Henley-in-Arden to Bidford-on-Avon

We had breakfast at Arrow Mill at the same table as we'd sat at for dinner last night, watching the ducks feeding on the Mill Pond as we ate our smoked salmon and scrambled egg. The Mill was a working flour mill until 1962. It is now run as a small hotel and restaurant by chef Simon Woodhams and his family. Breakfast was served by Simon's wife Agnes who had seemed reserved last night, but was lovely this morning. She also told us that the guests who had disturbed us by running from room to room in the night, banging doors, were not (as I had feared) attending a wedding at Arrow Mill, but rather just staying here and attending a wedding elsewhere - so we have hope for a quieter night tonight. Thus, whilst I was tired following a disturbed night, I was much happier by the time we left, and we had a lovely walk.

We started by driving a relatively short distance south to Bidford-on-Avon, where we left one car in the (virtuallly empty) car park on Wards Lane (SP098521) before driving the other car back to Henley-in-Arden, where we parked in the same car park as yesterday, on Prince Harry Road (SP153658). Our route from Bidford to Henley was on narrow and twisty country lanes and at one point crossed straight over the A46; note to self - find a better route for this evening! We walked back to Henley-in-Arden's car park and did some shopping at the Co-Op. Then we climbed up to and through the station (the path uses the footbridge over the tracks). Our first target of the day was Bannam's Wood, visible on a hill for most of the 3 mile walk from Henley-in-Arden, with a definite climb at the end.

Our route from Henley-in-Arden had been shared by the Arden Way and Warwickshire's Millennium Way, probably reflecting the fact that Henley was considered the capital of the historic Forest of Arden, and Bannam's Wood is one of the areas of woodland where the guidebook suggests that you might find all sorts of Shakespearean magic taking place. We climbed up through the wood and stopped for a rest at the bench that was erected to commenorate the 25th anniversary of the Heart of England Way in 2007. The bench was donated by Felix Dennis, who described himself as "poet, publisher and planter of trees" (though making money and a certain amount of scandal seem to be what he is most remembered for) and who left most of his £500M fortune to the further development of the Heart of England Forest.

We continued on, past Greenhill Farm, Spernall Park and Round Hill. A sign invited us to use an alternative route to avoid a field of race horses; now why would I want to do that when I'm on a public right of way. I genuinely didn't see the notice telling me not to photograph the horses (Richard told me after the event)...At the far end of the field we took a muddy track around Jackson's Wood then joined with the Monarch's Way to continue the adventure through the Alne Hills.

We descended to the B4089 to the east of Alcester and followed the road into the town centre, an attractive place with lots of black and white buildings, but also some Georgian building. We stopped at OrangeMabel for a cream tea in lieu of lunch; we had rather a rather long wait and the scones and cream arrived without the drinks and cutlery, but it was a nice place and we enjoyed sitting out in the garden.

We continued out of Alcester to the south, by way of Oversley Green where we crossed the River Arrow on the bridge that seems much larger than today's small stream would justify. We climbed up Primrose Hill past the site of Roman Alcester, of which nothing remains (though there is an interesting silo cum radio transmitter that seems to be quite a local landmark). We admired Ragley Hall in the distance and skirted Oversley Castle, really a privately owned estate and not a castle at all, and descended to Wixford.