Now the most striking difference between the country as we know it and as it was known to the ancients is the existence of the great lake in the centre of the Island. From the Red Rocks (by the Severn) hither, the most direct route a galley can follow is considered to be about 200 miles in length and is a journey which often takes a week even for a vessel well manned, because the course, as it turns round the islands, face many points of the compass, and therefore the oarsmen are sure to have a labour in the teeth of the wind, no matter which way it blows.

After London, Richard Jeffries. 1885

Red Rocks ( by the Severn)

Photograph, found rock