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O, To Be In England...

Bad Bungle said:
After a lemonade & lime and half of bitter(shandy), I made it home in time for a shower and then ham, cucumber and fish paste sandwiches, scone and cream and a huge wedge of coffee walnut cake. I bought cake to take back with me as it was all for charity - three half-cakes or maybe three and a half cakes, the shandy caught up with me and I got confused - will check fridge.
Click to expand...
Darned good end to your day then 'BB!' :hapdan:
 
Sid said:
Darned good end to your day then 'BB!' :hapdan:
Click to expand...
The heat, the baked soil, sweat dripping down onto new photochromic glasses, factor 50 sun-block, the scenery, treasure beneath (not dug by me, no matter), a Pub visit, a catch-up with 'my Ladies' at the Village Hall, many cups of tea in fine bone china with mismatched saucers, a fridge full of cream torte, no Work on Mondays. A chance to go out and do it all again.
And remarkable people who read this and don't mind sharing the day with me. Reckon that's about perfect.
 
Yesterday I had a day off work to do an airport drop-off in the morning, so took advantage of the rest of the day to walk another section of the Thames Path. I kicked off with a pub lunch at The Rocket, by the river in Putney, then set off westwards, finishing in Richmond. Compared to the other London sections, this was surprisingly leafy, although for most of the section it is very busy with cyclists and joggers. I am pretty sure I walked past a fair amount of haunted heritage, such as Kew Palace and Syon House (across the river).
20230926_141824.jpg

There were plenty of aesthetically pleasing bridges, here, Hammersmith Bridge:
20230926_144751.jpg
20230926_145703.jpg

Barnes Bridge:
20230926_153318.jpg

The unexpected highlight, from a Fortean perspective, was coming across this plaque at Mortlake, commemorating John Dee, and provoking a detour to the church of St. Mary the Virgin.
20230926_154400.jpg

20230926_154640.jpg

20230926_155018.jpg

Very occasionally, the leafiness and wealth of west London gave way to sections of urban decay:
20230926_155902.jpg

Kew Railway Bridge:
20230926_162810.jpg

The aforementioned Syon House, crawling with ghosts, so they say:
20230926_170539.jpg
 
SimonBurchell said:
Yesterday I had a day off work to do an airport drop-off in the morning, so took advantage of the rest of the day to walk another section of the Thames Path. I kicked off with a pub lunch at The Rocket, by the river in Putney, then set off westwards, finishing in Richmond. Compared to the other London sections, this was surprisingly leafy, although for most of the section it is very busy with cyclists and joggers. I am pretty sure I walked past a fair amount of haunted heritage, such as Kew Palace and Syon House (across the river).
View attachment 69996
There were plenty of aesthetically pleasing bridges, here, Hammersmith Bridge:
View attachment 69997View attachment 69998
Barnes Bridge:
View attachment 69999
The unexpected highlight, from a Fortean perspective, was coming across this plaque at Mortlake, commemorating John Dee, and provoking a detour to the church of St. Mary the Virgin.
View attachment 70000
View attachment 70001
View attachment 70002
Very occasionally, the leafiness and wealth of west London gave way to sections of urban decay:
View attachment 70003
Kew Railway Bridge:
View attachment 70004
The aforementioned Syon House, crawling with ghosts, so they say:
View attachment 70005
Click to expand...
My general area,I fish sometimes in the Grounds of Syon Park,decent trout lake there,and walk the Thames path often when back home.
1E6AC048-B63C-4ACE-89D3-4CF47A1F5EE3.jpeg
 
Druk said:
My general area,I fish sometimes in the Grounds of Syon Park,decent trout lake there,and walk the Thames path often when back home.View attachment 70006
Click to expand...
I've never seen a dog doing a poo like in that symbol. Poor pooch must have projectile diarrhoea. Bit too graphic for a graphic.
 
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CharmerKamelion said:
I never seen a dog doing a poo like in that symbol. Poor pooch must have projectile diarrhoea. Bit too graphic for a graphic.
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That sign is right outside Hampton court,reputedly one of the most haunted buildings in the UK,walked the barge walk at 2am a few times,always keep an eye open for general spookiness and such like.
 
escargot said:
I live in possibly the greenest county in the entire country, full of lush green fields packed with well-fed cattle.*
We also have quaint buildings and of course, ghosts. :chuckle:
*Most of my more distant female forebears would have been milkmaids famed for their beauty. :cool:

Their secret was a close proximity to cows from which they'd catch cowpox, a close relation to smallpox, which gave them immunity to it and spared them facial scarring. :wink2:
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And you're the most beautiful milkmaid of all....:loveu::sneaky2:
UoG251427f.jpg
 
