Along the Way – Forts

Apr27

As you will have seen our first day’s walk was not too long and followed the Portuguese coastline from Cascais to Guincho. On the first day the walking distance is always a bit shorter than most others because it is your opportunity to meet with the Route Manager and discuss the route, any last minute changes and exchange mobile ‘phone numbers.

The Santa Marta Lighthouse near Cascais

We spent a sunny Sunday morning in a park with Ana, our manager, as there was a big 10k race going on right outside our hotel meaning that access was made rather difficult. Ana had to explain to us that very severe storms last January had caused much damage along the route and some of the paths were now impassable. She had done her homework though, and walked the whole length trying to re-jig the route in just a couple of places. Luckily she was also on the end of the ‘phone when we needed a bit of clarification on a couple of days.

Boca do Inferno

Boca do Inferno and Guia Lighthouse

Our route that morning was busy and ran parallel with the coast road. Lots of walkers, families, joggers and cyclists shared the route with us. We passed lighthouses and dramatic coastal features and were able to take a brief break at The Forte de Sao Jorge de Oitavos. Not far from Cascais is the Boca do Inferno or Hell’s Mouth. “This is a natural chasm and the sea water has access to the very bottom of the chasm so when the sea is unsettled the effect is quite impressive!” [From our Route Booklet] Even when the sea is pretty calm the effect is still pretty impressive! There is a viewing area just down from the path.

The Cabo Roso Lighthouse

Probably about midway between Cascais and Guincho is the The Forte de Sao Jorge de Oitavos. It’s a handy visitor’s centre along the coast and has exhibitions and displays as well as a sheltered courtyard out of the wind. It was built as a defensive fortification against possible landings by pirates or invaders between 1642 and 1648.

Approaching the Fortaleza [yellow building]

The shortish walk meant that we arrived at our most luxurious hotel The Fortaleza do Guincho in the early afternoon giving us plenty of time to relax and read enjoy a late lunch and later an afternoon tea on the sunny terrace overlooking the dramatic waves and nearby beaches followed by a bar meal dinner in the sumptuous lounge area. We needed this rest and recuperation after the long day of travelling the day before and the next day’s walk – the longest of the trip.

The much-appreciated Afternoon Tea at The Fortaleza

Paula Rego – coincidence

Apr26

If you watched all of the video recording of The Brilliant Brontes in the last but one post you will have seen Sheila Hancock inspecting and discussing the drawings of Jane Eyre with the artist Dame Paula Rego. By coincidence a week later one of the most prominent museums (yes, there are several!) in Cascais turns out to be devoted to the work of Paula Rego (and it has a nice cafe too). Shortly after our arrival we decided to take a walk and investigate.

The Casa das Historias opened in Cascais in 2009

Rego was born in Lisbon in 1935 to keen Anglophile parents who sent their daughter to an Anglican English language school in Lisbon and later to school near Sevenoaks and art school (The Slade) where she met her future husband Victor Willing. She became a naturalised British subject and was created a Dame of the British Empire in 2010. She divides her time between Britain and Portugal.

Here are some of her Jane Eyre works currently on display at the gallery Casa Das Historias in Cascais.

Paula Rego’s Jane Eyre

Paula Rego’s Lithograph Jane Eyre

The Book of the Exhibition

I had no room for the Paula Rego soaps in my luggage!

The Best Way to See the World is on Foot! Sintra and The Portuguese Coast Footloose Holiday

Apr25

In June last year my sister and I took our first ATG Footloose Holiday in Alsace. We were so impressed with the organisation and our own walking ability that we decided to book an even longer trip this year. We spent last week in Portugal doing the Sintra and Portuguese Footloose Walk.

Here is the text of the itinerary!

Cascais Beach and Sea Front

“Day 1 • Arrive in Cascais. A fashionable resort with a marina, smart shops, elegant restaurants and one of the best (and cleanest!) surfing beaches in Europe.”

Boca do Inferno [Mouth of Hell] (between Cascais and Guincho)

“Day 2 • Cascais to Guincho. An outstanding walk along the coast, passing lighthouses and fascinating cliff formations with dramatic coastal views, to Guincho Beach, one of Portugal’s best windsurfing locations (6.5 miles, 3.5 hrs).”

View from Peninha

“Day 3 • Guincho to Azoia. Follow coastal paths before heading inland into the Serra de Sintra. Opportunity to visit the interesting Convento dos Capuchos (Capuchin monastery) (+2 hrs), before returning through the Serra up to the spectacularly situated 14th century Peninha Chapel. Paths then lead down to your hotel near the coast (4.9 or 11.7 miles, 3 or 6 hrs).”

