{"id":478,"date":"2012-03-10T01:08:12","date_gmt":"2012-03-10T01:08:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/?p=478"},"modified":"2014-07-07T10:34:30","modified_gmt":"2014-07-07T09:34:30","slug":"naunton-and-the-slaughters-gloucestershire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/?p=478","title":{"rendered":"Naunton and the Slaughters, Gloucestershire"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>They\u2019ve seen a few winners at the Hollow Bottom; a few losers, too. The walls of this famous horse-racing pub in the north Gloucestershire Cotswolds are hung with jockeys\u2019 silks, snapshots of grinning owners, racing mementoes and photos of our four-legged, long-faced chums in action.<br \/>\n<script type=\"text\/javascript\">window.onload = setupZoom; function popwalk(walk) {var url = \"\/Walks\/amap.php?f=\"+walk; var walkwindow=window.open(url,\"walkwin\",\"height=600,width=1020,resizable=yes,scrollbars=yes\"); if (window.focus) {walkwindow.focus()}}<\/script>First published in: The Times <a href=\"javascript:popwalk('Slaughters.gpx');\" rel=\"nozoom\" title=\"Click here to view a map for this walk in a new window\">Click here to view a map for this walk in a new window<\/a><\/script><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7198\/6916028367_597f92b03c.jpg\" title='horse and rider near Naunton'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7198\/6916028367_597f92b03c_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7195\/6916036377_012875ec85.jpg\" title='ivy'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7195\/6916036377_012875ec85_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7054\/6916040571_4fc4783413.jpg\" title='Cotswold stone wall'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7054\/6916040571_4fc4783413_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7208\/6916044623_8c698f7a24.jpg\" title='stone walls and trees'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7208\/6916044623_8c698f7a24_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7061\/6916055915_1dc54ffff5.jpg\" title='in the woods near Upper Slaughter'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7061\/6916055915_1dc54ffff5_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7180\/6916058785_f26252e6ff.jpg\" title='seed head'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7180\/6916058785_f26252e6ff_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7052\/6916062315_db202d5efe.jpg\" title='Upper Slaughter'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7052\/6916062315_db202d5efe_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7208\/6916066775_917be4cf77.jpg\" title='path to Lower Slaughter'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7208\/6916066775_917be4cf77_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7070\/6916069339_ff2a63e6be.jpg\" title='sheep profile'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7070\/6916069339_ff2a63e6be_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7038\/6916073707_f9276c89a3.jpg\" title='River Eye near Lower Slaughter'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7038\/6916073707_f9276c89a3_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7178\/6916077889_5fee95d475.jpg\" title='Lower Slaughter mill'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7178\/6916077889_5fee95d475_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7058\/6916081089_f724cbb971.jpg\" title='Lower Slaughter village street'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7058\/6916081089_f724cbb971_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7188\/6916085777_a1ce3d6e52.jpg\" title='Windrush valley'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7188\/6916085777_a1ce3d6e52_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7203\/6916089973_6a8b6a61e2.jpg\" title='mossy Cotswold stone'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7203\/6916089973_6a8b6a61e2_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7206\/6916092635_1885708a36.jpg\" title='Naunton in evening sunlight'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7206\/6916092635_1885708a36_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7202\/6916117711_0b19569e18.jpg\" title='Upper Slaughter manor'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/farm8.static.flickr.com\/7202\/6916117711_0b19569e18_s.jpg\" alt=\"picture\" \/><\/a><br \/>\nFacebook Link: <script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"http:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/wordpress\/?p=478\" layout=\"button_count\" show_faces=\"true\" width=\"200\" colorscheme=\"dark\"><\/fb:like><br \/>\nIt\u2019s a great place to stay the night if you\u2019re after local atmosphere, because this is horse country nonpareil. If we saw one horse on our walk through the Cotswolds\u2019\u2019 most delectable corner, we saw a hundred.<\/p>\n<p>After a night of rain the woods were full of cold mist above the valley where Naunton lay, a dream of rich gold stone houses and snowdrop gardens. Horses in blue blankets cropped the paddocks. Every hawthorn twig held a line of raindrops suspended, each drop reflecting a miniature world of inverted trees and walls. Up on the roof of the Cotswolds it was a wintry scene of sombre beauty, all bright colours leached away by the mist. A group of bullocks grazing at a mountain of silage in an isolated barnyard turned their muddy faces towards us as we walked by. \u2018Hey, hey!