Day 94 - Snow on the Wold - Little Rissington

Well, they said we might get some and we did!  The first snowfall of the season (not much today but more forecasted for the weekend).  Angela had found out that Stow in the Wold was having its Christmas lighting celebration this evening.  So we decided to take the bus all the way to Bourton on the Water (going through Stow) and go for a hike to the small village of Little Rissington.  We could then get back at dusk into Bourton to see what their lights looked light (they had their celebration earlier in the month) and then get the bus back to Moreton, with a stop to see the Stow lighting.

As you drive towards Stow you begin the rise up to the top of the Wold and it became clear that they had received a bit more snow than us so we were getting really pumped about returning later that day for what will be quite a festive event.  Our walk to Little Rissington was about a 4 mile round trip and it was along a sidewalk next to the main road so an easy trek.  The village has quite a history to it given its size.  Mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 A.D., there were at that time 22 households (and not many more than that today) and the settlement had been given its name based on two Anglo-Saxon words; Hrisen and Dune which when combined meant "little brushwood on a hill".  What really made this spot interesting was the location of the village church, St. Peter.  It stands distinct from the village on the northerly facing part of the hill with a small ravine separating the two.  St. Peter has its origins in the 12th century and was funded by Ralph Basset II, a clerk to Theobald, Archbishop of Canterbury.  There was an adjacent manor house and other homes next to the church but they were destroyed in the 17th century which left the church in its somewhat isolated state.   The church as you see it today only has a few elements within it that remain from the beginning with most of the church having been constructed later.  

When we got back to Bourton (4 p.m.) it was beginning to get dark and the lights in this town, especially the large Christmas tree in the Windrush river, were enchanting.  We had time for some hot chocolate before catching the bus back to Stow.  We arrived just in time to do some window shopping (for today's event the stores were staying open longer - at least until 7!) and to witness the setting up of stalls for food and drink and amusement rides for the kids. 




At 5:30 a large gathering of locals awaited the countdown to the lighting of their Christmas tree - all 7 feet of it - which may not seem like much but actually the entire event with the free mince pies, mulled wine, families gathered together, snow on the ground and the lights around the village square provided quite the festive occasion.

Ale of the Day: One Fifty Celebratory Ale, Donnington Brewery, Stow on the Wold