Gosh it was hard work today. I don't know if it was because it was Monday and I'd had the weekend off, or if I was just more tired than usual, or if it's because I seem to have been cycling back in time - from the Victorian era to Tudor times - but today's ride was a real slog. I have good folk supporting me, thankfully, and all those in Pop-Up Gym ... er, I mean along the route from Shropshire to Cheshire, kept giving me plenty of encouragement.
Today's ride was a gruelling 85km, 40km of which I did at increased resistance by four gears. Despite finding it tough I finished the ride in two hours and fifty five minutes, which I think is pretty good going.
'What and where,' I hear you ask, 'is Little Moreton Hall?' It's a Tudor property and gardens now owned by the National Trust in/near the
Cheshire town of Congleton, a little south east of Manchester.
Apparently, Little Moreton Hall was built in 1450 by Sir Richard de Moreton, with large bay windows added to the Great Hall in 1559 and a few decades later a Long Gallery was built over the Gatehouse.
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| Great Hall |
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| Long Gallery |
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| View from Long Gallery |
Although substantial restoration has taken place since the National Trust took it over in 1949, they have left it unfurnished, and have left in place original plasterwork and wall paintings for today's visitors to see and enjoy. Here are some more photos of the interior...
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| C16 Wall Painting and Wallpaper |
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| Chapel |
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| Chapel Window |
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| Octagonal Table in the Withdrawing Room |
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| Overmantle in the Withdrawing Room |
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| Withdrawing Room Fireplace |
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| Parlour |
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| Parlour Wall Painting |
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| South Porch Room off Long Gallery |
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| Wall Painting in Parlour |
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| Plasterwork in Long Gallery |
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| Toilet |
The black and white exterior of the Hall is stunning, and mostly typical of exquisite Tudor carpentry, although the Moretons' extensive use of glass is far from typical. Most Medieval buildings other than major churches used glass/windows sparingly. Anyway, here are lots of photos of the outside, with some of the fine detailed carvings...
Unfortunately I couldn't get permission to stay in the Hall itself so I've pitched my tent in the gardens.
The gardens aren't very extensive so there isn't a huge amount to explore, but did you notice in the photo at the top of the page, and later in the aerial view photo, that there's a moat around the Hall? After I pitched my tent this afternoon I thought I'd venture to have a closer look at the moat and look what I found...
I can't resist a swing. They're great fun, especially when they're over water...
I should have guessed, though, that all would not go to plan...
You guessed it, I fell in. I ought to be able to predict this sort of thing happening to me, but I never seem to learn from such experience. Oh well, after my Ironbridge Gorge experience I was getting accustomed to wild swimming, and seeing as I was now in the water I thought I may as well make the most of it and have a swim...
...then I started to wonder what might be lurking in the depths of such an ancient moat, so I dived into the murky gloom...
...and pulled out this...
Call me sceptical, but I'm not convinced of its Medieval authenticity. However, I was much more certain of my next few finds...
...although the last one might just be an old shoe that came off the last person to fall into the moat. My final find was the most exciting...
...a Tudor game. I've no idea how to play it, but it's what eventually urged me to climb out of the moat and return to my tent. I had previously passed a woman picking herbs in the garden, so I asked her - Rosemary - if she'd care to join me in the tent for a game of whatever this is, and she did.
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| Rosemary in the Garden |
I have made a couple of appropriate changes to the interior of the tent, by the way. I wasn't all that taken by the Victorian dining table I'd lugged to Blists Hill (and then couldn't use), so I've invested in an old oak Medieval dining table instead, which is where Rosemary and I tried to fathom the game...
Do you like what I've done with the groundsheet too? I've tried to give it that authentic flagged stone look. Oh, and the candles were from the chandler at Blists Hill.
The other change I've made is to the camp bed. I wanted something a little more authentically Tudor for my stay here, so I've got this for now...
I'll see how well the green curtains do at keeping out the draft. I love the colour, but the old red curtains on the other four poster camp bed were excellent at blocking any wind that came through the tent canvas.
I have to admit to keeping the butler's sink full of booze. It was such an inspired addition to my little tent, that despite it not being remotely Tudor-esque, it's staying.
I think I'll have a quiet and restful day tomorrow, and try not to get into any mischief. I could do with having an easy day to recover from today and to prepare myself for the long ride on Wednesday - 83km - so I'm relying on this chap to keep a stern eye on me...
He looks like he's up to the job, though I'm a little worried that he might be easily distracted by any fish in the moat. Anyway, here's hoping he can keep me in check, and I'll catch up with you when I get to Yarrow Valley Country Park.
If you're enjoying my blog and would like to sponsor me in my virtual bike ride from Land's End to John O'Groats to raise funds for Pop-Up Gym, please donate at my Just Giving page. Every penny is gratefully received and it will all help me reach my target of £2500.
**All photos except those of my tent and of the MotoMed bike are from Google Images.
