• About my Blog
  • GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations) and This Site
  • My Life in a Suffolk Lane

A Suffolk Lane

~ A diary of my life in rural north Suffolk.

A Suffolk Lane

Tag Archives: sheep

Autumn Berries and Fruit

23 Thu Nov 2017

Posted by Clare Pooley in Rural Diary, walking

≈ 74 Comments

Tags

autumn, berries, blackthorn, colourful leaves, countryside, field maple, haws, Hawthorn, Holly, ivy, rosehips, sheep, sloes, Suffolk, walking, wild fruits

Richard asked me if I’d like to accompany him to the post-box down the lane.  He had a birthday card to post to his brother and also a notice to put on the village notice-board.  The weather was fine, though cloudy and we hadn’t walked anywhere together for a few weeks.  I quickly put on my coat and walking shoes and we set off.

The hedge on the opposite side of the lane was pale green and orange.

The hedges still had a few leaves left on them. This is a Field Maple (Acer campestre) hedge.  Not in focus, but I liked the colours.

A gap in the hedge further along the lane gave us a sight of the tower belonging to All Saints church.  It is surrounded by trees, most of which have lost their leaves now.  The field has been sown with barley or wheat which has germinated and will continue to grow on milder days all through the winter.

All Saints church in the distance

Some of the more sheltered Field Maple trees still had leaves.

This fine-looking old house near us has been empty for some time.

Richard proudly demonstrates his posting technique!

We met a neighbour and chatted with her for some time.  I admired the fine cherry tree in her front garden.

Our neighbour’s beautiful cherry tree.

We walked on to the notice-board and then decided to continue down the lane.

A row of Italian Alders (Alnus cordata) were planted some years ago as a wind-break along the edge of a field.  The cones are much larger than our native Alder cones.

Italian Alder cones

Our local stream, The Beck, has been dry for months.  We have not had enough rainfall this year.

The Beck

Another pretty hedge

The Guelder-rose trees (Viburnum opulus) have been beautiful this autumn! I have never seen so much viburnum fruit before!

Here is another Guelder-rose.

This is a Spindle tree (Euonymus europaeus) in the hedgerow

Here is the pretty pink and orange spindle fruit

This is a picture of the lane along which we walked

There were a few sloes left on the Blackthorns (Prunus spinosa)

A few Common Hawthorn berries (haws) too (Crataegus monogyna)

A view over the hedge to the fields beyond. The skies were clearing.

This tree-trunk was covered with Ivy stems (Hedera helix). It attaches itself to trees, fences and walls by short roots and can completely cover tall trees. A Dog Rose (Rosa canina) stem hung in front of the tree.

Rosehip

Bird’s nests are easier to see now that the leaves are falling from the trees

Puddles were full of leaves and reflections

We walked through St Margaret South Elmham churchyard and Richard sat for a while to rest his back.

A late rose was blooming

The Holly (Ilex aquifolium) had a few berries on it

Our Blackberries (Bramble) (Rubus fruticosus agg.) were very poor this year because of the low rainfall. Even the mice and birds didn’t chose to eat these ones which have been left to shrivel on the vine.

I am not sure whether these fruits are Blackthorn or Bullace (a type of wild plum). 

Autumn leaves

Sheep were being grazed on the common at the end of our lane

This sheep was happy to stop and stare

We soon arrived back home, having been away a lot longer than we had originally intended.

This was a walk we took a fortnight ago and after a couple of frosts and some strong wind last night most of the remaining leaves have fallen from the trees.  The countryside looks ready for winter now.

My music choice today is ‘Somewhere in my Heart’ by Aztec Camera.  There is no special reason for my choice except I like it and am amazed it is thirty years old!

Thanks for visiting!

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Tumblr
  • Print
  • Pocket
  • LinkedIn

Like this:

Like Loading...

A Walk in the Goyt Valley – Peak District Holiday

05 Thu Nov 2015

Posted by Clare Pooley in churches, Days out, domestic animals, plants, Rural Diary, walking, wild birds

≈ 38 Comments

Tags

Bakewell, bridge, Butterbur, Canada Goose, Coot, donkey, ducks, eyebright, Fernilee Reservoir Dam, Field Scabious, Goosander, Goyt Vallry, Great Burnet, Greater Bird's-foot-trefoil, gulls, harebell, marble galls, Peak District, River Goyt, River Wye, sheep, St James' church Taxal, Taxal, Water Mint, watercress, Whaley Bridge, White Beak-sedge

The day after our walk on Ramshaw Rocks we met Alice and Elinor in Bakewell so that we could see how they were and have a meal with them.  They travelled to Bakewell on the bus after Alice had finished work for the day in Sheffield.  We went for a coffee together and told them the sad news of Richard’s mum’s death.  They were both upset but were grateful that we had waited so that we could tell them face-to-face.  We then went for a walk through the town and ended up by the river – our favourite spot.

