We had decided not to hurry away but do an 'explore' by geocaching in the NW. Our fist cache was less than 10 km away at Montford Bridge. Montford Bridge was the local finishing school for Spitfire pilots. The airfield opened in April 1942 and from January 1945, Mustang III fighters were used here alongside the Spitfires. The early part of a pilots training was done at RAF Rednal and then the pilot was transferred to RAF Montford Bridge for finishing, prior to being dispatched to a combat unit. There was not much to see of the former airbase but the cache did have a link to the airfields in the area.

We then went to a very small place – called Great Ness . The attraction here was an old pump that used to be the public water supply for the village until 1945. It had cost a bit over 1000 pounds to restore and there was a small display about the background. It is typical of many of the small places in the UK that are proud of their history.

Most of the caches had us doing short walks along the many public footpaths and bridleways in the area. Some were more attractive than others and one had a distinct smell from the nearby chicken farm but it was a good way to spend the day.

We stopped for lunch at a pub and had their special, a roast meat platter. It came with roast pork, beef and lamb, with stuffing and Yorkshire puddings and roast potatoes on a platter and a bowl of other vegies. The place was full and we had to sit on the comfy seats until a table was free.

The cache I most preferred was called ‘Piglets ill but Winnies Well’. We walked up a public foot path and found an old cottage . Behind it was the well. We were told that it is St Winifred's Well and a rare example of a holy well covered by a non-religious building. The water was reputed to be good for healing broken bones, wounds and bruises, and another nearby spring cured eye problems.

It was a lovely site, with the sound of running water and the half timbered cottage sitting amongst trees. There was even a small footbridge that had a barrier on it, almost like a style. As we left the local sheep were incredibly vocal. Two in particular came up to the gate and baaed at us non stop.

Our last cache took us for a walk by a canal. We had found a small cache on a road sign and were observed by the house nearby where the cache-owner lived. She asked us if we were doing her other nearby cache so we thought we should. However, it had got a lot colder and it was even worse by the water. We were quite chilled when we got back to the car so we were keen to get home and warm up. This was a shame as it was a lovely spot and even had a drawbridge that seemed to be for cows to cross the canal. We met a lady feeding the local swans and also passed a group of three very warmly dressed locals having a stroll. We then drove home to cook a meal and spend the evening in the warmth.