Snow drops greeted us at Abbot's Leigh before our steep descent through Leigh Woods to The Grotto via some fun with a found coconut shell and a sneaky look at Leigh Court through the hedge.
At the bottom of The Grotto, Brock launched himself off a wall into a muddy Avon tributary but thankfully returned to heel before becoming fully submerged. His hospice t-shirt will never be white again I fear...
Joining the Bristol to Pill cycle path we quickly came across a light tower which gave Mr T a chance to survey the vast expanse of mud that is the Avon Gorge at low tide. Had it been high tide, there wouldn't have been much of a path left thanks to all the recent rain. Luckily the low water gave Brock plenty more chances to look for enormous sticks. He was particularly taken by an abandoned boat left high and dry on the grassy bank.
Passing the inlet with more boats firmly stuck in the mud, we turned inland towards Pill past a fishing lake and an enclosure of very inquisitive chickens and ducks. Brock managed to keep just far enough away from the fence not to get a peck on the nose.
Our tea stop (with rock cakes lovingly provided by Mrs Gardner) was in full view of a Saturday afternoon football match so Brock remained firmly on the lead lest he interfered with the serious game at hand. The purple team were winning.
Down into the old harbour at Pill next. It's hard to believe with so much mud around that these boats ever get to sail atall, but then the Avon Gorge has one of the highest tidal shifts in the world which makes for an extraordinarily variable landscape.
After passing a large amount of abandoned delivery trolleys and other random items in the mud, we turned inland again to make our way up the ramp and onto the M5 motorway bridge.
The noise of the traffic was quite overwhelming so we had to resort to shouted conversations and lots of pointing. As we approached the middle of the bridge we could feel the vibrating force of the traffic underfoot and see the true width of the Avon spreading out far below us. We got friendly waves from truck drivers who could see us above the protective fencing and after some well-needed chocolate and a pause for a group photo, we started the long descent down the other side.
Shirehampton was where this leg ended - our longest yet at 10km and we were gratefully collected in our favourite blue campervan by a very accommodating Mrs T.
And here's where we walked: http://gb.mapometer.com/walking/route_2761490.html
