Back in the mists of time, aged friend and I perused a list of guided walks that had arrived through the ether from our Earth Mysteries group. In the gloomy depths of January, an evening walk on a May evening seemed like a nice thing to look forward to; especially in the company of Peter Knight who knows everything about anything weird and wonderful.
We chose Maiden Castle, the biggest hill-fort in Europe and possibly the universe. Meeting time, 7pm in the car-park. Lovely. Anyone noticed the weather lately? As it happened, after a day during which black clouds hovered uncertainly, the sun managed to make an appearance in time for our departure. Just as well, as the climax of the outing was to see it set over the Dorset countryside from our viewpoint of twelve milllion miles above sea-level.
Eleven of us climbed up into the past. We crossed the labyrinthine mounds designed to confuse would-be invaders and watched the sun-soaked sheep on the iron-age barrows before exploring the ancient ceremonial footpaths that are only now visible via Google-Earth. We waited apprehensively for the appearance of ghostly Roman centurians who had materialised to others who were minding their own business with their dogs. We looked at the new earthworks: the ones where modern folk have dug their way through a hill to build a new road in order that folk can have easy access to the sea-borne events of the 2012 Olympics in Weymouth. Being well-prepared, we put on our wind-proof coats against the chill of the evening wind before dowsing the site of the Romano-British temple. Well, I put on my coat and watched everyone else wandering round in circles...sorry, spirals....with their metal rods.
Then, we came over the hill-top in time to see a huge orange sun disappearing into the sea, as it has since time immemorial. And just as others did three thousand years ago. Just think: I could've been indoors watching Britain's Got Talent and missed all of this.
This morning we went, via Fawsley, and shared the woods at Everdon Stubbs with small children and their parents, who will probably say they only came for the children but who stare in wonder through the trees at the carpets of blue created by millions of bluebells.
ReplyDeleteDoubtless warmer than Maiden Castle and there was nothing on TV that we missed.
Probably untrue that last bit because, without checking,there would have been ten celebrity cooking slots; eight lying burglars 'look what we found in the loft' antiques displays; and nine 'find us a house in Sandbanks for £125,000 and give it a makeover' exaggerations.
I'm getting to be as cynical as you - even that's an exaggeration!
Maiden Castle is mentioned in Simon Scarrow's Roman series of books which, being somewhat perverse, I quite enjoy. So being in Dorchester one day for work I bunked off and wandered round the 'castle' for hours allowing my imagination run wild which, is the only about me that does now.
ReplyDeleteI thought it, the castle, not my imagination, was stunning. Death, Druids, damsels, dysentry, ...
The above by anonymous is me, Bill. Not that anyone but Alison knows who Bill is, so I might as well stayed with anonymous but I just wanted to see if I could leave a comment with my real (ish) name!
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