Brisbane to Barcelona: Stonehenge, Glastonbury and Dartmoor

Friday 5 - Monday 8 August 2011

We picked up our hire car and headed southwest, stopping first at Stonehenge. It's amazing to think about how people 5000 years ago managed to move all that stone from Wales to its current location. The two major roads either side of the site kind of ruin the ambience though.

Lawrie at Stonehenge

The whole site from the south

The site from the north

We kept going onto Wells, where we had booked accommodation for the night. We had a short stop in the town centre, where we marvelled at the cathedral and had a nice cup of tea (joke - coffee all the way). We checked into our room and continued to Glastonbury (home to the later part of the Arthurian myths), where we went to the Abbey and climbed up the Tor. The view from the top was beautiful (although it was a little high for Jenni's liking). We had dinner and Lawrie tried his first faggots.

Clock at Wells cathedral

The west front of the Wells Cathedral

Room at Wells

Glastonbury Abbey

The inside of the Lady Chapel

Ruins

Southern side of the ruins

Sheep grazing on the Tor

Love heart on the hill opposite

Tower of St Michael's Church on top of the Tor

Kitty and Lawrie at the top of the Tor

Jenni at the top

The tower from the bottom of the Tor

Lawrie's faggots and potatoes

The next morning, we went back to the centre of Wells and soaked up the atmosphere at the markets and this time actually went inside the cathedral. We left around 11 and made our way further south to Dartmoor.

Kitty in front of Wells cathedral

Graves in the churchyard

Inside the cathedral

The main aisle and the scissor arches

Scissor arches

The inside of the clock

Pipe organ inside

Looking to the gardens next door.

Inside the graveyard

Kitty & Jenni checking out the graves.

CANAL!

Bridge over the canal - Lawrie wanted a Narrowboat.

Not quite as cool as tank flying...

We drove towards Dartmoor, a national park area which includes many towns, farms and moorlands, most of which you are allowed to walk on! We picked up a map before parking near a pub to start a walk. We walked down into a valley before heading into the pine forest (getting slightly lost). We headed back to climb a nearby Tor (mountain) before meeting Jenni back at the pub.

Puntina up on the moorlands.

Down in the first valley.

The lighting and weather changes so quickly here.

Inside the pine forest.

The girls in the forest.

Kitty on the walk.

On the Tor.

Lawrie's new waterproof boots, which aren't!

Lawrie at the top.

Happy, but cold & windswept!

We had a great dinner before getting some much needed sleep. Lawrie and Jenni went to check out the Clapper bridge, where a pony decided to eat her jacket.

Jacket eating pony.

Looking to the clapper bridge

The spans are three single stones.

The modern bridge, looking back towards the pub.

On Sunday we had breakfast before heading off on a local walk to a waterfall. Along the way it started bucketing down rain but eventually cleared up, with only an occasional shower. The track was pretty poorly formed in places (or we were just in the wrong spot) so it took us ages, walking through spiky bushes. We found a sheep stuck between a rock wall and new mesh fence. We tried to help it but didn't work, so we had to tell the ranger once we made it back.

Beautiful country house.

The track...

Kitty in the sunshine.

Just as the heavy rain cleared.

Wildflowers and a stream...lovely.

Beehive hut, from early tin miners.

Small waterfall.

The main waterfall was just upstream

The main waterfall, which was more like a cascade.

The stream, the walk went over the far hill.

Tree lined fence.

We did a short walk in the afternoon, through the local countryside along a similar route. A few ponies checked us out.

This guy checked us out, but ran away when offered fresh grass.

Monday morning we headed out on another walk, up through the forest. The trail was much easier so we covered ground much more quickly. That afternoon we drove towards Cornwall.