RHS Hyde Hall - for the roses

On 10 September 2026, we visited Hyde Hall.  The garden is always lovely, and the roses are usually spectacular.  Last time we visited was also at the end of the summer: https://3cephas.blogspot.com/2024/09/last-of-summer-holidays-flowers-and.html However, this time we were surprised to find Lego wildlife creations around the whole garden.  They are all amazing, well the ones we saw were, there are 10 in all. This dragon fly is on the edge of the ornamental pond.  Each of the builds is accompanied by a plaque describing the build. We started by walking to the Hill-top Café, for a cup of tea.  The café is lovely, but the tea seemed to be made with brew-proof tea bags. To say it was weak and watery was to unreasonably complement it. Still onwards, because there is much to see and many things to be surprised about. After a further walk, we returned to the same café for a light lunch — soup and a roll, and some different drinks. Then back to walking round.  I had hoped to spend some time practising my camera techniques, but there was so much to see, I only really managed 'point and shoot'.

Rose 'The Poets Wife' Auswhirl The rose rope walk has been established, with small rambling roses planted and ready to grow.  It was in a sorry state on our last visit.  The rose garden, itself, however was not so spectacular, however there were some very impressive roses in bloom, and also some great dahlias. We enjoyed walking around the green house and the crops they have are incredible.

This is a Humming Bird Hawk Moth.  I don't think I've ever seen one before. Even the camera cannot freeze its wings on a reasonably bright day.  Neither can my eyes.  After I had desperately tried to get a picture that I could see the moth in, a man came up to us and told us what it was.  We see humming birds on our video calls to Alabama, the name is most appropriate, but how did it get that name, have they only been here since English people have seen humming birds?

hylotelephium matrona The bumblebees, and some other types of bee that I didn't manage to get a picture of, just love this plant. There is lots of it around the edges of the beds in the grassed areas.  Every single clump was covered with bees.

Star Trek 60 @ Science Museum

We travelled to the Science Museum to see the Star Trek 60 exhibition.  In reality there is not much of it and it can be a little difficult to find.  We found items 1-7, the only location that we didn't visit was number 8, partly because I wasn't going to buy any merchandise, and partly because it was already 17:00. We arrived just at the start of the booked entry time.  There were many things we got wrong with this visit.  Bothering to book on the suspect website was probably not worth the effort.  The first time I tried, the dates did not match the day names, but this week it did. Then we didn't take anything with us - water, food, because I was not clear what we could take in and didn't want to be lugging stuff around. The Science museum is enormous, I could spend at least 3 days there to do it properly.  As we trekked around, following all the other interesting stuff, I had to keep an eye on the time.  They close at 18:00. One interesting fact I learned, the french are very good at bureaucracy.  The first powered flight was December 1903.  By 1910 they were issuing pilots licenses. Large sections of the museum are aimed at children, which is as it should be, we need the next generation to be committed to science and engineering if we are to keep pace with the rest of the world. I am getting used to looking at things in museums and saying "I had one of those".  The particular thing this time was a hand cranked adding machine.  It reminded me of the time we had played with them in a maths lesson at school.  At break time I continued my calculation and had to be gentle removed from the room by the maths teacher.  This was part of the reason that I was moved to the top group, I'm sure. The worse thing , though, was not saying "I had one of those", but "The children had one of those"!

Paper Mill Lock to Rushes Lock, Chelmer Navigation

Paper Mill Lock, looking up stream

On the last day of summer (for us, it's back to school tomorrow), we decided to go out for lunch and a walk.  There are Simpson's skys, the temperature is warm, the sun a little hot, with just a gentle breeze, a beautiful day.

We have been to Paper Mill Lock on a few occasions.  The last one was here: https://3cephas.blogspot.com/2019/11/summer-holidays-2019-part-1.html, look down to 12 August. That day we got wet.  On a previous visit we were taken on a geocaching tour.  One of the caches is along the tow path between the two locks.  That day it was wet, very wet if my memory is correct.  So, today may have been the first time we had a completely dry visit. 

We arrived to find that parking was restricted.  The big car park is only open at weekend and public holidays, it is not owned by the Tea Rooms.  We were squeezed in, luckily we have a small car. There is a two hour limit and to manage it our car has to be registered in a book - all nicely low-tech. We ordered our sandwiches at the outside window as requested, and it arrived at our table promptly.  The food was very nice.  