\u2019 soothed a hawk-faced little man leading a nervously shying colt along the lane, gentle authority in each of his gestures. <\/p>\n<p>The sky began to clear as we came down towards Upper Slaughter. The view broadened to reveal wide upland fields dipping to hidden valleys. The horizons rolled with smoking cloud, and a weak sun came through to frost the lichen-encrusted ash trees with cold silver light.<\/p>\n<p>Upper Slaughter is everyone\u2019s Cotswold dream made manifest \u2013 a gorgeous manor house with peaked gables, mullioned windows and tall chimneys, the church high on a bank like a ship on a billow, the whole village scented with apple wood smoke, a mellow fantasy. In Lower Slaughter the channelled waters of the River Eye ran under a diminutive stone footbridge. The plain red brick chimney of the old mill came as a relief to the eye after so much beautiful gold stone. <\/p>\n<p>In a green lane beyond we stopped to hear a song-thrush fluting his twice and thrice repeated phrases from the hedge. The lane took us twisting down to follow the River Windrush in its tightly curving valley. Goldcrests swung in the treetops \u2013 gold seemed to be the theme today. We skirted the skittish horses beyond Lower Harford Farm, and came up over the hill and down towards Naunton with evening blackbird song echoing through the valley below. <\/p>\n<p>Start and finish: Black Horse PH, Naunton, Glos GL54 3AD (OS ref SP119235)<\/p>\n<p>Getting there: Road &#8211; M5, Jct 11a; A40, A436, B4068 towards Stow-on-the-Wold, Naunton signposted on left. Park in village street.<\/p>\n<p>Walk directions (9 miles; easy\/moderate; OS Explorer OL45): From Black Horse PH, right; in 50m, right up lane; in 150m, right (\u2018Wardens Way\u2019\/WW) on bridleway for \u00be mile to road (126243). Turn right through gate (WW) along field edges next to road. At T-junction (133242) continue along hedge; at field end, left to cross road (134241, WW). On along track opposite; in 300m, right through gate by barn (136243; blue arrow) and on (WWs) for \u00be mile to B4068 beside houses (149241). Left (WW \u2013 take care!) for 350 m; right (152242, WW) along driveway for \u2154 mile to Upper Slaughter. Follow road to The Square; left down to road; left (155232) for 150 m; right (156232, WW) down walled path. Follow WW through fields to Lower Slaughter. At road, right (164226) past mill; cross stone footbridge, up lane opposite.<\/p>\n<p>At T-junction, cross road and keep ahead along green lane (161222; \u2018Macmillan Way\u2019\/MW). In \u2153 mile cross road (157219); on across field (MW); through hedge, left (153218); follow MW into Windrush Valley. At path junction, right (151213; \u2018Windrush Way\u2019\/WiW). Cross river; in 150 m, right (148213; WiW) through Aston Farm and on through fields and woods for \u00be mile. Leave wood (139220); in 250 m, through gate (138221); take left fork downhill. WiW for \u00be mile to road by Lower Harford Farm (129225). Left (WiW); in 100 m, right through gate (WiW). At foot of slope, left along valley bottom. At end of 3rd field, through gate (119226); right across brook; up slope to waymark post; on through gate (118227). Ahead to cross B4068 (117231). Down track opposite; in 100 m, right down path by fence; cross river, pass dovecote; right along lane to Naunton village street (116234). Right to Black Horse.<\/p>\n<p>Lunch: Picnic; or Black Horse Inn, Naunton (01451-850565; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.theblackhorsenaunton.co.uk\">www.theblackhorsenaunton.co.uk<\/a>)<br \/>\nOld Mill, Lower Slaughter (01451-820052, <a href=\"http:\/\/oldmill-lowerslaughter.com\">oldmill-lowerslaughter.com<\/a>) &#8211; really good tearooms; scrumptious flapjack!<\/p>\n<p>Accommodation: Hollow Bottom Inn, Guiting Power, GL54 5UX (01451-850392; www.hollowbottom.com); famous horse racing pub, refurbished rooms, warm and friendly \u2013 especially around Cheltenham Festival races (13-16 March this year).<\/p>\n<p>Info: Stow-on-the-Wold TIC (01451-870083); www.visitcotswolds.co.uk<br \/>\n<A HREF=\"http:\/\/www.ramblers.org.uk\/\">www.ramblers.org.uk<\/A> <A HREF=\"http:\/\/www.satmap.com\/\">www.satmap.com<\/A> <A HREF=\"http:\/\/www.LogMyTrip.co.uk\/\">www.LogMyTrip.co.uk<\/A><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>They\u2019ve seen a few winners at the Hollow Bottom; a few losers, too. The walls of this famous horse-racing pub in the north Gloucestershire Cotswolds are hung with jockeys\u2019 paraphernalia.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-478","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-walks","category-3-id","post-seq-1","post-parity-odd","meta-position-corners","fix"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/478","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=478"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/478\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=478"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=478"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.christophersomerville.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=478"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}