IMG_5505Bridge

The attractive old bridge over the river Wye.

IMG_5496Duck's nest

There is always plenty to see on the river. This duck sitting on her nest, for example.

IMG_5498Female Goosander

A female Goosander (Mergus merganser)

IMG_5500Coot

A Coot (Fulica atra)

IMG_5502Gulls and Canada Geese

Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) and Gulls

IMG_5507Duck

A duck – partly Mallard I think!

After a pleasant meal together Richard and I saw the girls onto their bus and then we returned to our caravan.

The following day we went for a walk along the valley of the River Goyt.  We left the car in a lay-by just south of Whaley Bridge and followed a track, steep at first, from the lay-by down through woodland towards the River Goyt.

IMG_5509R on walk

Richard on the track through the wood.

The day was very cloudy and there were frequent showers of rain but they weren’t heavy and didn’t diminish the pleasure of our walk.  Richard had walked here very often when he was younger, either with the Scouts or with friends but the area was new to me.

IMG_5510Field Scabious

A Field Scabious flower (Knautia arvensis)

IMG_5512Meadow

A meadow between the track and the river (which is under the trees).

IMG_5513R Goyt

The River Goyt

IMG_5515Cattle

Cattle

R. Goyt
R. Goyt
R. Goyt
R. Goyt
IMG_5517Meadow

The meadows next to the river were pleasant to walk across.  You can see from this photo how gloomy the day was.

IMG_5519Eyebright

Eyebright (Euphrasia officinalis agg)

IMG_5521Harebells

Harebells (Campanula rotundifolia)

IMG_5522Greater Bird's-foot Trefoil and other plants

Greater Bird’s-foot-trefoil (Lotus pedunculatus)

IMG_5523Little cascade

A little cascade

IMG_5524R Goyt

The River Goyt with a wooden bridge just visible under the trees.

IMG_5525R Goyt

River Goyt

IMG_5527Wild Rhubarb

Richard walking along the track next to Wild Rhubarb/Butterbur (Petasites hybridus). It was about as tall as me (5′ 4″)

We were making our way towards some water-works buildings.  I took some photographs of them and some plants I saw but (fortunately for you!) they didn’t come out.  The light wasn’t good enough I think.

We walked up the very steep drive belonging to the waterworks and then, at the top, turned towards the road that crosses Fernilee Reservoir Dam.

IMG_5528Goyt Reservoir

The reservoir

IMG_5530Old Bridge

I liked the look of this old bridge from the road to a maintenance building.

Richard told me that this bridge is probably an original one for the dam and therefore quite old.  Bridges aren’t built this way any more.

IMG_5531Goyt Valley

We then walked back along the other side of the river which is down in the trees below.  There were some lovely views from the path.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

IMG_5536Ferns Moss and grass

A variety of plants and textures

IMG_5539Great Burnet

We saw some beautiful Great Burnet flowers (Sanguisorba officinalis) in the field next to the path.

IMG_5541Great Burnet

Great Burnet – these plants are becoming increasingly rare as water-meadows are drained.

IMG_5542could be water-cress

This could be Water-cress (Rorippa nasturtium-aquaticum)

IMG_5543Water mint

Water Mint (Mentha aquatica)

IMG_5545White Beak-sedge

White Beak-sedge (Rhynchospora alba)

IMG_5546Oak galls

Marble Galls on Oak.

Sheep
Sheep
Sheep
Sheep
IMG_5549Church

We eventually got to the hamlet of Taxal where we had a look at the church dedicated to St James.

IMG_5550Donkey

We found a very friendly donkey in the churchyard wearing a rather fetching veil.

This donkey had a job to do – eating its way through all the overgrown grass and plants in the yard.  The veil kept the flies out of its eyes.

IMG_5551Donkey

I like donkeys!

IMG_5552Church

St James’ church

River Goyt
River Goyt
River Goyt
River Goyt
IMG_5556Wooden bridge

We crossed the river by a wooden bridge, walked up the steep path to the lay-by and found our car again.

Thanks for visiting!

