Russian roulette

Having been a CW reader for many years, I love finding out about new places, the history and nature, and beautiful walks everywhere in the UK. But last month, when we met up with my mum, our friend and their dogs, for a regular day out walking, I chose walk 5 from the June 2021 issue (Mytchett, Surrey). It was a beautiful autumnal day, and we set off into the woods in high spirits, though slightly perturbed by the sounds of gunfire in the near distance!

A few minutes later, we were stopped by a military man, who thought we should have known before our visit that the MoD use the area. We explained we weren’t local, and the walk guide did not mention military activities. He said we could continue, that the soldiers were “only firing blanks today”, to turn back or give them a wide berth if we saw them, and that we were “playing Russian Roulette”!

We carried on, but soon realised we were no longer following the route, due to making diversions to avoid the soldiers. More by luck than judgement, we found our way back to the canal centre! We still had a wonderful day, albeit more adventurous than we’d bargained for, and we stuck to the safety of pub beer gardens and the park opposite for our afternoon walk. But we all agreed that it would be advisable to check the MoD website for details of activity in the area prior to any attempt to try route 5. Someone else might unknowingly visit when they’re not “just firing blanks”!

Rachel Hensman & Beryl Bean, Yeovil

Ed: Huge apologies Rachel and Beryl; there should have been a note on the routecard mentioning the MoD land and advising readers to check the firing times, which can be done at gov.uk/government/publications/

south-east-training-estate-firing-times. We’ll

amend in any future use.