On an April night in 1995, Ropley Village Hall was home to a mixed group of people who had taken part in a series of walking pilgrimages over the last twenty years. Many were the stories that were recounted and the memories that were revived. How had it all begun? Click on each header below to see the details.
The details of pilgrimages from 1975 to 1996, excluding 1992, were written by Bill Haynes back in 1997. Details of 1992 and 1997 onwards have been added by other pilgrims.
Lesley’s desire to lead the pilgrims to her native midlands was realised with the happy coincidence that Lichfield Cathedral, founded by St Chad, was celebrating its 1300th birthday. St Chad was a protégé of St Aidan, which provided a link with our earlier pilgrimage to Lindisfarne. Once more we started from Guildford, and followed a fairly straight line north-north-west. An rest day in Henley-on-Thames provided an opportunity for “mucking about on the river”, repeated in Stratford-upon-Avon where we stayed in Shakespeare’s old school. On this pilgrimage we enjoyed the company and inspiration of Father Joe Kengah from Kenya, opening our eyes to new possibilities. We didn’t enjoy two nocturnal fire alarms, but did enjoy the welcome we received in Lichfield, inspiring us to start our next pilgrimage there in search of Chad’s brother, Cedd. 2000, start of the new millennium, was also the year we wrote an online diary of the pilgrimage, which achieved a strong following and has become a regular feature in the 21st Century. 25 Years Closer Reunion, Ropley - diary/a> |
John Lamb took over as coordinator from Lesley, ready to lead us to the wilds of the North York Moors, to Lastingham where both Chad and his brother Cedd were abbot. However, a major outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease in England effectively closed the countryside, and it was impossible to plan the walking days, even though we had accommodation. Although things started to open up, we reluctantly took the decision to postpone the pilgrimage. But we did have a reunion!
Sue Adilz (who was Sue Earley when she took the job, before she married the accommodation officer) assumed the role of coordinator this year. For our 30th birthday we were back close to home again, but with a difference. Rather than taking the traditional Pilgrims Way route from Winchester to Canterbury we started in Canterbury and heading west to Winchester. With rest days in Rochester and Guildford our pilgrimage was punctuated by cathedrals, and we took the dedication of the newest of these, the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit at Guildford, as our theme. Each day we reflected on a different gift of the spirit. A refreshing blend of old and new for the pilgrimage: we retraced old steps, stayed in familiar accommodation, but equally walked new paths and found new halls. John Chenery took over from Maurice as Chief Routeplanner and tried to standardise the timings, with considerable success. On the flat or over the hills we ran to time. Celebrating the pilgrimage as an extended family, Aid and Meld Simons who met on the very first pilgrimage were able to renew their marriage vows in anticipation of their silver wedding in the church where they were married. The 30 Arrowing Years Reunion, Alresford - diary |