A Rest Day in Glastonbury
Whilst I’m in Glastonbury, I’m staying in an AirBnB hosted by Rosemary. I’ve stayed in one of Rosemary’s spare rooms, and she has been so lovely and welcoming. After a lovely breakfast, I set out to explore Glastonbury.
Rosemary gave me a guest pass to visit the Abbey, so I was able to go and explore for free. It was a really interesting place. The Abbey is now a ruin after being destroyed by King Henry VIII in 1539.
A model and recreated images showed what the Abbey could have been like in its day, it was really impressive.
The abbey is also home to the tomb of King Arthur and Queen Guinevere. It was really interesting to see the place where they were found. Their bodies are no longer here, after being dug up and taken to a marble tomb in 1278, the tomb was destroyed in the abbey’s dissolution in 1539.
The best preserved part of the abbey was the kitchen. This is where the meals would have been prepared for the Abbot and his guests.
The kitchen was square, but had a beautiful octagonal ceiling. Apparently a fire would be lit in the middle, drawing the smoke up and put through the central chimney.
One of the most ornate parts of the abbey was Our Lady’s Chapel. It had beautiful stone carvings around the window arches.
I then explored the abbey gardens which had some lovely wildlife areas, including a badger sett and a wildlife pond.
Before leaving the abbey, I went to the gift shop and found a badge!
I left the abbey and went to climb Glastonbury Tor. When I planned a rest day in Glastonbury, this had been on my to do list. One of my favourite TV series has been BBC’s Merlin, which features Glastonbury Tor at the end of the very last episode.
It was nice to go on a walk without my backpack and my knees were very glad of it considering that it was 300 steps to the top!
On top of the Tor is St. Michael’s Tower, which is the remains of a former church. A few pigeons were occupying the higher windows. It really towers above you once you’re stood next to it!
The views from the top were lovely. It was amazing to look out and see where I’d come from and where I will be heading. Apparently on a clear day you can see to Wales.
On the Tor there was also a Toposcope which helped me to spot some more features. The toposcope even pointed to St. Michael’s Mount on the Cornish Coast, which I passed on Day 1!
An information board at the base of the Tor explained that some believe there is a Ley Line running from St. Michael’s Mount to Avebury Stone Circle and onto Bury St. Edmunds. I found it really interesting that I have managed to plan my route almost following this line (except my detour to Sidmouth), without being conscious of it!
I then headed back to my AirBnB, and did some kit admin to prepare for my next stretch of walking. Rosemary had kindly let me dry my tent in her garage, so it was nice and dry, ready to be packed away. I then cleaned my boots, which was much needed after the mud of the last few days! They’ll get a re-waterproof this evening, so will hopefully continue to keep my feet nice and dry on the days to come.
I also had a quick look at my map to see how far I’ve come. It was amazing to see how far I’ve travelled already! Before I started my challenge I’d thought that I would want to total my miles each day and keep a running total. However, in reality, I have really enjoyed the process of traveling through the landscape, experiencing different places and having my surroundings slowly change around me. I’ve found that I’ve really settled into walking and the distance is not really on my mind. It’s been a really beautiful and peaceful aspect of the experience so far.
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