After we had eaten, we moved to the car to the road, where luckily two cars were moving away.

Then we turned back to the tow path, beginning our walk downstream to the next lock.  At Paper Mill the lock gates are marked 2021.  At Rushes lock they are dated 2019.

Rushes Lock, Chelmer Navigation

Along the way we passed a number of kayaks, people on inflatable boards, some with life jackets, most without.  Even two without life jackets, where the woman was telling the young girl not to panic or they'd both be in the water.  The "Albert", the boat trip, boat also passed us. 

We passed fishermen and fisherwomen, who were enjoying the solitude, and probably didn't want me asking about their catch, but I had to know, so one of the men had his peace disturbed.

The tow path has been recently cut back, but is still unruly in places, and there is plenty of food for the wildlife.

Our measured distance was 3.04 miles and took 1 hour and 44 minutes, including stops to talk, let people pass, or watch the "Albert" go through the lock.  On our previous visits we have not seen a boat go through the lock.

 

Felixstowe 24 August 2026

View of the Cliff Gardens

This will be the longest round trip in the Inster.  So I charged the car to 90%.  When we left, it claimed a range of 222 miles.  The journey was relatively uneventful.  Just avoiding a white van speeding round a blind bend using 2/3rds of the road through Ramsden.  Lucky we have a narrow car.  Then there's the usual A12 idiots.

On arrival, we had done 61.8 miles and were down to 60%.  (1% battery = ~2 miles).  The range estimate was 141 making 1% battery = ~2.35 miles.  Quite an overestimate unless the measurement is not linear.

We arrived, and a parking space was waiting for us. The parking is free this far out of town.  The only thing that could spoil our day was the weather - overcast, raining a little on the last mile of the drive, blustery winds and a dropping temperature.  We were in the wrong cloths for the conditions. We walked, feeling the cold, to the first set of toilets, it had been a long drive.  Then not much further on to the Pier, where the large restaurant provided some shelter and lunch.  The Boardwalk Cafe Bar was crowded, and the staff very busy, probably not enough of them.  We found an inside table and ordered drinks and food.  I was told hot drinks would take 10 minutes. We were the victim of overrated coffee machines, that seem designed to make the 'barrister' have a career rather than a job.

In the end it was closer to 20 minutes, and the food arrived very soon afterwards.  The food was adequate, rather than good.  The batter on my fish and chips only partly crispy, the chips only just cooked. 

By the time we left, the clouds had cleared. We walked towards the Old Town.  The promenade is flat (as you'd expect) there are plenty of things along it, and it's wide enough to walk along easily. There were children on the beach and in the water.  There were even a few adults in the water.  The temperature was rising now, so Jo tried a paddle.  We had worked out that the tide was going out, so at the top of the wet sand there was no longer a danger of wet feet.

The ice cream from a little kiosk, where the card machine wouldn't print, setting a theme for the day as the Café's card machine was happily printing blanks.

Much further along the prom ends, and we scaled the stairs to get to the top of the cliff.  It was much warmer now, and I was finally thankful for the hat and the sun cream.    Almost immediately we came to a tea shop and stopped for refreshment.

The decided that walking through the housing wasn't that great, so made our way back to the cliffs, which were much more interesting.

The misleading light - A day trip to Harwich

16 July 2026
Harwich peninsula is on the estuaries of the rivers Stour and Orwell rivers.

Apart from a rant about parking - the car parks just say "pay by app", that is the only option, but which app?  You have to find that yourself, then there's a 10p convenience charge.  On the plus side there are plenty of Public Conveniences, and they are all reasonably clean. The walk we had planned started at Ha'penny pier, but we ended up part way through it, so after a cup of iced latte and a cup of tea, the first thing we saw was this old lighthouse, which came to be known as the misleading light, when the estuary silted up. The plaque says: This high lighthouse together with the low lighthouse on Harwich green was built under the supervision of John Rennie senior in 1818. Now owned by Tendring District Council the high lighthouse was renovated by them in 1975 to commemorate European Architectural Heritage Year. The high lighthouse was built adjacent to the site of an earlier light installed over the town gate in 1665. When the high and low lighthouses were brought into line they acted as leading lights to ships entering Harwich harbour, they were bought by trinity house in 1836 but owing to the silting up of Landguard Point they longer guided the ships safely clear of the shoals and became no known as misleading lights: their use was discontinued in 1863 being replaced by iron lighthouses at Dovercourt.