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Tumblr
  • Print
  • Pocket
  • LinkedIn

Like this:

Like Loading...

A Walk in the Peak District.

17 Sat Oct 2015

Posted by Clare Pooley in Days out, Insects, plants, Rural Diary, trees, walking

≈ 45 Comments

Tags

butterfly, caves, Manifold Valley, Peak District, plants, sheep, squash stile, Thor's Cave, walking, Wetton, wild flowers

Not only did we have a week’s holiday in the Lake District this summer but we also went to the Peak District for a week.  I have already told you about the sad start to this break – the death of my mother-in-law on the day of our arrival.  We spent the first full day of our holiday with my brother-in-law but after that there wasn’t anything else to do but wait until we were told by the Coroner that we could arrange the funeral.

We thought we might as well stay in the Peaks and not abandon our holiday.  If Chris (my brother-in-law) needed us we would be close at hand.  We thought we would find comfort in walking in this beautiful part of the country.

After lunch on Saturday 15th August we drove to the village of Wetton in Staffordshire from where we intended to walk along the Manifold Valley.  We drove along a very scenic road en route to Wetton.

IMG_5345The Roaches and Hen Cloud from top road

The Roaches and Hen Cloud (the nearest hill) seen from the road.

IMG_5346View from top road

Another view of The Roaches. The Rocks look like spikes on the spine of a dinosaur.

IMG_5348View from top road

We could just see the Welsh hills on the far horizon beyond the flat Cheshire Plain.

We got to Wetton and found the car park near the centre of the village.  The buildings and houses in the village are mainly made of stone and the church, which was built in the 14th century has an exterior staircase to the belfrey which contains six bells.  The Royal Oak pub, which owns a camping field next to the car park is also the venue for the World Toe Wrestling Championships which began in the 1970’s!

IMG_5349Barn

One of the buildings of Wetton.

IMG_5350Squash stile

Another of those squash stiles which let tall and/or thin people through but not livestock or short people with generously proportioned legs etc.

IMG_5351R and river valley ahead

Richard and I crossed this field which sloped steeply down into the deep valley of the River Manifold.

IMG_5352Cow pat

There were many hazards.

IMG_5355Seed-head

A colourful seed-head – probably Hogweed (Heracleum sphondylium).  We also saw a number of Betony (Stachys officinalis) flowers but none of my photos were any good.

IMG_5354Down to river valley

The route down to the river valley

At the bottom of the field we crossed a couple of stiles and entered a wood.

IMG_5358Walk through the wood

Path through the wood

IMG_5359Rhododendron leaves

Lots of invasive Rhododendron seedlings

IMG_5360Steps up through wood

Steps up through the woods

IMG_5362Steps up through wood

Yet more steps! Gasp! Puff!

We were going to see Thor’s Cave.

IMG_5365Thor's cave

Thor’s Cave

This is a Karst Cave i.e. it was formed from the dissolution of soluble limestone.  The entrance is just over 18m up on the hillside and the opening is a symmetrical arch, 7.5m wide and 10m high.  I don’t think there is any connection between this cave and the god Thor; the name probably derives from the word ‘tor’ meaning a hill or rocky peak.   I was most disappointed to find that I didn’t have the ability to climb up to the entrance from the path.  I had to wait outside while Richard explored inside.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

You can see minute-me waving at Richard in one of the photos above.  This will give you some idea of the size of the cave.

IMG_5391Thor's cave

This is what the entrance to the cave looks like from the path below.

While Richard enjoyed himself in the cave, I kept myself busy looking for things to photograph outside.

IMG_5377Hare bells (2)

Harebells (Campanula rotundifolia) growing out of a crevice in the stone.

IMG_5380Tiny maidenhair spleenwort

A tiny Maidenhair Spleenwort (Asplenium trichomanes).

IMG_5382Jacob's Ladder

Jacob’s-ladder (Polemonium caeruleum)

IMG_5383Another cave

I saw another cave entrance below us.

After Richard emerged from the cave we walked back down to the valley-floor.

IMG_5387Vegetation in the valley

Lots of different plants grew in the scree and rocks of the river-bed alongside the path. There were many wild raspberry canes with ripe fruit but again my camera failed to focus on them.

IMG_5392Meadow Crane's-bill

Meadow Crane’s-bill (Geranium pratense) next to the path.

IMG_5393Meadow Crane's-bill

I’m including another photo of these flowers because I like them! You can see that the seed-heads look a little bit like crane’s heads.

