A very English Sunday

We had nothing planned for today so we let the weather decide. Given the weather was fabulous – chilly, blue skies without much breeze – we decided to go for a walk. Sadly, because Carmen is still recovering, the poodles had to stay home.

We had a choice…I say ‘we’ but Mirinda always makes me choose so that if it turns out bad, it’ll be my fault. I chose the Basingstoke Canal from Odiham to King John’s Castle. It wasn’t the best option, given how muddy a lot of the tow path was, but it was still a lovely way to spend the run up to lunch.

It’s been ages since we last walked along the canal. So long, in fact, that Mirinda not only forgot where the castle was but also which side of the canal it was on. Fortunately, I remembered. Mind you, you can’t really get lost when you’re walking along, beside a canal. You just keep going. One of the added benefits is that it’s generally flat.

We had both forgotten how far it was, however. Though, once you get started, you really don’t feel inclined to turn back before reaching your destination. Anyway, we didn’t. We made the castle.

King John's Castle

It’s called Odiham Castle now (I guess the residents of Odiham wanted a castle) but it was originally built for King John between 1207 and 1214. He stopped off here on his way to Runnymede to sign the Magna Carta. It’s also famous for being a favourite place for Eleanor of Aquitaine (John’s mum) to visit when the mood took her. In fact, there’s a steady stream of famous visitors – Simon de Montfort and his wife, Edward III and Philippa of Hainault, Scottish King David II (who was held under house arrest here).

Mirinda, showing how chilly it was, enters the castle

Having reached the castle and indulged ourselves in a good wander around, we turned around and walked back to Sidney, who was obediently waiting outside the Waterwitch. On the way back we spotted a rather brave kayaking couple.

On the Basingstoke Canal, annoying Gary

Actually, they managed to keep slowing down in front of us so we never lost them. This wouldn’t have really been a problem except they kept scaring the birds in the trees before I reached them. So I couldn’t get any nice aerial shots of them. Not much I could do about it but I’d have quite liked to submerge them.

The only birds I managed to photograph, were swans. Two of them. They followed us down the canal.

Happy swan on the canal

Arriving back at the Waterwitch, we decided to have, rather than just a drink, a full Sunday roast. And so, a massive serving of roast chicken was put down in front of Mirinda and an almost as big serving of roast pork was put down in front of me. We thoroughly enjoyed our meals, as did the rest of the pub which was heaving with Sunday diners, and left for home, completely stuffed.

At the bar