This bell fascinated me, I tried to get a video with the loud bong.  It seems I'm not patient enough.  The idea seems to be that the bell is rung when the tide reaches a certain level - high tide? I recorded video for a while, a couple of times, each time I walked away it would 'bong'.  Oh, well!

Many of the monuments around Harwich seem to only open at weekends.  The Harwich Redoubt is open Thursday to Sunday.  It appears to be simply something at the end aof a long steep drive.  It is actually an amazing historic monument here is the site https://www.harwich-society.co.uk/maritime-heritage-trail/harwich-redoubt-fort/ We spent a long time looking around.  It's a clever idea, build a fort inside the top of a hill, then the fort is almost invisible from the water.

One of the many amazing views from the redoubt. The cranes in the distance are Felixstowe harbour.  The fort gives protection right across the 2 estuaries.

Walking along the suggested route, we were diverted by works on the cliff.  Many of the paths up the cliff lead nowhere - they are blocked halfway up, or at the top. This is very frustrating, but it bought us to this lovely park area filled with geranium flower beds.  Dad would have loved it.

You'll have to expand the picture to see it.  The tower is at Walton on the Naze.

This model ship was in the reboubt museum rooms, we were getting close to closing time when I spotted it, so there is no context.  I thought it was very clever.

The house of Christopher Jones, master of the Mayflower.  Because coming from Billericay, we always have to follow Mayflower links.1

We finished our day with a cup of tea on Ha'penny pier, where we were supposed to have started it.  Instead, we had started in Claires Coffeeshop, and had lunch in Deli 141, in the Dovercourt part of town. During our walk through that part of the town we had spoken to a man in a bright red turban (Sikh?), who had told us all the places to visit.  He should be a town guide - perhaps he was.

The is so much we didn't do or see.  Next time we must get one of the ferries from the pier, and visit some of the things that were closed.

 

Battersea Power Station

Anyone who is vaguely familiar with London will recognise these chimneys.  Battersea Power Station has been an iconic sight in London since the 1930s.  Today we paid it our first visit.  It is, of course, no longer a power station, it ceased generation in 1983.  After many years as a 'ruin', it was converted to a retail space.   I understood this before we arrived, or even decided to book on to the BDRA trip.  Nevertheless, I found the trip slightly disappointing.  The amazing building has three levels of high-end retail.  I'm not one to shopping unless I know what I want.  I didn't go with that agenda.   Jo went up the chimney lift, which gives you a few minutes to look out over London, to Wembley, Wimbledon and the city centre.  I stayed in the museum, with my 'carer ticket' issued for free.  Nice of the very young lady selling tickets to let me in for nothing. This is where the disappointment comes in.  The museum is poor, or perhaps extremely basic.  There is the briefest history of the build, a simplistic explanation of the process of generating electricity: coal in, steam out, turbines generate power, the synchronising controls that match requirements for the grid - voltage, frequency and phase.  That's it - what a missed opportunity.

The inside is truly impressive, if you look above the shops.  The crane was used to move materials around the power station.  It would be lovely to see it working, providing views of the interior of the building.  It simply supports a walk-way, that we could not find access to.  It's also worth mentioning that the direction boards in the retail space are wrong.  Twice we tried to find the nearest toilets.  Both times we were directed the wrong way.  Once said go left (should have been right), the other said turn around.  I don't know what that should have been.  Outside there is a land train that circles the building and plays a short recording describing some of the power station.  I don't know if it was any good because the background noise of London and the surrounding area made it impossible to hear most of it.

Outside there is a land train that circles the building and plays a short recording describing some of the power station.  I don't know if it was any good because the background noise of London and the surrounding area made it impossible to hear most of it.

Outside, at the site entrance, there is a sculpture made of metal fins.  I couldn't find anything describing it.  Maybe it was there to symbolise the turbine, but I immediately thought "What is Smaug doing here?".

