Local resident Don Kelly walked and talked with Sheryl Bailey as they dodged the downpours and set off with Billy, the renowned King Bill hound, along the historic Gun’s Lane footpath.
“There are some great walks around Histon & Impington,” I was told, “so why don’t you find yourself a walking pal and follow the trails? And please take a dog.”
“Great idea,” I said, and envisaged writing an article that would be a cross between Clare Balding’s Ramblings and the Louis Theroux interviews – only without the famous people or exotic trips to distant places. Perhaps the dog would give my article ‘star’ appeal.
I chose my first victim carefully. Even if you haven’t met Don Kelly, you’ve probably come across his name. Chairman of the Histon Beer Festival Committee, designated village minibus driver, trustee of HI Friends, and expert canasta teacher, he was also front and centre of the awesome village response to the covid lockdowns.
Known as ‘The Don’ to his Beer Festival pals, this chap is the real deal. An all-round solid good egg if ever there was one. But don’t even think of taking him on at a pub quiz. He’s been a contestant on three televised quizzes – including Eggheads – and won some great prizes, with specialist subjects being real ale (shock), Manchester United (sad), and African mammals (solid).
Covid got him back into walking and enjoying nature and, as one of his ambitions is “to die fit and relatively healthy”, I deduced he definitely had the stamina for the walk. The only problem was, he doesn’t have a dog. Easily fixed. Step forward King Bill landlady Susie and her partner Mark, who generously loaned us their gorgeous beagle Billy ‘Bryan’ for the expedition.
Getting under way
I say expedition, but that’s a bit of an exaggeration, even though Gun’s Lane used to be the main road from Cambridge to Ely and William the Conqueror and his army is said to have used it when they chased Hereward the Wake into the Fens.
The route takes in some of the countryside on the northern side of Histon where it borders Westwick, and forms a 3.5 mile loop through wide open fields, herds of sheep, ancient hedgerows and a flowing brook (especially in the rain).
And rain it did. So much so that our planned walk began with a cheese and ham toastie on the sofa at Don’s house while we waited for the pelting downpour to pass before setting foot outdoors. Two days later we finally got ourselves suited and weatherproof booted before setting off to Gun’s Lane. The prospect of knee-deep mud for the first 200m of the lane meant another change of plan, involving a short and very pleasant diversion across Croft Close set-aside.
For someone who doesn’t own a dog, Don proved surprisingly dexterous with a dog lead. “The benefits of walking for your mental health and wellbeing – especially with a dog – are huge,” he said, clearly enjoying the opportunity to give Billy an unexpected outing. “Minnie, our cat just isn’t interested,” he added wistfully.
To be fair, it wasn’t just a walk in the park. There was a moment when he had to wrestle what’s left of a tennis ball from Billy’s jaws without causing an accident on the Oakington to Westwick Road. Then there was the incident with the poo bag splitting and my unflappable friend’s hat catching on a bramble. I (un)helpfully took photos instead of supervising Billy… always thinking of the article.
The Don
It was time to find out more about Don and what drives him to take the lead in so many community endeavours.
He and his wife Lesley moved to Histon in 2008. His house is in a fantastic location with enviable vistas of Abbeyfields and woodland views. He takes great pleasure from his beautiful garden, “although Lesley does all the work!” he admitted. He has become an avid fan of Twitcher bird apps. “Identifying birds from just their song is a great joy,” he explained.
A structural engineer by trade – now retired – he is one of the world’s great positive thinkers. “I always strive to be happy by being positive about things. I have made fortunate choices with work which has given me certain freedoms at this point in life. Regularly seeing our two daughters, grandchildren and both our mums, who all live nearby, gives me great pleasure.”
He loves to travel with Lesley, and fly-drive holidays and wildlife spotting are their thing.
“Since living and working in Africa, I developed a passion for the continent and safaris are our favourite holidays,” he said. “We’re hoping to go to Zimbabwe next.”
Village life
As for Don’s involvement in the village: “I like being busy and always crave a full diary, but preferably not being overly stressed” he said. “I want to do things that give me personal pleasure, but also the pleasure of giving something back to the community.” These are not empty words. Added to his already busy schedule in 2023 will be a commitment to the first ever HI Friends Wellbeing Festival, planned for late spring.
The early mornings aren’t for him. So being an owl rather than a lark, it’s perhaps not surprising that the Beer Festival is among his community activities. He was a bit of a late starter, having hardly visited a pub until he left home for university aged 18. But he’s made up for lost time since. “I’ve decided I could live without beer but wouldn’t want to” (Hurrah for this!). Getting the 23rd Histon Beer Festival organised and being even more successful than last year is on his list for 2023 (A second hurrah for that).
“I crave the social interaction in pubs. The whole purpose of going out for a drink is the social side and always think I’m missing out if not in the thick of the conversation somewhere,” he said. You might not believe it now, but Don was apparently, “a very shy and insular child”. He went to a private, single-sex school on a scholarship and declares himself to have been, “academic, studious, well behaved… and really boring!”
…and finally
As we approach the end of our walk, there’s just time to slip in two more personal questions to wrap up the interview.
What scares him? “The smell of chlorine still gives me the shivers,” he admits. “I didn’t learn to swim until I was 14. Every Wednesday at school they take you to the pool and throw you in until you learnt. It was a great method for causing lifelong trauma.”
And what would he like to see in 2023? “Manchester United to qualify for Champions League.” Oh dear… he may be a bona fide Egghead, but clearly there’s still a thing or two he needs to learn.
Around 10 years ago, a small group of Histon & Impington residents drew up a set of easy to follow instructions introducing seven circular walks that start and finish in the village. Over the next 12 months, Sheryl Bailey will be walking these routes accompanied by members of the community and their dogs, and HI HUB will be sharing their stories.