Winter Solstice 2009

Way back in the summer we booked a couple of nights in the Travelodge just north of Amesbury so that we could visit Stonehenge for the Winter Solstice. We drove up on Sunday afternoon and just got there in time to see the sun setting over the henge. That was the last we saw of the sun until we got home! I also bumped into an old friend that I hadn't seen in a while which was a lovely suprise.

Here are a few pictures - if you have x-ray vision you may be able to spot the sliver of a new moon above the henge!

The following morning, after a hearty breakfast in a Little Chef, we set out for a walk through Amesbury, across the fields to Stonehenge, along the Caucus, down to Woodhenge and back to Amesbury. It was supposed to be 8 miles but we actually walked a mile or so further as I misinterpreted the instructions in one place. It was a very cold, grey day and by the time we reached Woodhenge it was quite dark and snowing. We had thought that we would walk back to Stonehenge for the sunset but time was against us plus we didn't fancy trying to find our way back across the fields over frozen, icy fields in the dark. So we drove over and stood by the Heel Stone while, unseen, the sun set. It was still snowing and quite magical. Later that evening we walked through the snow into Amesbury for our solstice feast at a Chinese restaurant in the town. Very fetching we looked too in our thermal trousers and walking boots.

The following morning there was free access to the stones for the sunrise on the shortest day. There was freezing fog and it was very cold. You couldn't even see the stones from the car park! We had plenty of layers on and walking boots so we didn't notice the cold except for my toes. No sign of the sun so we had to rely on watches to know when the moment arrived. I had planned that we would go up to Avebury later in the day but as the weather was so atrocious we decided to come straight home after another good breakfast in the Little Chef.

I am putting the photos that we took on the walk, at sunset and sunrise as 3 slide shows in 3 separate posts as Blogger gets upset when text and an embedded slideshow get put in the same post so please remember to have a look at them. Mark's camera seemed to cope better with the freezing fog than mine. The first shots I took look like I was in a blizzard - quite atmospheric but the weather wasn't that bad - quite.