Tamara Way - The Final Section

Yesterday we walked the final section of the Tamara Way. We started at Woolley, and the first part of the walk through the valley of Marsland Water was a real treat. It was lovely to be off-roads, and the woodland and river were really beautiful. I love a bluebell wood at this time of year, and there were plenty about. The route did have a few hills, as we crossed from the Devon to Cornwall sides of the valley.

As we passed through the Marsland Nature Reserve, we went a bit rogue. We decided not to follow the labelled detour because of ash-felling and also crossed the wooden bridge that was marked closed. Neither seemed a problem. Eventually the landscape opened up to a coastal one, and we decided we had to do the extra bit down to the seashore, so we could say we truly had walked coast to coast.

Pink sea thrift was very pretty.

I am not good with heights, and had originally thought I would not walk the coastal route along the cliffs. But decided it would be nice to complete the route in the book, so my husband walked back to Woolley with the dog, and my son and I continued. It turned out the height was not the problem, I think mainly because I was so tired by this point and keen to get to the end of the walk. But the steepness of the path (both up and down) made it very difficult, particularly the sections with steps. I think my knees are not what the once were. But there were some beautiful views, and I wish I had taken a few more photos.

Eventually we turned inland and could see the church and vicarage at Morwenstow, so thought our journey was almost over. But one more adventure. The last field we had to pass through has some very frisky cows, who started to run to meet us. Perhaps to say "charge" would be an exaggeration. There was also a big brown bull, who seemed less interested in us, but looked very imposing. I dived under the barbed wire fence into some nettles, and although my son tried to persuade me they were just curious, we did the last section in the woodland. We joined up with our path, and as we walked up to Morwenstow were treated to a large deer crossing our path. Morwenstow churchyard and church were lovely, and I should have photographed them, but instead we hurried up the hill to The Bush Inn, where my husband was waiting for us with a cold drink. We also decided to have supper there (which was very good) as we watched the sunset. The end of this adventure, we will have to start planning another one.

Tamara Way - Lower Tamar Lake to Woolley

Getting near the end of our long walk. We started at Lower Tamar Lake today, and here is a picture of Upper Tamar Lake, which as you can see was looking glorious in the sunshine. The lower lake is more of a nature reserve, and the upper lake for activities. Even though we had only walked about a mile we stopped at a very nice cafe for an icecream, to give us a bit of energy for the remainder of the walk.

The next bit of the walk was through rural land, with a lovely view looking back to the lake at one point. Our next point of interest was when we reached the River Tamar again. Now it is a small stream. Our route crossed it at Youlstone Bridge, and we knew that this was the last time we would see it. Very hot today, so the dog had a dip, and we had a picnic on a little space next to the river.

And then onwards until we got to the plaque which marks the source of the river.

I was quite interested to see a Neolithic long barrow, which we passed near the junction with the A39. I find this sort of thing really interesting.

And eventually we arrived at Woolley, and decided that was where we would end today's walk. One more section to go, and hopefully we will be able to finish the walk at Easter, with my daughter along as well.

 

Tamara Way - Launcells Barton to Lower Tamar Lake

It has been a bit of a gap since our last walk, but we have done another section of the Tamara Way today, and are pretty sure that two more days walking will get us to the end.

We picked up the route again at the church at Launcells Barton, and once again didn't go in the church, as we had the dog with us. The churchyard was a beautiful mass of primroses and dafodills. 

Quite a steep walk up the hill, and then a bit of confusion about our route through some fields. We were happy to see the River Tamar again at Moreton Mill, and surprised that is still a sizable river. There was then a long stretch along the Bude Aqueduct, where we passed a friendly group of volunteers clearing the undergrowth. This is a disused canal, but is a great route for walkers, and our dog enjoyed some off lead time.

And before we knew it we had reached the Lower Tamar Lake, where a friendly couple who were filling up birdfeeders helped us with our route, and told us about some of the wildlife there. Beavers have been introduced, and there are some bird hides. It seems like it deserves another visit to walk the whole way around.

 

Tamara Way - Bridgerule to Launcells Barton

It has been quite a while since our last walk on the Tamara Way. We are getting a bit further from home now, so it is taking a bit more organising. But today we kicked off again from Bridgerule. My husband headed off to Widemouth Bay with the dog, and we arranged to meet up later at the end of our walk.

