Here we are back in Lud's Church and I really hope you enjoy these shots s much as I do. Of course for me the pictures also have some associated memories which add something on a personal note. For example the first picture shows a money tree at the entrance to one section of the cleft. My daughter and I hammered a couple of pennies into the dead wood and as we did so I recalled another time when I had done the same thing on another woodland walk. It may just be me but I think the end of the trunk looks like a head facing downwards with the chin on the ground, what do you think?
You can see from these pictures how narrow the passageway was in places, he fourth and fifth pictures show a really narrow gap and it was only just possible to pass through this part although this wasn't the only way through. I did take some pictures of my daughter squeezing through but they won't find their way onto my blog...
The pictures for today's post are of Lud's Church in Staffordshire.
Having walked along the Roaches and across a very boggy area of moorland my daughter and I followed a woodland path through an area known as the Black Forest above the village of Gradbach. We were looking for Lud's Church but almost walked past as the path we were on passes the entrance but it would have been easy to miss as it was a cleft in the rock.
Although from today's selection it may appear quite small it is actually an immense cleft up to 15 metres high in places, and over 100 metres long but just a couple of metres wide (even less in places) which was caused by a landslip.
There are many legends associated with this wonderful place, it is said that Robin Hood had used it and the Lollards (followers of John Wycliffe) who were considered heretics used this as a place of worship in the 15th Century and that is where the name originates from.
The title of this blog post however relates to stories that it was this church that was the model for the "Green Chapel" in the medieval poem "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight".
I had seen Lud's Church featured in a TV show and determined that I would have to visit. It took some effort getting there but I have to say that it was well worth it as I am sure you will agree.
