Flashing, dashing and hashing in Little Totham

A hash full of dangers and hidden meanings

My new satnav announced that I was to bear right on to Dee Arsey road (D'Arcy) and then left on to With Am road (Witham) so I arrived at The Swan pub in Little Totham chuckling to myself and fully prepared for more chuckles with the Mersea Island Hash House Harrier Runners. 

They never disappoint and as we waited to get the run underway 'Whowears' entertained us by announcing that people often wonder if he wears any shorts under his anorak and suddenly lifted up his coat to show us. There was a sharp intake of breath and some hands rapidly raised to shield eyes and a collective 'phew' as tonight's little red shorts were revealed!

Gentleman in red
'Whowears' demonstrates his inimitable sartorial finesse

The pub looked so inviting as we left some behind to enjoy an evening looking at life through beer coloured glasses. 

We won't be long!

It was 'on, on' however and we were soon off the road and running through the wheat fields surrounding the village. It was quite tough work running on the uneven ground now that it has become hard and dried out with the hot weather. 

Tonight's Hare gives out last orders and warns us there is good news and bad:
good is that there are no nettles (this proved an untruth)
bad news that those with a wheat allergy would have to beware (I think we all developed this allergy by the end of the evening)

Lots of animals were enjoying the cool of the evening and they looked quite perplexed when herds of harriers came thundering past. Dogs barked and whined, geese and swanlings (in-joke) hissed and hooted and some poor horses looked frozen to the spot at such a bizarre sight.

Bleeting fools - it takes one to know one!

Has a Hasher found the heat too much?
No it turns out to be a lake sized aerator

I'm telling you - mine is the brightest top here tonight!

Demonstrating 'on on'
(if you ever find yourself in the same colour top as this runner then change it immediately - you have been warned!)

It was a long run this evening which goes to show that villages with 'Little' in the title don't necessarily imply a short route.

Runners often encourage other Hashers
to search for the pile of sawdust

Lady in Red
That wheat packed a mean punch when it was catapulted at you by the runners
in front

There were some fast runners this evening and I dropped back a couple of times to catch my breath as I am finding the dust from harvesting and ripening crops quite irritating this year. I think it must be really difficult for hay fever sufferers and if you are a runner too that must be misery.

We are still enjoying light evenings and beautiful sunsets

You can see how spread out we become but Harriers use loop backs and
checks to keep the field together

There had been rain at the beginning of the evening but none while we were out and as the sun set the sky began to turn a beautiful rose colour.

The big sky of East Anglia looms over the
searching Hashers

Lots of the fields have now been harvested which means that you get more room to run but the surface is uneven and the resulting stubble can be quite sharp but it is all in a day's work to a Hasher.

The idea is not to hang around waiting to see if it is the right way!

Our 'Hare' looking after his all ages 'Hashers' 

Our Hare took pity on me and told me that the 'Jelly Babies' were about to run out and to get over quick to bag one. I caught the tail end of a conversation about nicknames on this blog and I joined in wondering who was making them up. Clearly I am still incognito but once or twice I was asked if I was the photographer putting things on the web. I have absolutely no idea who is doing that and I think they should stop immediately!

We never leave anyone behind but I have a feeling
that runner ends up working twice as hard as the rest of us because
every time they catch up we move off and they don't get a rest.
Click on the photo to see there is a runner there.

The 'Hare' had hoped that we would not be put off by having to go through a field where clay pigeon shooting was in progress but he didn't mention that we would also be meeting scary dogs and risking death by running past tractors loaded up with hay.

Our youngest runner taking on a tractor!

Making friends with a labrador - what we don't realise is that
we are about to enter the field where clay pigeon shooting is taking place.

It was soon time to run 'On Home' but before we got there we were treated to the most beautiful sunset and a double rainbow even without the rain. Spectacular.

Once we were back at the pub we were soon enjoying our drinks and the talk became quite fruity all about cherries, raspberries and roasted nuts.

We were amazed at the youthfulness of the Mersea Island Hash House Harriers in their photo of 1998 taken on Mersea Beach, especially 'On On' who was stunning in her leopard print bikini, which David showed us (the photo not the swimsuit). 

Another great Hash - every one a different one and all brilliant.

The Stats:

Mileage is 5.5 - I was having so much fun I forgot to turn on my watch

The things people say!

• Everyone was wearing green dresses and I just stopped myself slapping her bottom as she bent over to do up her shoelace because I remembered my wife wasn't wearing black shorts (I think we all know who that was!!)
• "There's no bed in there" (our Hare impressing us with his knowledge of the inside of a shed!)
• We missed the last of the three Peaks because we got lost using his new satnav device (always blame the technology!)

Finally, I just wanted to give a special shout out to Rebecca who ran with us despite having run over twenty miles in a 24 hour relay and Parkrun at the weekend and earned herself this lovely Thunder Run medal - congratulations Becci you are a wonderful runner and a great inspiration.

'On On' Becci

Mersea Island Hash House Harriers - Tiger Hill

Hills, teeth and a BBQ

It's going to be an exciting evening!
Becci takes us through a ford thankful that she
hasn't brought us here in her SmartCar

Monday evenings seem to come round so quickly. We had been invited to a BBQ after this evening's hash at a cottage the 'Hare' had borrowed for the evening and this could be found in the wilds of Suffolk between Bures and Assington at Tiger Hill.

