On Tuesday 24th February, ten upper sixth Classical Civilisation students and two members of staff made the annual journey to Hadrian’s Wall.

We departed from school just after 7 am and travelled for a couple of hours before enjoying a hot breakfast at Tebay services. An hour later we were enjoying the roller coaster ride of the B6318 and arrival at our first site, Chesters Roman fort.

Chesters was built in AD 128 and boasts the best preserved Roman military bathhouse in Britain. From Chesters, it was a short drive to the Mithraeum (a temple to the god Mithras). Then onwards to Housesteads Roman fort. We were impressed by the size of the commanding officer’s house here and we stood on Hadrian’s Wall to admire the view into barbarian territory from the northern edge of the Roman empire.

Our final site was Vindolanda, which is still being excavated. One of the archaeologists, Justin Blake, spoke to us about the site, the finds and current excavations. We then looked around the museum which houses artefacts found at Vindolanda, including the famous writing tablets. Much has been discovered about Roman military life from these tablets. One soldier wrote home requesting that his family send him underpants! We could appreciate the need for them on such a chilly February day.

We left a cold but sunny Vindolanda at 4.30 pm and drove straight into a blizzard. It was all rather exciting but the snow had cleared by the time we reached the M6 and it was plain sailing for the rest of the journey. We had a great day and hope that the sixth form enjoyed it as much as we did.

Mr M J Punnett & Mrs S H Gareh

Sitting in a hot bath at Chesters Roman fort	The strong room at Chesters Roman fort
Housesteads Roman fort - the northern edge of the Roman empire	Housesteads Roman fort
The Mithraeum at Carrawburgh	Walking along Hadrian's Wall
Vindolanda
The fort at Vindolanda	Blizzard conditions on the journey home

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