The Army Museum and Chelsea Hospital

NOBODY expects the Chelsea Pensioners! Amongst their weaponry are such diverse elements as: fear, surprise, ruthless efficiency, an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope, and nice red uniforms.

The above statement is almost, but not quite, entirely untrue.

After a long coach ride to Chelsea, we finally pulled into the Chelsea Hospital grounds and disembarked. The first visit of the day was the Army Museum.  A fairly modern building dedicated to showing the British Army through history.  Time is pressing, as always on these trips, there is more to see than we can possibly get to.

Outside is a challenger II tank, in urban warfare colours.  A terrifying beast close up, but in the grand scheme of modern warfare, a bit long in the tooth.  I believe it might still be in use in Ukraine.  The museum is spread over a number of floors, we started at the bottom.  The displays were good, but the organisation of them made them more difficult to understand.  I would have preferred them to concentrate on major campaigns so I could follow through the progression.  Instead, we had a weapons display, a supplies display, a medical display, etc.

We came out of the museum after a cup of tea in their lovely restaurant and sat on the seat opposite the tank, where we ate our lunch.  We then went back in and did another floor.  The final floor was 'dashed around', and we left to wait for our tour or the hospital, set for a 13:45 meet.

The bright red uniforms are known as 'scarlets', don't call them red.  There is a particular qualification to get a room in the hospital, you must have been posted to an active theatre, though not necessarily been a combatant.  You must be single, and have few resources.  If you qualify, you are well looked after.

 Charles II founded the hospital, there is a statue of him dressed as a Roman Centurion, it is gilded, and really stands out in the main square.  The original rooms were tiny (6ftx6ft), now they have fewer rooms, but better size and certainly more than a bed and a coat hook.

The guy who led our tour certainly knew his stuff and apparently enjoyed himself.  Which makes for a great tour for those of us who know next to nothing.  The highlights are undoubtedly the great hall and the chapel.  The grounds no longer go all the way to the river, but the path down to the road is still impressive.

The most important thing though is that this charity looks after those that have given a part of their lives to their country, and would otherwise be struggling.  This is regardless of their beliefs, some may be devoted to the Pope, most are not.  They hold other beliefs or none.  There is a whole organisation around the hospital dedicated to raising funds and supporting the residents.  While we were there, they were preparing for some event in the great hall, so our access was limited.

We finished our tour late, because we had started late.  While the military men might work with precision, it doesn't look like the supporting staff quite manage the same. It seems that too much was booked in that afternoon. 

Heybridge Basin

We went to Heybridge Basin, for lunch and a short walk. We headed for Daisy Meadow Car Park.  I selected 4 hours on the machine, but was charged for 24 hours.  Only £0.50 more but frustrating none-the-less.  The Bargemasters Cabin serves drinks, snacks and light lunches.  The smoked fish charcuterie was very good.  Smoked trout, smoked salmon, smoked mackerel pate with grapes, crackers and crème fresh.  We sat under s shade by the canal. There was almost nothing going on, and as usual when I go to the coast, the tide was low.  The lady in the cabin joked about a rush coming.  There were soon others, but not really a rush.

After lunch, we walked along the coastal path and watched the Maldon Barges:

There was a little wild life, this bush, for example, was laden with sparrows.  I can see two here, when the camera shutter clicked there must have been a dozen leaving the tree, by then it was too late.  Along the path there are blackberry bushes.  Unlike the blackberries near our home, they are barely ripe.  I tried a number of small black shiny ones that refused to leave the bush.  Eventually, I found one that came away relatively easily.  It was hard, sharp and far too chewy.  Everywhere blackberries are suffering from the very dry spring and early summer.  On the path we chatted, briefly, with a lady who we would later see again.

 

We got back from our walk just in time to see the sea lock filling up with boats.  The lock connects the sea to the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation.  It can only be used when the tide is above a certain level, so there was a queue to get in.  It had been re-built around 2016-17, although much of it looked like a rebuild ought to be imminent.

At the start of the walk I booked us a boat trip on the navigation.  The sign at the Bargemasters Cabin refers you to a Facebook page.  There is no longer anything useful on the Facebook page, but there is a number to call, or a website to visit.  The website led me to a booking service, so I called the number and booked and paid over the phone - £9.00 each.

