"P" is for... Panshanger
07.09.19 - #6 Panshanger - Mighty Oaks, Like-minded Folks & Top Blokes!
This week's parkrun was a nice, local-ish event with a very civilised 7 o'clock wake up call. Orange MS Challenge t-shirt?...Check! Barcode?...Check! I even had time for a cup of tea so, as far as I was concerned, I was already winning!
I wanted to try Panshanger parkrun long before my challenge came about. I tend to favour single lap courses and I'd heard that this was a wonderfully scenic one to boot. One person's idea of a particularly pretty course may not be the same as mine but I was excited to see for myself and, let me tell you, they weren't wrong!
I wanted to try Panshanger parkrun long before my challenge came about. I tend to favour single lap courses and I'd heard that this was a wonderfully scenic one to boot. One person's idea of a particularly pretty course may not be the same as mine but I was excited to see for myself and, let me tell you, they weren't wrong!
In fact, it's so nice that I went back the next day to explore a bit more, hence so many photos. (Sorry, not sorry...it's a beautiful place!)
To the uninitiated, Panshanger probably sounds like something you might pick up in Ikea....or perhaps the name of a grand estate from a Jane Austen novel....or even a magical place dreamt up by Enid Blyton. Needless to say, I was curious to find out what was actually going on over there!
It's a 1,000 acre country park and nature reserve rolled into one, in Hertfordshire, between Hertford and Welwyn Garden City. For over 200 years the Panshanger estate (including the now-demolished mansion house and also the grand orangery which can still be seen) was owned by the Cowper family. The historic park and garden had design input from the great landscape designers of their time, Humphry Repton and 'Capability' Brown. English Heritage has given this place Grade II* listed status and I can see why!
Quite surprisingly, the site has been owned by Tarmac (yes, the building materials company!) since the 1980s, for mineral extraction, due to its underlying geology. As that extraction work has pretty much come to an end, Tarmac have worked with the local Wildlife Trust and council to restore the parkland, agriculture and wildlife habitats for all to enjoy.
The park opened to the public in Spring 2014 and within a matter of months began hosting the weekly parkrun event which averages 277 runners per week. Not too shabby!
Back to Saturday and on arrival at the car park, the blue parkrun "START" sign confirmed that this was the place, with lycra-clad people congregating and a few tell-tale apricot and milestone shirts dotted amongst them.
As instructed, many of us parked on a quiet street around the corner. The on-site car park is quite small and on this lovely, bright morning was already very busy with other park users. (I later discovered that an Osprey had recently been spotted at the park, so a good few twitchers had turned up in the hope of catching a glimpse!) Quite a few people had cycled there, so the rustic bike racks (fashioned out of a tree trunk) filled up quickly as well.
As instructed, many of us parked on a quiet street around the corner. The on-site car park is quite small and on this lovely, bright morning was already very busy with other park users. (I later discovered that an Osprey had recently been spotted at the park, so a good few twitchers had turned up in the hope of catching a glimpse!) Quite a few people had cycled there, so the rustic bike racks (fashioned out of a tree trunk) filled up quickly as well.
I jogged down the field and back, trying to get my legs going. Thankfully I felt OK after last week's hard slog, when the enforced rest and lack of training left me far from match fit.
Back at the car-park and a few stretches into my warm up routine, I bumped into fellow parkrun Tourists from Tring - Gus and the ever-smiling Run Director, Katie! It's always nice to see familiar, friendly faces but particularly so that day as they had traveled to join me on my Challenge. (Thanks guys!)
Back at the car-park and a few stretches into my warm up routine, I bumped into fellow parkrun Tourists from Tring - Gus and the ever-smiling Run Director, Katie! It's always nice to see familiar, friendly faces but particularly so that day as they had traveled to join me on my Challenge. (Thanks guys!)
Mark, a work colleague and general 'top bloke', also came along which was great. Although he's not really a runner, I've harped on about the benefits of parkrun for several years now and I guess his curiosity finally got the better of him, even if just to have a look and see what all the fuss is about (at least for now, anyway!)...
