After a steep and muddy descent around a fallen tree I reached a good path through woodland, on which I passed numerous morning dog walkers. Alton was a little further from my accommodation than I imagined and there were a few more hills than I expected. The village is famous for the Alton Towers Theme Park. I presume it was the towers of the main building that I could see from a viewpoint, an outcrop of red sandstone, a little before the village. As a child I had visited once, I did not remember so many hills!
The remainder of the day was over farmland, grass fields, soft and squidgy with all the rain, and gentle hills. Sometimes I was on barely visible paths over the fields, other times on farm tracks, often muddy. A kissing gate on the path was held firmly closed with a combination lock which annoyed me, as the landowner was breaking the law obstructing a public footpath. It did not stop me climbing over it but not so easy for less able people or those with dogs. A track between hedges had been improved by laying down a line of stone flags which I much appreciated as it helped avoid the mud or brambles.
I had a few milestones today to break up my journey, the first was Rocester. The small town was dominated by JCB, the manufacturer of the eponymous, yellow, earth moving equipment. Rocester is their World Headquarters and there is a JCB Academy in an old mill built by Arkwright, the 18th century inventor who help industrialise textile manufacture. I stopped at a café for a coffee and cake. While her dog stepped in its water bowl one of the customers proudly told me the King was visiting the JCB factory today, apparently it was their 80th anniversary. King Charles helped change a tyre there according to the BBC.
From Rocester it was over fields to Uttoxeter following the valley of the River Dove. Close to the town I had to cross a busy, fenced dual carriageway. My GPS suggested the route went under a bridge by a river, however I could not see way through and wondered if the path was flooded as the river level was high. I spent a long time finding a way around, climbing over gates at a farmyard, then crossing the dual carriageway at a roundabout. I had passed this way before and did not recall any difficulty so I approached the river bridge from the Uttoxeter side. It was then I realised there was another arch with a safe passage through. I missed the turn to reach it as it involved heading in the "wrong" direction for a short while.
Although now behind schedule I had promised myself a sandwich for lunch in Uttoxeter, so stopped at a handy Starbucks beside a series of charging points for electric cars. Seemed to me a good business plan, offering coffee while your car is charging, although the two other customers seemed to be using the coffee shop to work on their laptops.
On my next section over fields to Abbots Bromley I fell in step with a local man for a few hundred yards. We exchanged a few words. He had been a mining engineer in the coal industry before specialising in the demolition of oil refineries and similar.
Dusk had fallen by the time I had reached Abbots Bromley and my Bed & Breakfast. Despite removing my boots I still left mud stains on the carpet from my trousers which I tried ineffectually to clean up. I was glad to arrive, my left knee was complaining, my blister was bloody and I was tired. No one in the village is serving food tonight, however the helpful staff of the Crown pub provided details of a place that did deliveries. So I ordered burger, chips and a brownie. I must confess I was surprised when it arrived!
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