Colchester Castle

Colchester Castle

We visited Colchester Castle.  Not knowing Colchester very well, we parked in the Britannia Car Park, about 10 minutes away.  I still don't know if there is a nearer, cheaper Car Park.

It doesn't look like a traditional castle, but it is one of the most important monuments in our history.  Originally built by the Romans as a tribute to Claudius, the remains were used to build a Norman castle after 1066.  We had a guided tour that took us into the foundations, but couldn't allow us on the roof as there are repairs in progress.  The 2000-year-old Roman concrete is as good today as it was 2000 years ago. 

The castle was later used as a prison for the witch trials, where girls as young as 15 were tortured and put to death as witches. 

After our guided tour, we had lunch at "Cod of the Castle", just outside the gates. The food was very good.

Then we went back inside for a better look around. There are Roman displays, Norman displays and the prison has a video imagining the witch trials, which is powerful.

The Colchester Sphinx caught my eye. 

Once we had finished in the castle, we walked around the grounds, found ice cream, and on down to the river, where there were a lot of swans (10+).

Soon it was time to return to the car, our 5 hours were up.

There are some lovely roses in the rose gardens surrounding the castle, and in the park.  These two caught my eye, because of the colours and the petal shapes.
 

A lovely day out. 

Wye - Ye Olde Ferrie Inn - Day 6 Castle, Cave & Rock, but no seat

 Day 6 (Sat 26)

Goodrich Castle

Just down the road is Goodrich Castle.  Today is the first day of the half-term holidays, so we should expect it to be busy.  There is a good audio guide available, which proves very useful as we go around the castle.  There are also activities.  The witchfinders are there looking for witches.

Witchfinders

 

They tell a good story and later on are entertaining the large crowds with the grizzly tales.

There is a fantastic view from the castle:

Just not today.  Still, it always good to look around and learn a little of the life in the castle.  

There is also a very dark narrow stair way to ascend.  Dark narrow places are becoming the theme of the day.

This is an English Heritage property, so there are things in common with other English Heritage sites.  While the presentations are good, there is more that could be done.  there is also the fee for the car park - three pounds.  The machine was slow with its credit card approvals, so a queue developed.  I tried cash, but the cash slot is closed, so it has to be card.

After our visit we queued for a long time to order lunch.  The staff were working off pen and paper, instead of using the computer system that they clearly had.  They should have had more people and better organisation.  

After lunch it was off to the cave. 

Vertical chain ladder

 Clearwell Caves Ancient Iron Mines is a short distance away.  The entrance has dire warnings about appropriate shoes, slippery rocks and the dangers of falling.  All that is a little more than is needed.  It's OK in trainers, if you're careful.  The cave/mine is an interesting place.  Only by being there can you even hope to get a slight understanding of awful conditions the men worked in.  Perhaps the vertical chain ladder was the most awful.  Imagine climbing down that with a candle in you mouth and heavy tools on you shoulder.  Through out there are small plaques describing the condition of the men and boys. These are records from the time and insist that there are no long term health effects. There are also pieces of art work left by the miners and lots of used equipment.  A fascinating visit and well worth the effort.

Our next visit relied on the mist having burnt off.  The view from Symonds Yat Rock are amazing, the plaque says that you can see seven counties; we haven't worked out all seven yet.

The river Wye from Symonds Yat Rock

The car park is in the woods on the opposite side of the road; a wooden bridge provides access.  This location claims to be the birthplace of British Tourism - I can see why.

We spent quite a while on the rock, taking in the different views and comparing the size of the sheep in the fields below to help judge the relative distances.  As you can see, it was a bright and sunny by the time we got there, close to the end of the day.

Our last destination was to have been Arthurs Seat, a cave somewhere above Symonds Yat, but the light was going, so we headed back to the inn for another amazing dinner as we prepared to leave.