After collecting our usual assortment of groupies in Tissington, we set off to walk to our destination, which was carefully chosen bearing in mind Tony Blair’s recent advice to support the rural economy. A good excuse to go to the pub if ever I heard one! The beer garden provided a suitable location for the “men” in the club to prove they are not squirts, with a water fight, and general male bonding session. An unfortunate slip of a trouser waistband revealed that Richard, our ex-president is still learning how to dress himself, and has a tendency to wear his pants inside-out, (or was it day 2 of economical dressing? We fear to know.
On a clothing theme, the unusually fine, sunny weather allowed the great committee tradition of public leg exposing, to be re-discovered. By co-incidence the rest of the club put their sun glasses on.
So on we walked, legs glistening in the sunlight, to our second stop of the day, which also provided much needed liquid refreshment, and a game of dominoes, in the curiously named “Muddy Boots And Dogs” section of the pub. Fully refreshed we went our separate ways with several members hitching a lift back to Tissington, in the car of our award winning “Fair Weather Walker Of The Year”, while the purists amongst us walked back, stopping only to punish the traitors by attacking their car with water as they sped past, and to take advantage of a stream to prepare for our next devastating assault.
On our return to Tissington, the final, watery assault was successfully launched, before our departure to Ashbourne, where to be consistent we supported the tertiary sector of the economy, in particular a chip shop, and yet another licensed premises, where we had a last reunion, before separating off in our separate directions. Not however, before the ex-president tried to repair the damage he caused to a particular member’s car, on the night of the committee hand over (when under the influence of whisky, the idea of car surfing seemed remarkably good at the time.) Unfortunately Elastoplasts aren’t terribly effective at un-denting car bonnets.
Back to Nottingham, we went, via a short detour in Derby to the afore mentioned “particular member’s” house, for which he was quite unprepared. Actually how do you prepare for a mini bus being parked on your front lawn? I think some drivers need to practise their parallel parking!
All in all the first trip organised by the new committee appears to have been pulled of successfully, returning with the same number of hikers, in (more or less) the same condition, despite the ongoing inconvenience of Foot and Mouth disease.
Secretary