NE England in July, Plus: Archaeology!

In My Humble Opinion
1

I’m going to England in July for an archaeology field school at the Roman fort at Binchester. “Excited” is an insufficient word to describe me at this point. I want to prepare as much as I can in advance. So -

What can you tell me about this part of England in the summer? Anyone know the town itself or the surrounding area? I’ve already got some briefing material from the project lead, but I’d like to flesh it out. Weekends are going to be free time, with some pre-arranged excursions, but what might I look to visit on my own?

Has anybody been to a field school before? What bits of kit did you wish you’d had along?

Any good recommendations for arranging international flights on a student’s budget?
What would you like me to bring back? :wink:
ETA: Also, how does one pronounce “Binchester”? I don’t want to sound like a complete git.

2

I don’t know anything about that part of England but I majored in archaeology and participated in one field school a few summers ago.

I would say the two most important things are: your trowel, and your hat. Make sure you get a nice wide-brimmed hat. I don’t know how hot it will be in your area, but I was up in a mountain in Arizona and would have been horribly uncomfortable without my hat. Your trowel is also very important because you will be using it a lot, and if you get a crappy quality trowel, it’s gonna suck. Make sure you buy a proper archaeological trowel–I see they recommend one on the website. Bring ibuprofen or aspirin for aches and pains (I’m sure you can buy it in the UK, but if you have some preferred brand…)

Bring clothes you no longer want. They WILL get destroyed–all my jeans got holes in the knees and in the back pockets (don’t put your trowel there if you want to preserve your pants!) You will get absolutely filthy. I haven’t been so dirty since I was in pre-school, I’m pretty sure. Of course, also bring some nice clothes for weekends/relaxing in. Get a good sturdy back pack as well–don’t know how much hiking will be involved for you, but we had to do quite a bit and my dinky cheap little backpack didn’t cut it once I packed up all my stuff into it (I had to buy a new one).

Definitely take advantage of your time there and go on as many trips as possible, even if you’re exhausted after digging all week! It will be worth it. Try your very best to get along with everyone–on my trip, we were up in the mountains all alone for three weeks and it was like an episode of Survivor or something. If people get catty, make sure you don’t get caught up in the drama. This may be less of an issue if you are actually in a town and can easily escape from each another.

STA travel can be a good resource for arranging flights, if you want a travel agent. Otherwise, find a flight yourself using a site like kayak.com.

Have fun! On my 3-week field school I was constantly filthy (we could only shower once every 2 days or so), freezingly cold at night and insanely hot during the day. One night there was a thunderstorm so loud that I couldn’t sleep – and then it started raining. There were scorpions in our shoes and hundreds of cicada larvae in the ground. Everyone got so sunburned that we probably increased our chances of skin cancer by a sizable margin. It was still worth every moment and it’s a great memory!

3

I come from the north of England. The weather will alternate between moderately warm (warm enough to wear shorts and a tee-shirt outside and get sunburnt) and pouring down. Midges may also be a problem.

The north-east coast is easily one of the most spectacular pieces of coast line in the UK, especially as you get closer to the border with Scotland, and the Northumberland National Park is also very nice. Lindisfarne and Bamburgh castle are good visits. You’re also close to a few major conurbations in Newcastle, Sunderland and Middlesborough, as well as the major cities of Yorkshire, and the Yorkshire Dales. Durham is also a university town with a very old and famous university. You’re not too far away from Hadrian’s wall which also has many Roman forts spaced along it.

I don’t know where you’re from, but native northern accents also tend to be impenetrable, especially in more rural places.

4

I think it’s pronounced pretty much the way the way you’d expect (or the way an English person would expect anyway): BINchestuh (emphasis on the Bin, forget about the “r” at the end). I very much doubt it’s one of those place names with a “trick” pronunciation – and if it is, no-one you meet is likely to know or care. Binchester itself (which is separate from the roman site) appears to consist of 60-odd pit cottages on a country lane in between two minor towns. Nobody more than five miles away will have heard of it.

