A statue of Byron in a commercial building overlooking the church in which he is buried. He is possibly on the lookout for tourists who spend entire days trying to find Hucknall--only to find the church is shut. However, Byron is beautiful. And Hucknall was hard to find but the place had a good vibe. A street market and people walking around and mingling.
--it smells and feels and touches and all the things Wordsworth writes about.
The wonderful Dove Cottage at Grasmere, home to Dorothy and William Wordsworth -- and Coleridge, at times. The cottage interior is small and dark (needing a fire on a gloomy summer's day) but one does leave with a sense of a crowded social life despite the Cumbrian isolation. What a household--Dorothy in a room adjacent to her brother and his wife and the children in an attic area off the tiny guest room which housed Coleridge when he visited--and where the children were often woken by Coleridge's nightmares.
and you can just feel the history of the place.
The stained glass windows were so unusual in here. It was a very different approach than we had seen in the other catherdals. York is so well set out and the catherdal provides a focal point. You can start the walk around the wall from the Richard III museum and end up here. Great.
Tim Russell, a senior ranger with the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
We stayed here because of the name and we found that it had a wonderful selling point--access to wireless. Porlock itself is not quite on the sea, but one can see the water. It is a quiet town despite having many holiday cottages and locals appreciated the patronage of Harley Davidson bikers who were enjoying a conference at the nearby Butlins holiday centre at Minehead. It is interesting to know of Coleridge's connection to Porlock when you visit. A man from Porlock woke Coleridge from his dreaming of Kubla Khan. It is also mentioned a number of times in references to trips Coleridge made. The people were very friendly and went out of their way to help with the hiring of a taxi. But I must add that the place does have quite a different feel about it--this is a good thing.
Despite the Sunday afternoon closure, the ladies of the Porlock Visitor Centre opened for business at 10.00am on a Monday and were rushed off their feet for jams and tea-towels. It is a good 'tourist shop' spot and we duly had our certificates signed to certify that we had walked the Way, but we were intrigued by the Visitors Centre telling us that they had just processed a bulk order for Coleridge Way certificates .....we saw very few 'Way' walkers actually on the Way during five days of trekking.
We made it! Sue and Lesley at the Porlock Visitor's Centre after completing the walk (despite all predictions to the contrary!)and thanking Coleridge for getting us to Porlock. The Centre was, predictably, closed (it was around 4.00pm on a Sunday). However we visited the garden behind the Centre and paid tribute to the array of artwork that celebrates Coleridge. And then we were off to the Lorna Doone Hotel.
Lesley at this late medieval packhorse bridge with a single arch just outside of Horner. Horner is a very attractive village that caters for the Sunday tea gardens crowd. There are horses everywhere--children learning to ride along the paths. The car park was filled with cars, not an empty spot. It must be a very popular place and it was at this point that we really began to see other walkers. We also saw pushbike riders and runners. If the weather was hot (or a lot hotter) I think we would have enjoyed a swim in the river. I could picture having Xmas besdie this river. I might add an Australian Xmas not an English Xmas.
A typical set of signs in the middle of woodland, before reaching Horner. The woodland signs were accurate, as were the Coleridge Way feather's (once you found them). We found only one sign that had been knocked over and this was close to a town.
The directions assured us that this path would become wider and fortunately it did (it was steeper than it looks). It was quite steep and overgrown (like many spots in the Way, due to the recent heavy rain) and in such areas we often had to 'get our feet wet' crossing streams via stones. The conditions make it slow walking--the route notes include warnings on slippery surfaces and it is an issue.
The ponies of Exmoor--this section of the way takes walkers across the moors and then winds around hill tops to give scenic views across to the coast. The ponies are jsut beautiful. They look up at you and come over to you and it is clear they love their surroundings.
The Royal Oak, Luxborough, Somerset
The Aeolian Harp
Sue looking down at the Cist at Langridge Wood. This is a stone lined grave probably dating from the Bronze Age (around 4,000 years ago) according to Coleridge Way information. It was, apparently, found by workmen in 1820. One has to deviate a little from the path but it is in a high position in the hills.
This is in the Luxborough to Wheddon Cross segment of the walk. After leaving Luxborough we note that The Coleridge Way directions show an ascent of 685 metre in this section and an entry just after Newcombe Farm that says "Go through the gate into the next field. At this point the OS map and reality are not in agreement!" As we did not rely on the Ordnance Survey maps but kept to the web directions (part of the point of the walk) and a trusty compass we cannot comment on the maps--but we can say that the language regarding directions in the northern hemisphere was often a mystery.
See the beginning of the forest--see the farm way down--well we walked from there and felt very proud. We did have to stop and ask local farmer what direction--up he replied--and keep going up.
They have places to park your dogs near the stores. And they need to as people take their doggies to the shop. On our walk into Monksilver there was a sign on the post that advised us about a naughty dog who liked to follow walkers. If we should spot this dog send it home and say "naughty dog". Then when we got into the pub there was a sign telling us not to feed another naughty dog. The thing we noticed was the way dogs are so much part of the community. It was this area more than any other that really involved their dogs in all their daily activities. And even though they say they have 'naughty dogs" all the dogs we saw were very well behaved.
Not one of our shots but Monksilver seemed such a nice place that we thought perhaps we should have stayed here rather than Bicknoller---although we did eat and drink at the 'Bic' and so, apparently, did Wordsworth.
Lo and behold--Sue on the ropes at All Saints Church, Monksilver. The builders (this dates from the 12th century) knew how to use natural light. Perhaps a blessing from Coleridge? More spooky stories later.
Lesley and I were looking for a 'dog pound' as per the instructions: that is, our idea of a dog pound, being a modern large fenced enclosure. We found it, at right--it is a 14th century dog pound (silly us), and one of the first in the country. All that is left is the wall and emblem of the dog. Easy to miss--it forms part of a wall along a track but it is a very interesting marker. Who would have thought of a 14th century dog pound?
This crossing is just outside of Bicknoller. The railway is a privately owned steam rail running regular services in the area. We heard the train but did not see it. On Lesley's left is a 'kissing gate' --the first of quite a few of these gates that we climbed and crossed.
We were so glad to see this place. We had walked
This is a cairn--it is a signpost. We could have done with this earlier on as we were a little confused in one section. Reason being: Wordsworth Alfoxden Hotel(where Wordsworth and Dorothy lived in 1797--Dorothy said the beauty of the walks was their wild simplicity) is no longer a hotel and has no signs on it. This messed up our directions as they said "go past Alfoxden Hotel". No sign so we didn'tknow we had walked past it. We were sitting on the hills looking concerned when a nice local man and his dog walked past and directed us upon the right path. Back we went on the right path. It was so windy up here and we could see all the way to the Bristol Channel--look way out into the background. After making our way through the forest this open space was quite a contrast. So much air it almost took our own breath away.
This is an entire path of beech trees. They are very very old and the feeling was amazing. I kept expecting to see a hobbit come running out, or at least an elf.
The path begins to take us into woodland with banks of very old trees and we began to sense the age of the forest and the path itself.