IMG_5394Wild Rhubarb or Butterbur

The large leaves of Butterbur (Petasites hybridus). Also known as Wild Rhubarb, the heart-shaped leaves can be up to 1m/3 ft across.

IMG_5395Meadowsweet

This Meadowsweet (Filipendula ulmaria) was so strongly and beautifully  scented!

IMG_5396Common Knapweed

Common Knapweed (Centaurea nigra)

Wild flowers
Wild flowers
Wild flowers
Wild flowers
IMG_5399Former railway line

The path we were walking along was the former Leek and Manifold Light Railway line.  There had even been a station at Thor’s Cave!

This also explains all the well-made steps up to the cave.

IMG_5400View of hill from path

View of a hill from the path.

IMG_5401Meadow Vetchling

Meadow Vetchling (Lathyrus pratensis)

IMG_5402Red Campion and Bramble

Red Campion (Silene dioica) and Bramble (Rubus fruticosus agg.)

IMG_5403Meadowsweet

More Meadowsweet.

IMG_5404Hazel nuts

Ripening Hazel nuts (Corylus avellana)

IMG_5405Indian Balsam

The pretty flowers of the terribly invasive Indian Balsam (Impatiens glandulifera)

IMG_5406The path

Another view of the path.

IMG_5407Rosebay Willowherb

Lots of Rosebay Willowherb (Chamerion angustifolium)

IMG_5408Dry river-bed

This is the dry river bed of the Manifold.

In anything other than very wet weather the river disappears into swallowholes and flows through caves and subterranean passages and reappears at Ilam further downstream.

IMG_5409Lady's Mantle

Lady’s-mantle (Alchemilla vulgaris agg.)

IMG_5410Field Scabious

Field Scabious (Knautia arvensis)

IMG_5416Gnarled tree

A wonderfully gnarled and twisted tree.

IMG_5417Cinquefoil

Cinquefoil.  I think this is probably Creeping Cinquefoil but the leaves in the photo aren’t quite what I expect from Creeping Cinquefoil.

IMG_5419Hill and valley

Hill and valley.  We had left the old rail-track behind us.

IMG_5420Musk Thistle

Musk Thistle (Carduus nutans) with its drooping flower-heads

IMG_5422Lamb

A black-faced lamb

IMG_5423R on our walk

Richard walking along the track

IMG_5425Creeping thistle

Creeping Thistle (Cirsium arvense)

It was about this stage in our walk that we missed a landmark and went up a hill on the wrong side of a wall.

IMG_5426Stream

A stream

IMG_5428Tufted Forget-me-not

Tufted Forget-me-not (Myosotis laxa)

IMG_5429Small Heath

Small Heath butterfly (Coenonympha pamphilus)

IMG_5430Farmhouse

I took a photo of this house little realising that we should have gone past it and then climbed the hill.

IMG_5431Sheep

‘You’re on the wrong side of the wall, you fools!’, said the sheep.

IMG_5432Sheep tunnel

I took a photo of this sheep tunnel (note my shadow) little realising we could have used it to get onto the right side of the wall!

IMG_5433Stone wall

The wall. We little realised we could have climbed over it at this point.

View from the hillside
View from the hillside
Another view
Another view
Sun setting behind a hill
Sun setting behind a hill
IMG_5441R on our walk

It was here that it dawned on us we were heading for the wrong valley.

We re-traced our steps right back to the house I had photographed earlier.

IMG_5443Rock Stonecrop

Rock Stonecrop (Sedum forsterianum). This specimen was probably a garden escapee as the plant is only native in the SW of England.

IMG_5445Possibly Bogbean

I am not sure what this plant is. I think it might be Bogbean (Menyanthes trifoliata) but I am not sure. My guide says that the emergent leaves of Bogbean have the texture and appearance of broad bean leaves which I would say these do.  However….

IMG_5448Knotgrass

Knotgrass (Polygonum aviculare)

And that was the last photo I took you’ll be pleased to know.  Only when we got back to the house and saw that the correct path went up the same, long, steep hill that we had just climbed and then come down again, but on the other side of that wall that we realised exactly what we had done and what we still had to do.  I must admit that our hearts sank and we suddenly felt very tired.  We did it though; and got back to the car before the sun set.  We were tempted to have a meal in the pub but thought how late we would get back to our caravan if we did so.  We were very thankful to find the car and then return to the caravan site.

Thanks for visiting!

Apologies for the length of the post.