“Day 4 • Azoia to Praia Grande. A cliff-top walk with spectacular views leads to Cabo (Cape) da Roca, the most westerly point of Portugal – and mainland Europe. Continue inland through the vineyards of the famous ‘Colares’ wine before returning to the coast and past dramatic cliff formations to the beach of Praia Grande, with its world- famous swirling waves (7.2 miles, 4 hrs).”

Azenhas do Mar

The Church of Sao Mamede

“Day 5 • Praia Grande to Colares. Continue along the coast to the small seaside resort of Azenhas do Mar, with its pretty whitewashed houses perched on a cliff. From here the coastal path continues, past more fine beaches, then heads inland to the curious church of São Mamede, ‘protector of the animals,’ which were freely allowed to enter the chapel until recent times. Minor roads then lead to Colares, famous for its wine (6.9 or 9.9 miles, 3 or 4.5 hrs).”

Monserrate Palace and Gardens

“Day 6 • Colares to Sintra. Walk through small hamlets and vineyards before joining wide forest paths passing through the Serra to the ‘Romantic’ Palace of Monserrate, with exotic gardens and follies. Continue through the Serra and a short section of road brings you to the arch of the old west entrance to Sintra (6.9 miles, 3.5 hrs).”

Sintra from the Moorish Castle

“Day 7 • Free day in Sintra. Described by Byron as a ‘glorious Eden’, and boasting UNESCO World Heritage status, Sintra is a visitor’s paradise, with magnificent palaces, gardens, galleries, churches, museums, and cobbled, medieval streets lined with boutique shops and cafés.”

Ana Our Lovely Five Star Tour Manager at Lawrence’s Hotel, Sintra

Mary Taylor and Charlotte Brontë – Stop Press: Perspectives

Apr4

In my previous post I talk about a recent visit to Red House, former home of Mary Taylor, strong minded woman and friend of Charlotte Brontë. I meant also to add this link :

Sheila Hancock talks eloquently about the Brontë sisters and even visited Red House!

Mary Taylor : Strong Minded Woman & Friend of Charlotte Brontë

Apr4

“Discover the pioneering 19th century life of early feminist Mary Taylor of Red House, friend and inspiration to Charlotte Brontë. Mary’s exceptional life included emigrating to New Zealand; starting a business; leading expeditions of women mountain climbing in Europe and writing radical feminist articles and books.” (It’s Happening …)

Back in December I visited Oakwell Hall in Birstall to look at the Christmas decorations and promised myself that I would follow up with a visit to the nearby Red House; which also has Brontë connections. In the ‘It’s Happening …’ leaflet which I picked up that day I noted a future exhibition to be mounted at Red House on the topic of its one-time inhabitant Mary Taylor. The exhibition runs from 2 March until 2 June.

No photography is allowed inside the house; but never mind it’s a bit disappointing anyway. Several times in the 1980s I brought my sons here as they laid on some good children’s craft workshops (and still do). For quite a few years it was closed for renovations and yesterday was my first visit since then.

I was told that the house has been returned as nearly as possible to how it would have looked in the 1830s; the time when Charlotte Brontë visited. Some furniture, pictures and fittings are original, or of the period, and the rest have been carefully copied; for example the ‘Brussels’ weave, looped pile carpet in the Parlour, window curtains and bed hangings in the Main Bedroom and wallpapers.

There are very few rooms to visit – The Parlour (left in photo) with waxworks of Mary Taylor (playing the piano) and her mother (stitching tapestry); the adjoining scullery and kitchen; across the hall (which serves as reception and shop) there is the dining room and a study (right in photo). Upstairs you can visit the Main Bedchamber (above the parlour), the Governess’ room and the Girl’s room.

The Taylors were a prosperous, middle class family and Joshua (a woollen cloth manufacturer and merchant) lived here with his wife Anne and their six children. Their daughter Mary (1817-1893) was a great friend of Charlotte Bronte, who often visited Red House and featured the house as ‘Briarmains’ and the Taylor family as ‘The Yorkes’ in her novel ‘Shirley’.

Perhaps the most interesting feature, to me, were the stained glass windows in the Dining Room with painted heads of William Shakespeare and John Milton. Charlotte Brontë describes in ‘Shirley‘.

