Basingwerk Abbey

FRIDAY

It's two weeks since Prue had her hip replacement operation and this morning I drove her over the border to the Grosvenor Hospital in Chester for couple of follow-up appointments.

Afterwards, we stopped off at Betty Berkins Tea Rooms for lunch followed by a walk around Basingwerk Abbey at Holywell.

I pass the ruins of the abbey most Saturday's as the perimeter of the site forms part of the Greenfield Valley Parkrun course but don't have time to stop and explore..

The abbey, which was founded in 1131, formed part of a network of Cistercian settlements that once dotted Wales. The oldest part of the abbey is the 12th-century chapter house, with remains of the benches where monks sat for daily readings.The most impressive surviving room is the monks’ dining hall.

Basingwerk is still a significant religious site. It’s the start point for the North Wales Pilgrim’s Way, a long-distance walking route that stretches all the way to Bardsey Island (and passes through our village of Tremeirchion).