Arbury Hill – 225m / 738ft – 11/03/20
The drive back up from south of London was smooth, there is a great view of the city skyline initially heading back north towards Croydon. I stopped to pick up some lunch then hit the M25 and M1 northwards. It was a clear day, not much rain and not too much traffic either so less than 2 hours later I was finding my way along lanes to the village of Newnham in Northamptonshire. There was space to park outside the The Romer Arms, as far as I can establish it is named after a cartogrpahic measuring tool for mapmaking – quite apt I suppose given my reason for being there.
The walk was an “out and back” route to Arbury Hill via the neighbouring village of Badby following the Nene Way for the most part.
Expecting mud underfoot and maybe some rain I dressed accordingly and set off out of the village westwards and onto a path through fields along the banks of the River Nene – more of stream at this point. The fields were soft and muddy but flat and fairly easy to negotiate without too much slipping around. After just over a mile I came out of the fields into Badby and followed the streets through the village, climbing up a short hill (Bunkers Hill) to cross the main A361 onto the farm lane leading to Arbury Hill (or Big Hill as it is alternatively known – very imaginative).
There were a couple of alternative routes to reach the top, a bridle path to the south or a farm track a bit further along the lane. I opted for the latter which meandered across open field and then ascended on steeper grassy slopes or winding, random stony tracks which I never really understood. As I approached the top of the hill there were plenty of uninterested sheep making some noise but the views to the north and east were quite extensive. The top of the hill was quite flat and unmarked so I used GPS and OS to locate my position and did the routine video/photo, not hanging around too long before descending the way I had come up.
With the wind at my back I upped the pace a little, slowing to appreciate the village of Badby as I passed through, not a lot going on, a couple of dog walkers, nice church prominent at the top of a bank and a small school not yet closed for Covid19.
Heading back through the muddy fields I stopped briefly to chat with an older man walking his dog who was quite interested in what I was doing there and some of my previous exploits.
Further along I noticed a sculptured wooden marker post on the bank of the stream/river with the letters SOV carved on it and promised myself I would find out what it meant. It was carved from walnut by a local craftsman as part of a millennium project called Spirit of the Valley (SOV) and is named “Source”.
It was a short distance back to the car and a decision swiftly made to resist the temptation to go in for a quick beer in favour of a quick hop further north into Leicestershire to finish the day off with County Top 18. The sun was coming out and it promised to be a pleasant evening. So out of my muddy boots and back on the road.