“Those windows would be seen by daylight to be of brilliantly-stained glass – purple and amber the predominant hues, glittering round a gravely-tinted medallion in the centre of each representing the suave head of William Shakspeare, and the serene one of John Milton.” (Shirley Ch.9)

Mary Taylor (Photo source)

So, having almost galloped through the main house I spent quite some time in the Exhibition Gallery studying the fascinating life of this woman Mary Taylor. One hundred years after her death she is now gaining recognition through Charlotte Brontë’s descriptions, through her letters and through her own published works. Examples of her books were displayed (including modern reprints). She wrote “The First Duty of Women” and a novel “Miss Miles, or a tale of Yorkshire life 60 years ago”. She was a strong-minded woman intent on pursuing her own way of life and living by her own ideals. She was an early feminist and strongly believed in women having their own independence.

She attended Roe Head School near Mirfield (where she met CB) and later The Chateau de Koekelberg in Brussels. She taught in Germany and I was surprised to read that in 1845 she emigrated to New Zealand and was one of its earliest settlers. There she owned a successful shop. She returned to Britain in 1860 and spent the rest of her life in nearby Gomersal. That is, when she wasn’t being a woman after my own heart and leading women’s mountaineering holidays in Switzerland! “Swiss Notes by Five Ladies : an Account of Climbing and Touring in 1874″ was reprinted with a supplement by Peter A. Marshall and Jean K. Brown.

The Secret’s Out with Spen Valley Stories (right)

So that was the house … but there is more. In the converted stables and outbuildings are two more displays. The Secret’s Out all about the Brontë connection with Red House and its local area and Spen Valley Stories : “Everyday community life through a century of change is illustrated through personal stories – displays include Schooldays; Working Lives; At Home; Freetime and Shopping.”

I didn’t have time to investigate these but I will be definitely go back, so watch this space!

Back of The Red House from the main road

A Wintry Winterburn Walk – on the first day of spring

Mar22

Last October I attempted this walk but long stretches of very muddy footpaths put me off completing it. I suppose I walked about a third of the route and then diverted from it taking an alternative track to a tarmaced country lane back to the start. So I was delighted when this month’s Weekday Wanderers ‘leader’ told us we were going to do the Winterburn Reservoir Walk yesterday. There was every chance that the paths, although muddy, would be frozen so we would be able to complete the route without being too bogged down in mud.

Our leader’s walk – although also extracted from the Yorkshire Post – followed the reverse route. Parking in Hetton in front of the Angel Inn, we headed along a quiet lane out of the village then we struck out across fields until we reached Friar’s Head House. A slight diversion was well worth it to see the front of this Grade 2* listed building which is now a farmhouse.

“The manor of Winterburn was gifted to Furness Abbey during the 12th century. Nearby Winterburn Grange was the abbey’s administrative centre for the surrounding estates and Friar’s Head was supposedly a hunting lodge for the Abbots of Furness. The present building has a much later date however. After the Dissolution of the Monasteries a long dispute arose over Friar’s Head between its tenants under the Abbey, the Proctor family, and the Earl of Cumberland who tried to put his own tenants in. The three-storey house now at Friar’s Head was eventually built by Stephen Proctor around 1590. It is the most prominent example of a late Tudor gentry house in the Dales.”

Source : http://www.outofoblivion.org.uk/record.asp?id=237

The quiet Winterburn Lane leads to the village of Winterburn itself where we were delighted to see new born lambs in their pac-a-mac raincoats!

Lambs in Plastic Macs

The Latest Style in Rainwear!

Eventually we left the track to climb up to fields above the hamlet and we had wide views of the Cracoe Fell with its cross and war memorial (I have yet to walk that ridge).

Dropping down to the reservoir itself we had to negotiate the muddy paths before joining the long Moor Lane track back to the village of Hetton.

Winterburn Reservoir

Cracoe Fell from Moor Lane

Returning to Hetton

We experienced freezing cold winds but lovely clear views of the fells covered with snow. Today we have as much snow in our garden! And to think, Easter is a week away and spring has already begun!

Snow today!

Worcester Cathedral and Strensham Church Services

Mar18

Worcester Cathedral

Another port of call during the weekend was Worcester. I wanted to visit the Cathedral in connection with my family history researches. It’s a lovely cathedral and you can see its tower from a distance so not hard to find in the centre of the city.

