Earlswood to Kings Norton 6 miles (03/09/24)

Members Present: H Maguire, M Simmonds, D Chambers, D Peters, A Jones, C Scharfe, K Maguire (7) and E Scharfe. Myself and Helen joined the train at Wythall in damp weather for the one stop to Earlswood station and rendezvoused with the rest of the group. After heavy early morning rain, it had stopped at the start of the walk and remained so for the whole walk. This started off by walking a quiet lane through Tanners Green, crossing the busy A435 dual carriageway and then circumnavigating Kings Norton golf course until we reached the picnic tables at Forehill. A brief lunch stop here and then we carried on down another quiet lane, before crossing many fields containing Horses, Alpacas and sheep. Turning in the direction of Kings Norton, an open view of Birmingham City centre and it's nearby suburbs could be seen before we entered a couple of tree covered paths and finally made it to Hawksley housing estate. A short walk down to the canal and 10 minutes along the towpath led us into the final bit of roadway up towards our refreshments. A surprisingly rural walk given how close it was to various built up areas. Karl Maguire