St George's Church, Woolhope

A Tale of Old Ropes

When two bell ropes at Woolhope broke in quick succession during practices earlier this year and the remaining four ropes were found to be suspect, it was time for urgent action! On good advice, we decided to invest in new Polyester tops (each about 60 ft long) to be spliced onto the existing tail ends (the bit with the fluffy sally). The ropes were taken off the wheels, measured, quotes obtained and dates agreed with Avon Ropes near Bristol for the work to be carried out.

After Evensong service at the end of June the bells at Woolhope became silent so that all 6 ropes could be taken to Avon Ropes for repair. Then a mere two weeks later we were advised the work had been done and they were ready for collection! What better excuse could there be for the bellringers to make this into a day’s outing – ringing at two towers on the way down to Avon Ropes, firstly at Upper Cam and then at Wotton under Edge followed by lunch at Chipping Sodbury.

When we arrived at Avon Ropes, we were invited to have a look at the rope making process – what a treat! The expected 15 minute guided talk extended to 2 hours with lots of questions and explanations while the staff demonstrated the different stages of making bell ropes. A very enjoyable and enlightening day for all of us!

Thanks to Phil and Steph for their help in taking down the ropes, delivering them to Avon Ropes and subsequently putting the ropes back on the wheels. Also to Nick for driving the mini bus. To Phil at Avon Ropes for giving us the opportunity to see how ropes are made and finally to Sylvia for her generous donation which made it all possible!