Berkhamsted Walks and Social

Please note the earlier start time.

I’d be very grateful if members could make a £1 donation towards Meetup costs. For anyone who has gone 'cashless', please transfer payment to the KROO Bank Meetup account:
Martin Jones
04-07-09
#00779315.
Otherwise, it's possible to make a payment through PayPal using paypal.me/MartinJ1986 and choosing the friends and family option.
Thank you!
This walk will be led by Malcolm it’s a 4.5 mile walk which will take under 2 hours.
We begin in the picturesque village of Sarrat outside the Boot pub and make our way across fields down to the River Chess. We then follow the river until we crossover at the wooden bridge, we then continue on the other side where we will reach the Ford, we cross here next to the Watercress Farm before making our way back to Sarratt where we can enjoy a warm welcome in The Boot.
There is plenty of parking on the roads around the pub.
Please note that this walk is not led by a qualified leader and, as such, isn't covered by insurance. Be sure to wear suitable boots and clothing. The organiser cannot be held responsible for any injuries, however caused. Members are expected to take responsibility for their own preparation and safety including adequate fluids, weather protection and a snack.
Please be sure to make Malcolm aware if you have any medical conditions.
Dogs are welcome as always but please be mindful to keep them on leads for roads and around other animals.
If you are unable to attend please be sure to change your RSVP otherwise our departure will be delayed.

I'd be very grateful if members could make a £1 donation towards Meetup costs. For anyone who has gone 'cashless', please transfer payment to the KROO Bank Meetup account:
Martin Jones
04-07-09
#00779315.
Otherwise, it's possible to make a payment through PayPal using paypal.me/MartinJ1986 and choosing the friends and family option.
Thank you!

The walk begins at the free Canal Fields car park, Broadwater, Berkhamsted, HP4 2AL. The car park is at the end of Broadwater, past the football club and opposite the tennis club. Please be wary of the post code, it is best to use the Google maps link above.

This is a repeat of 'The walk that went wrong!' Hopefully, with a less stressful outcome! We follow the Hertfordshire Way out of Berkhamsted past Well Farm and into the woods. After the war memorial, we need to spot the pathway across the golf course (blink and we'll miss it!) before heading through the woods to Frithsden Beeches. Avoiding 'the pathway which isn't there!' we'll pick up a familiar route and descend across fields back to Berkhamsted. The Crystal Palace is a convenient watering hole at the end of the walk. This is a 6-mile walk and should take about 2.5 hours.

Please note that this walk is not led by a qualified leader and, as such, isn't covered by insurance. Be sure to wear suitable boots and clothing. The organiser cannot be held responsible for any injuries, however caused. Members are expected to take responsibility for their own preparation and safety including adequate fluids, weather protection and a snack. Please be sure to make me aware if you have any medical conditions.

Dogs are welcome as always but please be mindful to keep them on leads for roads and around other animals.

If you are unable to attend please be sure to change your RSVP otherwise our departure will be delayed. If you are running late, please call me on 07587867371.

Welcome to the Berk Worms Book Club🐛 2025. Each month we all read the same book that we have chosen from a particular genre and then meet to discuss it as well as other books we are reading.

For August, 2025, we have chosen to read a Booker Prize Winning novel. Our chosen novel is the 2005 winner, written by John Banville and entitled ‘The Sea’. It runs at approximately 270 pages. It is available in all formats, including Kindle and Audible. It may also be available at the local library if you get in quickly!

About the Novel:

https://thebookerprizes.com/the-booker-library/features/reading-guide-the-sea-by-john-banville

When art historian Max Morden returns to the seaside village where he once spent a childhood holiday, he is both escaping from a recent loss and confronting a distant trauma. Grieving the loss of his wife, Max finds himself reflecting on her final days, as well as his childhood and the experiences that shaped his life, including the summer spent in Ballyless where he met the Grace family when he was 11 years old. The Grace family had appeared that long-ago summer as if from another world. Mr and Mrs Grace, with their worldly ease and candour, were unlike any adults he had met before. But it was his contemporaries, the Grace twins Myles and Chloe, who most fascinated Max. He grew to know them intricately, even intimately, and what ensued would haunt him for the rest of his years and shape everything that was to follow.

About the author:

Banville was born in Wexford, Ireland, in 1945. He is the author of thirteen previous novels including The Book of Evidence, which was shortlisted for the 1989 Booker Prize. He has received a literary award from the Lannan Foundation. He lives in Dublin.

Critical views:

‘A masterly study of grief, memory and love recollected’ Professor John Sutherland, Chair of Judges, Man Booker Prize 2005

Reading ahead with the BERKWORMS

9 September: we are reading a Dystopian novel entitled I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Hartman.

October: we are reading a book about Culture - to be selected in our August meet up.

Happy reading, 🐛Cazza