Memories From Rutland Water Rally May 2019

Full Member

Full Member

Messages
4,566
Please feel free to share your photos, comments, thoughts and memories of he Rutland Water Rally in this thread.
Anything and everything would be appreciated!

Colin ???
 
I arrived yesterday morning and spent the first few hours meeting up with old friends, something that was long over due!
I've been to previous events that Phil has organised here but apart from visiting the rather attractive town of Oakham I haven't explored the area.
The weather was brilliant so I decided to spend the latter part of the afternoon pottering around Rutland Water on the bike. The route is on a mix of tarmac and compacted grit (the pale surface often found on cycle ways) and had one or two very short steep-ish sections to test the legs. It's a very attractive route with wonderful views across The Water:

WP_20190523_14_30_17_Pro.jpg

Generally the steeper sections had a warning notice:

WP_20190523_14_33_39_Pro (2).jpg

The Water is a great recreation area with sailing, fishing, a water park for the kids, cafés and bike hire:

WP_20190523_14_46_18_Pro.jpg

When the dam was completed in 1975 the valley progressively filled and Normanton church was partially flooded though the lower part of the building was protected from the water:

WP_20190523_14_57_39_Pro (2).jpg

WP_20190523_15_00_53_Pro.jpg

This lovely old ice cream van is still in use (N.B. Annie and Chris!):

WP_20190523_15_02_48_Pro (2).jpg

As you'd expect, this is a water bird paradise with swans, geese, myriad ducks............and I believe that ospreys have been seen here:

WP_20190523_15_05_46_Pro.jpg

The dam is a couple of kilometres long at the eastern end of The Water:

WP_20190523_15_10_46_Pro.jpg

And just outside Oakham there is a wicker Spitfire put in place to mark the 60th anniversary of the Battle of Britain (with thanks to 2cv for researching that):

WP_20190523_15_50_25_Pro (2).jpg

My day ended with a chat around the camp fire:

WP_20190523_21_37_51_Pro.jpg

Together with a mountain of popcorn cooked entirely by the power of the sun.
How does Phil do that?
At night, to boot.

Colin ???
 
Another great start to the day at Rutland Water Rally. So I went for a bike ride into Oakham, the county town of Rutlandshire.
Oakham has a long history and some well preserved buildings. The Great Hall is all that remains of the castle proper but the huge earthworks of the bailey are still there to enthral visitors. And this is in the town centre! Nearby is the ancient market square with it's octagonal Butter Cross:

WP_20190524_10_47_19_Pro (2).jpg

.....under which bicycles in medieval times were apparently forbidden to park:

WP_20190524_10_48_36_Pro.jpg

The Butter Cross was an important structure:

WP_20190524_10_49_32_Pro (2).jpg

..........and the five hole stocks are real:

WP_20190524_10_51_19_Pro (2).jpg

..........causing me to wonder about the anatomy of the local population 950 years ago.
Another nearby structure would have protected locals from the elements:

WP_20190524_10_53_04_Pro (2).jpg

.........as they drew water:

WP_20190524_10_53_37_Pro (2).jpg

As I was leaving Oakham I came across this wonderful peacock with a flower bed representing it's colourful tail:

WP_20190524_11_01_08_Pro (2).jpg

My return journey included some hill practice to the south of Rutland Water taking me through Wing and then Lyndon. The later is pretty with lots of traditional houses in the local warm stone with local stone tiles up top:

WP_20190524_11_46_31_Pro (3).jpg

.......or thatched hats:

WP_20190524_11_43_06_Pro (2).jpg

The afternoon was still warm so I returned to Normanton church in time to see the Rutland Belle depart:

WP_20190524_15_26_08_Pro.jpg

I find the church fascinating. As did a random tourist who has followed me all afternoon:

WP_20190524_15_36_17_Pro.jpg

Some of you know the background here!
Finally a mesmerising sunset to end a wonderful second day at the Rutland Water rally:

WP_20190524_21_05_11_Pro (3).jpg

Thanks to everyone for making Jane feel relaxed and so very, very welcome.

Colin ???
 
lovely pics from you both.............

cant seem to get the video working to see the objects in the night sky....huh
 
Today is market day in Oakham and that combined with good weather dictated the agenda.
So we parked by the walls of the 'castle' and took the pathway up and over the earthworks where there's a good view of the Great Hall:

WP_20190525_12_58_26_Pro.jpg

The Great Hall is used as a Crown Court once every two years.
A long-established tradition in Oakham is that visiting dignitaries must present the town with a horseshoe. And the Great Hall contains the town's stock of horse shoes collected since the 1400's:

WP_20190525_13_02_31_Pro.jpg

WP_20190525_13_02_58_Pro.jpg

Some of the horseshoes are huge. These are dated 1687 and1779 and the outer one is over a metre in height and breadth:

WP_20190525_13_11_22_Pro (2).jpg

The current Royals have contributed and this is recorded in the horseshoe register:

WP_20190525_13_04_15_Pro (2).jpg

I wanted to show Jane the Butter Cross mentioned yesterday but when we got there she made a laughing stock of me:

WP_20190525_13_30_27_Pro (2).jpg

A wander around the town, some homemade lemon and orange marmalade from the market, coffee and cake with Annie and Sue then back to the Rally site for a panorama of the assembled mohos:

WP_20190525_16_39_09_Panorama.jpg

Colin ???
 
I was just going to recommend the castle as a local ish child we were taken to Oakham as part of our geography lesson the horse shoes are amazing
 
Nobody has mentioned the ospreys
Well worth sitting by the lake and watching these impressive birds
They’ve come all the way from west Africa to see you wild campers so keep your eyes peeled
 
The weather was quite changeable yesterday, though hot enough to cook someone's feet:

WP_20190526_17_08_05_Pro (2).jpg

So whose feet are those, then?

Colin ???
 

Users who viewed this discussion (Total:0)

Back
Top