Day 6 Houseteads Roman Fort

This morning we headed northwest to visit Houseteads Roman Fort, one of 16 forts along Hadrian's Wall constructed in AD 122 to guard the northwest frontier of the Roman Empire against invasion from Picts and Scots, barbarians to the north. Originally 40 feet high, only the lower courses remain intact today at approximately 10 feet high. The wall extends for 73 miles across the north of England, from the North Sea to the Irish Sea.

The day started off overcast with periodic showers but, once again, the weather cooperated and it was partly sunny by the time we arrived at the wall, after a one hour bus ride. The boys had a great time scaling the wall and chasing sheep in the open fields. After a couple of hours of fooling around - and being scolded for making the sheep nervous - we had a quick bite to eat at the snack shed on the way out. Mark, our tour guide, can't believe how often these boys want to eat. Of course this is no surprise to the parents. I bet you are spending half as much on groceries while we are away.

We headed back to Durham Castle for a brief rest and pre-game meal in the Great Hall before departing for our late afternoon match with Billingham Town.