As I carefully folded back the neatly cut turf, it was as if I had opened up a portal to the Bronze Age...
I do not know exactly what happened that night. One person on their own might have imagined it, but when two people simultaneously witness the same event there has to be something to it...
It was the last thing that I expected to see in the Shropshire countryside. It was futile to try and run, as I was no match for the power and agility of the animal that stood before me...
Buckingham's eyes fixed upon the old man like a hawk after its prey: "May a curse be upon thee for thy treachery," he snarled....
Poor old Mrs Brown's house took a direct hit. I laughed as her wooden leg came flying over the rooftops, clattering as it bounced off the rusty corrugated roof of our toilet at the bottom of the garden...
A rather large. well-endowed lady appeared in the doorway. Why I suddenly thought about Zeppelins I can't imagine...
John had not believed me when I told him that a Mr Crapper had invented the flush toilet, so it came as no surprise that he would not believe the origin of Zippo lighters...
Hell's Gate
John was only talking about them the other day: Aethelric, Aethelfrith, Ceawlin, Cuthwulf, Cwichhelm, Ethelbert and Raewald - he's got some strange relatives!
I wanted to talk about the Saxon influence on Shropshire and whether we would eventually find any tangible evidence of their having been here. Despite knowing the Saxons had settled in the county, we have never found any of their coinage or artefacts.
There is a hill in Shropshire called the Wrekin - historically known as St Gilberts Mount. It was formed some 400 million years ago, and is steeped in legend and myth. It has many moods. Bathed in brilliant sunshine it embraces mankind; shrouded in dense fog it jealously guards it ancient secrets. Whether its craggy, granite summit had been the seat of Woden himself, or the birthplace of Herne the Hunter, some unseen force constantly drew John and I back to the area like Lemmings to a cliff.
Why we were once again setting out for this well-known landmark defied all powers of reasoning. On the numerous occasions when had hauled our ageing bodies up its boulder strewn slopes we had come away empty-handed.
A Lighter Moment
We decided to set up base camp at an altitude of three feet - on top of a picnic table. From there, we would set out for the cloud-covered summit some one thousand feet above us.
Our last attempt had provided us with some valuable information; there really had been no need of the oxygen, crampons and ice picks. Indeed, we felt rather foolish as an old lady passed us halfway up - riding a mountain bike.
Having set up our equipment, we decided to have a hot drink before commencing our search. Sitting on the table with our feet resting on the seat, we sipped the refreshing liquid as we wondered which direction to take.
There are numerous paths dotted about the hillside, most of which we have searched before. But it is easy to miss finds, so we decided to re-search some of them. Knowing how long it would take us to reach the summit we took our haversacks with us. Before the end of the day, we would be sorely in need of their contents.
Although rather cold, it was pleasant enough as we searched the paths amongst the trees. Much to our delight, and I might add, disbelief, we began to find various bits and pieces of interest.
"I've found a coin, Col," John suddenly shouted.
"Yeah, what is it"; I replied?
"Victorian shilling," came the reply.
"Who's on it," I enquired?
"Vic............prat," was John's response.
Laughing, we carried on searching.
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