Autumn Tour 2006 - North Wales, 27-29th October

Author’s Note:

Handing in a tour report nearly three and a half years after the event might lead readers to draw certain conclusions about the author: (A) That his constant missing of deadlines was in fact a cunning plan, the goal of which was to never be asked to write a tour report again; or (B) That he is a spectacularly lazy human being. On this matter, the author has declined to comment.

This report was written based upon notes taken by the author during and immediately after the tour. By some fortune, the notes survived these three and a half years (not to mention two changes of address) tucked away somewhere out of sight amongst other unsorted papers. However, whilst thorough, these notes were by no means comprehensive. As such, where there are gaps in the narrative, the author has filled in any missing details from his imagination. For transparency’s sake, and to avoid any allegations of rose-tinted spectacle wearing, the author has marked these passages of the report in italics.

The Report:

It was autumn: the end of British Summer Time was near, and North Wales was beckoning. The Cardiff students – Becky Shipley, Sarah Tadman, Paul Parker and myself – left the bright lights of the capital behind us confident that our journey was going to be better than most of our fellow Welsh Collegians. Why? Because our long drive was broken up with a stop to see Sarah’s parents in Bodelwyddan, where we received a warm welcome and an excellent and much-needed hot meal. Already, the catering officers were at risk of being upstaged!

From Bodelwyddan, Prestatyn was only a short drive away. The Social Secretary’s tour sheet suggested that folks gather for drinks in Offa’s Tavern, a short walk down the hill from the hall, with the advice that this was the nicer end of town and that up the hill was ‘the dodgy end’. It was good to see when we arrived that this advice had been thoroughly ignored. So, against Jeanette’s better judgment, we headed uphill and joined the others at their local-of-choice. This may have been The Queen Victoria. Or it may not. All was going well – pints were pulled, food was served, pints were pulled some more – until the karaoke machine appeared. The less said about the local talent, the better. That being said, Pete Hampson’s rendition of ‘My Way’ was a personal highlight of the evening. Maybe even the weekend.

At closing time, we stumbled back for our first night’s sleep in the hall. There was snoring, of course.

We all awoke bright and early, eager to rise and get the day’s ringing underway. Sue and Percy delivered an excellent breakfast, the only small fault being that they forget to make anything for Rhiannon. Shame on them! Rhiannon took the whole thing very well.

Three towers were on the cards before lunch. First on the list was St Michael’s at Abergele. This was a memorable ring of six, and some unforgettable ringing was had by all. Next stop was a return to Bodelwyddan, and Sarah’s very own home tower. St Margaret’s offered us all a friendly welcome, and gave us the opportunity for the weekend’s first eight-bell ringing. Before moving on to the third tower of the day, there was a short intermission. Led by Sarah, the group marched through the usually peaceful streets and cul-de-sacs until we reached her parents’ home, where coffee and tea had been laid on for all. Whether or not they were quite expecting upwards of two dozen of us to appear on their doorstep all at once, I still don’t know! Refreshed and recharged, we returned to our cars and set out for Rhuddlan. Jeanette (noticeably absent from the tour itself, I should point out) had described the six bells of St Mary’s as ‘a character ring’. This, it transpired, was something of an understatement. Approaching through the churchyard, I could have sworn that one of the bells sounded nearly a semi-tone out of tune, and the others not much better. Oddly, this effect was much less pronounced inside the church, though I doubt this would be much comfort to the locals. Inside, ringers were treated to a steady drizzle of dust and fluff and bits of rope from above as they rang. In its own way, I suppose, St Mary’s did prove to be a memorable ring for many of us.

Lunch came as a welcome respite. The food was good, although some were left waiting a little longer than they would have liked for it top arrive (I, sadly, being one of them).

The first of the two post-lunch towers was St Thomas’s at Rhyl. This was an excellent ring of eight, and some fantastic ringing was had by all. The last tower of the day was Christ Church in Prestatyn itself, a stone’s throw from where we had slept the previous night. Whilst certain others seemed eager to make a move towards the pub, I stuck around a little longer and had what was probably my most pleasant ringing of the day.

Back at the hall, I found myself in that strange twilight zone between the end of the day’s ringing and the start of the evening meeting. For some, there was cooking to be done; for most, though, drinking was the priority. Six o’clock soon came round, and once the stragglers from the pub had (almost) all returned the meeting was called to order. The minutes are available for any of you who’d like to know what discussions took place and what decisions were made. All I’d like to add is that Paul and Malcolm’s multi-coloured extravaganza of balloons which lay strewn about the floor (and which were occasionally untied and let loose through the course of the meeting) definitely set the tone.

The meeting was swiftly followed by a sterling dinner and dessert combo from Sue and Percy. Around the tables, we all shared stories, gossip, and idle banter from the day. I’m sure the conversation elsewhere around the room was as wholesome and high-brow as it was where I was sat. (My notes at this point simply read: ‘Ross, Jenny, hamsters.’ Make of that what you will.)

By no means as a result of the musical shenanigans of the previous night, it was decided this time to follow Jeanette’s sage advice and head down the hill to Offa’s Tavern. Karaoke was replaced by card tricks. We drank, of course, but not excessively. At one o’clock, the last of us departed. The return to the hall unsurprisingly included a quick stop at a take-away, where Ross and Paul became strangely fascinated by Malcolm’s midriff. They’d been poking and prodding him for a good five minutes by the time I got bored and left them to it. In the absence of notes to the contrary, I can only assume that nobody snored, everybody slept peacefully, and we all thoroughly appreciated the extra hour in our soft, warm sleeping bags that daylight savings afforded us.

On Sunday morning, Sue and Percy once again delivered another fine breakfast (and made damn sure not to forget Rhiannon this time!). Whilst some set off homewards for peals and quarter peals, a select few (plus Percy) headed back to Bodelwyddan to join the local band in ringing for a christening. The tour sheet informs me that there was also an ‘official’ Welsh Colleges quarter on the Sunday morning at Llanbedrog. A quick look at Campanophile tells me that they got it, so I offer my much belated congratulations to the band!

The Cardiff contingent returned to Bodelwyddan, where Sarah’s parents once again treated us to a cooked meal (and where Paul bizarrely mistook an obviously plastic Halloween decoration for a real pumpkin – see the image below). Two hot dinners to one – sorry catering officers, but this time you were outdone!

And here’s a treat for those of you who have read this all the way through to the end: The answer is (B). (A) is just a happy coincidence…I hope.

Giles Langston