This is part of the route of my daily run. Absolutely lovely when the sun shines. A little...bleak when it doesn't. This is the portion of the run where I can hear 'ghost footsteps' following me, which is just the sound of my own trainers, slightly out of time with my feet - it's magnified when the road is wet. I suspect it's something to do with the hedges on either side and the road surface.


lanerun.jpg
 
I live in Nottinghamshire and near, of course, Nottingham Castle and Sherwood forest, also near Hardwick Hall, and the home of Lord Byron, Newstead Abbey, and Wollaton Hall, dont think Ive missed anything out, its been a long time since i have been to any of these places, My brother and sister in law got married at Newstead Abbey, it is a beautiful place. I believe that Nottingham's original name was Snotingaham, named after the Anglo Saxon chief called Snot, thank the lord they changed it lol.
https://www.shutterstock.com/search/newstead-abbey?cr=bc&gclid=d559119e2eed15387556748be0f9d02d&gclsrc=3p.ds&kw=/search/&msclkid=d559119e2eed15387556748be0f9d02d&pl=PPC_BNG_UK_DSA-&utm_campaign=CO=UK_LG=EN_BU=IMG_AD=DSA_TS=lggeneric_RG=EUAF_AB=ACQ_CH=SEM_OG=CONV_PB=Microsoft-Ads&utm_content=FF=DSA+-+Search_AU=Prospecting&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=bing&utm_term=/search/
https://www.bing.com/videos/rivervi...&mid=D54207F66C043E2380DCD54207F66C043E2380DC
https://www.visitsherwood.co.uk/about-sherwood-forest/
Probably a bit much here.
I cant find the remark a woman made, so forgive me for not remembering it perfectly, this was about Nottingham Castle but she said " I found it difficult to find " Its in the middle of the city with traffic going round it and Robin Hoods statue beside it and the wall that encloses the castle is close to the pavement, and if that wasnt enough, she could have just ask someone, they dont bite.
Sorry I keep editing, but I actually went inside the gap in the Major Oak when I was a kid, tis a shame both of us got old, tho I am still, thankfully not held up by sticks.
 
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catseye said:
This is part of the route of my daily run. Absolutely lovely when the sun shines. A little...bleak when it doesn't. This is the portion of the run where I can hear 'ghost footsteps' following me, which is just the sound of my own trainers, slightly out of time with my feet - it's magnified when the road is wet. I suspect it's something to do with the hedges on either side and the road surface.


View attachment 70041
Click to expand...
You wouldn’t think bushes could provide an echo but that must be the cause. Any echo from that short a distance would arrive at your ears a fraction of a second later.
 
hunck said:
You wouldn’t think bushes could provide an echo but that must be the cause. Any echo from that short a distance would arrive at your ears a fraction of a second later.
Click to expand...
Yes, in the depths of summer there's a lot of growth on the sides of the road and I assume that this, together with the roadside ditches and the thick hedges are what does it. The road surface is also very worn and smooth and I think that's why the sound is more noticeable when it rains.
 
I am aware that I am at risk of spamming this thread with photos, but here we go again. Yesterday I hiked from Petworth, West Sussex, to Haslemere, Surrey, largely because the rail strike meant I had to find somewhere accessible by bus. My route wasn't even remotely direct, because I decided to drop by an off-the-beaten-track cemetery to see a mass grave from a bombing that I mentioned on another thread a few days ago, and a ruin off in the woods, but more on that later.

This little cemetery is one of my favourites, sat on the outskirts of Petworth town centre with a fine view across the Weald, secluded, peaceful and beautiful:
20230930_094920.jpg

From there it was off across the fields northwards for a way to visit what I suppose to be a Victorian overflow cemetery (when the parish graveyard in the town centre filled up, they moved to a new location north of the town). In 1942, as I mentioned on another thread, a lone German bomber dropped its bombs on Petworth House, but missed, with at least two of the bombs bouncing and striking the local boys' school, destroying it and killing 28 boys and 4 adults. The victims (or bits of them at least) were buried in a mass grave in the new cemetery. Here the abandoned Victorian chapel:
20230930_100225.jpg

Visiting the mass grave was poignant. It is a melancholy spot, more so knowing the history, and having read the eyewitness accounts - made even more so seeing the first two boys had the same surname, and further along the row recognising the names of some local families that I have known some years ago.

