“You’ve been plowtering about in the mud” was what Granny Robertson, with her strong East Lothian roots, said when we kids came back in from a muddy afternoon. And she would have said that today.
Plowtering is such a descriptive word. It means to splash aimlessly in mud or water, to wade messily through wet ground. And that really described quite large parts of today’s walk.
Waking up this morning to a little snow we expected it to be wet underfoot. Muddy as we went across Shalford park and over the Wey but looking better as we met the gang (Val, Colin and Claire by the old Law College admin buildings.
Except the buildings are no longer there. Development is in progress for new housing.
Walking up towards Piccard’s Farm the snow showed the old cultivation on the fields.
Quite sticky in the woods but not up in the trees.
Up at the point where the North Downs Way is crossed by a track down to the Manor of Polstead. A new sign post but very muddy all round.
Then back down onto the main Loseley Park estate. Still very muddy crossing this and here we suffered our only slip. Muddy and no fun. On through Orange Grove then up and over Mount Brown, a new track for us, and back to the meeting point from which we walked home.
To find that the snow on the car was thawing fast. A good walk.
Total climbing: 226 m
Total descent: -222 m
Total time: 02:43:33