johnsunter.com - The adventures of an ordinary person...

Regretfully leaving the Falcon, I wander up towards the racecourse, intending a circuit of the Chester Walls.

The racecourse was open to the public, so I had a stroll around.

Chester is unique in the UK, as it is the only fully walled City.

York has many of its walls remaining, but they don't completely surround the city unbroken.

Although built by the Romans, nearly 2000 years ago, the walls have been continuously repaired and improved.

Here a Stone mason marks and dates his work.

Quite near the wall on Northgate Street, is this pub, the Coach and Horses said to be Chester's new "best pub".

Previous holders of this title are Harker's arms and Dutton's.

To see list of reviews of Chester pubs, visit www.chesteratlarge.com (a review of the Commercial, next to St Peters Church, was done by me).

I continue along the Wall.

To the left, is the Shropshire Union Canal.

Its possible from here, to join Rufus court, another of the touristy things I have to do.

Rufus court, near the top of Northgate Street, really is rather smart.

Again on a budget theme, notice the public bench to the lower right of the picture.

Not far away, is Alexander's, one of the best Jazz bars in the country.

Its possible to sit on this bench, and drink your own water, while soaking up the atmosphere and listening to superb music for free.

A section of wall near the King Charles medieval tower on the city walls.

Although the Romans built the wall initially the gates and towers were added during Medieval times.

It is said that, in 1645, Charles I saw his troops defeated at the battle of Rowton Moor from the top of the tower.

What gear did I take with me on the trip ?. For authenticity, I took all the things I would take on a trip to say Paris, Prague etc.

I prepared the evening before (this picture is taken at the Frog and Nightingale next to the Canal).

I took a torch, a whistle (worn around my neck) a swiss army knife, notebook and pen, Ipod, packed lunch, water bottle and orange bivi bag. The bivi bag is for sitting on, I wasn't expecting a blizzard.

Clothing, I wear a t shirt, a waterproof coat, and have a jumper in my daysack (its the UK, it can be cold in the morning, windy/wet at lunchtime and sunny in the afternoon).

I also wear comfortable shoes. I have been on trips, where we had to stop and find a shop to buy plasters, for somebody wearing "fashionable" shoes.

I had to get this picture from Google images, as sadly the town crier only works until August.

If you want to see him in action, watch the dvd 24 hour party people, the story of Tony Wilson and Manchester music.

In one scene in the film Tony (played by Steve Coogan) is filming in Chester for Granada Reports.

Its the scene where he finds out the lead singer of Joy Division (a band he promoted) Ian Curtis had killed himself, and its announced by the Town Crier.

The Town Criers wife stands in for him occasionally, and has a loud and capable voice like her husband.

I would hate to live next door to them, if they have an argument !.

One the subject of traditional characters, At the park, just to the right of the Old Dee Bridge, in Handbridge, there was some sort of Roman re-enactment going on.

Having completed my circuit of the Walls, I have another wander around the rows.

My next destination, is a pub directly on the rows called the Boot.

Built as a pub in the 1600's, there has been an ale house of some kind on this site, since the 6th century.

This is a British Pub at its finest.

I head inside.

The pub is pretty busy, but as a local, I know there is a quiet "tap room" at the back (so quiet in fact, that I was the only person in there).

Another £1.50 pint, I am now down to £9.50.

As I leave the pub, I head of to the left, and see this gem of an alley, Godstall Lane.

Just to the left, is the excellent Dutton's, where its hard to recommend the food too highly.

Unfortunately, I have finance and time (I am attempting to pack a two day trip, into a day) constraints so cant stop off for another pint. Shame.

Starting to feel a little hungry now, I head into Grosvenor Park.

These are the remains of the Church in the park (you can see the front and rear doors, but nothing else).

I walk around for half an hour and soak up its charm.

There is a small train that goes around the park, but I am not interested in silliness like that.

Using my bivi bag to sit on, I took into my packed lunch and drink some water.

The simple act of preparing a packed lunch has saved £5 on the cost of buying one locally and at least a tenner if eating out.

Another half hour relaxing and then I'm off again.

As I head out of the park I see the Queens park Bridge.

Like the Old Dee Bridge, it spans the river Dee, but if you walk across the bridge, go off to the left, and follow the bank, its possible to see some real countryside (acres and acres in fact).

This is another one of the places I go at lunchtime to relax.

You couldn't go to Chester without doing a boat trip, so off I go.

The upstairs of the boat had slightly better views, but was full of noisy children.

I have the lower deck to myself, and I relax and enjoy the 30 minute journey.

There is a running commentary during the boat trip.

I found out, that according to UK law, Swans (and there were quite a few on the river) are protected and automatically the property of the reigning monarch.