20230930_100422.jpg

20230930_100707.jpg

Feeling rather sombre after the cemetery, I was back off across the fields then heading east, climbing a hill topped by three clumps of trees. When I passed that hill a while ago, I found those clumps positively eery. As I climbed the hill they looked innocent enough and I thought it must have been the weather or the light at the time, but as I got up amongst them again, an almost otherworldy atmosphere seemed to emanate from them. I wouldn't like to be up there after dark. There was an odd moment when I was up amongst them; as well as all the normal noises of the distant traffic etc. I heard what sounded for all the world like a train horn nearby, complete with Doppler effect. All the railways around Petworth and Midhurst were torn up years ago (thanks Mr Beeching), the closest lines are the one running through Billingshurst, Pulborough and Arundel, way off to the east, or the London to Portsmouth line passing through Haslemere way off to the northwest - and, as I mentioned, my reason for doing this walk was the rail strike, so nothing was running anyway.
20230930_104013.jpg

Just past them was an overgrown derelict barn, it took some inventive and highly dangerous bank-climbing but I eventually managed to get close enough to snap a couple of photos:
20230930_104927.jpg

Then onwards to my target for the day. Some months ago I read about an abandoned church in a local magazine. I had never heard of it, hence my quite significant detour. St. Michael and All Angels Church, Bedham, had a relatively short life, built in 1888 and serving as a schoolhouse during the week, and parish church at the weekends. It finally closed its doors in 1959, leaving a splendid ruin isolated in the woods:
20230930_114138.jpg

20230930_114420.jpg

20230930_114519.jpg

There was a lot of fungi-themed graffiti, often with a dual war theme:
20230930_114744.jpg


Less than a mile on through the woods and I came upon Hawkhurst Court. This was a country house built around 1800. During the Second World War it was the Canadian Army's HQ in preparation for the Normandy Landings. After that is became a boarding school, googling for the history of the country house uncovered, along with sung praises from some former pupils, some horrific tales of physical and sexual abuse from others. The history of the original country house is poorly known - online sources start with its use by the Canadians - there is not even a family name associated with the building of the original house, quite strange since they must surely have been local aristocracy. The only ghost story I found was an obvious children's invention (the former headmaster was fiercely protective of the rose garden, which he maintained in memory of his late wife, and would not allow the children to enter - the children believed the ghost of the departed wife walked the garden).
20230930_123241.jpg

Then onwards with many miles to hike, through field and forest.
20230930_135608.jpg

Northchapel Church, on my route home:
20230930_161406.jpg
 
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SimonBurchell said:
I am aware that I am at risk of spamming this thread with photos, but here we go again. Yesterday I hiked from Petworth, West Sussex, to Haslemere, Surrey, largely because the rail strike meant I had to find somewhere accessible by bus. My route wasn't even remotely direct, because I decided to drop by an off-the-beaten-track cemetery to see a mass grave from a bombing that I mentioned on another thread a few days ago, and a ruin off in the woods, but more on that later.
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Intersting. Thanks for posting that. The mass grave is a sobering thought.
 
catseye said:
This is part of the route of my daily run. Absolutely lovely when the sun shines. A little...bleak when it doesn't. This is the portion of the run where I can hear 'ghost footsteps' following me, which is just the sound of my own trainers, slightly out of time with my feet - it's magnified when the road is wet. I suspect it's something to do with the hedges on either side and the road surface.


View attachment 70041
Click to expand...
Blimey this looks like the lane behind my house!
 
SimonBurchell said:
I am aware that I am at risk of spamming this thread with photos, but here we go again. Yesterday I hiked from Petworth, West Sussex, to Haslemere, Surrey, largely because the rail strike meant I had to find somewhere accessible by bus. My route wasn't even remotely direct, because I decided to drop by an off-the-beaten-track cemetery to see a mass grave from a bombing that I mentioned on another thread a few days ago, and a ruin off in the woods, but more on that later.

This little cemetery is one of my favourites, sat on the outskirts of Petworth town centre with a fine view across the Weald, secluded, peaceful and beautiful:
View attachment 70128
From there it was off across the fields northwards for a way to visit what I suppose to be a Victorian overflow cemetery (when the parish graveyard in the town centre filled up, they moved to a new location north of the town). In 1942, as I mentioned on another thread, a lone German bomber dropped its bombs on Petworth House, but missed, with at least two of the bombs bouncing and striking the local boys' school, destroying it and killing 28 boys and 4 adults. The victims (or bits of them at least) were buried in a mass grave in the new cemetery. Here the abandoned Victorian chapel:
View attachment 70129
Visiting the mass grave was poignant. It is a melancholy spot, more so knowing the history, and having read the eyewitness accounts - made even more so seeing the first two boys had the same surname, and further along the row recognising the names of some local families that I have known some years ago.

