Two advance singles BZ6 Pewsey with SRC Outbound £7.60
Return (19.29 allowing time for dinner) £6.25

17 walkers off the train, incl. 2 first timers attracted to the SWC/this walk through our Meetup feed, in sunny warm with a cooling breeze weather. 2 took both shortcuts, 1 just the afternoon one, the rest walked the main walk route.
The last two outings of this walk had seen snow drifts (03/18) and torrential rain (05/16), so this was the day to average out the longterm trend, as it was a perfect day for walking. The train was packed with staycationers, but most if not all of us had reservations, and the rest found seats. After ascending the ridge, we had bright yellow rape oilseed fields below (although later others were still part green), large pastures swathed in dandelions, an alley of celandines and several impressive bluebell woods, with carpets of healthy looking tall bluebells, unlike the wilting sorry ones I had seen in the Southeast over the last few walks. Maybe they had more rain out there? Later we had verges of white bluebells and even some very purple looking ones (but were they bluebells, asks the amateur?). The gorse was in bloom, the views were far, the breeze cooled us down a wee bit.
Picnic was had where we caught up with the two morning shortcutters, on a grass bank on the ridge. Skylarks were larking, later a paraglider was seen. The Iron Age and other prehistoric features were admired, all the optional tops were ascended without prompting (the first group to do that) and back in the Vale the Saxon Church and the 1,700 years old yew tree at Alton Priors were viewed.
We got to the Honeystreet Mill Cafe in good time before they closed, and apart from the staff being a bit rushed off their feet at the end of a busy day, this is an impressive cafe, large and with good outdoor space by the canal and a decent selection of cakes, ice cream and drinks (even some local ales).
The long canal ending came in handy as the sun had taken its toll, and the various bits of the group got to Pewsey with about an hour to spare before the 19.29 train. The Royal Oak and the Shed Alehouse were the preferred outlets to quench the inevitable thirst. Some got reinforcements for the train journey home from the SPAR next door to the Shed...
A rather faultless day.

What a day! You wait for years for a snowy walk, and here we finally got one.
From the train window (only slightly delayed), the hills didn't look to have that much snow cover at all, but then we encountered some knee deep snow drifts on the first farm track beyond the Kennet & Avon Canal. Energy sapping fun.
Up onto the ridge (half went left for the short walk, the other half right for the full walk) with the sun now out and together with a cold but not uncomfortable breeze giving us the best winter walk scenario. As we turned west along the ridge (after passing through some lovely woods) there was another snow drift heavy farm track, this time more than knee deep, so much so that the wellie equipped walker suffered some snow ingress. The weather stayed dry until about 13.30, when we stopped for our picnic lunch (we had seen the short walkers disappear from the spot as we arrived). From then on it was more typical winter weather: passing clouds with showers coming down left and right, and often also where we were. The showers being rain and/or hail, often followed by some stunning rainbows (one of them the longest lasting and most complete and vivid I have ever seen).
We eventually caught the shortcutters just where the afternoon shortcut branched off from the main walk, and all of them took that shortcut. On up to the Wansdyke and around back into Pewsey Downs Nature Reserve and to Milk Hill, a truely stunning Down. Alton Barnes White Horse was completely covered in snow, so we just had to imagine it's shape based on the fence surrounding it.
A holloway on the descent to Alton Priors was then full of snow to man height, so we circumvented it along a field boundary, before checking out the Saxon Church. With the cafe in Honeystreet shut, we had planned on popping in to the pub there for refreshments, alas it is now shut as well (and as the short walkers found out from the taxi driver they had ordered to pick them up there: it is shut for good, to be developed into housing).
We then embarked on the 'easy' finish along the canal back to Pewsey, only to be surprised to find [A] the canal largely frozen (frozen enough to have swans standing on the ice w/o breaking through) and [B] lots of snow drifts along the northerly embankment, at one point about a metre deep and necessitating a diversion over barbed wire into a field...
We got to Pewsey with enough time before the 18.13 train (the shortcutters had taken the [delayed] 16.11) to have a drink at The Waterfront Inn, and then as the train was delayed by 45 minutes as well another one at The Royal Oak.
Buffet Car on the train, lots of seats and a working heating system. A well deserved finish to an extraordinary day in Wiltshire. 8 sunny initially then overcast with rain and hail showers.

