader announced that it was all downhill from that point – a remark that was contested by moaning from the ranks at every subsequent climb. ( It should be pointed out that Hedley was taught at the Rod Frew School of Walk Leading where Rule 7 states that “any forecast in the last half of a walk should not, necessarily, be taken at face value”).

All present (thanks Gorilla Pod) after a bit of pruning!

Nice green meadow on the way back to the Café

In fact it should also be pointed out that, despite repeated forecasts from the CB that we would fall short of the advertised distance, we did cover precisely 16.0 Km. Which on a hot day was probably enough and our arrival at the bar was a very welcome event.

Note to CB : is there an award to the leaders who get closest to the advertised length/ duration of walk?

CB’s note: Of those rare (and perhaps naive) Leaders who declare a precise distance estimate, (unlike Mike who allows himself a range of about 5 km and 2 hours for his walk estimates), this is the second time this season that it has been on the nail! Antje and Chris having declared and achieved exactly the same 16 km for their Bordeira Bee Run on 18th February. If anyone sponsors an award we will need to devise a tie-breaker!

The Café with no name!

An intimate setting for drinks!

The Sub-committee meeting dragged on for some time after the others had left!

CB’s Comment:  It was a good example of joint leadership by Hilke and Hedley. Perhaps it will encourage some other ladies to plan a joint walk with a mentor to give them the confidence. Although this was not an entirely new walk, it was fully reccied by the pair, and went flawlessly, guided by Hilke’s handwritten notes and Hedley’s memory, until Rosie decided she didn’t like the scheduled walk!

   After last week’s soaking wet excursion, this was the Algarve that we came here for – but as I warned in last week’s blog, it won’t be long before there are cries of “It’s too hot!!”

    It was nice to see Andrew, Tina’s husband out again after a long absence, mainly looking for golf balls – but he did comment that he had shifted his golf away from Wednesdays so perhaps we shall see more of him – and who knows – a walk led  by him and Tina!

   We were very ‘bee-conscious’ after the attrition rate on the Bordeira Bee Run, but happily the bee hives we passed did not have such aggressive inhabitants as those wild bees which did not appear to be near any hives on the former occasion. Nevertheless Mike’s preparedness was an example to us all, and he proved he had capacity to shelter another AWW if necessary!

I hope Jyll hasn’t been looking for those tights!

“But then they danced down the street like dingledodies, and I shambled after as I've been doing all my life after people who interest me, because the only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes "AWW!"    Kerouac, Jack

Now how did he hear about us?