This week we had to yomp along the poorly signed and poorly maintained footpaths of south Norfolk, before we could get stuck into pies from E. W. Revett & Son of Wickham Market. Parking at the “ Strike School” at Burston, we visited the first of three churches: St. Mary the virgin, next door to the school. This was dial-less and locked. We headed north then east along a footpath, only to find it impassable. 
While contemplating an alternative route, Charles (the first) spotted a “Robin's Pincushion” – the larvae of the gall wasp causing an abnormal growth on a dog rose. An upturned plastic tub provided a “stepping stone” across a ditch and into a traversable field of wheat with very sticky clay soil.On route to Dickleburgh, Charles spotted and harvested a few Agaricus augustus mushrooms. On arrival, a fete was in progress by All Saints church, so again lunch was taken either sitting on the grass or on the wall. Finding no scratch dial on the church, we crossed the road and headed for the beer festival at the Crown Inn, where the party tried many of the beers on offer.
Reluctantly we left the beer festival and headed west along minor roads, spotting telephone boxes being used as greenhouses to grow tomato plants. We then headed north to Shimpling by a footpath proclaiming it was part of Boudica’s Way! 
Third time lucky: arriving at St. George’s church we found a good scratch dial. After photographing the dial, inspecting the church and admiring the cattle in the adjoining field, Don explained that a bull didn’t need to have a ring through it’s nose to be a bull! The party continued its journey, except Charles & Don who had found a buried artefact that they stopped to excavate. Being some way behind the group, they found a path on the wrong side of a hedge! We had a pause while they walked back and up the correct side of the hedge to join us. Then one final obstacle before we could start munching pies: no footpath! A field of maize was between us and the last leg of the walk back to the cars. Although it looked daunting, it was quite easy to walk through the tall crop – the stems bending as we passed between. We returned to the cars and another feast this week, starting with smoked organic salmon pâté on crostini. Then the two large hand raised pies from Wickham Market: good looking pies when cut yielded a very pleasant aroma when you got in close and a fine textured pink filling. A small amount of jelly was present in some portions. The pastry was excellent and the filling tasty too. This found favour with the pie munchers coming in with a score of 8.13636 with a high standard deviation of 1.18514. Dark chocolate all butter biscuits, organic milk chocolate & toffee biscuits and shortbread completing the gastronomic experience. So a normalised score of 8 for E. W. Revett & Son’s large hand raised pies.
