Tall Sailing Ship in Canary Wharf...

Veronica arrived on July 4, 2024, just in time to join me to walk to Canary Wharf to see a visiting Columbian naval training ship.

It was quite impressive...

…and exciting that we were allowed to board.

Built in 1927, the Juan Sebastian de Elcano is the 3rd largest tall ship in the world and is the sailing vessel that has sailed the furthest.

There was some dancers around for entertainment...

…and plenty of spots for photos.

 

Funky Art in a Hidden Chapel...

While the exterior of Fitzrovia Chapel was completed in 1892, it took around 25 years to complete the interior which includes 40 kinds of marble and lots of gold. 

Originally built as a place of prayer and reflection for Middlesex Hospital, it was the only building remaining after the hospital was demolished in 2015. It was preserved as a listed building and renamed the Fitzrovia Chapel. It is now completely surrounded by residential buildings.

I was there to see an exhibit called The Witch Burns, which was a funky assortment of artworks that likely would be considered blasphemous if this were still a consecrated church.  

 

 

Monkey See, Monkey Do...

Veronica continued to hone her aerial skills in 2024 before taking a break to concentrate on training for her big cycle tour in spring 2025. She enjoyed taking classes in Exeter...

…and occasionally practicing while out and about.

She clearly takes after her father. While everyone else crouched and held on, he scampered across this obstacle course on a City H3 trail with his hands by his side. No surprise that I took photos instead of risking a fall. 

 

Our Final Hike in Shropshire...

After breakfast, we set off on a short drive to our final trailhead for our Shropshire Hills Hiking Holiday. We were slightly delayed by a horse in the road...

…followed by some sheep blocking our path. 

We parked in the lot of The Bottle and Glass Pub, where we would later have lunch. 

This tiny village near Church Stretton was called Picklescott. We saw neither any pickles or Scotts. 

I was happy not to need my hiking poles on this gentle scenic walk. While the grass was wet, the skies stayed dry. 

Lots of sheep of a different breed along our path. 

So glad that Camilla invited me along on this adventure!
 

Not the Only Wimp...

Soon after our lunch stop, our group split in half for the scenic descent down to Little Stretton.

Probably not a surprise that I chose the Moderate path, where I still needed my walking poles but didn’t have to do any hand scrambling.

The highpoint was seeing a wild foal. 

And there was even some woods at the end of the wilderness area. We came across a bake sale at a church so we had an unexpected sweet treat before returning to the B&B for a shower. For our final evening in Shropshire, we had dinner at a nearby pub. 
 

Shropshire Hills National Landscape...

When I found out that the original route planned for the following day was rated Challenging, I thought about skipping it. Thankfully Camilla found a more gentle way up the ridge from our B&B, which everyone agreed was a nice plan. 

This time we headed south as opposed to north the day before.

Loved this meandering path along a babbling brook. 

Eventually our narrow path reached a road that led to the summit... 

...at Pole Bank at 517 meters (1,696 feet) for a total gain of 322 meters (1,056 feet). As you can see from our clothes, it was cool for late June. As you can’t see, there were lots of other hikers here, but we managed to find somewhere to eat our packed lunch.
 

Surprise! I Went Solo Hiking...

Four hours after we set off in the morning, Claire, our trail organizer, announced that we were going to head towards a challenging ridge and I wimped out. Luckily she had a paper map that helped me find my way off Ragleth Hill as phone service was spotty. 

Much of the path along the other side of the hill was quite lush with lots of greenery and wildflowers.

It was a bit disconcerting when I spotted sheep coming towards me on the narrow path. 

They were likely as surprised to see me and opted to bushwhack. 

I had a bit of a panic that I’d missed the turn off to descend the hill, but remembered to follow the necklace that Veronica gave me: Believe. 

The last section was a bit steep and quite arid. I was happy once I was off that hill and relieved to join up with a couple and their daring puppy after spending nearly two hours alone. 

After enjoying a pint at a pub in Church Stretton, I walked the final 30 minutes back to the B&B for a shower.

Later we hopped in cars to drive back to Church Stretton for a delicious Indian dinner with excellent service at Jaipur Lounge. They didn’t have a liquor license so couldn’t sell wine, but encouraged us to bring in our own drinks.