COUNTRYSIDE CROSSWORD

ACROSS

7 Town, northern start point of Weald Way – final resting place, southern terminus (9) 9 Possibly bay or chestnut (5) 10 Cumbrian market town with famous horse fair (7) 11 It has a vital effect on farming (7) 12 Brief cheeky kisses as a hen feeds? (5) 14 Sharp mountain ridge – in Kildare terrain (5) 15 Feline removes top from animal droppings (3) 16 Spectacular Dark Peak crags – for American beetles? (7) 18 Animal’s decaying flesh – and a type of crow (7) 20 Diving seabird: one associated with United Kingdom (3) 21 As the Severn bore is (5) 23 E.g. a bothy (5) 24 City on the Taff Trail, located in Redcar – difficult! (7) 26 Colourful sort of trout seen after a shower? (7) 28 Delay... a stable compartment (5) 29 Highland forest/RSPB reserve – the nearby resort (9)

DOWN

1 Complain – it’s a freshwater fish! (4) 2 Somerset’s flatland – even by south (6) 3 Three routes up Snowdon start here – spy aspen possibly (3-1-4) 4 Songbird with cereal grain... corn spike (8) 5 If fallen, this takes the spring out of your step! (4) 6 Search diligently for a polecat relative (6) 7 One who likes tenting in style (7) 8 Divine way to locate water! (5) 13 Composition of North and South Downs (5) 15 Ascend – Cairngorms’ first leg, say (5) 17 Ancient Essex forest and SSSI – I had left ruined (8) 18 Units of energy used when e.g. walking (8) 19 LDP through Northants to the Wash – part of Irvine, New Ayrshire! (4,3) 20 Land made publicly available by CROW Act 2000 (6) 22 Body concerned with countryside etc. issues – forbade fracking to some extent (5) 23 Piles of stones used as landmarks – in Australia? (6) 25 Horse with a mix of coloured and white hairs (4) 27 Pipistrelles, noctules, etc. (4)