Before my walk I just wanted to share more of the Priory Church in Hamble.
It is quite a narrow church without side areas, except for the Chapel at the top of the church
You can also clearly see the development of the church. In the front the arches are rounded (Romanesque) while further down the arches are pointed.
The rounded arches are older often from around 1100 AD, while the pointed arches were a discovery of later as they are able to carry more way with less material.
The history is that this church was originally part of a small monastery (priory) and the chapel was narrow as the monks would sit facing each other, like in a college chapel. Once the church became a proper church it was extended, hence the Gothic windows.
Below is also a photo of the stairs to the bell tower. In the end I didn't go up. Half up I realised I had to down as well... And the stairs were a bit too open...
These photos I took after sharing morning prayers with Revd Graham, also the host. It was good to this according to the traditional Anglican liturgy. Like a good breakfast it sets you up for the day!
On the walk I first had to cross the Hamble with the foot ferry, which only goes when there are customers!
After that a 7 mile walk along the Solent towards Titchfield Haven. Lots of oil imports, with ships like these :
After Titchfield Haven the route went inland alongside a canal through a nature reserve. The weather became better as well and less wind.
I finally got to Titchfield (I was very tired at that stage) to meet my host as we were going to walk to Wickham together.
It turned out that due to a miscommunication, he was dropped off in Titchfield Haven, instead of Titchfield! So he had to walk an hour to catch me up. Which allowed me to have a nice lunch!
Beyond Titchfield we visited Titchfield Abbey - another ruined monastery cum manor.
And from there we had quite a pleasant walk to Wickham, where we were picked up to go home.
At that time we heard that Queen Elizabeth was very ill and later that day she passed away. Quite a different ending to our day.
I am glad that she did not had to suffer long, but we will miss her. Not only was she the Queen; she was very open about her faith, especially at difficult times. And therefore an example and encouragement to us all. We pray for now King Charles and and the whole Royal Family, as they mourn the loss of mother and grandmother, as well as doing all the matters of state expected of the Royal Family.
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The track recording stopped just before Titchfield, so the map is not accurate
