This year's Weekend Away, organised by Scott, was based at HF Holidays' Longmynd Hotel, Church
Stretton, formerly a hotel built in 1900 as a hydro-spa when Church Stretton
enjoyed a brief period of celebrity as a health resort. Three days of walking
were planned, long and short ones on Saturday and Sunday and a short one on
Monday.
Seventeen members took part with walks led by Scott, Barbara, Elaine and Dave. Thanks to Paul, Bill and Rab for the photos and Sue for the quiz on the final evening - and everyone else for coming on an enjoyable holiday in (mainly) good weather.
Both of Saturday's walks started in the hotel car park. The longer (7.6 mile) walk went up the Carding Mill Valley, location of a carding factory built in the 18th
century, and named after a stage in making cloth. This very steep-sided valley
rises gradually to the famous Long Mynd plateau whose geology dates back to the
Precambrian era. There, the route meets the Shropshire Way which took us along
good tracks to Pole Bank, the highest point on the Long Mynd at 516m with
excellent views to the west. Then we walked over Round Hill
and down over open country for a stop for lunch and then down to Little Stretton and eventually back up to the start.
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