View attachment 70130
View attachment 70131
Feeling rather sombre after the cemetery, I was back off across the fields then heading east, climbing a hill topped by three clumps of trees. When I passed that hill a while ago, I found those clumps positively eery. As I climbed the hill they looked innocent enough and I thought it must have been the weather or the light at the time, but as I got up amongst them again, an almost otherworldy atmosphere seemed to emanate from them. I wouldn't like to be up there after dark. There was an odd moment when I was up amongst them; as well as all the normal noises of the distant traffic etc. I heard what sounded for all the world like a train horn nearby, complete with Doppler effect. All the railways around Petworth and Midhurst were torn up years ago (thanks Mr Beeching), the closest lines are the one running through Billingshurst, Pulborough and Arundel, way off to the east, or the London to Portsmouth line passing through Haslemere way off to the northwest - and, as I mentioned, my reason for doing this walk was the rail strike, so nothing was running anyway.
View attachment 70132
Just past them was an overgrown derelict barn, it took some inventive and highly dangerous bank-climbing but I eventually managed to get close enough to snap a couple of photos:
View attachment 70133
Then onwards to my target for the day. Some months ago I read about an abandoned church in a local magazine. I had never heard of it, hence my quite significant detour. St. Michael and All Angels Church, Bedham, had a relatively short life, built in 1888 and serving as a schoolhouse during the week, and parish church at the weekends. It finally closed its doors in 1959, leaving a splendid ruin isolated in the woods:
View attachment 70134
View attachment 70135
View attachment 70136
There was a lot of fungi-themed graffiti, often with a dual war theme:
View attachment 70137

Less than a mile on through the woods and I came upon Hawkhurst Court. This was a country house built around 1800. During the Second World War it was the Canadian Army's HQ in preparation for the Normandy Landings. After that is became a boarding school, googling for the history of the country house uncovered, along with sung praises from some former pupils, some horrific tales of physical and sexual abuse from others. The history of the original country house is poorly known - online sources start with its use by the Canadians - there is not even a family name associated with the building of the original house, quite strange since they must surely have been local aristocracy. The only ghost story I found was an obvious children's invention (the former headmaster was fiercely protective of the rose garden, which he maintained in memory of his late wife, and would not allow the children to enter - the children believed the ghost of the departed wife walked the garden).
View attachment 70138
Then onwards with many miles to hike, through field and forest.
View attachment 70139
Northchapel Church, on my route home:
View attachment 70140
Click to expand...
That chapel is excellent. Not many church ruins in woods, either, I'd imagine, so quite unusual? Love these photos. Thanks for sharing!
 
Shady said:
I live in Nottinghamshire and near, of course, Nottingham Castle and Sherwood forest, also near Hardwick Hall, and the home of Lord Byron, Newstead Abbey, and Wollaton Hall, dont think Ive missed anything out, its been a long time since i have been to any of these places, My brother and sister in law got married at Newstead Abbey, it is a beautiful place. I believe that Nottingham's original name was Snotingaham, named after the Anglo Saxon chief called Snot, thank the lord they changed it lol.
https://www.shutterstock.com/search/newstead-abbey?cr=bc&gclid=d559119e2eed15387556748be0f9d02d&gclsrc=3p.ds&kw=/search/&msclkid=d559119e2eed15387556748be0f9d02d&pl=PPC_BNG_UK_DSA-&utm_campaign=CO=UK_LG=EN_BU=IMG_AD=DSA_TS=lggeneric_RG=EUAF_AB=ACQ_CH=SEM_OG=CONV_PB=Microsoft-Ads&utm_content=FF=DSA+-+Search_AU=Prospecting&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=bing&utm_term=/search/
https://www.bing.com/videos/rivervi...&mid=D54207F66C043E2380DCD54207F66C043E2380DC
https://www.visitsherwood.co.uk/about-sherwood-forest/
Probably a bit much here.
I cant find the remark a woman made, so forgive me for not remembering it perfectly, this was about Nottingham Castle but she said " I found it difficult to find " Its in the middle of the city with traffic going round it and Robin Hoods statue beside it and the wall that encloses the castle is close to the pavement, and if that wasnt enough, she could have just ask someone, they dont bite.
Sorry I keep editing, but I actually went inside the gap in the Major Oak when I was a kid, tis a shame both of us got old, tho I am still, thankfully not held up by sticks.
Click to expand...
I think "Snotor" meant "wise" in Old English! I can't hear of Newstead Abbey without remembering that account of the vicar who was present when Byron's coffin was opened... And had a rather large surprise.

https://www.thevintagenews.com/2022/11/03/lord-byron-vault/
 
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