Pronunciations you’re more likely to need are:
Bishop Auckland: Bish’pAWKl’nd
Spennymoor: SPENNymoo-uh
Durham: DUR’m

Don’t worry if the local accent is difficult to understand – you’re in the southern reaches of the Pitmatic accent there. Geordies struggle to follow it.

5

I did a 7-week field school, but it was in Bulgaria, in really hot and dry weather. So clothes-wise most of my experience wouldn’t apply.

To bring:
Clothes you won’t mind being completely destroyed
work gloves
pointing trowel
Hat
hiking boots or work boots with good socks.
Reusable water bottle.
Any OTC medications you usually need – not that they won’t have something similar in England, but its a pain trying to figure out what’s what with unfamiliar meds. If you are a girl, this goes triple for your preferred menstrual product.
A couple of bandannas or cotton cloths, for wrapping up your hair, your snacks, your mouth, etc on a dusty day, 1001 uses.
Some ziplock bags in various sizes and a sharpie (archaeologists never go anywhere without ziploc bags and a sharpie.)
You might need a rock hammer (a mini pickaxe) or not – if its not on your to-bring list provided by the dig, I wouldn’t worry about it.
Some books or magazines you’de be willing to trade when you’re done with them
Good sense of humor
tolerance for dirt EVERYWHERE
Alcohol tolerance
Extra condoms, even if you don’t think you’ll need them

The one item I wouldn’t skimp on is a durable, breathable raincoat. Many moons ago I went hiking in northern Englan in July, and it rained most days, but it wasn’t cold. You’d get sweaty inside your raincoat, or rained on without it.

6

Hi History Geek, you’re going to have a great time. Field school is about the most fun you can have while being exhausted, filthy, confused, hungover, sunburned, and did I mention hungover? I’m a professional archaeologist in California and when I take my crew out, I expect each person to have the following:

A trowel - either pointing or margin. It’s kind of a personal preference but make sure it’s a Marshalltown, there is no substitute.
A hat - something with a brim, not a ball cap - you will spend an inordinate amount of time looking down (either the ground or a screen) and the back of your neck and ears will get roasted.
A clipboard.
One sharpie, one mechanical pencil, and one black pen. Sharpies will become scarcer than artifacts a couple of weeks into the job. You can never have enough.
An orange vest - I wear a heavy canvas one like this because I use it all year round and it keeps most of the stuff I constantly use at hand, but you may not want to spend $80 for something you’re only going to use for a bit. They have ones that are much cheaper at pretty much any hardware store.
A poncho or rain slicker - mandatory if you are water screening.
A personal notebook - I like the Rite in the Rain brand but any small, hardback journal type book will do. You’ll want to record each day’s events, impressions, artifacts, etc. I’ve been doing this for years and now have loads of paperwork I have to do everyday, but I still write in my field book at several times over the course of the day.
A protractor and scaled ruler for mapping.
A compass with an adjustable declination.
A good pair of gloves - I see most guys using something like these fingerless ones so that you can pick stuff out of a screen and take notes without taking your gloves off.

Those are the basics. Depending on the site, you may need a hard hat as well.

Sunscreen is not a joke. I have almost 20 years in this field and skin cancer is starting to rear it’s head amongst my contemporaries. You may also want to check on any geographically specific bacteria or viruses you may be exposed to. In parts of CA, we have Valley Fever which can be really devastating.

At some point, someone will tell you that to test if something is bone, put it on your tongue and see if it sticks. Now, this is true - bone will stick to your tongue. However, this is considered bad form if you’re working a site with human remains.

Ask questions, listen more than you speak. Read the dirt, it is telling you the story of how and why the artifacts are where they are.

And finally - always, always, always work from your known into your unknown.

7

Just a few local notes on Ol’Gaffer’s expert advice:

…or soaked and/or chilled, depending on how July decides to treat us this year. It’s theoretically the height of summer, but last July was grey, damp and miserable for the most part (which doesn’t mean you won’t roast this year). So you may want more than one hat.

You might want to think about some waterproof over-trousers, too. If it does rain, I imagine you’ll be spending most days kneeling in puddles.

Ditto the sunscreen. We don’t get California sun here, but it still burns.

