October’s highlight truly belongs to Penny Platts. Her presentation “Travel in Iran” was outstanding. History, culture and especially the friendly welcome given to her by the ordinary people left a deep impression on us all. What could the world be like without wars and hatred among nations.
After travel in a hot country November will transport us into Antarctica and the Baltic. What contrasts!
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The HBC Hiking Group’s October walk was a gentle circular affair of about 5 miles, starting near Prior’s Frome and heading through intermittent woodland towards Upper Dormington, then Perton and southwards to Checkley, where we were given the chance to visit the small church of St Nicholas, beautifully decorated for their harvest festival (see example in photo).
After heavy rain the previous day, we were thankful that our leader Mike C had chosen some hard tracks, so we encountered little mud (and no stiles!) on what turned out to be a beautiful day for walking, with some fine long distance views. Watch out for notice of our next hike!
One of the highlights in September was a very interesting talk by Mark Bricknell on John Venn Society. John Venn and his sister Emelia did ground-breaking work in establishing guidelines in social care that are still very relevant today.
This month we continue with a Herefordshire theme when Gordon Taylor returns to give us another pictorial insight into the beauty of our county.
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The hike in September took place in the Begwns, a National Trust owned upland area near Hay-on-Wye, and was led by a friend of the Maesyronnen Chapel, one of Wales’ oldest non-conformist places of worship. This was a longer than anticipated trek for the 9 of us, topping almost 10 miles but was more than compensated for by the beautiful scenery and perfect weather. The walk finished at the Chapel where we were presented with very welcomed refreshments. We also took part in a short service of thanksgiving led by the chapel’s minister who came especially in for the occasion!
Activate ladies fitness will be relaunching Thursday 12th September.
This is a free session and is aimed at all levels of fitness. If you would like to see what it’s like, come along any Thursday and meet us!
Thanks to Ian Haines’ efforts during July we can now say that “the (old) penny has duly dropped”. Little did we realise how the study and collection of coins does reveal such an intricate picture of our country’s history.
After the break during August we are now looking forward to an autumn season that will have a varied and interesting programme on offer.
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HBC Hiking Group have enjoyed beautiful weather for their last two outings.
Our walk in July was a gentle and level affair of about 6 miles, starting from HBC and along the Wye to Breinton, where we were fortunate to find the church open for viewing.
In August, we travelled further afield to the Blorenge, between Avergavenny and Blaenavon. It was rather breezy at the top where our picture was taken, but more sheltered as we circumnavigated the lower reaches of the hill, finding signs of a former tramway supporting the local ironmaking industry, also the Punch Bowl pond with a glacial heritage. About 7.7 miles in all with a couple of easily managed ascents and no stiles!
Many thanks to Mike C and David P for leading these two walks. Watch out for notice of the next outing.
Well into the June heatwave, some ‘cooling-off’ relief was offered by Janet and Juergen when they shared their recent travel experiences entitled “Switzerland by Train”.
July’s programme features a series of talks and demonstrations about English coinage by Ian Haines, before Revd Ruth Hulse will send us in to our summer break in August.
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Eight HBC men of diverse ages gathered with their bikes on the morning of Saturday, 22nd June 2019 for a ride in perfect cycling weather, not too warm or too breezy.
The weather forecast for Saturday, 15th June was not great but the slight drizzle stopped just as we arrived at Llanthony Priory (founded in the 12th Century) and ten hikers and three dogs enjoyed what turned out to be a lovely morning.