Well hopefully it's happy Tuesday in your world. I am feeling the pain after returning to yoga last night, while it felt good to be back my legs are currently feeling the burn. Ah well what's a little pain in the pursuit of health and well being.
My legs may also be suffering from the weekend, over a two day period Laura and I managed to cover almost 10 miles thanks to:
- Good company
- 2 energetic dogs
- Plenty to see
The plenty to see fell into three main areas - Stonehenge, Glastonbury and Glastonbury Tor.
The energetic dogs were these two cuties:
And the company was in the form of these two lovely ladies:
We arrived at Charlotte and Hannah's (you may know them as Adventuresof2girlsinlove on Instagram). They live in a place called Frome which is in Somerset at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills and just over 100 miles and 2 hours from Birmingham.
Frome was a perfect base for our Saturday excursion to Stonehenge. For those who haven't heard of it Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument and one of the wonders of the world. It is a collection of large stones placed by Neolithic ancestors with a history of some 4,500 years. The henge part refers to the circular earth rim with an internal ditch - usually for ritual purposes it would have contained a monument).
There are tons of theories as to how the stones arrived at the location, how and why they were set out in a circle and what it would have meant at the time of creation. Nowadays it is a spiritual place and source of inspirations according to the website: here
Depending on the type of experience you want you can pay the £17.10 day rate to enter the exhibition centre that includes interactive exhibits, talks on Neolithic Man and see artifacts found in the area oh and enjoy a bus ride to and from Stonehenge or you can park in a country lane nearby and do a walk by. We did the latter.
Partly because we had the dogs and it is a beautiful part of the country to walk them in and partly because I had read a ton online about the history and was therefore content to just see and admire them from a distance.
The advice that Stonehenge is smaller than you think is worth noting. I'm not quite sure what I was expecting but when stone a small distance away the stones are imposing but not massive.
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| Wrangling the puppies at King Barrow |
Our walk from Stonehenge to King Barrow Ridge took almost an hour and a half but the view was well worth it. It also meant we started our walk back towards Stonehenge as the sun was setting providing some beautiful lighting.
After our day of walking our evening was spent in Bath. I love Bath. Steeped in history and with stunning buildings everywhere it would be on my must do list if you are ever in the area. If time permits do the baths, if time doesn't wander the streets and soak in the atmosphere.
From Stonehenge we drove to the Longleat estate gardens. A short walk from the car park via woodland brings you out to a garden of sculptures to commemorate the millennium. For those brave or foolish there is also a rope swing allowing you to really get a great view over Longleat Safari park and the grounds.
Sunday was our Glastonbury day. An early-ish start had meant we got to Glastonbury Tor before it got too busy. The hill is on the outskirts of Glastonbury and at the top is St Michael's Tower. You can start the walk from the village itself (full walk details here) just save yourself for the ascent. Thankfully there is a staircase but it's steep.
The Tor is something to behold. It stands out from the surrounding countryside as it's hard clay centre has stood the test of time while the area has eroded away. History notes the Tor as a safe haven when the lower areas flooded and a place where food was grown. Today it is an amazing spot to view the surrounded area. On a clear day you can see three counties from the top and if you plan ahead it isn't a bad spot for a picnic.
We didn't stop for too long though as we planned to get lunch in Glastonbury. Most famous for a festival that actually happens in a place just outside of actual Glastonbury this town is a strange collection of shops and cafes with people wandering around dressed as fairies and elf's. If you have been to Nimbin in Australia it's just like that. Some describe it as a new age community or pagan community others describe it as slightly odd place. I'd say it's worth a wander through but as i'm not big into crystals, angels and fairies I wasn't tempted into the shops. Unfortunately with a dog in tow there weren't too many options for lunch unless we wanted to sit outside so we drove to a nearby pub.
Before leaving we did briefly check out Glastonbury Abbey though and had there been more time we may have gone in (full details are here)
Two days did not seem long enough and had we had more time i'm sure this post would be triple the length. We couldn't recommend making a weekend trip to the region highly enough we had a great time and we got to see a wonder of the world oh and walk 10 miles :)
You two go on the BEST adventures! It makes me realize that I really need to leave the country more often. :)
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