The boat was not designed for viewing, the seats facing inwards.  The allowed number of passengers was 12, but there were 15 on board.   Including a father with three children, who got the worst deal, as they had to stand.  The party of women, including the lady we had spoked to earlier, sat and chatted for the whole trip.  To differentiate her from the rest - she was the slim one.  She hardly said a word, she didn't get much of a chance.  I don't need to hear your medical problems or your family's employment problems.  Especially not in that level of gory detail.  They also complained about every other person on the canal.  We saw a number of moorhens or something similar darting into the reeds, and followed a Grey Heron back down the canal.  I could not get pictures - moving was next to impossible.

We ended our visit with tea in the Old Ship, then made our way home via Marie's Garden.  I don't know if a visit is possible, but it is easily visible from the towpath.
 

 

A towering achievement

On one of our 'Day-Out Thursdays' we went to Walton on the Naze. Every other time we have been, we have arrived at the tower end of town, and the tower has been shut. It has been one of my aims for a long time to visit the tower when it is open.  This time we arrived at the pier end of town, and almost as soon as we did, there was the smell of fish-and-chips. There were lots of teenage children milling about, their shirts had the logo of some academy that I can't remember.

Jo, enjoying a cup of tea

 The colourfully painted tables match the colourfully painted beech huts which have formed an elongated city by the sea.  It's very English seaside.

Beach huts at Walton-on-the-Naze

We walked a little along the promenade a little way and found that some of the huts were not just colourful, but also artistic.  We wondered how much it cost to rent or own a beach hut.

Artistic beach hut

 We walked back across the beach, Jo paddled in the water, which she reported as quite warm.  Then we started the long walk up a fairly gentle incline towards the tower.  For a while the going was flat.  Before the incline started, we could see the target easily, but once we began to climb, the tower disappeared behind buildings and the curve of the hill.

The walk took us a little over 30 minutes, as we arrived a bus stopped and the people who got off showed us the shortcut to the tower that google had missed, so the last 250 meters became about 100 meters.

And there it was, all 8 floors of it, and most definitely open.  

Naze Tower Notice

The Naze tower from the car park

The entrance is a café, the next two floors, accessed by a spiral staircase with enough room for one slim person at a time, have tables and chairs.  Further up, is an art gallery, with some fascinating pieces.  There are also some displays of the archaeology and geology of the area.  We had doubted our ability to get to the top.  "Eleven steps, and you're on the next floor", the lady said.  "Go and try, pay me when you come down if you go far enough"

One floor, eleven steps, move off the staircase, maybe let others pass, have a look at the view from the window.  Repeat. Further up the staircase is offset, and then further up still it spirals the other way.  

fascinating art

construction work

The greatest piece of art is the view from the top.  I posted the video on YouTube, as it is too large to be embedded here.  Please watch the video, but for a smoother, more incredible experience go there yourself.

 

https://youtu.be/q6M86kK8r-g

Bletchley Park

On the coach at some unearthly hour of the morning, it was shortly before 10am when we arrived at Bletchley Park courtesy of the Billericay Resident's Association. 

The house and grounds are stunning, if a little odd at times, as the building is relatively recent, with older features added in as the owner decided he liked the idea.

Bletchley Park is, of course, the place where the code breaking was done in WWII.  It was selected because:

- it was available

- far enough from London to not be a target

- between Oxford and Cambridge, where the employees would be selected

There are fascinating displays all around the place about espionage and code breaking.  How the codes were broken, for Enigma, and Lorenze.  There are stories of the code breakers, the conditions they lived in, and the 'unique skill sets' required for the different functions.  Most of all, the secrecy they worked under, being unable to tell even their spouse what they were doing.

We were on a tight timescale, as is the way with organised trips, so we did not see it all.  Maybe I missed the computing parts that I was so interested in, or maybe they are elsewhere.  We did, at least, get to see a model of the Bombe machine, apparently 'working'.

There are also some vehicles on display in the garages. This is my favourite:

1947 Sunbeam Talbot

1947 Sunbeam Talbot description

We were early enough to get the last two tickets for the guided tour, on the way to the meeting point, we passed this amazing copper beech.  I wonder how big it was in 1939, or if it was even there?