Our satnav announced that the rest of our journey would be 'off road' after we had negotiated the ford. We turned off the road and found some hand painted signs telling us we were going in the right direction. I had wondered if we might find ourselves on a single lane track with a sawdust sign telling us it was a blind (meaning the wrong route).

otherwise known as The Middle of Nowhere

We parked on the edge of a field and made our way down to a clearing in the woodland where the pretty little cottage was hidden away.

An absolutely delightful place to start the evening's hash

It was obviously going to be another well attended evening with lots of runners and walkers who were happily chatting away whilst the Hare explained how the hash would pan out.

Becci listens attentively as we are told about the plan for the evening

Oh my goodness! It was a steep uphill through woodland to start. I managed to get almost to the top before my mind told me that only mad hashers and English men run in the evening heat and certainly not without any kind of a warm up.

It became pretty obvious to me that I would be at the back of this hash as I wanted to stop and enjoy the views and to take my 'snaps'.

A bit of welcome relief as we scour the lane for the sign we are
going the right way (I don't think there is a right
way on an evening with such high humidity)

We didn't have too much road work and the views were spectacular - especially enjoyable when you are at the top of a hill.

'On On' is called and we are off!

I try to hijack a conversation and have to eat dust

Once I got my breath back I decided it would be sociable to try some conversation and took an opportunity to butt in as Swinger and Mere Slip came alongside. Swinger was saying that he had not been 100% so I, with my usual enthusiasm for hi-jacking private conversations, told him I too had been feeling under the weather. Not being perturbed by their lack of response I was ready to pose another question but before I knew it I was eating their dust. Oh well, live by the sword and so on - I wondered if my new found career as a member of the paparazzi was going to make me unpopular to the point where no-one would speak in my vicinity at all. (Exits stage right laughing menacingly!!)

Still 'On On' and all that.

Oh come on guys - it's just a bit of fun!
Wait for me!

This was a very special part of the countryside and we ran through the Nature Reserve where later we saw a strange box in the hedge which I think was for dormice. You can read more about this conservation here.

Exceptional conservation work goes on in these wonderful
reserves

There were some quite boggy areas and it was good to have some boardwalks to navigate through the woodland.

I'm not sure what the wildlife will make of this invasion

The setting sun made everything look bathed in gold and in places the harvesting was well under way.

At least along the field edges there was some shade

Beautiful fields of barley

You can't be sure what will be waiting round that corner

We had quite a variety of countryside to run through with all the evidence of summer in full swing.

Just a reminder of apple pies to come.

The landscape made me think of Robert MacFarlane's 
excellent book 'The Old Ways'

The camomile smelt delightful as everyone running over it
released the scent - made a change from some of the
scents released by runners

Then we reached Assington Mill where there was a stop for people to adjust their teeth.

The Hare prepares for his bbq supper

 Hoping the trail goes through the water?

The Hare then took us past the beautiful Mill and encouraged us to take a leaflet with details of the courses available. I quickly looked at what was on offer and wanted to have a go at everything - life is just like a sweetshop sometimes!

The walkers caught up with us here and after exchanging notes we all took a little time out to admire the scenery.

They look like they know how it works - or they could be reading the
instructions

perfection

A meeting of minds - walkers and runners unite in
admiration of such a pretty location

We need to watch those two - they're cooking
up trouble for later

A bank of lavender above a brick oven and time to
'on on'

This was a run full of different things to see and experience and next up a choice of a slightly longer route or a shortcut. Longer route it is then.

The prettiest lanes always seem to be uphill

The back of the mill with a small round thatched building

You can just about see the walkers far away
across this field

Such a lovely evening for a run

'Whowears' leaps into action to lead the field as he
convinces himself he heard last orders being called

Why is everyone suddenly speeding up?

Becci shows no fear
Have you read her tee shirt?

She is confusing herself with a superhero

Turns out it was a cow -
but we don't like those either do we Sue and Becci!

However:

Waiting in a field near you
"Bull in field"
"Runners in ..... well they were.."

Wait a minute what has happened the Hashers have disappeared into the night and left us ladies lost in the woods.

All we needed was the Mad Hatter as
we had just past the sleeping Dormice

Ah at last 'on home'

The most delicious burgers, sausages and chicken bbq and lots of laughter as we recount the evening's adventures. Those two ladies planning something earlier were also lost and they weren't locked in anywhere. Eventually we found them and it was time to tuck in to our food.

What they said:

• "...." (nothing as tumble weed blew across David's head which was empty when he went searching for the joke he was about to tell!!)
• You didn't see that Bull?
• Will they realise they've left us behind?
• Don't worry they will get "..." to call as he has a voice like a foghorn.
• Where are those two? 
• I'm really wet (it was getting damp in the garden by then)

What a great evening and I must say a big thank you to all who made the evening possible and for all the hard work people put in organising the food, cooking and tidying up. Oh and just so you know I booked in to the calligraphy class and the Christmas wreath making class later this year at Assington Mill - what a brilliant aside to an evening's running.