For Members and Guests.
BACAS once again has a full range of excursions planned from Spring to Autumn this year covering all periods of history from the Ice Age at the Banwell Bone Cave to the 21st century changes and finds at Bath Abbey with castles, lost villages, and town walks in between.
Ticket booking is now available online by card from the link to ticketlab below. Please book required tickets for BACAS members and non-members. You will be asked to enter name, email, phone before providing credit/debit card details. Your tickets will then be emailed to you. The opt-in for other sales communications from ticketlab is optional.
CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS
If you wish to pay by cheque please download the booking form : BACASExcursions2022BookingForm.pdf
and post to the Treasurer.
Further details are available on each excursion by clicking the title
Bradford on Avon Town Walk : Sunday, 3rd April (Morning)
A Sunday morning stroll around Bradford on Avon led by Ivor Slocombe, a local historian of note having published widely on the subject. The tour takes in the architecture of the town and the Saxon Church, medieval bridges, Barton Farm and the 14th century Tithe Barn and the Iron Duke harking back to the 19th century rubber industry. Lunch and a visit to the local museum could be possible in the afternoon.
Shoscombe Valley Walk : Thursday, 19th May (Evening)
Chris Paul is a member of BACAS and also a founder member of the
Shoscombe History Society, who lives in Stony Littleton. This walk explores the
prehistoric/medieval enclosures of Stony Littleton, a medieval (possibly
earlier) mill site and the deserted medieval village of Foxcote.
Banwell Bone Cave : Thursday, 23rd June(Afternoon)
Please note: BACAS is not responsible for organising tours of the caves. If you are interested in a tour, then look at http://banwellcaves.wikidot.com/organise-a-tour
The Banwell Bone cave was discovered in 1825 containing vast numbers of mammal bones (including bear, deer, ox, bison and reindeer) from the last Ice Age. The site was owned by the Bishop of Bath and Wells who interpreted the bone deposit as evidence of Noah’s Biblical Flood and developed a Victorian religious theme park around it.
We will explore the Bone Cave, usually lit by candlelight, together with several Victorian grottos and follies, including the Pebble Summerhouse, Druid’s Temple, an Osteoicon (or bone repository) and Banwell Tower.
Goodrich Castle Visit : Saturday, 2nd July (All Day)
Goodrich Castle set in beautiful sylvan surroundings is one of the finest and best preserved of all English medieval castles. It apparently led a largely peaceful existence until it experienced a single violent event in the Civil War. A castle stood here in the 11C and the stone keep was built in the late 1100’s by Strongbow, the conqueror of Ireland. The remainder of the castle was rebuilt in the form we see today in the late 13 century by Henry the Third’s half-brother.
An English Heritage guide will take us around one of the most up-to-date castles of its period with an impressive defensive shell concealing residential buildings of great complexity and sophistication.
Bath Abbey : “Footprint Project” Tour : Thursday 25th August (Afternoon)
The Footprint Project which began in 2005 grew out of the need to re-level the
Abbey floor which had become uneven due to collapsing voids underneath where up
to 8000 burials had taken place in previous centuries. These voids have now been filled
and underground links built to the Abbey Chambers with a new heating system from the Bath hot spring.
The tour will be lead by Jeremy Key-Pugh, a former teacher at Kingswood School, a
keen historian with a particular interest in the history of the Abbey and also a Lay
Dean at the Abbey.
Monmouth Town and Trellech Excavation : Sunday 18th September (All Day)
The excursion will be in two parts, namely a guided walk around Monmouth in the morning and then after lunch (not included) you will be able to visit the ‘Lost City of Trellech’ or one of the nearbyattractions such as The Kymin (NT) or the upper Wye Valley.
Monmouth is the historic county town of Monmouthshire, situated where the River Monnow joins the River Wye. Evidence of a Bronze Age boat building community and a Neolithic crannog in a now vanished lake was discovered in 2013. A small fort was built by the Romans (Blestium) which later became an established settlement by the Normans when they built a castle, around 1067. The medieval stone gated bridge is the only one of its type in Britain and one of only three remaining in Europe! Much of the medieval town layout survives and is recognizable in the street pattern today.
Trellech is a private archaeological site, owned and currently being excavated by an archaeologist as an educational resource. Many buildings and artefacts have been uncovered pointing to the existence of ‘the lost city of Trellech’ – once the largest urban centre in Medieval Wales.