Day 004: We woke up knowing the day’s compass pointed toward Salisbury and the iconic monoliths of Stonehenge. The local forecasters had promised a cheerful cocktail of sun and clouds, but as the hours unfolded, their optimism about the sunny half proved entirely misplaced. Fortunately, we had packed gloves and medium jackets specifically for these five chilly days of our winter trip, and they were put to immediate work against an 8 degrees Celsius bite that felt distinctly colder once the wind took hold.
We didn't set an alarm today, simply waking up naturally at 7:45 AM and heading downstairs for the buffet breakfast. Armed with our bearings from yesterday, we easily located the proper pedestrian shortcut to Southampton Central station, an effortless line of sight from our window in room 316 at the ibis. We aimed for the South Western Railway service scheduled for 9:37 AM. The train dragged its heels slightly, but once underway, it was a smooth 38-minute glide through the Hampshire and Wiltshire countryside into Salisbury. Much of the landscape looked like that of my youth. The exception being many of the houses were brick.
Outside the station, we spotted the designated bus stop for the Stonehenge Tour with some time to spare before the next run. We wandered down the road to explore the historic Fisherton Mill, treating ourselves to a pair of Americanos that set us back $7.50 CAD each. We looped back with time to board the 11:05 AM departure, plugged into the audio commentary through our earphones, and enjoyed the narrated roll out through town.
The bus journey took about half an hour, depositing us at the windswept expanse of Salisbury Plain. With the wind cutting across the open landscape, we bypassed the optional two-kilometre trek on foot and hopped the passenger shuttle directly to the stones.
Stonehenge remains the ultimate prehistoric enigma. Erected in multiple phases between 3000 BC and 2000 BC, this monumental Neolithic circle aligns with the solstices, built from massive 25-ton sarsen stones dragged from twenty miles away and smaller bluestones hauled over one hundred and forty miles from Wales. Standing before them, pondering how ancient Britons engineered the jointed lintels without modern tools or heavy machinery makes the goosebumps worthwhile. We spent well over an hour taking in the monument and browsing the exhibits inside the visitor centre.
The return coach swept past Old Sarum, the desolate iron age hill fort that originally served as the ancient precursor to Salisbury. Old Sarum held the original Norman settlement and the first cathedral, until bitter winds, water shortages, and friction between church clergy and military garrisons prompted everyone to abandon the hill in the 1200s and rebuild down in the river valley.
Our destination was that successor: Salisbury Cathedral. An Early English Gothic triumph, it boasts the tallest church spire in the United Kingdom at 123 metres. More impressively, the Chapter House safeguards the finest and best preserved of the four surviving original 1215 copies of the Magna Carta. Sealed by King John under duress from rebel barons at Runnymede, this parchment stands as the foundational bedrock of constitutional law and global democracy, establishing the radical premise that nobody, not even the Crown, is above the law. The juxtaposition of having US midterm election results show up today did not go unnoticed.
Having stayed on the bus until its final terminus at the railway station rather than hopping off downtown, we ended up putting in some extra footwork backtracking into town. It was well past normal lunch hours by the time we found an inviting bistro by the river. Sitting alongside the water, it is easy to imagine how vibrant and lively Salisbury must be in the height of summer.
We strolled back to the station and boarded the 3:36 PM Great Western Railway service, pulling into Southampton Central right on time at 4:05 PM. Standard time is notorious for an abrupt curtain drop, and the light faded swiftly as we walked back to the hotel. After dropping off some stuff at the room, we made an evening run to the nearby Lidl to secure provisions for another relaxed dinner in room 316. Our trackers logged about 9 kilometers for the day, a modest reduction from yesterday’s tally, but a thoroughly satisfying trek through five thousand years of history.