Avebury and special access tour to Stonehenge - May 27, 2013

Trip Index

• Getting to London, riding the HOHO, visiting the British Museum
• Avebury and special access tour to Stonehenge
• Day tour of London and afternoon tea at Claridge's
• Heading to Dublin and enjoying Irish folklore and music
• Galway City and Bunratty Castle Medieval Banquet
• Bunratty Village, Cliffs of Moher, return to Dublin
• The HOHO in Dublin, Guinness Storehouse, and return to the USA

***

Monday morning, we woke up and had breakfast in the B+B Belgravia dining room.  A kitchen assistant took our orders for eggs, proteins, toast, hot side items and hot beverages.  Cold items were served buffet-style, such as pastries, breads, yogurt, juice and fruit.

cold offerings, menu for hot items

jet-lagged fork and knife shot

Today, we were going on the Special Access Stonehenge sunset tour offered by Anderson Tours, which also included visits to Avebury and West Kennet Long Barrow.  Our pick-up was near Victoria Coach Station at 11am.  The documentation wasn't particularly clear on exactly where to stand, as it said "across from Argos", but Argos was a three-sided building!  We figured out that the pick-up was front of a business called "Press Association" on Vauxhall Bridge Road.

pick up right here

It was almost a full tour bus, about 40 passengers in total.  When I booked online, there was a list of pick-up locations to choose from, including several hotels in London as well as Victoria Coach Station.  Some of the  hotels were 45 minutes away from our pick-up location, so it was definitely an advantage for us to stay in the area as we were the next-to-last stop.

We rode in the bus for a couple of hours; along the way, we made a stop in Baughurst, Hampshire to pick up Pat Shelley, a professional Stonehenge guide who was involved with the Stonehenge project dig featured on NOVA.  Our first stop was the quaint village of Avebury, which contained several stone circles that visitors can walk up to and touch.  The stones weren't as tall as Stonehenge, nor as elaborately stacked.  It was a beautiful day, albeit with a lot of wind.

part of a stone circle

right next to town

don't think one person can move it

Pat at work

sitting in the "Devil's Chair"

Pat showed us something very strange - ley-lines or "energy lines" in certain areas of the circle.  He demonstrated this with two wires bent at a 90 degree angle; as he walked across the ley-line, the wires would twist towards each other upon entering the area, then separate when he exited.  It was mind-blowing to watch.  Some skeptical people from our tour tried it and it also moved the same.

fun with ley-lines

We had free time in the town, browsing souvenir shops and grabbing some snacks.

thatched roof

stone buildings

town abbey

clotted cream flavored

Our next stop was West Kennet Long Barrow, which was an ancient tomb consisting of various chambers.  To reach the barrow, we had to walk about half a mile across grassy farmland from where the bus was parked, so not everyone chose to visit it.

at the barrow

our bus way in the background

picturesque

other barrow that we cannot access

It was rather tight and dark inside the barrow, so not too many pictures could be taken.

Next stop - Stonehenge, the highlight of the journey!  It was cold and windy when we arrived, but at least it wasn't raining.  There was still half an hour until official closing time for regular visitors, so we browsed the souvenir shop while others went to get a cup of hot tea and food from the snack bar.  Once security flushed the site of straggling visitors, our group was allowed through the main entrance and we had the site to ourselves!  Pat explained the story of Stonehenge and the latest archaeological findings while we stood outside the stone circle.  Then we were divided up into two groups:  one group going into the inner circle for 25 minutes, followed by the second group for the remaining 25 minutes.  Pat was hoping we could all go in since he had worked with the guard before but the guard insisted that the group limit be enforced (16-20 people).  We were in the first group so we went in, with the second group continuing to walk outside of the circle.  What a special opportunity!  The last time I was at Stonehenge, there was a chain link fence surrounding the site, placed pretty far away.  The fences were no longer there; there were roped pathways around the site to keep visitors at bay, but at least they were much closer to the henge than in the past.  We got to meander through the monoliths and get up close to them, but not allowed to touch of course.  Pat gave a talk about their features, how they were erected, and the significance of specific stones.

When it was time for the groups to swap places, the security guard saw how we all were good citizens so he allowed the first group to continue staying inside!  So if you go on a similar tour, and if your group is divided, try to be in the first group just in case this happens.  It was nice to see that folks in the first group were mindful not to disturb the second group while Pat repeated the talk and not get in their way of their photos as we had our opportunity earlier.

The following is a 24-second video of the inner circle:

roped pathways

outside the circle

inside the circle with Pat

another view of the stones

I'm inside!

me too!

ancient graffiti

all of us inside

There was another ley-line through the inner circle, and this time, Gerry wanted to try it for himself!  9 second video below:


After our hour was up, we headed back to the bus for our return journey to London.  I noticed there was a private tour party of four ready to go in, so there were probably several times the inner circle access is offered each day, until the sun went down.  You can book inner circle access yourself at the English Heritage website, but you'd have to provide your own transportation and tour guide.

The bus driver dropped Pat off in a town along the way (didn't catch the name), so we didn't even get a chance to tip him as we thought he would ride back with us!  So if you are on a tour with Pat, try to tip him before you get on the bus in case he makes a disappearing act.

Despite the large amount of people on the tour, I felt it was good and a great value.  I had originally considered going on the sunset tour offered by Stonehenge Tours that also visited Lacock and Bath, but they were sold out the days that we were in London.  They offered a private tour for the four of us, but that would have cost a steep L600.  The shuttle they provided fit a maximum of 6 persons, so if you have a group of 6, it would be reasonable since you could pick and choose the stops along the way and have a personal tour guide to yourself.  There was also a similar tour offered by Premium Tours, but was sold out as well.  There were "sunrise" inner circle tours available, but I wasn't keen on a 5am pick-up!  Being inside the inner circle at Stonehenge is special, and I'd recommend going on the tour, either sunrise or sunset, whichever suits your fancy.  Book as soon as you can, even up to a year in advance, to get the tour you want.

We got back to London around 8pm and found a pub nearby Victoria Coach Station for food and drink.  Tomorrow, we'll be embarking on a London day tour, including afternoon tea at the prestigious Claridge's hotel!

a refreshing beer after a long day