London solstice

Today is the winter solstice. (Technically, it is the December solstice, which in the northern hemisphere is the winter solstice.) I thought surely there would be many photographic opportunities for the solstice, in and around London. (Solstice is a big deal at Stonehenge, of course, but I envisioned massive crowds today and decided to wait.) So I asked ChatGPT for advice. It provided a remarkable response, listing a half-dozen locations suitable for sunrise, another half-dozen for sunset, and more; it listed specific times, provided information about transport to and from each site; it suggested camera settings; and it even built a busy day-long itinerary for a sequence of sites to visit. Although impressive, I decided to keep it simple and went to Primrose Hill for sunrise.

I actually went there yesterday to scope it out – to verify it provided the sort of views I’d heard described, and to ensure I was prepared for what I might need on arrival this morning. It was a beautiful day, with clear skies but low clouds to the southeast. The sunrise was pretty (above), though not spectacular. (From there, I hiked down the Regent Canal, as in yesterday’s blog post.)

Today I went back to Primrose Hill, ensuring I arrived plenty early. There was a large crowd yesterday – apparently this is a popular site for sunrise – and I expected a bigger crowd for solstice. There was indeed a small crowd, including a photographer with a professional kit who was live-streaming the sunrise.

Sadly, we never saw the sun. The skies were cloudy, the city was foggy, and there was a very light mist falling. Ah, today London lives up to its reputation.

Like nearly everywhere in London, this place is full of history. Three accused murderers were hung on this spot in 1679 [Wikipedia]. Perhaps more curiously, I came across this marker at the center of the summit.

So I looked him up. “In 1792, Primrose Hill was the site of the first meeting of the ‘Gorsedd of the Bards of the Isles of Britain’, organised by the Welsh radical poet and antiquarian Iolo Morganwg. The Gorsedd (a community of bards) took place at a ceremony on 21 June (the summer solstice) and was designed to replicate ancient Druidic rites. A plaque commemorating this event was unveiled in 2009 by… the London Welsh Association.” [Wikipedia]

Ah, so maybe I should return for the summer solstice! I might run into some bards or druids.

Full-res photos in the gallery.