Fields of green and signs of summer
on a country walk near Lichfield
A new ap on my phone tells me how long I have walked and how many steps I have taken each day. I am at a daily average of 2.63 km and over 3,000 steps, which seems to be the general average, but a long way from what all the experts recommend.
On Saturday, however, I managed to raise the stakes for myself, with about 15 km of walking during my visit to Lichfield.
I have some favourite walks when I am staying in Lichfield, and Saturday’s weather was certainly the beginning of summer, with blue skies and temperatures in the high teens.
Early in the morning, I had a stroll around the Cathedral Close, and there were short visits to Saint John’s Hospital, Lichfield Cathedral and the Cathedral Bookshop before joining the visit to Dr Milley’s Hospital on Beacon Street with Lichfield Discovered.
After coffee with friends and visiting the Cruck House, I strolled around Stowe Pool, by Samuel Johnson’s willow and the boat house, and then along Minster Pool below the three graceful spires of Lichfield Cathedral.
In the Remembrance Gardens beside Minster Pool, the foxglove tree is in full bloom. This magnificent, ornamental flowering tree is a native to China and was introduced into Britain around the 1830s. The fragrant, mauve, bell-shaped flowers open in late Spring if the buds have not been damaged by winter cold in the previous months. The tree grows rapidly in its younger years and thrives best when it has a large amount of light and good shelter.
At present, the largest foxglove tree in Britain is over 15 metres tall and is growing in Cardiff. A note pinned to the tree in Lichfield wonders whether this may yet grow to be the tallest foxglove tree in Britain.
From Minister Pool, I then continued on a lengthy walk in the sunshine along Beacon Street, until it turns into Stafford Road. There I crossed into Cross in Hand Lane and out into the countryside on the northern fringes of Lichfield.
Cross in Hand Lane was the main road from Lichfield to Stafford from the late 13th century until 1770, but today it is a quiet country lane that leads eventually to the quaintly-named village of Farewell.
It was named Cross in Hand Lane because pilgrims or travellers on their way between Chester and Lichfield used this route, carrying a cross in their hand.
There are records of a mediaeval cross between Beacon Street and Cross in Hand Lane, but there are no traces of this cross today. The story goes that the cross with the hand that was standing at the fork in the road in the 15th century was simply a post to point directions.
In 1770, the course of the road was straightened and was diverted to follow a new line to the east, now the present Stafford Road.
Last Saturday afternoon, however, it was a pleasant, quiet country lane, in the bright sunshine, inviting me to stroll through fields and farmland, by country cottages, farmhouses and timber-framed barns and by babbling brooks.
The fields are rich and green, the traffic is gentle to the point of being almost non-existent, and the only road signs I noticed warned me to watch out for horses and riders.
It was hard to imagine that I was still close to urban and suburban life, and I found myself rejoicing in the joys of creation, and delighted in the divine gift of the countryside.
The hedgerows were forming over-hanging garlands, yet through them there was glimpse of the country road ahead, fields lined full with crops and lined with trees on each side of me, and charming cottages sprinkled through the countryside.
I have walked this country lane many times in the past few years, and it never ceases to make me thankful for God’s good gifts.
Eventually I turned back along Cross in Hand Lane, and strolled into the grounds of the Hedgehog Vintage Inn, where I have stayed many times over the last few years.
In the early summer weather, the trees were majestic, the pink and purple blossom covered some of the grounds, and families were enjoying the sunshine with their children.
After a late lunch with a long-standing friend and a glass of wine in the sunshine on the lawn in front of the Hedgehog, I decided to stroll back into Lichfield along Stafford Road and Beacon Street. Even in the suburban gardens, the colours were rich.
As I came close to the Cathedral, the growth along the walls of Vicars’ Hall were profuse, and the afternoon sunshine was still warm and embracing … even if I realised that I have a lot of work to do before my daily walking average comes up to a healthy figure.