Summary (by AI): My visit to Somersby and the Lincolnshire Wolds gave me a deeper appreciation for Lord Tennyson's inspirations and a strong desire to return to explore the beautiful, rolling English countryside.
Blog: Of course, I’ve heard the name Lord Tennyson before, but I’ll be the first to admit I’m not particularly "literary" in my outlook. I knew the name, but if you’d asked me what he actually did, I would have struggled. So, I did a little bit of reading.
It turns out he was the author of that wonderful phrase: “’Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” It’s a beautiful piece of poetry and verse, and knowing he was the mind behind it gave me a new appreciation for the man.
Tennyson grew up in Somersby, so I made the drive out there. As I’ve mentioned in a few other posts, it has been incredibly wet in the UK for a long time now, and that reality was highlighted in a pretty dramatic way during this leg of the journey.
When I arrived, I noticed there wasn't an obvious, immediate connection to Tennyson—no massive statues or anything like that. But at the junction where the three roads meet, right outside the church and near the manor house where he grew up, the road was completely flooded.
I was unsure, but a small four-seater farm vehicle poweed through it, and looking at the water, it didn't seem too deep. I decided to go for it. As I drove through, however, I ended up washing a massive wave right over the top of my car. Oops !
Being there, you can really sense the history. You’re deep in the heart of the Lincolnshire Wolds. This area is designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and you can feel why. I did a portion of my (W)alk on the Viking Way, and the experience convinced me that I need to come back. I still have to complete my "ABC list," and I can see now that the (B)iking and (C)amping aspects of that list are going to come into full force here. I’m really looking forward to returning and spending more time exploring the Wolds in detail.
The landscape is far from flat; it’s lovely, quintessentially English rolling countryside. I have to imagine that’s what gave Tennyson so much of his inspiration. Even though I haven’t read much of his work, I feel like I know him a tiny bit better now. More importantly, I feel like I know Lincolnshire a little better, simply by virtue of making the pilgrimage there.
The Map: