The Winky five cross the line

Sat 26 Jul ‘25. DH, PC, DL, JB & CH

With no representation from the northern patch, it was left to the five stalwarts of Wincanton this week, for a walk around the north east side of Gillingham finishing with breakfast at the Filling Station. Parking at the end of Kimgscourt Road at 0930 we set off promptly over the old Bailey bridge and into the area of the former Kimgs Court Palace, for a clockwise route around to the edge of Motcombe. This would be a new walk for John & Chris but held good or wet memories for the rest of us, having completed it successfully last in 2022 but having failed miserably in the pouring rain at the back end of 2020.

Was we approached the small pedestrian crossing point we heard the sound of a train approaching so stayed well clear as it went past, slowing ready for its next stop at Gillingham station. As we crossed on a section of curved track with not much more than zero visibility to the right along the single track line, the smell of brakes was still in the air. Once over the track we headed north towards Woodwater farm and through a field of young inquisitive cattle. Luckily we had the calf whisperer with us this week so after an initial crowding around us they very quickly ‘lost interest’, or should that be ‘were calmed by Johns smooth talking enough to just walk away and continue chewing the grass’? We crossed the small stone bridge over the dry stream bed, which back in 2020 was running like a mature river and then around the right side of the farm to pick up the path which would take us eastwards.

I knew this next section would involve a lot of stiles as we crossed from one field to the next. Some of the stiles were in very poor repair and needed much care whilst crossing while others were totally broken and could even be bypassed altogether. Alongside some of the stiles were cross country style horse jumping fences although there was no evidence that they were used by horses any time recently. We pushed across around six to eight such fields and crossings before we came across a field of mature cattle lazing the day away and the inevitable couple of electrified wire fences. With a bit of teamwork we all made it over them without incident, as they wires were kindly held down by some big walking boots or held high on wooden sticks as we passed under them.

Arriving at Wolfridge Farm we noticed a couple of old cars in the open bar. A quick poke under a tarpaulin identified a Rover P6 whilst at the rear a small blue uncovered car was collecting a good layer of dust whilst a large cylindrical item rested on the bonnet. There was some discussion about the manufacturer and model, mostly around the various Austin cars of the era, but Chris put us all out of our misery as he spotted a Standard emblem on the boot and then the mark which confirmed it as the slightly bigger Ten variant as opposed to the Eight. Introduced in 1954 the Ten was a more powerful, better-appointed version of the Standard Eight, with the Eight's Standard SC engine increased in size to 948 cc and sharing a similar frame and transmission.

After leaving the farm we could see that it was a bit grey over the hills to our north but pushed on and passed through a gate and turned southwards on the start of the return leg. The field was obviously well used by sheep or cattle as the grass was nice and short but it was very uneven underfoot. We headed for a gate in the bottom corner, over some more poorly maintained stiles and just as we entered the last field before having to cross the railway once more, it started to rain. Chris being the only one who had carried a waterproof this far was delighted when he slipped it on, but thankfully it stopped almost as soon as it had started and none of us got that wet. The stile up to the line was well maintained but very high so we waited on top for everyone to get over it before stepping onto the embankment. At this point the visibility both ways is well over 400 metres of straight track and a signal had just changed from green to red so we knew we had enough time to take our lives in our hands and pose mid track for this weeks groupie.

Safely across to the far side we passed the lonesome still in the middle of the field and laughed as we retold the time when Adrian had been helped over all the previous stiles that morning, but when he could have just walked around this one, chose to climb it all on his own. Typical of the man! We then crossed diagonally to the stile on the ridge and were delighted to see that we had moved into an area where the stiles and gates had been upgraded to metal swing gates which were considerably easier to negotiate. As we crested the ridge the view in front of us had changed considerably since pir last visit. Rather than an expanse of green fields and hedgerows there was sprawling mass of solar panels with surrounding security fence, lights and cameras. I don’t know if it was the introduction of the solar farm or for other reasons but throughout the whole walk today there had been a noticeable absence of any bird noise. Surprising as the hedgerows looked in full leaf and there appeared to be plenty of berries amongst the bushes.

We dropped down towards the solar farm and took the tracks between it and Kingswood as we made our way back towards Gillingham. Entering the former court grounds from the north east the earthbanks are more prominent and it is easier to see the vast extent that the area used to cover. We arrived back at the cars having completed 3.45 miles in 1hr 45 minutes and then just had a five minute drive to the Filling Station, the cafe near the station we tried for the first time last summer.

The cafe was busy with prior orders for both sit in and take away food and we ere warned there would be a bit of a wait, so having ordered Deryck and myself popped to the cycle shop next door. There was nothing that took our eye for the few coppers pocket money we had in our pockets, although Deryck was delighted they stock his bike’s manufacturer’s should he need any spare parts at any point. By the time we got back, our drinks were on the table and our breakfasts ranging from an A303 to a B3081 weren’t too far behind. Very good service from just a small team and very tasty selection of breakfasts all round. Certainly a good replacement for the Secret cafe at Thorngrove, although they don’t allow dogs inside so it’s a fair weather cafe only when we have their company.

Cyclemeter.