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Past Activities |
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Outings |
Norfolk - 16th April 2005
The first tower of the day St Mary's, Watton, this tower, a 7cwt 6, this seemed like an obvious start to the tour as both Stephen and Amanda learnt to ring here. Greeted with a welcome coffee, after the hour long journey from Cambridge, made by Amanda's Mum (it pays to have a few of local contacts when arranging outings !), the band took it in turns to have a ring. Watton is a round tower church, popular in Norfolk, the tower is circular, accessed by a ladder and small with very little space for those not ringing.
The comments back on the ground were 'very nice' and 'when can we come here
again', or perhaps that was just about the coffee! Giggles were also heard
in response to the peal boards and photographs displayed in the tower -
to be swiftly removed before the next visit!Next stop was Holy Cross, Caston, an 8cwt 6, a rather 'interesting' ring where the treble and 2nd are rung from a platform in front of the window. Harder work than Watton, but still a good hour of ringing took place, and really made people work for their lunch…
Time to sample a local hostelry, The Chequers at Thompson. The menu choice and portion size made it absolutely impossible for anyone to go hungry, even the sandwiches were huge…and the desserts as Pam discovered.
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All too soon it was time to dash over to All Saints, Shipdham, a 10cwt
6. Traditionally the graveyard shift, the first tower after lunch, however
there was no opportunity for sleeping today, especially when the stay
fell off the 3rd while Ian was ringing. A pleasant ring was the general
opinion, and it was nice that Peter Woodcock and Trudy Hawkins took the
trouble to make us feel so welcome in their tower.
The final tower of the day was Ashill, an 11cwt 8. Half the group arrived
on time with no trouble at all, while the other half missed the turning
and got lost in the metropolis of Swaffham. Another nice set of bells
to complete the outing where everyone had the opportunity to have a good
ring.
In true ringing style, we visited The Windmill Inn at Great Cressingham
for a cool sharp half before journeying back to The Carlton Arms in Cambridge
to draw to a close the end of good ringing tour.
Words by Amanda Cator
Photos by Rhyan Probert
(Click to see a larger version of the photo)