It was wet and cold on my visit the Saturday before last (9 March) so this photo of the Cathedral with blue sky behind is taken from the Worcester Cathedral website. Here is Dean Peter Atkinson’s Welcome Message introduction from that same website :

“Worcester Cathedral is a magnificent sight as it rises majestically above the River Severn. Worcester has been the seat of a bishopric since the Seventh Century, and the Cathedral was served by monks until the Reformation. St Oswald and St Wulfstan were among the bishops. Since the Eighteenth Century, the Cathedral has been famous for its part in the annual Three Choirs Festival, the oldest choral festival in existence. Today the Cathedral is the centre of a vibrant community of clergy and laypeople, offering the praises of God each day, serving the city and the diocese of Worcester, and attracting visitors from all over the world.”

St George’s Chapel, Worcester Cathedral

I had contacted the Vergers in advance in order arrange to see the Roll of Honour in which my relative is listed and introduced myself to a volunteer welcomer on arrival. A Verger was summoned and soon I was able to inspect the book and find his name. I then took some time to look around the St George’s Chapel where the Roll of Honour rests.

The most significant tomb in Worcester Cathedral is that of King John.

In addition, in the “Poets Corner”, I found the memorial to Victorian author Mrs Henry Wood. A prolific writer, she is perhaps best known for her book “East Lynne”.

St George’s Chapel, Worcester Cathedral

The Church of St John the Baptist, Strensham

For most people the name of the village of Strensham is synonymous with the Motorway Service Station of the same name on the M5. But for me it is the village where my relatives lived during the early years of the last century. More about them later. Strensham is divided in more ways than one; there’s a Lower Strensham and an Upper Strensham and the M5 motorway cuts between the two. However, far from the noise of the Services and the Motorway, Strensham church lies down a long lane across fields and even far from the Strenshams. It stands on cliff overlooking the River Avon. Now that I have visited I notice that you can see its creamy white tower as you drive up and down the motorway.

The Church of St John The Baptist, Strensham is listed in Simon Jenkins’ England’s Thousand Best Churches and given one star. It is also cared for by The Churches Conservation Trust. And there is a whole page about it in Jonathan Keates’ The Companion Guide to The Shakespeare Country.

One remark in this book that I rather like is his “More Norfolk than Worcestershire (it recalls Ranworth), this set of twenty-three paintings is extraordinary … “.

Well, my family came from Norfolk to live in Worcestershire for possibly a couple of decades in the early twentieth century, returning to Norfolk before 1920. In addition to these painted panels the church boasts some impressive monuments, superb linenfold panelling and early 16th century pews.

The chancel lights up as you enter but elsewhere it looks as if the gas mantels are still in use during the occasional services that are still held here.

Keates goes on to say “Next to these is my favourite Worcestershire tomb, a great piece of English art, full of unrivalled zest and excitement. Edward Stanton’s superb fantasia on the death of Sir Francis Russell in 1705 is as much Gothic as baroque in its marble schadenfreude. His face (a portrait, surely) a wrenched simian mask, he is shown half-lying as his kneeling wife beckons him towards a heaven blobbed with clouds and putti whirling a coronet.”

The Baroque Sir Francis Russell and his wife

The Church is perched on a cliff and overlooks the River Avon

A Music Room and a Castle and Lancastrian Hospitality

Mar17

Yesterday was Open Day at The Music Room Landmark Trust property in Lancaster. Last weekend a fellow Friend of the Landmark Trust, and friend of mine now, asked if I’d like to join her to visit the newly refurbished and freshly repainted apartment in the centre of the city. There’s a direct train from nearby Shipley, which has plenty of useful parking availability on a Saturday morning, and an early start gave us six and a half hours to inspect the property, chat with organisers and fellow visitors and include an unhurried lunch (Morecambe Bay Shrimp Platter – what else??) and a tour of the major Lancaster landmark – its Castle … and more!

From the station the Music Room is only a few steps away. We were glad to take shelter from the rain and we spent a couple of hours inside and out on the roof top (during a lull in the rain). Coffee was supplied courtesy of the nearby coffee merchant and dispensed by the Housekeeper to which she added information about the before-and-after appearance of the property.

A member of Landmark’s Head Office staff, Kasia, the Education Officer, (above, in the new kitchen) was also on hand to fill us in on news, plans and future events at Landmarks.

The Music Room dates back to about 1730 and was probably originally a garden pavilion; hard as this is to imagine, being now in the busy city centre. I also note from the free history sheet which is available, along with other Landmark Trust free literature and postcards and handbooks for sale, that music never really had anything to do with the building and that Music Room is probably a corruption of Muses Room (nine plasterwork muses adorn the room).

