St Philip and St James Oxford

 

 This week the Church Explorer visits the former St Philip and St James Oxford now the Oxford Center for Mission Studies. I visited the church on the Oxford Open doors event and found it a rather splendid church to look around

Morning walk uphill

 

Another of our morning walks up Aberedw Hill in Wales 

I normally stop for a rest here and take in the view

We just came up the track through the old quarry which is quite steep climb, heat rate hits around 140+ BPM which at my age I try to keep down a tad

Wide view, its a bit hazy in the distance

Sheep in the field below

The view from the seat we tend to make for

Pips bench has a great view

Wider shot of Aberedw Hill

Weather beaten tree on the hill

Remember the swans I have been showing through the year, well they are flying now and as big as mum and dad.

Happy SkyWatch 

Fungi Walk

 

Back in October my wife & I were taking some walks up on Aberedw hill with our dog. We noticed some fungi growing along the way so I took some photos for my wife to use at sometime

The first we came across on the hill, take note

I loved this one, just needs a fairy sat on it

Grouped together in the grass

 Growing on a rotting branch

Remember the first photo, well this was a few days later

These were just coming out of the ground in the dew 

Take Care

St Mary Caple Y Ffin

 

This week the Church Explorer visits St Mary Capel Y Ffin one of the smallest churches I have visited and the last of my tour of the churches of Frances Kilvert 

 

Local Walk

 

This is a walk we take our dog for quite often 

I'll start here at the Lees, which is an area alongside the local brook. When I was a youngster I used to come here messing around, there was a fence along the side of the brook and tall Elm trees now they are a distant memory

We are heading over to that area of trees and a barn which are beside Lees Cottages 

As you net near the barns become clearer 

Closer to the trees and the bridge appears

Getting near the trees the church comes into view

On the other side you can look over the cropland towards Wittenham Clumps

Look the other way the church means you and nearing the village again

Happy SkyWatch

Lollingdon Walk

The intention was to walk to Lollingdon and back home. That was the plan only it was thwarted by flooding in the fields.

 Lollingdon spring from the footpath

This is Lollingdon Springs where the Brook at Cholsey rises, you can just see the water around center of the photo

We intended to walk across the footpath that runs through this field

 First sign of trouble is in the distance, the dark are is think mud chewed up by cows

 After managing to cross we started to walk along the footpath

 

There was water alongside

which got worse as we walked along

The other side was well flooded

so was the footpath which is as far as we got, easier to turn back and go home the way we came

Take Care 

St Mary Hay on Wye

 

This week the Church Explorer starts his second day of visits to the Clerics trail and the last two churches. The first is St Mary Hay on Wye where after dodging the rain the previous day this time if found me

More tower views

 

I'm jumping ahead to last week when I visited one of the Oxford Collages, On my way back I stopped off at St Michael at the North Gate church to see if the tower was open, it was so I paid my fee and climbed up for some tower views 

 First photo you are looking at the spire of Exeter Collage to the left the green dome is the Sheldonian theater and the dome to the right the Radcliff camera the other spire is St Mary

The next sire along is Lincoln Collage Library (All Saints Church)

 

Magdalene street

 

 

St Michaels street and the Wesley Memorial Methodist Church

 

Cornmarket street, Tom Tower left and Carfax right

 

Wider view with Lincoln Collage Library spire left

 

 

Panoramic view 

 

Zoom with Shaldonian, Exeter and the Radcliff

Happy SkyWatch 

Teddy Hall

 

Teddy hall is the nickname for St Edmunds Hall in Oxford one of the collages there. Monty Pythons Terry Hall studied here and another guy called Sir Keir Starmer who you might have heard of. Any way the main reason I was here was because I wanted to see the Crypt in St Edmund Hall Library which used to be the Church of St Peter in the East, I had arranged to see it with the librarian. The photos will be in my Church Explorer Blog in a few weeks time.

 This is the church with St Edmund sat on a seat

 This was taken back in September and is where I was going this time

 

When I came out I had a quick look at the old Dining room, I think it is just used for special occasions now

 

In the quad you can see this building with a huge Wisteria, must look amazing in bloom

 

I thought the sundial looks in good condition

 

I'll let you read it 

 

The collage chapel, I'll write a blog in the Church Explorer sometime

 

 I'll leave you with a photo of the Quad as I came out of the chapel, I should have visited the Old Library but did not realise I could, another time. The well in the center is medieval and uncovered during building work in 1926.

Take Care