Run Director, Barbara, gave the main Runners Briefing with various announcements - one of which was about my challenge! (Thank you!) I felt humbled by the generous round of applause - I'm just me, doing my thing, trying to make a difference and hoping to raise a few pounds along the way!
As we waited for excited dogs to settle down and for people to gather at the Start, a lovely, friendly, fellow runner asked me about my Challenge. I'm glad that others are intrigued by my adventures and I hope my enthusiasm shows when I talk about it because I feel so passionately about supporting this cause.
As we waited for excited dogs to settle down and for people to gather at the Start, a lovely, friendly, fellow runner asked me about my Challenge. I'm glad that others are intrigued by my adventures and I hope my enthusiasm shows when I talk about it because I feel so passionately about supporting this cause.
After the short and sweet formalities the run started (rather unusually, from the car-park itself!). As is sometimes the case at parkruns, we bottle-necked at the first little (uphill) section, to a walking pace, but before long the hill flattened and the path widened and we were able to start running and find our strides - all 349 of us, settling into a rhythm.
The woodland path offered a hard, chalky surface with stones etched into the ground for good grip. I imagine this first stretch must be stunning in Spring, running alongside the wooded area known for its bluebells - a carpet of blue and a real feast for the senses.
Despite the warm and sunny spells, signs of Autumn are already present at Panshanger, with leaves, a few acorns and spiky, green, horse chestnut shells underfoot as well as ripe, plump berries in the hedgerows.
The tree-lined path provided shade - sheltered and tunnel-like in places - the trees forming a kind of natural chevron to guide the way. (Mind you, I always have other runners ahead of me to show me the way, so getting lost is never an issue!)
There are so many fantastic trees on this course - some all gnarly and skeletal, some with big hollows to explore and some just really, really big.....and I mean big!
The famous "Panshanger Great Oak" is said to be the largest maiden oak in the country (7.6m girth!) and is believed to have been planted by Queen Elizabeth I. This particular tree specimen is situated slightly off the actual parkrun course (and sadly I didn't get any photos of it) but there are plenty of other impressive trees to see as you loop around the park.
I couldn't help but be reminded of Enid Blyton's children's story, The Magic Faraway Tree, especially as "Panshanger" sounds like a character who may well hang around with "Dame Washalot" and "The Saucepan Man"...don't you think?!
As the woodland path opens right up, you may notice some 'love locks' adorning the metal gate on your left, where the views sweep across the open parkland and over to Osprey Lake. At this point we took a right turn through some farmland. Watch out for loose pebbles on this section - one runner did fall over, which is always horrible to see, but other runners helped them up (it's not a 'race', after all!). Thankfully they were OK - do take extra care though!
With the open parkland and lakes on our right, we took a right turn to drop down through the middle of the park, past the 3km point, and passing Riverside Cottage by the banks of the River Mimram and overlooking Riverside Lake.
You may well encounter the park's grazing sheep & Longhorn cattle here. The cattle were out when we ran, minding their own business but making me feel right at home as Tring - my home course - also has its own herd of cows to keep things interesting!
The hard gravel path leads you across the shallow river (one of only 180 chalk-bed rivers in the world!) and round to yet another of the park's several lakes - this time, Kings Lake.
Romantic period dramas are really not my thing but I am reliably informed that Panshanger has a touch of Jane Austen about it. This is arguably the kind of place where you could imagine the brooding Mr Darcy emerging from the lake* fully-clothed and setting hearts a-fluttering! Personally, I'd much rather see one of the resident water voles emerging from the water but there you go! Sadly I didn't see any voles...maybe next time? Fingers-crossed.
(*Don't even think about getting into these deep lakes. Seriously, not recommended!)
Speaking of wildlife, as well as various birds I also noticed lots of dragonflies, damselflies and butterflies flying around, particularly around this lake. I can imagine this course would be wonderful to run any time of year but a late blast of summer sun highlighted the course wonderfully, in between the slightly overcast spells.
