August 13, 2016

Derwent Walk 1 – Ladybower to Hathersage

Monday 1 August 2016. This is the new me, the good me, having a day off! We had a lie in, then drove north. We found the Peak Shopping Village at Rowsley station and had an excellent lunch. We continued north through the Chatsworth Estate, then Grindleford, Hathersage, Bamford, to the Heatherdene car park beside Ladybower Reservoir. Having walked Hadrian’s Wall (did I mention I walked Hadrian’s Wall?), my next task is he Derwent Valley Heritage Way. This National Trail runs for 55 miles from here south to the River Trent at Shardlow, south of Derby. Therefore it runs through...
Categories Derbyshire/Derwent Walk Comments: 0
August 8, 2016

Duffield, Derbyshire – St Alkmund

Duffield church – SK350428 – is dedicated to St Alkmund, a Northumbrian prince and Mercian martyr. We met him at Whitchurch last August – northernvicar’s blog – I did not expect to be working in Derby a year later. There are six churches dedicated to this exiled Prince of Northumbria who was murdered in 800 AD in Northworthy (now called Derby)  by bodyguards sent by the usurping King Eardulf of Northubria. He was canonised shortly afterwards, and his coffin is now in Derby museum – St Alkmund’s church (or the Victorian building on the site) disappeared under the ring...
Categories Derbyshire/Railway History Comments: 0
August 4, 2016

Kedleston, Derbyshire – All Saints

Julie and I have moved to Derby, but not yet started work. So let us do what normal people do on a Sunday – go to a National Trust property. Kedleston Hall is just down the road, so let us enjoy it – website. We drove across the parkland, parked in the main car park, and wheeled to the house. Let’s start with coffee and something to eat. Disabled access is via the rear door near the shop, and the house wasn’t quite open. I decided 17 July was a little early to buy Christmas cards. When the house...
Categories Churches Conservation Trust/Derbyshire/National Trust Comments: 0
August 1, 2016

Roman Exploration – Piercebridge Roman Fort, County Durham

One more Roman blog from the North. Piercebridge (NZ209157) is a place I have driven through many times – it is a useful diversion that cuts a few miles off when driving from the A1 to Hexham. The road follows the Dere Street, the Roman road that ran from York to Corbridge. There was a bridge here over the Tees – indeed there are remains of the bridge (to be precise, the second bridge) in a field south of the river. The first bridge (probably of timber) is a little downstream of the current bridge, the second (below) was of...
Categories Durham/Roman Britain Comments: 0
July 17, 2016

Hexham, Northumberland – St Andrew (Hexham Abbey)

I have several hundred photos of Hexham Abbey. Our son Gareth was verger there, we enjoyed worship there, we own a house in Hexham. They have a daily pattern of worship and a choral tradition, places to pray, a website, an excellent guidebook, a Visitors’ Centre, a cafe, and lots of lovely things to photograph. Here is a selection. One of the oldest things in the Abbey must be this Roman tombstone for Flavinus. He was only 25 when he died, but had served in Britain for seven years. It dates to the end of C1, and may well...
Categories Evetts' windows/Northumberland/Personal Comments: 3
July 16, 2016

Hadrian’s Wall Exploration 16 – Corbridge Bridge Abutment

My final Wall Exploration was on the evening of Wednesday 8 June. I need to visit the Roman Army Museum on the Wall, which is run by the Vindolanda Trust and has a good cafe and excellent aerial view film. I need to visit the fort at South Shields, and it would be a good idea to blog Jarrow. Further south, the Roman fort at Binchester and Saxon church at Escomb never got the Northernvicar touch. Further north I could walk the Antonine Wall. (Did I mention I walked Hadrian’s Wall?) An evening walk of 2½ miles beside the...
Categories Hadrian's Wall Walk/Northumberland Comments: 0
July 16, 2016

Hadrian’s Wall Exploration 15 – Corbridge Museum and Store

On Thursday 12 May 2016, English Heritage were offering “hands on” Romans exploration at Corbridge as part of the “Museums by Night” season. My evening photos on the last blog were taken before it started. When I booked, and you phone a national number, I checked there was disabled access – when we got there, there wasn’t. Rather annoying. The hands-on session was led by the lass who is Curator and she was very good. She showed us, and usually let us handle, a variety of things. The two right hand photos are of the remains of a small statue...
Categories Hadrian's Wall Walk/Northumberland Comment: 1
July 16, 2016

Hadrian’s Wall Exploration 14 – Corbridge

I have already blogged the village and the church, now let’s have the Roman site, the stores and the Bridge Abutment. This might take a while, and I’ll do three blogs! It is an English Heritage site – website. There’s a good audio guide which I much enjoyed.   I have always known Corbridge as “Corstopitum”, but it is now thought its Roman name was Coria. This means “hosting place”, so it may well have been a meeting place for the peoples of the Tyne Valley before the Romans – archaeologists have found a pre-Roman building under the current...
Categories Hadrian's Wall Walk/Northumberland Comments: 0
July 15, 2016

Hadrian’s Wall Exploration 13 – Vindolanda

Vindolanda is a very special place. All this blog can do is to give a flavour of it. If you haven’t visited, why not? Their website is here. The main entrance is at the west of the site, car park and welcome centre, with a lovely fountain. From here it is a flatish walk to the main remains. More on them in a moment. Those of us with a wheelchair usually go to the other end, the eastern end. The shop, café and museum are easily accessible, and you can easily get through to the gardens with various reconstructions....
Categories Hadrian's Wall Walk/Northumberland/Personal Comment: 1
July 15, 2016

Hadrian’s Wall Exploration 12 – The Wall in western Newcastle

When walking the Hadrian’s Wall National Trail (did I mention I have walked the Wall?) you leave the line of the Wall at Heddon and head to Wallsend along the River. The Wall did not go that way. You can still see some remains along the West Road and I took these photos back in 2011 when dad came and visited. From west to east, little has been found in Throckley. Gareth’s house was just south of the Wall – on the many occasions during the Scottish Referendum debate when commentators talked about “rebuilding Hadrian’s Wall” we were glad...
Categories Hadrian's Wall Walk/Newcastle upon Tyne Comments: 2