It was very nice to catch some glimpses of the sea, and despite my idea that we just head to the coast and say we have walked from south coast to north, my son is determined that we do the walk properly. The view above was so much more dramatic than it looks in my photo. We had just climbed a steep hill after Hobbacott Farm, and I was enjoying having a rest.

We ended today's walk at Launcells Barton, where the route now doesn't go near the house, which seems to have become a wedding venue.  We enjoyed seeing the church in the evening light, and St. Swithin's Holy Well below. Reading our Tamara book it sounds like the church would have been interesting to look around, so this is our plan for the beginning of the next stage.

 

Wee Mousie

I realise I posted this picture on Instagram, but didn't write about it on my blog. I have been working on this Wee Mousie. I thought as the wool is a mixture of Scottish breeds (Boreray, Shetland and Soay) it would be a good idea to link it to Robert Burns poem To a Mouse or perhaps I should say Tae a Mouse. Rereading the poem it really is a bit sad, written after Burns who farmed had ploughed through a mouse nest in his field.

The wool is really suitable to knit a little mouse. It has the perfect texture, and is laceweight, so took a bit more knitting than you would imagine. The wool was from Blacker Yarns Bristish Breeds Scottish Lace. I had the idea it might make a good project kit, but as little mouse only took 5g, either the skeins will need to be split, or a kit would contain enough to make a whole infestation.

But at the moment I am still not happy with the pattern anyway. He looks cute in the photo, but something is a bit wrong with his legs, which I have managed to hide in this photo. My husband also says he is a bit fat, but I am fine with that. So at the moment he is sitting in a coffee cup in my kitchen, and I am gearing myself up to have another attempt. 

I was rather pleased with the photos that I took to advertised the wool. Have to own up that this was not a Scottish thistle, but totally Cornish.

 

Wild Flowers - An Education

I sort of consider that I have a fairly good knowledge of wild flowers, but this week I have had a bit of an education in more than one way. This tiny flower above is all over the place at the moment - in hedgerows, growing out of walls. And it has been frustrating me not knowing what it is. I have several wild flower books, and despite leafing through them several times, it is only this morning that I have worked out that this is the navelwort or pennywort, so named because the dimple on the round leaves looks a bit like a navel. My book says it is found more in the west of Britain than the east, which might be why I had not come across it before.

The second part of my flower eduction is a bit more serious. My daughter was down here for a while, and just before getting her train asked if I would pick a few wild flowers. So I rushed out and picked a few buttercups, red campions, one of my special oxeye daisies, and what I thought was a bit of cow parsley. Off she went with her flowers held together with string and newspaper. A few days later my husband was out with his strimmer, and came in and started pouring over his laptop. "That flower on the slope isn't cow parsley he announced, but hemlock!" The flower a bit similar, but a much bigger plant with a distinctive spotty stem. Well we are all okay. I was slightly more worried for him, as he had been strimming near the plant, and spent the evening asked him if he felt alright. I also can't believe I sent my daughter off with a bunch flowers from the most poisonous plant in the UK. She is fine too, and I guess we have all learned something.

Tamara Way - Lifton to Boyton

Another section of the Tamara Way, and this time we decided to get a few more miles under our belts. It was the perfect day for walking - sunny but with a slight breeze. All of this section of the walk was on lanes, so no muddy patches, but also meant we decided not to bring the dog, as she loves being off-lead for at least some parts of a walk.

As you will see it was very much a leg for seeing animals. These mares and foals were having a lovely time just before we crossed the River Carey at Heale Bridge in the picture below.

We enjoyed this view of Launceston Castle, making us realise we were not really far from home, although once we had crossed the A388 it really felt very rural and quite remote.

At Crossgate my son made friends with this young cat - he is a "cat whisperer" as they always seem to like him.

A little later we surprised a fox crossing a field, but I was not quick enoough with my phone. And then we met these ladies, who were very curious about us.

It was nice to see the River Tamar again, which was much smaller than when we last crossed it at Horsebridge. For a while as we were walking near it we saw a lot of dragonflies and damselflies. Really beautiful blues.

Finally as we were approaching Boyton we passed a field with some lovely sheep and lambs, in with some cows with calves. These three were very confident and seemed to want to be photographed.

We waited for my husband by the Methodist Church in Boyton, where there was a very welcome bench.

Tamara Way - Kelly to Lifton

Our final part of this stage, and this time I had my son, daughter and dog for company. My husband tells me that each section we walk less distance, but I say we are trying to maximise the enjoyment. He is right though, and I think it is partly because we are getting very close to where we live. At the start where we had quite a long journey to the walk, it felt like we should do the maximum amount of walking we could. After this section we are north of our home, and hopefully we will start to have that mind set again.

