Gold Hill...

Shaftesbury.  

Those among us of a certain age will of course remember it as the location of the Hovis Boy on the Bike ad :-)) That ad is fifty years old!  That makes me feel ancient!  I was six when it was on tv but I remember it so clearly.  It's the music I think.  Just have to hear the first few notes and it brings this ad to mind.  The ad was remastered in 2019.  You can see a brief story of that and the remastered ad here :-))

We were supposed to go to Bath today but for reasons I won't bore you with, decided to go tomorrow instead.  

We returned to The Stalls for lunch then headed to Shaftesbury to see Gold Hill and visit Shaftesbury Abbey Museum.  Shaftesbury is only 15 minutes along the A30 from where we are staying, but we hadn't gone that far when the traffic came to a halt.  The road was closed because of an accident.  Sat Nav was showing an alternative route so we followed that.  Well that turned into quite an adventure! 

We've driven on a few country lanes with high hedges on either side since we've been here but this one was something else!  Really high hedges on either side and a road that was only 6' 6" wide (pic in extra).  We found the width out when we got to the other end of it and there was a sign.  If only there's been a sign at the start!  D was convinced the car would be scratched to pieces but thankfully it was ok!  I was laughing hysterically at one point as I was convinced we were going to be swallowed up and never seen again!  lol

When we finally reached Shaftesbury the Sat Nav took us to the bottom of Gold Hill.  D thought we could drive up it!  hahahahaha!  Turned around in the tightest space ever then found our way to the High Street, which was closed as it was Market Day (sadly we missed the market as it stopped at 2.00pm)  Finally got parked nearby!  What a stressful journey! 

We headed along the High Street to the top of Gold Hill.  It's quite strange visiting somewhere for the first time yet recognising it immediately.  

There was no way I was tackling the cobbles in my wheels so I sent D on a mission to take some pics further down.  I stayed at the top and hummed the Hovis tune to myself.  It's been stuck in my head all day :-)

We then headed to Shaftesbury Abbey Museum and Gardens.  Info from their website...

The ruins of Shaftesbury Abbey lie in a peaceful walled garden. The museum brings to life the story of the abbey and the people who lived there. In AD 888, King Alfred the Great founded in Shaftesbury the first great abbey just for women. His second daughter was installed as the first Abbess, and for six and a half centuries the community and buildings grew and flourished. By the time of Henry VIII this had become the wealthiest and most important Benedictine nunnery in England, dominating and serving the town and lands around.


It was the last abbey to be destroyed by Henry VIII in 1539. Only the foundations survive and items recovered in archaeological excavations are now displayed in the museum, alongside a digital representation of how the Abbey may have looked.

The museum isn't large but is fascinating.  There isn't much to see of the Abbey, just piles of stones really, but I really enjoyed the time we spent in the garden.  Again both the museum and garden were fully accessible.  

We left there, buying ice cream on our way out and sat in sun in the lovely garden space opposite the museum, overlooking Blackmore Vale.  A little wander after that then back to the car and back to the Calf Shed.

D got his putter and hit a few balls in the garden behind the Calf Shed and I finished my seascape watercolour and a cat painting that I started a few weeks ago.  I laughed when I saw the make of the watercolour paper I'd used for the cat painting - Stonehenge.  How apt considering we're 20 mins from there!  :-)

Dinner then time spent planning our second week.  We love it here and time  is passing too quickly!