An outing was held on Sunday 10th August to the Uffington area. We first visited
the iconic White Horse on the slope of the Berkshire Downs – but was it really a
dragon? Then we climbed up to Uffington Castle and heard how archaeologists discovered
that it had little evidence of settlement within it leading to the possibility that
its prime purpose might have been as a ritualistic enclosure. With the heavens opening,
a shrinking band of us
then trudged along the Ridgeway path to Wayland’s Smithy. We were rewarded with a rare burst of sunlight on this impressive long barrow where we dowsed what the original height of the tall, flanking sarsen stones might once have been. While it had proved to be a rare occasion when we've experienced inclement weather on one of our field trips, the spirits of the party remained high. Perhaps the fine roast lunch at the pub in Uffington, situated right opposite John Betjeman’s old house, had helped to set us up well for our afternoon’s expedition.
Uffington White Horse and Wayland’s Smithy
Wayland’s Smithy