Setting off from Kelly we passed through fields of sheep. When we got near the woodland, which was very beautiful, but the path was extremely muddy.

More fields and sheep, and we found the snack hut at Turchington, which was very welcome. From here we could look across the valley, and although we couldn't see our house which is in trees, we could spot all the fields around it.

 

The walk down hill to the River Lyd was very welcome. Here is a view as we crossed Lifton Bridge, and another of St. Mary's Church.

My husband was waiting for us at the car park of the Arundell Arms. I had the idea that we could stop there for coffee, but we were in quite a muddy state, so we headed home.

Ryeland

Could you photograph Rylan, I thought they said! And I started dreaming. My first celebrity photoshoot. Imagining him with those purly white teeth, perhaps wearing a purly white jumper, or maybe black, he often wears black. Alas, I was mistaken! 

Here is the Ryeland that I photographed. Equally lovely, this Ryeland from one of Britain’s oldest sheep breeds, originally known for Merino-like softness. It has just been launched by Blacker Yarns in their Limited Edition and Rare Breeds. If you visit their page you can read more information, and see some lovely photos of the flock that this wool came from.

 

Samite Silk Blend - Morte d'Arthur

I almost forgot that I have one more series of photos to show you that I took to illustrate Blacker Yarns new Samite silk blend. This book was my father-in-law's school prize, Le Morte d'Arthur by Thomas Malory. Volume 2 - so I wonder if he also won Volume 1?

 

I decided to use some of the new range of Samite yarn to make some patches with an Arthurian theme, and sewed them together to make a bookmark.

The beautiful plates in the book were part of the inspiration for the patterns used on the wool bands and colourcard.

 

Samite Silk Blend - St. Nectan's Glen

I had said I would post a few of the other photos that I took for Blacker Yarns new birthday range, Samite Silk Blend. After a lovely time swimming at Bossiney Bay, my daughter and I walked up to St. Nectan's Glen. This is a really magical place, with associations with Arthurian legend.

The site gets its name from a sixth century saint who is said to have lived in a hermitage cell here. It is also said that this holy site was where the Knights of the Round Table were blessed before setting out on the Quest for the Holy Grail.

The waterfall is very tall, and shoots through this hole in the rocks. I have also changed the photo in my banner heading, which is prayer ribbons tied in the trees around the valley.

Although at first I thought that the valley was going to be a bit dark for photos, but just as I needed it there was a golden evening glow.

Samite Silk Blend

I have been absolutely itching to post this video, which I made to advertise Blacker Yarn's new limited edition birthday yarn, which is launched today. The advert has been put near the top of the Blacker Yarns website. This yarn called Samite Silk Blend is made from 15% recycled silk 85% wool, and feels lovely and soft, and comes in a range of rich colours, named after characters from the Legend of King Arthur.

The filming took place on Dartmoor at sunset, and also at dawn in our field. It has taken a lot of planning and thought. On the Dartmoor shoot me and my husband spent quite a while avoiding groups of walkers. When we got home we realised that we had completely forgotten it was our wedding anniversary, which was fine because we had both forgotten. But making the film was such fun this is probably going to be more memorable than other years.

I have quite a few still photos that I have taken at other locations, and will post a few in a separate post.

Naming the Weeds

 

 

I've been doing some tidying up of the vegetable garden, and as I pull out the weeds I like to name them. I suspect I am not alone, as gardeners like plants, and these are nice flowers, just in the wrong place. I am only including in this post plants I have pulled up today.

But I have to confess that the lovely forget-me-nots and poppies above are really my own fault. The first year we were here I decided the veg plot should have a wild flower area, and these were two of the flowers that I planted. My husband warned me, but they are still coming up everywhere.

The bindweed below is another beauty, but it grows everywhere, and I am less tolerant about it as it just strangles the other plants.

 

Ragwort is another stunning flower, but am also a bit wary of it, as it is poisonous to animals. It grows in our field, but has also started coming up in the veg garden.

 

The thistle is also stunning, but gardening gloves are essential.

Here is the scarlet pimpernel (not elusive in my garden) and herb robert. Both lovely little flowers in the right place.

I have pulled up quite a few dandelions today. A really useful plant, as you can use flowers, leaves and roots.

And finally the rosebay willow herb. I see this everywhere as I drive in the countryside.