Still, it must be very special to have an elegant grand piano in your bedroom!

Photo : From the Landmark Trust website

When the Landmark Trust took on the property in the early 1970s it “was in an appalling condition” and when it was finally opened for letting it slept 4 in two bedrooms and the Music Room, with its exquisite plasterwork, was the sitting room or grand salon. I now quote from the history sheet :

“In 2013, 35 years after the first restoration, it was time for a thorough refurbishment, including overhaul of the Baroque plasterwork, which needed hairline cracks repairing and a really good clean. The opportunity was taken to reconfigure the attic floor, since few visitors seemed to be occupying the now rather second-class twin bedroom up there. Partitions were moved and a larger bathroom and a larger area for a new kitchen at one end of the opened-up living room, with its fine views out across the roofs of Lancaster. They are even better from the roof terrace.”

The Music Room bed

View from Sitting Room Window (Ashton Memorial on the distant hill)

The Castle from the Music Room Roof Terrace

On the Roof Terrace a most delightful thing happened! We were taking pictures of each other when another visitor offered to take a photo of us both. We thanked her and got talking to her – she’d pointed out her house in the background of the picture she’d just taken – she is also a keen Landmarker, lives in an historic house herself and by the end, as we were saying goodbye, she invited us to call in and have a look round her own home and have a cup of tea with her just before returning to the station! In addition to this she recommended a place for lunch (The NICE cafe inside The Storey) and that we join the 2pm Tour of Lancaster Castle. Both of which we did and even managed a peep inside the Priory Church of St Mary next door to the Castle.

Main Castle entrance

The Tour of the Castle is excellent and well worth doing. No photography is allowed but you are taken into two court rooms, the old cells, the grand jury room and much more. We learnt that it is a Royal Castle as our Queen is also Duke of Lancaster, that it had connections with the Pendle Witches, it housed a Debtors’ Prison in addition to a regular prison and that prison is now closed and due for refurbishment and change of use.

Following the hour long tour we had just time to peep inside the Priory Church and admire the view of Morecambe Bay. The choir were rehearsing for a concert this evening so we were unable to inspect the Choir Stalls which are an important feature of the church. There are some beautiful 17th century chandeliers, a Russian icon and two organs.

One of the organs, the icon and a glimpse of the choir stalls

It was soon time to take up the kind offer of our fellow Landmarker and we enjoyed a house tour and cup of tea before heading back to the station for our trains. Despite the cold winds and rain we came away with a very warm feeling towards the city, the buildings and the inhabitants of Lancaster and we have a lot more ideas for future visits!

An Abbey and a Chapel in Tewkesbury

Mar15

Some of my weekend based in Tewkesbury was spent researching some of my family history in Worcestershire. In addition, staying in a house so close to Tewkesbury Abbey, how could I not visit it several times? Close by there was also a curious little chapel which is probably much overlooked by its towering neighbour. I didn’t get inside as it was closed. It’s in one of the very many little courts and passageways that run off the main Tewkesbury streets and down to the River Avon.

See how near the Abbey is to no. 32

Old Baptist Chapel

It may be overshadowed by its neighbour but The Old Baptist Chapel in Tewkesbury still manages to be included in Simon Jenkins’ England’s Thousand Best Churches. It is even nearer to number 32 than the Abbey.

Tucked away down an alleyway it was converted from a medieval timber-framed house in about the 1620s and is still used for services today. The key is available for visitors wishing to see inside the chapel from the Museum over the road in Church Street.

Beyond the chapel lies a peaceful, overgrown, (perfect town habitat for wildlife and plants) burial ground and beyond that is the river and a view of the Severn Ham.

Tewkesbury Abbey

Tewkesbury Abbey fully deserves its five star status as awarded by Jenkins. During the one weekend I must have visited at least five times. Even the last morning before packing the car for the journey home I nipped across the road to admire once more the beautiful Thomas Denny windows. You see, for the first time since my arrival, the sun was shining and sunshine adds another dimension to the windows.

Photographs just cannot do justice to the real thing. This is what it says about the windows on a notice nearby :

“These windows have been funded by the Friends of Tewkesbury Abbey to celebrate the 900th anniversary of the arrival of Benedictine monks from Cranborne, Dorset in 1102 to the new monastery at Tewkesbury. The windows were dedicated by the Bishop of Gloucester at the 900th Anniversary Festival Service on Saturday 19th October 2002.”

