One letter closer to completing the parkrun Alphabet Challenge – and this time, it’s ‘J’ for Jersey Farm parkrun! But our adventure didn’t end at the finish line.
In this episode, we take you along to Jersey Farm parkrun, a scenic and surprisingly challenging trail just outside St Albans, to tick off a crucial letter in our running quest. But what started as a typical Saturday morning soon turned into something much more meaningful.
After the run, we explore the historic city of St Albans, uncovering the incredible story of St Alban – England’s first Christian martyr – and visiting the breathtaking shrine dedicated to him. From parkrun to pilgrimage, this day had a bit of everything.
In this video:
00:00 Jersey Farm parkrun course
10:32 Our most expensive ever post parkrun breakfast
11:20 Exploring St Albans city centre and museum
13:03 Visiting the shrine of St Alban
14:50 Lakes and Roman Walls
👍 Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and comment if you’re on the Alphabet Challenge too — or if you’ve visited St Albans!
#parkrun #AlphabetChallenge #JerseyFarm #StAlbans #parkrunTourism #RunningVlog #StAlban #UKTravel
A Little Adventure Shop:
Clothes: https://a-little-adventure-time.myspreadshop.co.uk/
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Useful Links
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Jersey Farm parkrun
https://www.parkrun.org.uk/jerseyfarm/
Breakfast at Potting Shed Cafe
St Albans Museum
https://www.stalbansmuseums.org.uk/
St Albans Cathedral
https://www.stalbanscathedral.org/
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About Ian, Iona and Family
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Each week on this channel Ian (Dad) and Iona share our little adventure experiences, often joined by Ewan (Iona’s older brother) and Ruth (Mum) too.
Our weekends often start with parkrun. Iona is on a non-repeat parkrun tourism streak having now visited over 100 different places since she started parkrunning. But we don’t just do parkun and dash home, we love exploring the area and often use bikes and trains for our travels to keep our carbon footprint low and because it adds to the adventure too. When school holidays arrive, longer adventures are possible with Ewan and Iona both being keen cycle tourists and mountain climbers!
So if you like heading outdoors and your idea of a perfect weekend includes parkrun, climbing a mountain or exploring new places on two wheels then we would love to have you join us on our adventures.
We’d love it if you subscribed so you can follow our journey and hopefully be inspired to get out the door and have your own little adventures. Do like and leave comments on our videos too on questions you might have or ideas for places to explore or adventures to go on.
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Standard Filming Kit
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Fujifilm X-S20 with 18-55mm kit lens: https://amzn.to/45nb4NR
DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro: https://amzn.to/4hPE05Q
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Music from Epidemic Sound: https://www.epidemicsound.com/referral/o3mkb1
[Music] [Music] Good morning. Where are we today? Um, Jersey Farm. Yay. We’re getting We’re ticking off another alphabet at last. It’s been a long time since we ticked off a letter, isn’t it? Yeah. We were going to do Quaker again, but then we looked at the weather again and it was wet again. Deja vu. But we were deterred. Yeah. But we were determined to get an alphabet challenge this time, weren’t we? So, we got J. We have come to do Jersey farm at last, haven’t we? And what’s special about today? I’m walking. It’s a walking day, isn’t it? I reckon I’m allowed to walk as well since we’re doing a half marathon tomorrow. Yeah. I give you permission. Thank you very much. And make sure you wave to Nanny. Just remember that. Wave to nanny. Nanny because she’s going to be at the church. Oh, at the half marathon. Yes. Yeah. Right. Let’s go see what’s happening at this park, shall we? [Music] Y fabulous first timers briefing there starting off with trying to trick us at the Jersey farmers no longer beginning with a J and some really good encouragement about even if you’re slow enough that you need a head torch to finish you’re still very welcome very important on park walker day [Music] welcome to number 255 Jersey Farm Park Run. Today at Park Ron, we’re especially encouraging walking. So, in coming weeks, if you’re not feeling up for a run, you’re welcome to walk it. We’ve got lots of park walkers today as well. Go. [Music] We are off on Jersey Farm Parkland getting our Jay and we’re walking finally wanting their There was a lot of people wanting their Jay’s here this morning, wasn’t there? Look, there was a fair few people doing their first one as well, were there? Yeah, but there was So that means that there’s a fair first fair few people getting their J, which is quite good. Yeah. And doing their first park run. Very good. That’s quite a good mix if you ask me. Yeah. But yes, a nice steady walk this morning. Mommy’s joining us as well. Her first park walk in a very long time being park at all. and we’ll see how it goes. Yeah. Thank you, Marshall. Hands in my pocket. [Music] [Music] Well, the fastest runner has just come through past us, zoomed along compared to our nice steady walking [Music] pace. We’re on our first lap going out this way. The faster runners coming through on their second lap, zooming straight down there. So, keep your eye out on which way you got to go on the signs in the woodland here. You can see where they’ve built up piles of brushwood, which is a technique to create habitats and so on for insects and things like that. Know that cuz my dad does his comp conversation conservation work even. It’s a beautiful woodland walk run however you choose to do park run um at Jersey Farm. Absolutely lovely sound of birds in the trees blossom and so on as well. Ah, lovely day. her job. So quite an interesting course and quite challenging I would for those marshalling to remember which bit of what they’re on and you even move the arrows around from place to place on this course. So we’ve just seen the second lap loops right by where we’re doing our first lap. So in the first lap we’re mostly walking through woodland. Our second lap will be out in the sort of open area of the park. So we have now come off the first lap being its own course. So we’ve joined the same route as the second lapers are on now. So making sure we keep left as they come zooming past us and up a hill. I must admit I’m quite enjoying walking this because we I don’t really have to think about the hills because it’s not a flat course. I will definitely say that as we’ve been walking around with the trail walks and getting