Back in Old Blighty - Spring (yeah right!)

One of our lovely camping spots looking across the Fells

Having allowed about 5 weeks in the UK to explore we soon left our friends at Nobs Crook, a very wet day  heading west to Bath.

Mighty Stonehenge

Passing the signage for Stonehenge we weren't that interested in doing it, as we had visited it 37years ago. However as we came up over the hill there it was in all its majesty. The car parking and visitor Centre has been shifted over the hill so when you first see the Henge, that is all you see! No car park or buildings just small people on walkways, close enough, but not intrusive on the sight lines. The interpretive centre is also second to none, one can easily spend as much time there as at the Henge itself, I was initially put off by the price,( this will come as a mantra over my UK blogs), these major attractions are expensive, this one  at 18.50 pounds per visitor with various

Expensive - and I had to lend a hand!

family discounts etc. with a million plus visits a year they are coining it but as stated they are doing it very well. We opted to join the English Heritage Society with a 2 adult concession at 92 pounds for the year, which gave us admission (unlimited) and audio guides plus access to over 400 sites through out the UK  encouraging us to visit many more places. We came away from the Henge wanting more so that is testimony as to there slick presentation.
Next stop the Roman Baths at Bath, again however entry prices prohibitive at 16.50 per adult, and sadly not covered by our  newly purchased membership, these prices are a real issue if you want to visit multiple attractions, with two major trusts in

Bath - Avon River in spring flow

England and a plethora of private organisations running these historic attractions. This is also the case for Wales Scotland and Ireland.  We settled for a 2 hour walking tour of Bath which was excellent, in fact one of the best in our travels so far.
Camping is a bit more difficult here with the land holders generally requiring advance booking of arrival requiring us to plan our day a little more which is not our usual "modus operandi". Not only that, many of the informal sites (paddocks with a tap & power ) want as much as 12 pounds for the pleasure of their turf. It's not as easy or cheap as Europe can be. The sites we favour are all on Farms, and have lovely views across their fields or Fells, such is the price we pay.....

Lovely cottages on rural roads

As we headed north we took a stroll thru the Cots wolds to reach Belas Knap Long Barrow, a Neolithic burial ground. over green paddocks with the trees just coming into leaf, many of the sheep with lambs, and lots of daffodils everywhere. There are thousands along roadsides and many farms, we are certainly here at the perfect time to appreciate them. English Spring time, complete with icy winds, or as they say here "a lazy wind",  it doesn't go around you.....

Hailes Abbey

Onto Hailes Abbey,(covered by our membership:):) built in 1277, the ruins evoking an ancient world of Cistercian Monks, and their amazing relic of Christs blood that became a huge attraction for pilgrims, coming to be fleeced. The Abbey got very rich & powerful before finally being dissolved by Henry the VIII to fund his campaigns and further his own ends, then the monastery being plundered by the locals for anything usable, but mostly as a stone quarry. History has proved these Great historical figures being as culpable as any other cause for the destruction of these huge ancient edifices.

Goodrich Castle - in need of roof repairs

Next day saw us visiting Goodrich Castle, another ruin  destroyed this time by the Parliamentarians when quashing the royalists. These ruins are conjured back into being with excellent audio guides giving comprehensive dialogue on the history, raising from the ground to ultimately the raising to the ground over many centuries.
We headed for Redditch to visit my Aunt Sue whom we met in 79. Sue Tyler was married to my names sake, Dads brother Bill and now is our only connection with the English Tylers. Sue has two sons, my cousins, with whom I would like to establish a connection. With the passing

of our parents generation and us getting older, it's important to have these connections for our children's sake. Sue generously took us out for a lovely pub meal and though its been 37 years we soon re established her friendship, and informative nature on the Tylers.We continue north for a rendezvous in Scotland and some Nessy Hunting ..

The English countryside waiting for spring.