As far as bacteria and viruses go, I’m not an expert, so by all means check, but I suspect the Durham countryside is about as benign as you could hope for. We don’t even have poison ivy. Any problematic bacteria, viruses or rashes are more likely to be encountered during your free time (see Hello Again’s advice on condoms).

On which note: if anyone suggests getting a parmo on the way home from the pub, just say no. :wink:

Quite right: please do not lick our ancestors.

About clothes: there’s simply no way to predict what the weather’s going to be like, I’m afraid, so pack with layering in mind. I’m assuming you’ll be staying in the dorms at Durham University, so keeping yourself clean won’t be a problem, but laundry might become an issue, particularly if it does turn wet.

8

Aye, archaeologists are a randy bunch. Hooking up in the field is pretty common.

Second the Marshalltown Trowel. If you haven’t read it yet be the first in your class to read The Golden Marshalltown by Kent Flannery.

I would also recommend something like powdered Gatorade. And I don’t know how warm it gets where you are going but consider some Gold Bond powder or other talc/baby powder. Just don’t mix up the Gatorade with the Gold Bond…

9

Yeah it turns out if you put 20 to 60 college kids together in a remote location, thousands of miles from home with only equally horny grad students to supervise them, all of them physically fit or becoming more so with every pound of dirt they sift… they have sex. My roommate, a Kosovar, had a mad, very secret affair with Serbian student. Field school sex knows no national borders nor, apparently, condition of open war (this was summer of 1996).

A couple more handy items, if you have the room
-deck of cards or Uno deck
-corkscrew/bottle opener – in your checked luggage so TSA doesn’t swipe it (although on field school I did learn how to open a bottle of wine using only a handy vertical surface, a towel, and the laws of physics). see also, pocket knife/multitool.
-a couple t-shirts with your university logo or hometown sports team to trade with the friends you make (I still have my “American University in Bulgaria” tee… )

10

This particular location isn’t that remote, of course. It’s just outside Bishop Auckland town centre – about twenty minutes walk from the nearest McDonalds.

Not that that would rule out sex and drink, naturally, which in this case would come under “participating in local customs and by-ways”.

11

Wow. Never thought I’d see that referenced on here. Very cool. When I was first starting out and was just starting to get paid to dig; someone would invariably dig out an ancient photocopy of a photocopy of a photocopy of this article and pass it around to the rookies. It’s a classic. It’s also the source of the great (and true for many of us) motto - Archaeology is the most fun you can have with your pants on.

12

Thanks to all of you for the tips and intel, especially on the local area! I ticked off several preliminary arrangements on my list today, each one making me feel that much closer to leaving and that much more excited.

I was fairly certain I was ahead of the game having a field school that offered indoor accommodations with access to laundry facilities, having heard my professor’s stories of camping on sites. Now I’m sure of it. I hope it doesn’t spoil me too much. :smiley:

And I solemnly promise not to lick anyone’s ancestors. At least not any dead ones. I am really looking forward to visiting the local pubs. Upwards of 5 or 6 pints, I get kinda licky. :wink:

13

Remember our pints are 20% bigger than yours!

Durham’s on the main East Coast railway line, so it’s really easy to get up to Newcastle if you fancy seeing a larger city - takes about 20 minutes or so…

14

That’s right. London and Edinburgh are other possible day-trip destinations (though not on the same day).

15

If you do want to travel by train, buy your tickets in advance; many routes are very expensive to buy tickets for on the day.

If you make it up here and I’m free, I’ll buy you a pint in Edinburgh!

16

You’re also reasonably close to York for a day trip – that’s a city that’s not to be missed!

17

Less than an hour away, and it’s full of Roman stuff!

18

Now, I have to be honest…if you don’t need malaria pills and vaccinations - it isn’t real archaeology.

I wonder what my professor who specialized in Iron Age Germany would say about that…

19

Also, when you are sitting around one night drinking with everyone after a day of digging, just make that casual comment that Binford is a pompous windbag and see how the PI and grad students respond…

20

Lucky dog. That’s a beautiful area of England. Definitely try to get to Bamburgh Castle; it is fascinating. I loved Edinburgh, too. Bed and breakfasts in England and Scotland are the way to go for short stays if you travel overnight. Try smoothound for those.