Of course, I first saw T. Denny’s work in an article in Intelligent Life and shortly afterwards at Bolton Percy Church in North Yorkshire.

At Sunday Evensong the music is equally superb. The choir and clergy may outnumber the congregation several times over but the effort and result is just as striking as if the church had been full to overflowing as I am sure it is on high days and holidays. There is also a large choice of services on a Sunday and the evening was particularly cold. The abbey is heated by huge Gurney Stoves.

“Tewkesbury Abbey has two Gurney Stoves which were installed circa. 1875 when the Abbey underwent a major restoration by the Architect George Gilbert Scott. The stoves were converted to gas firing in 1987.”

In Tewkesbury Abbey there is also a memorial to the “Victorian authoress Dinah Craik (1826–1887) [who] visited Tewkesbury in 1852, and later set her most famous work John Halifax, Gentleman (pub. 1857) in the town, calling it Norton Bury in the book. There is a “Craik House” in Church Street, near the Abbey, but Mrs Craik never lived there and had no other connection with Tewkesbury. There is a memorial to her in the Abbey’s south transept.” [source]

The Battle of Tewkesbury: The Bloody (Muddy) Meadow

Mar14

32 St Mary’s Lane

Last weekend, to break my journey between South Wales and home in Leeds, I stayed in the lovely old town of Tewkesbury. 32 St Mary’s Lane is tucked away between the main road through town and the River Avon. Beyond the river is a large expanse of flat, grassy land called Severn Ham (‘Q’ mentions it in his poem ‘Upon Eckington Bridge‘) bordered on the other side by the River Severn. The two rivers meet at Tewkesbury and it’s liable to flooding sometimes in summer.

River Avon and Severn Ham

Beyond the main road, on the other side, is the great edifice of Tewkesbury Abbey which dominates the town in the nicest of ways.

The house in St Mary’s Lane was formerly a framework stocking-knitter’s home dating back to the 17th century. The row of cottages, of which no. 32 is one, were in a parlous state by the 1970s and The Landmark Trust stepped in to help a local conservation group who were unable to raise the funds required to restore the houses. No. 32 only joined Landmark’s collection of properties to let in 1982.

Welcome to St Mary’s Lane : The Kitchen

The First Floor Sitting Room

It’s a lovely warm and comfy house on 4 floors each of the upper floors accessed via steep, narrow, twisting staircases; but you soon get used to them! On the ground floor is the kitchen and a cloakroom (and there’s a backyard with picnic table for the summer months), on the first floor is the sitting room, above that is a bedroom and a bathroom and on the fourth floor is another bedroom with magnificent view of the Abbey through one tiny window.

The Abbey from the Top Bedroom – by day

The Abbey from the Top Bedroom – by night

In fact there is another Landmark Trust property in Tewkesbury – The Abbey Gatehouse.

To Battle!

The Battlefield Trail at Tewkesbury (photo)

On Sunday morning, having found a Battle Trail leaflet at the house, I decided to leave its cosy confines and venture out into the cold, windy fields on the edge of Tewkesbury to discover the location of The Bloody Meadow – scene of the Battle of Tewkesbury in 1471 between the House of York and the House of Lancaster saw the death of 2000 soldiers, including Edward, Prince of Wales, who was just 18 years old. It was a defining battle of the Wars of the Roses.

Tewkesbury Abbey from The Battle Trail

Crossing the main road and taking Gander Lane behind the Abbey I soon found the first Battle Trail sign. It was easy to follow and well-waymarked BUT there were some very very muddy parts and at one point I was unable to reach the exit gate from the Bloody Meadow due to two rather frisky-looking ponies. I had to take a detour, give them a wide berth and climb over a fence. There’s an information panel at the Meadow itself and towards the end of the trail is a monument to the town recording important events in the history of Tewkesbury.

The Bloody (and muddy) Meadow

Horses and Mud block the Trail

The Tewkesbury Monument and Abbey at the end of the Trail

Close-up of the Monument

Tea at Lock Cottage

I was pleased to get back to St Mary’s Lane for a wash and brush-up before heading up the M5 to partake of afternoon tea with Landmarking friends who just happened to be staying at Lock Cottage which lies between locks 31 and 32 of the Worcester and Birmingham Canal.

I have to concur with the comment in Lock Cottage Log (Visitors) Book, namely, that “Sitting in the cottage with a cup of tea and watching the boats go by is infinitely preferable to jumping on and off a boat watching the cottages go by.”

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