Further online research regarding The Barge Inn reveals that the lease had been sold in 2016 and the new owners had embarked on a refurbisment and repositioning of the pub (more serious food offerings, less hippy esk focus on crop circles). But a subsequent planning permission to turn a neighbouring barn into housing and the pub into a wine bar/restaurant was turned down in Dec 2017, so they have now shut the (still loss making) pub and put if up for sale. There is a local initiative to find the funds to buy it for the community and preserve it as a pub.

Magnificent, inspiring report. Well done all who walked.

Could not ONE of the bank holiday walks been under 13 miles, for those who want a more relaxing day out?

To quote the text of the posting: "Two Shortcuts are possible: they reduce the walk by 3.5 km (2.1 mi) or 3.4 km (2.1 mi) and the rating to 6/10; or to 5/10 when walking both Shortcuts (19.2 km/305m height gain)." How is that not below 13 miles? Puzzled...

AND with a very late start! How is that NOT a relaxing day out? Even more puzzled...

There are lots of people who want the security of walkng within a group and are not confident about tackling a short cut on their own. Last week one of the attendees for the Ullapool trip had just bought a compass but needed to be shown how to use it! This army range walk is a complete nightmare if you don't have a compass and map to back up the walk directions as there is no signage to guide you. And yes lots of people prefer shorter organised walks at a relaxed pace that they can tackle with friends or with physical stamina issues!

very brave of you to promote a walk with no bluebells and no lunch pub on a may bank holiday monday. could we not at least have some anemones to feed the soul. ta very much

Well... of course I can't guarantee that there won't be the odd blue ish bell or wood ish anemone, as there are some small stretches of woodland en route, but they certainly aren't the main draw of this outing.
'tis a walk for the often very vocal army of long sleepers/extended breakfasters (this late train only runs on Sundays/Bank Holidays, and I don't have slots on Sundays), for the picnicers, the far viewers and the walkers. Just a good walk, in stunning, remote countryside, with plenty of refreshment options late on. That's all there is to it. But no less than that.

9 w= selection of all four seasons including high winds and torrential rain on the ridge. A cracking day despite some afore mentioned awful weather. loads of bluebells. Strenuous but not lethal hilly bits and some nice views. All washed down with pre walk alcohol, picnic lunch, good cake, beer and picnic on train home

Intend going.

8 overcast+and+dry+and+pleasantly cool

8 off the train at Pewsey. One was along for a short walk and parted ways with us a couple of hours into the walk to catch an early afternoon train to London. This is a very nice walk with lots of interesting ancient features and fine views. In my opinion, you get a lot of great views for what felt like not too much effort, with the steepest climb early on in the walk. I found the section through Pewsey Downs National Reserve really lovely.

Picnic lunch for 4 and 3 for lunch at The Barge Inn where the food was decent. Unfortunately, but not a surprise given the amount of paranormal activity in the area, one walker disappeared at this point. Remaining 6 backtracked to the Honeystreet Cafe for very nice cake and tea (worth doing) and then took it easy on the final stretch along the canal. As we had lots of time, stopped for refreshments at the Golden Swan in Wilcot (320m off route). Very pleasant along the canal with the leaves on the trees beginning to turn colour and nice reflections in the still water.

The group enjoyed a few scoops of ale and cider at the Shed Alehouse (worth visiting) in Pewsey. Followed by further refreshments at the Crown Inn. Caught the 20:36 back to London. A very good walk that was worth the trip from London and the early start. Recommended.

Argh. Messed up the weather report.

overcast and dry and pleasantly cool

The otherworldly artefact spotted in a field near Oare Hill can be located by the shadow it casts in this aerial view. It does not however appear on any official maps. An extensive search of the internet has revealed that Robert Hiscox privately commissioned a "millennium arch" from sculptor and "environmentalist" Andy Goldsworthy reputedly made from 90 tonnes of sandstone, with half of it constructed in 1999 and the other half in 2000. The purpose of the structure is unknown.

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