when is the actual proper solstice?

[TaggieCrimbleBlack]

Surely it can't be really the 21st every year?

Any ideas?

And should i go to avebury?

Astronomically it can vary by a few days but is usually on the 21st or 22nd December (in the northern hemisphere obviously) - it's quite difficult to observe the exact moment so most observe the sunrise. An almanac will give you the precise date each year.

I'm not aware that Avebury has any specific alignment to the winter solstice (unlike Stonehenge), but if you go there you wil not be alone!

I think Yule though was in the past a (literally) moveable feast, based on the lunar calender. The two have of course become synonymous.

Avebury is close.

I'd love to go Newgrange for it

I love Newgrange, especially the rock motifs, though from the outside the monument does look a little...err, municipal...

It's a bit clean and tidy isn't it.
Inside is amazing though.

This year the Solstice is at 11:12 a.m. (GMT) on 21st December. It doesn't move to 22nd December until 2015.

There is a list of times/dates of the Equinox and Solstices on Wikipedia here

Avebury will be full of people celebrating, so if you prefer somewhere slightly more spiritual, anywhere with a good view of the South East would be lovely. Let's hope we have a clear dawn.