April 2, 2016

Hadrian’s Wall Walk 2 – Burgh to Carlisle

On Thursday 31 March 2016 friend Elaine and I drove west. We parked at Burgh by Sands church (NY329591) at about 0930 and she had a look at the church while I put my boots on and turned on the Strava app. When the satellites spoke to me – what would the Romans make of that? – we walked through the churchyard, then the field beside the road, then the road itself. It was a glorious day for a walk. If my geography is correct (scoffers be quiet) these trees must be along the line of the wall – the sheep...
Categories Cumbria/Hadrian's Wall Walk/Railway History Comments: 4
March 30, 2016

Hadrian’s Wall Exploration 1 – Edward I and Burgh by Sands

“Are you setting yourself a target?” asked one of my congregation today. “How long will this walk along the Wall take?” Well, I could start at one and end and march towards the other – or I can be easily sidetracked. I blog churches because I like blogging churches. I will also blog some other places of interest as I explore. As I walked through the village of Burgh by Sands in Cumbria the other day I photoed the statue of Edward I. When we went back to look at the church I had another look at the statue,...
Categories Cumbria/Hadrian's Wall Walk Comments: 3
March 30, 2016

Burgh by Sands, Cumbria – St Michael

St Michael’s church, Burgh by Sands – website – NY329591. Here we are on top of the Roman fort of Aballava, probably the apple orchard. They will even sell you a postcard of the fort. In the C3 the garrison consisted of Moors from North Africa, and probably Frisians (northern Netherlands) and Germans. No one seems to know exactly what happened to the settlement at the end of Roman rule, but the stone certainly came in useful. I wonder if this is an old lump in the church wall. As you walk up the path there are a set...
Categories Cumbria/Hadrian's Wall Walk/World War 1 Comments: 0
March 29, 2016

Bowness-on-Solway, Cumbria – St Michael

Julie and I went for a drive on Easter Tuesday 29 March 2016. It was a good sunny day in Hexham, but clouded over as we entered Cumbria. By the time we had driven round the Carlisle bypass there were some quite heavy showers. We drove through Burgh and on to Bowness – I think J was quite impressed with how far I had walked last week. We parked outside St Michael’s church in Bowness-on-Solway NY234627. Church website.  Today there was no service so I could go and explore. We are in the middle of a Roman site, so is...
Categories Cumbria/Hadrian's Wall Walk/World War 1 Comments: 0
March 22, 2016

Hadrian’s Wall Walk 1 – Bowness to Burgh

This is what I wrote for April’s Grapevine, our church magazine:  These boots are made for walking  When I came to Ponteland I started walking Hadrian’s Wall. I got as far as Housesteads … Now I am fitter I am going to have another go. I am going to start at Bowness-on-Solway and head west. I will use my blog to report on my progress. When I get a little closer to Ponteland perhaps I can invite people to walk with me, or to join me at Vallum Tea Room for an ice cream. When I reach Wallsend it...
Categories Cumbria/Hadrian's Wall Walk/Railway History Comment: 1
March 20, 2016

Rothbury, Northumberland – All Saints

All Saints church in Rothbury is at NU057016, not far from the river. There is a benefice website. The church was open, so I bought a guidebook and a rather nice book The Valley remembers which is all about the WW1 dead. The noticeboard in the porch shows us that there is lots going on. There are some medieval stones too. There was probably an ancient foundation here, according to the guidebook the Anglo-Saxons this was a royal burgh. Perhaps the original church was destroyed by the Vikings or the Normans, there was then a C13 church which underwent...
Categories Evetts' windows/Northumberland/World War 1 Comments: 0
March 16, 2016

Alnham, Northumberland – St Michael & All Angels

Sunday 13 March 2016. My daffodils are looking lovely. The sun was shining and we had a free afternoon. Northernvicar still has a lot of churches to do in Northumberland, so I made a quick list and we set off to do a couple. Alnham and Rothbury are the last two in the Croquetdale Team, so let’s go there. Up the A1, turn off on the Wooler road, turn off to Whittingham, and keep going. Stopping several times to check the map. We should have stopped to photo beautiful banks of snowdrops – in Whittingham by the river, on the verges...
Categories Northumberland/World War 1 Comments: 2
March 14, 2016

Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire – Holy Trinity church

Stratford-upon-Avon – Holy Trinity church – SP202544. Excellent website. I have been moaning about the lack of guidebooks. This church has a shop, guides galore, and the above book – £25. I didn’t pay £25 for it – it was a lot cheaper at the Bloxham Festival. So I now have to summarise 160 pages of book into one blog! Val Horsley, et al, Shakespeare’s Church: a parish for the world, London: Third Millennium Publishing, 2010 The first mention of a church on this site next to the Avon is in a Charter of 845 signed by Beorthwulf, King of...
Categories Outside Northumberland/World War 1 Comments: 2
March 4, 2016

Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire – the Guild Chapel

Sunday 20 February 2016. We could (should) have been good and gone to the Festival Eucharist in Bloxham church, or we could get up late, have a Holiday Inn breakfast, and drive into Stratford. We parked on the High Street, went to a shop, I walked back to the car, we went to another shop, I walked back to the car … and so it went on. Our shopping bonanza included a new suit from Debenham’s (I only wanted a pair of trousers). We wandered to the theatre and raided the shop, then went along to the Guild Chapel, at...
Categories Outside Northumberland Comment: 1
March 4, 2016

Kineton, Warwickshire – St Peter

We stopped at St Peter’s church, in the middle of the village of Kineton – SP335511 – en route to the Bloxham Festival. It is in the Diocese of Coventry, in the county of Warwickshire. It looks a very lively church – good website, facebook and twitter – lots going on, well cared for, open and loved. The website says it was their 700th anniversary last year, but that is the only mention of the history of the church on their website. The only guidebook I can find is a 1983 one on sale on Amazon. It is not...
Categories Outside Northumberland Comments: 3