Ramble 19 Nov – Velmead Common, Fleet
Heavy snowfall, that began an hour or so before our start time, and near freezing temperatures were not enough to put off 10 hardy souls from attending this walk, though some probably questioned their sanity. However, if they did they needn’t have, as the snow eased off and had stopped altogether by the time we set off. The 5 mile, level route took us from Velmead Common car park near the Foresters pub, Church Crookham, across the Common, over the Basingstoke Canal at Norris Bridge and on through the woods in a loop towards the area of Fleet Pond. After a refreshment break we headed back to the Canal and took the towpath for a short distance to Velmead Road and then followed a path through Velmead Common back to the car park. The walk was ideal for the recent wet conditions with good, firm paths and tracks, no mud to speak of and only a few puddles to be negotiated. At the finish all agreed they were glad they hadn’t been put off from coming by the initial weather conditions. Many thanks to Kevin and Jackie for leading a very enjoyable walk.