some top tips on things to see and explore afterwards in our park abbey. There’s some Roman ruins with mosaics. There’s a museum that’s free which has got a courtroom and jail cells with toilets in them. All sorts of fun things to go and explore afterwards. Of course, after breakfast. And we’re learning a bit about the fact today, which is obviously the Pope’s funeral, apparently the only ever English pope came from St. Dolin’s. So there you go. A fact for the day for you. [Music] That’s something you don’t see very often. The park walker is Laffy the tail walker. Obviously a very brisk walker out today. That’s definitely a bit of power walking going on there. She ain’t going to get walking. Don’t let your dad beat you. Go for it. Well, most people over there having finished the park run as we go off on our second lap, I think. Yes. Was it our Yeah, definitely our second lap. But I can see somebody there with a big banner celebrating their alphabet challenge complete. J was obviously their last letter to get. We have two more to get. We need a Y and we need a Q. So that is still on the agenda. We must get those done this year and finally get our alphabet challenges ticked off. Don’t need to finish our J yet. So onto our second lap. This time we’re going straight on rather than round to the left. Yeah. What are you enjoying about being the tail walker? taking these taking those in helping collect up the sides and so on. Aren’t you [Music] We’re just having a sweet break at 2 miles. What are you going for, Ia? So on this lap, we’re enjoying big wide open space, no longer under the trees. Now, the reason it’s called Jersey Farm is because it was a farm. And actually, in the early 1900s, it was owned by a doctor who was the Jersey bit comes cuz he wanted a Jersey cow breed. And he was trying to create milk which wouldn’t give TV. So, um that went through to the 1970s before it was sold. And now um this area is run by the local parish council and it’s got all sorts of environmental awards and so on for the the work it does in planting different trees and and all of that sort of thing. A lovely space for the people of the area to enjoy. And us this morning we do [Music] park. As you come past the sharp right, do look out for the lovely view through the trees, assuming they’re not too um covered in leaves by that summer perhaps, of the church fire. perfectly framed. [Music] We were warned in the first Thomas briefing to be careful of horses, but also the comment was made that actually in 5 years of doing park here, he’s never seen horses, but we have seen the evidence of horses, shall we say, um on the path in one or two places. We’re just coming into the finish. I don’t think Ruth’s up for fierce to the finish. Um, so steady walk into the finish. I knew you would. Thank you. Well done. Well done. Thank you very much. There you go. I was playing I know you’ve had a bit of playground faf time on the way to the cafe. How does that rate? Nah. Nah. Three. A three. Not really your sort of playground. Wait. Three and a half. Three and a half. Yeah. Best bits? That swingy thing that you just go to the Yeah. And but the downside it didn’t really have any climbing bits for you, did it? No. We’ve come to the potting shed cafe in a garden center. [Music] breakfast enjoyed. Iona, how was that? Yeah, good. Tasty. What’s he rate? Five. Five out of five. You not five for your wallet? Not so much a five for my wallet. No, that was definitely I think possibly the most expensive postpart crumb breakfast we’ve enjoyed. Usually they’re about £10 maybe. Yeah. Well, certainly for the four of us under 20 quid and that was over 60. So definitely on the pricey side, but it was very very tasty. Right, time to go and explore St. Alburn’s now. Well, we’ve come into the center of St. Alburn’s now and are exploring through the market with lots of tasty things on offer, wasn’t there? Cheese. Lots of cheese that we tasted, wasn’t there? Yeah, that was delicious. And now we’ve done come to our obligatory when we’re in a new place. Visit the museum for free. And it’s another one with cells, isn’t it, Ia? And it’s free. And it’s free. This one unlike the St. Ne one. Start one. So let’s go and explore the cells. Ah, these are the toilets in a cell. One of the things I wanted to come and see from the time. You don’t think those are what people would have had when they were in prison? Iona. No, that looks very new. Bit too sophisticated for prison toilets. You’ve been a naughty boy. Time to go in the cell. These are just temporary cells where people would have been kept while they’re waiting to be taken up to the court upstairs. So, you can just imagine the prisoners being brought up here ready to be tried. Well, we’ve come up a level now above the courtroom. There’s a very big bird hanging from the ceiling. Huge. A huge [Music] bird. Just seen a sign for John Bull who was here tried by Richard III for leading the peasants revolt back in the 1300s. Oh, it all goes on in St. Alwins. [Music] We have come now from the museum in central town out to the cathedral. As you enter, it has the most incredible stained glass window just up there. Just look at that stained glass window. [Music] So, just been learning a bit more about the freeze here. Um, the freeze dates back to the 1400s, but the statues were all smashed during the reformation, so they were replaced during the Victorian times. And the ceiling up here, the motifs on it are about St. John the Baptist and the evangelist. Uh, so there you go. Bit more history about the place. But as you stand here and then look down the cathedral. Wow. Incredible length to this building. Um, and the organ in front of you. Just found the cathedral seat. And at the very top of the cathedral seat is a statue of St. Alban where of course the town gets its name or is it a city gets its name from. St. Alburn himself is known as the first British martyr. He was originally a Roman soldier, worshiped Roman gods, but converted to Christianity because of a priest he met and actually swapped clothes with him to allow the priest to escape and in his place was martyed because he wouldn’t renounce his faith. The shrine for him was built on this location and then the cathedral that we are now in. So hence St. Alburn’s and the cathedral here. We’re leaving the cathedral behind us now and continuing to follow the recommendations of things to see for the tail walkers we were walking with and popping down to see the lakes now that there are in the park just here down by the lakeside just over there you can see some of the Roman walls remaining of St. Orbin’s. Hope you’ve enjoyed today’s little adventure as we added another letter to our alphabet challenge and explored the beautiful ancient city of St. Albins’s. See you on another little adventure soon. Bye.