Alan Turing is now well known, because of the film Imitation Game, but he features only in a small part of the whole story.  The Commander Alistair Denniston features much more prominently, and was apparently very good at managing his group of brilliant 'mis-fits'.

Another lovely day out, thanks BDRA.
 

 

RSPB Rainham Marshes (14 May 2025)

RSPB Rainham Marshes is a relatively local RSPB site that we had not visited until yesterday.  So, taking advantage of the lack of child care responsibilities for the day, we set out shortly before lunchtime for "The Albion".  You can read what others thought of it here: https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g2052502-d2509265-Reviews-Albion-Rainham_Essex_England.html. We had a very nice older person's meal in an almost empty pub, but we did arrive at 11:50. 

After that, it was only a short drive to the reserve.  The Visitor Centre is an impressive building, sadly it was almost unoccupied.  No refreshments of any sort available, despite it being a warm, bright day.

We walked the 'wrong' way round, so the first hide was some distance away. 

This hide is quite a distance from the scrapes, so the Grey Heron is very small. It flew around a few times.  An impressive bird. We also saw: Sandpiper Lapwing Canada Goose Grey Heron Greylag Goose Mallard M&F Pochard Lapwing Great White Egret Northern Shoveler M Oyster catcher Black Headed Gull Red Shank Moorhen

Coming at this time of year means we also get to see some young. Here a Greylag family are scouring the edge of the scrape, near where we're walking.  We also heard (according to the Merlin App): Eurasian Blackbird Canada Goose Greater Whitethroat European Goldfinch Cetti's Warbler Common Cuckoo Eurasian Wren House Sparrow European Robin Eurasian Blackcap Eurasian Blackbird Eurasian Blue Tit Common Chiffchaff Great Tit Great Spotted Woodpecker

By far the most exciting of those was the cuckoo. I hadn't heard a cuckoo for years.

Sadly, the reserve has suffered some damage. This level of vandalism is appalling. The hide will be out of action for a considerable time.

The reserve has a considerable war time (WWII) heritage. The RSPB also do their best to preserve this and make it accessible to the public.

	There is also, of course, loads of plant life.  There are also quite a lot of these in various places, pretty now, but don't eat the berries later in the year.  It's Deadly Nightshade, if you don't recognize it.

Brooklands Museum

1991 McLaren MP4-6 show car

On Thursday, 20 February 2025, we got up early for us (me), and made our way to the bus stop.  The coach arrived on time, and we made our way around Billericay, then off to Brooklands Museum. The journey was about 2 hours, and comfortable enough despite us sitting further back than usual.

On arrival, we were greeted by the guides, who split us into smaller groups.  The weather was threatening rain, but the stopping points are mainly inside.  We saw a few old F1 cars — a replica of James Hunt's championship car included, and Ayrton Senna's McLaren. A lot of aeroplane engines and aeroplanes.  The highlight being the Hawker Hurricane, and the Rolls-Royce Merlin.  There were more Hurricanes in WWII and at the Battle of Britain, than there were spitfires.  That was because the company took a risk and prepared for the big order they were hoping for before it was signed.  It meant there were enough planes in the sky to win the fight.

We also saw the test chamber where planes and other vehicles could be tested at very low temperatures and very low air pressures. We learnt that Barnes-Wallace was a dedicated family man and saw his office — from the outside.  

The tour ended outside on the pit straight, in clear view of the awesome and terrifying banking; it's there because they couldn't test the speed without it, being unable to corner well on the narrow, primitive tyres of the day.

We ate our lunch undercover because the drizzle had started, then queued for way too long for a cup of tea.  We now had not-long-enough before the Concorde experience.  We visited the bus museum and paid homage to the Routemaster, among others. Waiting for the Concorde, the heavens opened, so we 'hid' under the plane.

Concorde 003

The experience felt hurried; it was well put together and good to see how Concorde looked to its passengers. There was much to look at and read, but the narrow gangway and the number of people meant I did not get to see most of it.  The 'flight experience' was underwhelming in today's simulator world.

On the return journey, there were RTCs on both the southern and northern routes on the M25, so we took a route inside the motorway.  The journey time approached 4 hours, I'm so glad I wasn't driving.