Thanks to a recommendation by a good friend at home, one of the cathedrals on my list to visit in England was Ely Cathedral. The town of Ely is located just north of Cambridge. It's an easy train ride from King's Cross station in London and so Tom and I took advantage of a beautiful spring day last Sunday and made the trip to Ely. The town of Ely is a charming town on the River Ouse. It's an easy walk from the train station to the town center and the cathedral. 
Just a few steps from the train station, we found a lovely walkway that followed the river. Houseboats were lined along the river, all enjoying the blue sky and sun after a rainy winter. The name Ely supposedly takes it's name from a word meaning "Eel Island" and taxes at one time were paid in Eels! There is a long history of this area and the "Fenlands" which are marshy areas that have been drained to provide agricultural lands. Higher lands became islands and this is how Ely began.
 |
| People eating lunch on the cathedral grounds |
Our goal for the day was to explore the cathedral, so we walked away from the river and into the town center, which is a charming town dating back to an abbey founded by St. Etheldreda in A.D. 673. Etheldreda (love that name) was a Saxon princess, the daughter of the King of East Anglia. At one time, it was the second richest monastery in England. It was easy to find the cathedral, as it towered over the rest of the town.
Ely Cathedral is the fourth longest of the English cathedrals- Winchester, Canterbury and St. Albans are all longer.
 |
 |
| The ceiling in the Nave was part of an extensive restoration during Victorian times |
While I was roaming around taking pictures, Tom went to get information about the cathedral and what kind of tours were offered. He soon came back with two tickets to climb to the Octagon. The Octagon was built after the Norman central tower collapsed in 1322. It took 20 years to build and was considered an engineering feat of Medieval times. Before I knew it, we had joined a group of about 14 other brave souls and we were winding (literally) our way up a tiny staircase with only a small railing and then rope to help us up the stairs.
If I weren't hanging onto the railing and rope the whole time, I would have taken some pictures of the stairway. I did find this image that I'll include so you get an idea of the closeness and steepness of the staircase.
We had perfect weather for our climb to the top of the cathedral. This is a view looking out over the town and into the courtyard of the cathedral.
 |
| the Octagon-the Angel panels in the next picture are seen here from the floor of the cathedral |
The angel panels surround the octagon and represent the heavenly host. Our guide opened the panels for us to look down into the cathedral.
 |
| view from the angel panels to the floor of the cathedral~ The monks used to sing from here. |
This was the door we went through to get to the second level of stairs climbing to the Octagon. Taller people had to bend over quite far to get through the door.
 |
We stopped for a tipple and some tea at The Cutter Inn before our 17:00 train back to King's Cross station.
It was another beautiful day in the English countryside and another "no guts no glory" moment for me, climbing up to the Octagon of Ely Cathedral.
