She Said:
Woke to a rainy day. So, no hurry to get out there.
GoreTex from head to toe.
And then, a walking trip miracle - as we started out, it stopped raining! We knew that it would be a rainy day, so this little respite was welcomed.
A couple of hours later, the steady rain began, but we stayed (mostly) warm and dry.
Lots of waterfowl enjoying the day. We saw a coot family - mom, dad and 6 kids; a duck family - mom, 2 dads and 4 kids (an interesting phenomenon - for a few miles' stretch today, all the female ducks seemed to have 2 husbands. One could argue that that is either brilliant or horrifying); a couple of great blue herons, and on land, a pheasant couple, she much lighter and duller than he; magpies, wood pigeons, starlings, many, many songbirds, a hawk or two, a coo-coo bird (yes, they really do sound as though they are singing coo-coo) and a small yellow bird that was a master of catching bugs on the fly. Whenever the rain would let up a bit, the air would fill with birdsong - very loud but very cheerful.
WWII pillboxes galore today - many right next to the path. We peeked inside one, and marveled (well, I did - R expected it) at the structure - baffles meant to deflect any gunfire. I am curious to know why there are so many pillboxes on the Kennet and Avon Canal. They are at every kind of intersection - locks, bridges, roads, rail tracks, spillways, even a wide footpath. Of course, they were to stop the enemy, and I wonder if the Kennet and Avon was an important waterway then. A job for Google.
The path cuts across the High Street in Newbury, so we took a look around. Saint Nicholas Church (16c) is in the center of town. One of its stained glass windows depicts Saint Nicholas holding three bags of gold. Legend says that he gave it to three girls as their dowry and that's how the tradition of Father Christmas (St. Nic) giving gifts began. (Sounds like a bit of a stretch, but OK.)
On one wall hung a metal (wood?) cutout of a Blue Coat Schoolboy. The Blue Coat School was started in 1706 to clothe (and educate?) 20 poor boys. The cutout would have had a box attached underneath for donations.
The church organ has 2.433 pipes (seems like a lot).
Jack of Newbury, a local wool trader, paid to have the church built and it is said that the Royals - Henry VIII and his 1st wife Catherine - visited often. It would have to have been a Catholic Church at that time (it is Church of England now) as Catherine was Catholic. And we know that's the reason the Catholic thing blew up in England - Henry wanted a son, Catherine didn't have sons, Henry wanted a divorce, the Pope said No, Henry started his own church with him as the boss, Catherine out, Anne B. in.
Saint Nicholas Church was also used as a hospital and a prison during the Civil War (1644).
We saw a canal boat being towed by a big Clydesdale - the way it used to happen. Two guys, ropes, a horse. But instead of the canal boat transporting wool and wood and grain, this boat was transporting Pensioners all aboard for a grand day out. Ha!
Arrived the Dundas Arms in Kintbury, a quite nice Inn and Pub. Our room is fantastic, and we certainly would be happy having dinner from the grocery store in our room tonight, looking out at the canal.
But, there's no grocery store (Kintbury, Pop. 2500) and the Dundas Arms is a member of The Epicurean Collection - "A selection of Britain's most iconic pubs and country inns who are passionate about creating the ultimate countryside experience". (We have a locking gun cabinet in our room - apparently, shooting is one of the ultimate countryside experiences.)
So, best to try out the food here!
Total Miles:
10.07 (along the K&A, in and around Newbury)
He said:
Our destination today is Kintbury, we are happy to leave Thatcham.
The weather was good for ducks today, I wonder if ducks notice when it rains or only when it is roasting (sorry hot). We both enjoyed the cooler weather and the gentle rain, it gave the canal a different character, more relaxed and quiet. There were fewer boats traveling about, due either to the weather, or the rain, or the broken lock downstream, or because it's Tuesday.
The train tracks were never far from the path today. Fifty years after the full Kennet-Avon canal was completed and running 200 years ago, the railroads came along and took away the canal business. The canal system already had a good route avoiding hills as much as possible, so the railroad just copied it....... well, that's progress.
Now there are canal societies that keep it running for recreation only, whilre preserving a bit of the past.
For more photos from May 10 click here
No comments:
Post a Comment