3 Men on a walk 2017: December 2017

Sunday, 31 December 2017

Another year starteth

Hello 2017 and the start of our sixth year of "Monday Walks"

This blog is a list of walks done by Ivan, Richard & Trevor - mostly across Sussex and Kent but occasionally wider afield.

The three guys have been doing a "Monday Walk" for five years now and previous annual blogs can be found here ...

2016 Walks (3 men on a walk 2016) http://3amigoswalking2016.blogspot.co.uk/

2015 Walks (3 men on a walk 2015) http://3amigoswalking2015.blogspot.co.uk/

2014 Walks (3 Men on a walk - 2014) http://www.3amigoswalking2014.blogspot.co.uk/

2013 Walks (3 men on a walk - 2013) http://3amigoswalking.blogspot.co.uk/

2012 walks (Three men on a walk) http://wealdway.blogspot.co.uk/

At the end of each walk entry you will find full details of the route we took including a link to the route on Google Earth (a KML file) plus stats for the walk such as length; ascent and average speed. If you "click" on any picture it will enlarge and in some browsers, you can also step through all the photos in one go.

Enjoy reading our exploits and here's to continued good weather in 2017

Richard, Ivan & Trevor

Richard - Ivan - Trevor

Trevor - Richard - Ivan

Friday, 29 December 2017

2017 year round-up

Looking back at our walk efforts through 2017, it turned out to be another good year for our legs and constitution.

Looking at the core stats this is what we achieved...


Miles walked	416
Calories used	44,269
Altitude climbed	59,891
No. Walks done	46

And comparing this with the previous 3 years (we didn't keep comparable stats for the 2012 when we started walking and 2013) shows ...

	2014	2015	2016	2017
Miles	452	419	368	416
Calories	48,737	44,000	39,105	44,269
Altitude	43,690	45,223	42,156	59,891
No. Walks	47	41	37	46
Distance walked to	Inverness	Cairngorms National Park	Dunfermline	Pitlochry Cairngorms
Food days	19.5	17.6	15.6	17.7
Mount Everest climbs	1.51	1.56	1.45	2.06

And totaling up the last 4-years shows we have done...

		Last 4 yrs total
Miles		1,655
Calories		176,111
Altitude		190,960
No. Walks		171
Distance walked to		Central Turkey
Food days		70.4
Mount Everest climbs		6.58

Our efforts in 2017 match up very well with previous years although in general we walked slightly shorter walks - our longest was 13 miles - we did do more of them. And we certainly found walks with big hills !

Lets hope us "Old Timers" can achieve a good set of results in 2018.

The Hartfield Dash!

Hartfield loop via Chuck Hatch and Pooh Bridge

We thought it might be a good idea to squeeze in a walk between Christmas and New Year in an effort to lose a few calories from the recent excesses. However the weather had other ideas and we had to resort to our "Plan B" which was to meet up at "The Anchor" for a "Pie & a Pint" and if the weather passed over as forecast we would do a quick 6 mile loop in the afternoon just so we could go home with a smug smile on our faces. And that was what we did!

The Anchor is one of our favourite stopping points and today it was buzzing with families and dogs all having decided that the atmosphere in the Anchor was much better than the cold wet windy day outside! We met up there and enjoyed our lunch before booting up and setting forth on the trail.

There was a strong wind with a real cold edge to it but this loop had plenty of steady climbs on it and it wasn't hard to keep warm. However, as it had been raining very heavily in the four hours before it was very wet under-foot and also very slippery so in places we walked very carefully! Still this walk did the trick, gave us a good blow out and made us feel righteous even if we didn't lose many calories.

Two old codgers admiring the view

Sunshine after the rain

Dusk comes early at this time of year

Arriving back at the Anchor

Stats for the walk were...

Finished Hike: 29 Dec 2017, 15:40:48

Route: Hartfield Dash

Explorer Link: http://walkmeter.com/818ee85cf2cf57d1/Hike-20171229-1323

Import Link: http://share.abvio.com/818ee85cf2cf57d1/Walkmeter-Hike-20171229-1323.kml

Hike Time: 2:02:49

Stopped Time: 10:02

Distance: 5.87 miles

Average: 2.86 mile per hr

Fastest Pace: 15:30 min/mile

Ascent: 843 feet

Descent: 783 feet

Calories: 628

Monday, 18 December 2017

Crockenhill - Toys Hill Loop

Crockenhill common and around Chartwell

Our Last Monday walk of 2017 so we decided to try and lose a few ounces of weight before Christmas so we could add a lot more over Christmas. And the place to do it was up near Crockenhill and Toys hill as this part of the Weald has some very steep hills on it.

Parking up at Crockenhill Common we set foot towards Chartwell, the former home of Winston Churchill. Passing the cafe there we thought that a bacon Sandwich might help us on our way but a snooty lady at the counter said "Oh, we don't do those". So we had to go without a breakfast kick which was unfortunate because we knew we had to complete the full walk loop before taking lunch as there were no pubs on the walk.

It was cold - around 5 dec C - but with full winter sun so an ideal winter walk day. The path took us through a mixture of woodland and open fields as well as a couple of minor roads and throughout we had some great views.

The route

Great day for a walk

Looking out across the Weald

Chartwell hiding in the background as we walked through Chartwell Farm

What do you do when you find a car seat in the middle of a wood - sit on it!

Lunch at the Royal Oak in Crockenhill Village

Stats for the walk were...

Finished Hike: 18 Dec 2017, 16:00:47

Route: Crockenhill - Toys Hill

Explorer Link: http://walkmeter.com/818ee85cf2cf57d1/Hike-20171218-1023

Import Link: http://share.abvio.com/818ee85cf2cf57d1/Walkmeter-Hike-20171218-1023.kml

Hike Time: 2:29:35

Stopped Time: 16:18

Distance: 6.87 miles

Average: 2.75 mile per hr

Fastest Pace: 15:08 min/mile

Ascent: 1458 feet

Descent: 1446 feet

Calories: 766

Monday, 4 December 2017

Shipbourne loop again

Shipbourne Hadlow loop

Its nearing Christmas and the end of the year and we are getting lazy ! Well no one could think of a better walk and as Ivan wasn't with us when we walked it a few months ago we decided on a re-run. This walk was done in sunshine last time and so it was again today albeit it sun through high cloud with a sharp northerly wind. But still a great winter walk day.

Probably the only change to last time was that it being the run up to Christmas our watering hole, The Kentish Rifelman, was bustling by 12-30 and we had one of the last tables before diners were being turned away!