Bourton-on-the-Water Circular Walk 

That's very true Faith! Yes, it is a lovely corner of the Cotswolds and while busy in parts there are still plenty of quiet corners. Thank you! Paul

Thank you Daryl. Yes, I really enjoyed this walk, and it was good to have some good weather finally! Cheers, Paul

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed your 'return' to Bourton-on-the-Water. It is a rather special place, although I am considering doing a Short Bite Photography one from here - at 5am in late spring when the crowds aren't there! Cheers, Paul

It is a really lovely place Ted! It does get very busy though, as you saw in the video. I may return on a very early spring morning to capture some photographs for a 'Short Bite' video before the visitors arrive! Happy New Year to you both. Paul

Thank you Michael, and happy new year too! The contrast between the busyness of the centre of the village and other parts of it is extraordinary - literally a couple of minutes walk! I really enjoyed this walk and the weather we had yesterday was the best we have had for sometime. Cheers, Paul

Oh gosh yes, it is odd how parts of this large village are rammed with people, but other parts of it are empty. I guess they are well used to it by now though - it has been a very popular destination since at least the 1950s, if not before (and the Romans before that!). That little chapel that I showed at Clapton-on-the-Hill is indeed the smallest in Gloucestershire. Cheers Alice! Paul

Thank you Michael! Glad you enjoyed it. Yes, there is much more to Bourton than just the centre of the village. I was expecting it to be very busy as it was a Bank Holiday, so I had planned my route and strategy so I wasn't too overcome! I really liked that little chapel in Clapton-on-the-Hill. Always lovely to hear from you. Take care, Paul

Thank you Lionel & Mary. Glad you enjoyed the walk - a rare decent day's weather! Yes, I have visited the Motor Museum before as well, but I think it was closed on Boxing day. As you saw though, it was very busy there, though the paths weren't. Happy New Year to you both too! Paul

Thanks Cathy! Yes, I used to walk to South Milton Sands Beach in the late spring and summer months before I started my night shifts in Plymouth, or a beach walk after work, before I had breakfast and went to bed! The village of South Milton is at the Hope Cove end of the beach, and Thurlestone (the posh end!), with its lovely hotel, is at the other end. South Milton has a wonderful community with lots of events on - it had no pub, but there was one in the village hall every month, and film screenings there too. I particularly enjoyed the summer fete and the Christmas events. Happy Memories! Thanks for watching and commenting. Cheers, Paul

@@westcountrywanderings 🙂🙂

Thank you Amanda! Yes, that is so true. I really enjoyed this walk and the weather was much better than what we have had recently. Take care, Paul

The weather makes all the difference!

@ltlawithamanda it certainly does! 🌄

Thank you Martyn. Yes, that is so true! Happy New Year to you too. Cheers, Paul

Thank you James! Yes, it is always suprising how quiet a lot of these walks are James. Cranham is another lovely Cotswold village - not far from me at all. I did a monthly vlog from there a while ago, but not a proper walk - definitely one for the future in this series. Lovely to hear from you. Hope you enjoy the rest of Christmastime Take care, Paul

Thank you Roy! Glad you enjoyed this Cotswold Walk. Cheers! Paul

Thank you Suzie, ....and Happy New Year to you too! Hope you have a brilliant 2024. I really enjoyed this walk, although like I said to David above, I will probably return to Bourton very early one morning to give it full justice without the crowds. Thanks so much, Paul

@@westcountrywanderings Thank you Paul..... I'm hoping that 2024 will be a nicer, kinder and more thoughtful year to everyone around the world and that Peace will be in the hearts and minds of us all. It will be a real treat to see more of Bourton when you return again for a walk about. I'll surely look forward to it. There was something I wanted to ask you about and unfortunately have forgotten at the moment so I'll review the video and get back to you on it in a day or so on this message. Many thanks once again for replying and also for another wonderful video of sights I didn't get to see when living over yonder. All the best, Suzie

​@@westcountrywanderings Just a quick question for you Paul....(remembered what I wanted to ask you)..... @25.55 portion of the video where the tree 🌲 is in the water, I was curious to know if the town has ever decorated the tree at Christmas 🎄 time? Probably not with lights because of the electricals and water situation, but with ornaments and such? I was thinking how pretty it would look all dressed up in Christmas decorations for the holiday season. However it is very beautiful just as is in it's natural state. Hoping all is well. Take good care Paul. Best wishes, Suzie

@@Trilogy1-1-1 good morning Suzie. Yes, that tree is lit up every Christmas and photographers cine from all over the UK abroad to photograph it and its reflection. I have never been to Bourton at night to see it though. There are lots of photos of it lit up at night though. Take care, Paul

@@westcountrywanderings Good morning Paul and thank you for the information regarding the tree 🎄. I'll Google search it in images and hopefully get to see it all lit up at night. I'm sure it's lovely. Thank you again for getting back to me about it. Have a wonderful day ahead whatever you do and wherever the road may take you today. Suzie