From Kings Lake we followed the riverside trail along the river, through an open field, along some more enclosed sections, over a couple of bridges and then eventually opening out on to the open area where the Finish is waiting for you.
The course ends just this side of the car park and not far from the Start. When I spotted the cars glistening in the sunlight I knew there wasn't far left to go, just around the park's perimeter and back up to the Funnel.
I was happy with my time although, to be honest, I'm only really bothered about getting around each course in one piece, uninjured and in good enough shape to keep running week after week. PBs can wait!
After my barcode was scanned, I had a quick chat with one of Panshanger's lovely parkrunners - we had a similar pace, on the day, so we just happened to run a fair bit of the course together, which was great. (Thanks for your company and encouragement!)
Another kind parkrunner handed me a £10 cash donation which was also hugely appreciated and got added to my Just Giving tally. Another top bloke! Thank you, whoever you are!
I also met back up with Mark, Katie & Gus for a quick, post-run debrief. This event doesn't have a pavilion or cafe on-site (or toilets either), which is a bit of a shame, but they do have a van which sells hot drinks in the car park. The stunning backdrop of this beautiful landscape should more than make up for the lack of facilities though, so don't let that put you off as you shouldn't feel hard done by!
Panshanger parkrun gets my seal of approval. I'll definitely be back - I'd like to run the course at other times of the year, to see how the changing seasons are reflected in the landscape and the feel of the place.
If you've taken part in Panshanger parkrun, what do you like most about it? And if you've never been, is it a course you'd like to add to your list? Or do you have tips on any other scenic courses?
Please leave a comment below.....I'd love to know what you think!
Next up: LETCHWORTH!
Please click here for my Just Giving page - raising funds for MS Society charity
https://www.parkrun.org.uk/panshanger/
From Kings Lake we followed the riverside trail along the river, through an open field, along some more enclosed sections, over a couple of bridges and then eventually opening out on to the open area where the Finish is waiting for you.
The course ends just this side of the car park and not far from the Start. When I spotted the cars glistening in the sunlight I knew there wasn't far left to go, just around the park's perimeter and back up to the Funnel.
I was happy with my time although, to be honest, I'm only really bothered about getting around each course in one piece, uninjured and in good enough shape to keep running week after week. PBs can wait!
After my barcode was scanned, I had a quick chat with one of Panshanger's lovely parkrunners - we had a similar pace, on the day, so we just happened to run a fair bit of the course together, which was great. (Thanks for your company and encouragement!)
Another kind parkrunner handed me a £10 cash donation which was also hugely appreciated and got added to my Just Giving tally. Another top bloke! Thank you, whoever you are!
I also met back up with Mark, Katie & Gus for a quick, post-run debrief. This event doesn't have a pavilion or cafe on-site (or toilets either), which is a bit of a shame, but they do have a van which sells hot drinks in the car park. The stunning backdrop of this beautiful landscape should more than make up for the lack of facilities though, so don't let that put you off as you shouldn't feel hard done by!
I thoroughly enjoyed my visit, from the support I received from the locals and my fellow homies alike, to the picturesque views and the varied course. The course itself does pretty much have everything - a fabulously well-maintained mix of views, wildlife, water, flat paths & trails, woodland, flora & fauna and also open sections as well as shaded sections etc.
Panshanger parkrun gets my seal of approval. I'll definitely be back - I'd like to run the course at other times of the year, to see how the changing seasons are reflected in the landscape and the feel of the place.
If you've taken part in Panshanger parkrun, what do you like most about it? And if you've never been, is it a course you'd like to add to your list? Or do you have tips on any other scenic courses?
Please leave a comment below.....I'd love to know what you think!
Next up: LETCHWORTH!
Please click here for my Just Giving page - raising funds for MS Society charity
https://www.parkrun.org.uk/panshanger/
Ah, my beautiful home park run (and regular dog walking haunt!). It’s a place for all seasons, in the winter people sledge down the hill to your left as you come up to the finish! There are some fab geocaches there as well.... xx
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