As the boat begins to turn back, I see some people canoeing, and too my horror, I see that the "refurbish" of the Red House Pub (a place previously full of character) has had some LA style windows added to it (each individual pain of glass, costs £10,000 apparently).

Once again, an example of paying a fortune, to take away what character a building had previously.

And its not Red anymore !.

The boat ride, cost £6.00 so I now have £3.50.

Its at this point, you are probably wondering, what I would do about accommodation, if I had no money.

As stated before, planning and preparation are key.

A few evenings earlier, I spoke to Dave the Tramp, who "works" near the Indian Takeaway I frequent in Boughton and asked his advise on free accommodation.

Sadly, Dave would only give up his secrets for a fiver, and I thought that was a bit too expensive.

He did however agree to be photographed for a £1, and I was happy to help.

Okay, forced to use my own initiative, I came up with two options:

This, which not only provides free accommodation in a cardboard box, but also provides a feel-good factor, and the inverse snobbery of making a sacrifice for charity.

Its only available one night of the year, so book early.

Alternatively, this small cave is on the banks of the Shropshire Union Canal. An expert in the field advises:

John, with regards to living in a cave -

If the cave is well above any potential flood zone, deep and dry (without any water seepage) it should be perfectly habitable, but it will most likely be inhabited by rodents, such as rats, mice and bats, which carry a range of diseases that can be viral or bacterial, such as Leptospirosis (also known as Weil's disease) and in other parts of the world lyssavirus, plague and hantavirus.

The diseases can be transmitted to humans in a number of ways including bites, contact with animal waste, eating food or water contaminated by rodent waste or through parasites that use rodents and humans as hosts e.g. fleas and ticks.

Even breathing in contaminated dried rodent waste has the potential for transmitting diseases.

The other big hazard is an electrical storm, as if the cave is not particularly deep and the cliff face is struck by lightening, then you could potentially act as a human spark plug as the lightening earths. If the cave is deep enough, this is not a problem.

Also, watch out for the famous Cave-bears of Chester.

There you go - sagely wisdom dispensed - I hope this helps.

Ben McNutt (Bushcraft expert).

The Chester museum had some interesting artifacts, and a collection of rocks.

My main reason for visiting, is a 35 minute video about the history of Chester which is interesting and informative.

The other advantages for City visitors are that its free, and its warm and dry.

Donations are welcome, I felt pretty bad for not making one, as I normally do.

Of absolutely no historical or architectural significance whatsoever, the Rohan Shop on Lower Bridge Street.

I am never out of this shop (there are pictures of my travels on a photo board behind the serving counter).

They make probably the best travel clothing in the world, and if you have ever met me, and I wasn't wearing anything by Rohan, I would be surprised (3 of the Ties I wear for work are from here).

After all this walking about, I decide on some more refreshment.

Watergate's, on Watergate street, is actually inside a Crypt.

With its 2000 year history, Chester is considered by many to be the most Haunted City in the country, the ghosts of Roman soldiers are listed in the Guinness book of records, as the oldest in the world.

But its a different kind of spirit, I am in search off. £2.50 for a pint of Lager, leaves me with exactly £1.00.

After the relaxing seclusion of the Crypt, I decide to go somewhere with a bit more open space.

The Shropshire Union Canal runs the from Wolverhampton to Ellesmere Port.

This is one of my favorite places in Chester, in early mornings, I love to walk along the Canal.

The locks on the Canal (not a great photograph I am afraid) go three deep, and during the summer, it can take hours for a barge to get up/down here, if there's queue

In the middle of the picture, you can just see, a very famous Chester pub called Telfords Warehouse.

The locks were constructed by Thomas Telford, and it actually was his warehouse, before becoming a pub.

Just one more thing to do, and then the day is complete.

As I head towards the station, I stop off at the Chippy. Traditional Fish and Chips are outside my budget, but a bag of Chips, on this cold day, is just what I need.

Unfortunately, the Chips are £1.20, which puts me £0.20 over budget, although I think the principle is proven.

I return to the railway station by 5:30pm with the challenge complete.

Later in the evening, I relax in the Frog and Nightingale and reflect on the day. To summarize, I have:

Done a formal tour of the city
Taken a boat trip on the river
Have a picnic in the park
Visited 3 traditional pubs
Done a circuit of the wall
Toured the Rows
Had a Scone and Tea
Visited the museum
Visited the Racecourse
Seen the Amphitheater
Listened to Jazz in Rufus court
Seen the Eastgate Clock
Visit a Chippy

I have done loads of other things, but these are the main ones. I think that proves, that with planning and preperation, a City tour can be done for around 20 quid.

A tour of Chester, and do all the tourist things for £20 (2/2).