A Day Out in Ely

Today we met up with Kirsty in David for the day in Ely.

It is many years since we had been there even though it is less than an hour away. We arranged to meet at the (free) Barton Rd Car Park close to the city centre at 10:15. Our plan was based on having a cup of coffee, then visiting the cathedral, then doing a walk with a lunch stop down by the river.

Our walk was a combination of these: The Eel Trail...

...and The AA's Rated Trips Ely Walk,,,

...although we added a bit extra along the river to the south and back.

It was a bit cloudy to start, but we ended up with some lovely winter sunshine. Here are some of my photos.

The car park is close to the city centre and free after 8:30am for the whole day.

We were early so had a quick scout around before Kirsty and David arrived. Here is the city sign.

We found this nasty looking chap climbing next to a drainpipe.

The visitor centre isn't open until 11am

We had our coffee at Marmalade & Jam.

We couldn't resist the freshly baked sausage rolls.

We passed though to the cathedral via the Sacristy Gate, which is watched over by a couple of these.

It is £10 to tour the cathedral.

We liked the heating system.

Until the end of the month you can see the amazing Jubilee Oak Table on display. "A 13m long table created from a 5,000-year-old fossilised black oak tree, discovered in the fens will be on display in the Cathedral until 28 February 2023. It will then move on to Rochester Cathedral where it will be on display from 2 March 2023 - 1 March 2024."

"The story of the Jubilee Oak Table begins 5,000 years ago when an incredible high forest of gigantic oak trees once stood, deep within the Fenland Basin of ancient East Anglia. Over time, and with a rise in sea levels, these spectacular trees fell into the silt of the flooded forest floor. There they lay unseen and undisturbed, preserved in the peat for five millennia. Until now..."

You can read all about the fascinating project to turn it into the table here.

The octagon is spectacular.

It was organ tuning day. I enjoyed hearing the big reed stops.

This is what the console looks like:

An impressive instrument. You can read more about the history and specification along with a summary of the cathedral organists here.

We didn't visit the stained glass museum which is housed in the cathedral, but we enjoyed the stained glass of the windows... and the effect of the sunlight coming through them.

On to our walk now. We watched this transporter squeeze its way across the bridge to the marina carrying a boat.

By now we had bright sunshine.

We headed north along the river first.

Back at the marina, we saw where the boat had been left. We later saw it being moved again to a parking spot in the marina.

We lunched at the Riverside Bar and Kitchen opposite.

After a walk along the river in the other direction we returned via Ely Park and the Meadow, with lovely views of the cathedral.

There was just time for a bit of shopping after before heading our separate ways. A great day out!

You can see more of my photos here on Flickr.