Lincoln Cathedral at dusk
On the occasions when our adventures are city-based, our family of six pack our rucksacks just as if we were about to hike across fields or mountains and we treat the landscape exactly the same. We walk and explore, and try and find the hidden corners that breathe character into the bricks and mortar.
Dusk was already beginning to fall, as we crossed cobbled streets that led towards the Cathedral. It’s a very peaceful time of the day, workers have gone home, and revellers are yet to arrive for the evening and the city feels very still.
We made our way through an old stone archway to the cathedral square just beyond.
When you look at our children exploring the courtyard below, you can see the sheer scale of Lincoln Cathedral, which for hundreds of years (1311-1549) was the tallest building in the world.
Standing under the main entrance, we look upwards to see layer upon layer of carved stone above the doorway and we get the children to run their hands over the door and imagine the countless number pilgrims who have crossed this threshold over the centuries.
Our youngest boys enjoy spotting all of the carved creatures in the pillars…
… and then we spend time just quietly walking around the entranceway, looking at the details. We are the only people here.
As we walk around the outside of the building, there is an ancient wall to our right with a set of wrought iron gates, leading to a little courtyard and the ruins of the medieval Bishop’s Palace – we’ll return again in the daytime to explore further.
Onwards, and it’s starting to get dark. The first lights flicker on under the eaves, and a choir begins to practise, the song floating along the air.
To the other side of the Cathedral, at Priory Gate, there’s a wide green and rows of terraced houses…
… and a small path winds under a stone arch and into a little public garden. Its here that we eat a small packed supper together and watch the street lamps slowly light up along the road.
As we continue our circuit of the cathedral, darkness falls and the floodlights come on.
The air feels heavy, and there are swirling storm clouds above us. We retrace our steps back to the cobbled street and turn back, to see the spires dramatically illuminated against an inky sky.
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Wonderful photos! It’s great that you got the cathedral all to yourself 🙂
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Thanks Megan … yes we couldn’t quite believe our luck 🙂
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wonderful pics. cathedrals such as these are amazing places to visit. I would have liked finding other figures like your son did.
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Thanks very much Jim 🙂 I agree, and I think it’s great for children to experience the sheer scale of these old buildings too, because it’s so hard to get that from looking at pictures.
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Such beautiful photographs of a stunning cathedral. Thank you for a very informative post.
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Thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed reading the post 🙂
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As we would say in Maine, wowsah! Such a good post, on so many levels.
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Thank you very much Laurie – what lovely feedback 🙂 It’s encouraged me to dig out some of the photos from other similar city trips (I think the Cambridge streets and faculty museums will probably be the next one I write up!) x
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Looking forward to the next batch of photos.
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great town, great shots, great road trip 😉
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Thanks so much for reading Jack! I’ll hopefully have our Cambridge Tesla road trip up online soon 🙂 -beck
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Beautifully written post about a fascinating destination. What a special experience for your boys. I often ask my grandchildren to stop and imagine what the history of a place is. Who lived there before, what they did, wore, ate etc. I think it helps brings out the best of their imagination.
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Absolutely! And we’ll hopefully be going back soon during opening hours as we’ve been touring the Eleanor Crosses (several of which are relatively near to us) and Lincoln is her final resting place.
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Great excursions! Fun and educational as well.
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I have been to two graduations inside the cathedral but never explored it, think it would be good to see garden at the back. I’m hoping to have a trip to Lincoln over summer when they have a trial of bishop statues.
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We’re hoping to get back in the summer too … to see cathedral interior and the beautiful gardens when they are all in flower 🙂
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Great photos and great tips for local charging options. The supercharger expansion is ramping up nicely.
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Thanks Stephen … yes things are getting much easier! We tried out the new super charger near Grantham at the weekend, making it much easier to get around Lincolnshire. One of the nicest things is the camaraderie we find at the chargers, we stand and swap stories with other drivers/families whilst the cars charge. It would be hard to go back to filling up at a petrol station now…
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It’s been many years since I was last in Lincoln. Thanks for your post and bringing back memories.
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Thank you so much Roland 🙂 Lincoln is a beautiful city – and we were at Bury St Edmunds last Sunday, which had a very similar feel to it 🙂
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