Friday, 27 March 2009

Mortimer West End (Kiln Pond and Simms Copse)

Simms Copse

I had been working hard on a report for two days and my head felt ready to explode - I felt desperate to get out in the fresh air and do something active. On the other hand, time was short so this 4 mile local walk seemed just the job.

The walk begins in the village of Mortimer West End at the playing field. You walk a short way along the road and then turn off to walk through Beynons Wood, part of the sprawling 14,000 acre Englefield Estate, to reach Kiln Pond - a not very photogenic body of water.

A couple of further small bits of woodland and a series of large fields bring you to Simms Copse.



Clearly, there will soon be a fine display of bluebells. Today, the main thing of note was a couple of deer.

The route then touches the edge of the larger village of Mortimer, before turning southwest back to the start.

From: Rambling for pleasure around Reading (second series) by David Bounds for the East Berkshire Ramblers.

Map: Explorer 159 (Reading, Wokingham and Pangbourne).

Rating: three stars. Pleasant, reasonably open and varied, but nothing distinctive.

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