‘Pommie Pilgrims’ complete 37 mile pilgrimage from Southwell Minster to Lincoln Cathedral

A pair of ‘Pommie Pilgrims’ have successfully completed a 37 mile pilgrimage after setting off from Southwell Minster.

Lisa Bingham and Saffron Baker finished their trek at Lincoln Cathedral this week, heading along country lanes and cycleways through Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire villages.

The Pommie Pilgrims are more than two dozen walkers who are aiming to trek to all 42 Anglican Cathedrals to raise money for toilets, kitchen facilities, and a warm space for their 12th century All Saints Church in the Peak District village of Youlgrave, before All Saints Day.

Lincoln is the 39th Cathedral to be reached, with only Bradford, Oxford and Liverpool cathedrals remaining, and they were met by Dean’s Verger Ian Taylor having received a blessing on their way from Cannon Richard at Southwell Minster earlier in the year.

Lisa and Saffron both have connections with Southwell, with Saffron’s daughter studying Horse Management at Brackenhurst College, the same campus and the same course as Lisa 30 years earlier.

Lisa said: “It’s rare to find the time just to walk in a straight line from one place to another, that’s the meditation of pilgrimage. And to walk between two such amazing historic buildings with friends is a joy.

“We’re better on the flat so this was a good choice for us and we got the chance to call in at a lot of other small village churches along the way, most of which had loos and one of which had strong connections with Derbyshire as the infamous vicar of Eyam preached there after the plague.

“Our village church holds a huge significance for our community and me personally, this project has inspired all sorts of people to get involved, walking, or supporting others. It will be wonderful to futureproof our own historic building for years to come.”

The Pommie Pilgrims, named for the sound of the village band, started their walk on Palm Sunday, March 24, and hope to have reached all 42 cathedrals by All Saints’ Day on November 1.

The walkers are well on their way to raising £42,000 towards All Saints’ renovations, the full cost of which is still being researched.

Rev Canon Jane Clay, chairman of the Pommie Pilgrimage organising group, said: “Our hope to connect Youlgrave with each Cathedral in the country via pilgrimage is a huge challenge and feels like an impossible task, but one step at a time, together, we’ll get there.

“We’re not expecting to raise this amount of money by being sponsored a penny a mile, but if you’re able to spend more than a penny for our loos, please do get in touch.”