Thank you Diana! I thoroughly enjoyed this walk - seems like it has rained every day ever since! Happy New Year to you too and I wish you all the best for 2024. Thank you for your lovely comments and support throughout the year. Best Wishes, Paul

Thank you Watto! Glad you enjoyed it, and always a pleasure to hear from you. Yes, we are lucky living in the middle of Gloucestershire, as we have easy access to The Cotswolds, as well as The Severn Vale, The Forest of Dean, the Wye Valley and The Malverns, The Welsh Marches, The Severn Valley & The Wyre Forest and more, all close by. Not many places have all of that. I used to live in Cornwall, and, although I really like Cornwall, it took a long time to get anywhere else, especially before the Goss Moor A30 dual carriageway was built. It could take two or three hours, or more, just to get to Plymouth or Exeter from where I lived in Redruth. Happy New Year to you too Watto! Yes, a vlog in the new year sounds a great idea - drop me a pm in Facebook. Cheers, Paul

Ah, yes, that is probably very true! I think the beaches were quite popular throughout the South West on Boxing Day though, and it was very busy on the canal towpath when I was filming today - lots of runners! In trainers! Possibly early new year resolutions! Cheers Richard! Paul

Thank you! Yes, I like to use my large 'shotgun' mic when I am out in the countryside/coast, as it picks up ambient sounds (like birds, rivers,) as well as speech, clearly. The lavalier wireless mic is OK, but it has a more of a 'shut in' type of sound, but it is better for noisier environments and when you want to be more discrete and blend into the background. I certainly get noticed when I am using my tripod - I had people watching me today on the canal when I was doing pieces to camera - I just blocked them from my vision and carrried on! Filming making is never without incident!! Thanks Jesse, glad you enjoyed it. Take care, Paul

Hello Donna! Yes, this was a really lovely walk to blow away Christmas lethargy. Bourton was busy as usual but it is a lovely place - I think I need to return early one spring morning before the tourists arrive to fully do it justice though. Happy New Year to you too. Take care, Paul

Thank you David! 24 pairs - well done! I was concentrating on getting out the other side of the village! I am considering returning to Bourton at 5am on a late spring morning to do a Short Bite Photography video, as I don't think my video sequence does this lovely village justice - it is hard to appreciate it with all the people there. Although I liked the walk, I wasn't entirely happy with that segment of the video. Wow! Cordoba sounds amazing! I never 'celebrate' New Year - previously I used to work through it on a Night Shift, this time I will probably be editing. It isn't something I really acknowledge, though I do appreciate others do. Filming the monthly vlog tomorrow - just finished the script for it! Cheers! Paul.

@@westcountrywanderings At 5:00 there won't be a pair of white trainers in sight. I do prefer to see the off the beaten track places and the absences of "grockles" adds to the atmosphere!! New Year is really just another day, the start of winter and also from here on the days start to get a little longer too To celebrate the New Year the tradition here is the twelve lucky grapes, With each strike of the town hall bell you eat a grape by the time you get to twelve, well your mouth is full!! I understand you perfectly nonetheless I will dedicate the eleventh lucky grape this year to you and the twelfth to your return to Bourton. All the best

@davidberlanny3308 good morning David. Yes, it is a Bank Holiday here but I would prefer it if it was in June or July - just seems rather pointless to me. Maybe it is to placate consumers of alcohol (ugh) - you get a headache or nausea or something after drinking it, apparently. Off filming again today - the wilds of Herefordshire. Strictly speaking, Herefordshire is in the west midlands (lower case) as far as the government is concerned (as opposed to the West Midlands, which is a large urban area further to the north and east) but it is very rural, and it is part of the three counties (Worcestershire and Gloucestershire are the other too - they are all quite similar) - there is a annual rural Three Counties show, and The Three Choirs Festival (from the three cathedrals). Herefordshire is actually the least populated county in England by population density and there isn't a great deal on RU-vid about it - RU-vidrs generally gravitate towards the urban. Hope you have a great day 😊 Take care, Paul

Somewhere I have a book on the calendar I'll have to have a look but at some point someone said this is the year X maybe that person had shares in Whitbread, who knows. Total respect for those who abstain, I often feel at my best after a cup of tea!! If we didn't have an end of year I suppose we would use the moon to calculate our age, on this basis I am 774.89 moons old (I used an online calculator!!). I will do my best to capture some of Cordoba it's a very special place. All the best!!

@@davidberlanny3308 Yes, our age with reference to our moon makes perfect sense to me. More sense to me than our wacky current system, which we have mucked around with for policitcal and religious reasons over the centuries. The moon is in tune with our internal biorhythm clocks, or is it the other way around? Take care, Paul

Hi! Yes, sure, you can find it here: facebook.com/groups/572552387741398 Just click request to join, and I'll let you into the Westcountry Wanderings Facebook Group. Paul