25 Sep. - Wye

 

Image: Monnow Bridge in Monmouth, Wales, is the only remaining mediaeval fortified river bridge in Great Britain with its gate tower still standing in place

From English Bicknor, a brief riverside stroll then sharp climb to Symonds Yat Rock, high above the narrow neck of the meandering Wye, defining in part the England/Wales border. Once a land of great conflict, now peaceful pastures of grazing sheep + cattle, but still remnants exist of times past - rail tunnels + embankments, cold stone lime kilns that once cooked the stuff or mortar, paint, tanning or bleaching.

A short river cruise full of tales of grand salmon caught on the reaches, and a glimpse of a kingfisher happy with much a smaller catch. Then a final(?) pint of Welsh ale in Monmouth - struggling perhaps + devoid of tourists but alive with schoolboys from the Haberdashers' School, plus the finest town gate atop the bridge over the Mon!

Notes: Beautiful and peaceful lands to wander through, which only makes me wonder again at the futility of 'borders'. It's been famously observed that they are not visible from space ... But they're not actually visible from the ground either. The river is simply a river. Homo sapiens (Man the thinker) is truly not thinking clearly when he states that one side of the river is so very different to the other. We are all one ...