 

 

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Tumblr
  • Print
  • Pocket
  • LinkedIn

Like this:

Like Loading...

Peak District Holiday 1st to 9th July. Day 3

28 Thu Aug 2014

Posted by Clare Pooley in plants, Rural Diary, trees, Uncategorized, walking

≈ 22 Comments

Tags

Back Forest, bilberries, Cedar, Danebridge, drystone walls, enchanter's nightshade, eyebright, ferns, fir cones, foxglove, Gradbach, grasses, Hanging Stone, hart's-tongue fern, heath bedstraw, heather, JW Lees beer, landslip, Lud's Church, marsh thistle, moss, mouse-ear hawkweed, pink purslane, River Dane, sheep, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, spear thistle, stiles, The Roaches, The Ship Inn, tormentil, walking, Welsh poppy, Wincle, Wincle Brewery, wood sorrel

After a gentle day in Buxton (see Days 1 and 2) and another good night’s sleep we felt ready for a little exercise.  We decided to go on a circular walk in Back Forest alongside the River Dane to Danebridge and then back.  We had done this walk before, a few years ago, and had gone in a clockwise direction.  This time we went anti-clockwise and it is amazing how different everything looks coming at it from the opposite direction.

We drove a few miles from where we were staying to the Peak National Park car park in Gradbach.  The day was bright and breezy with not too much strong sunshine – ideal walking weather.  The car park was full – about ten cars – which disappointed us, but once we had got past Gradbach Mill and into the forest we hardly saw a soul.  There is a short walk down the hill to the mill from the car park.  Last year the Mill had still been in use as a Youth Hostel but this year it had been taken over by Newcastle under Lyme University and a lot of renovation work was being carried out.  It is in the process of being made into a Field Study Centre and there were groups of students setting off on walks and school children on field trips having noisy picnics all over the place.  We followed a path away from the mill and down to the river going over and through a couple of stiles on the way.  One of the stiles was a squeeze stile and from a distance this looks an easier option than having to clamber over a wall or gate using wooden or stone cross bars.  Up close one can see that the gap is very narrow, in fact no more than 25cm/9.8″ wide to stop livestock escaping from fields either side of the wall.  There are stone pillars on each side of the gap to protect the structure of the wall.  The dry-stone walls are at least 4.5′ tall and as I am 5’4″ tall and not exactly skinny they are very difficult for me to manage.  I have to put my arms in the air, breathe in and force myself through inch by inch with R standing watching and smirking.  Anyone larger than me would not be able to get through at all.  R is nearly a foot taller than me at 6’3″ and takes longer strides so, though we walk the same distance, I do about two paces to his one.  I also wander about taking photos and lag behind and have to trot to catch up with him.

We crossed the river by a narrow bridge and started to climb up into the forest leaving the river some way below.

011Back Forest (640x480)

Back Forest Wood looking down from the path towards the River Dane.

012Back Forest (480x640)

Back Forest Wood

014Ferns and wood sorrel leaves (640x480)

Ferns and Wood Sorrel leaves

We walked through the woods for about three-quarters of a mile eventually descending back down towards the river again.

015River Dane (640x480)

River Dane

Dane is a Celtic river-name meaning ‘trickling stream’.

016Bilberries (640x480)

Bilberries

018Mosses (480x640)

Mosses

020River Dane (640x480)

River Dane

Walking further on we saw that there had been a landslip which may have been caused by all the rain last winter.

022Landslip into river (480x640)

023Pool caused by landslip (640x480)

A new pool caused by the landslip

024Tree roots on path (640x480)

Tree roots on the path

We then left the wood and started walking along a grassy path through a valley.

028Tormentil (640x480)

Tormentil – potentilla erecta

In wet weather or at night, when the petals close up, the tormentil flower has the ability to pollinate itself.

030Eyebright (640x480)

Eyebright – euphrasia nemorosa

This bright little flower was thought to be good for poor eyesight and an extract from eyebright and the herb golden seal is still used as an eye lotion.  The 17th century botanist William Cole recorded in his book ‘Adam in Eden’ that eyebright was the herb used by the linnet (a little finch) to clear its eyesight.  My source book for this information says ‘Since short-sighted linnets are not easy to identify, few could argue with Cole’s reasoning’.  It is a semi-parasitic plant, only growing where its roots can attach themselves to other plants like clover and plantain.

032Thistle and buttercups (480x640)

Marsh Thistle with Buttercups

We then followed the path alongside a drystone wall.

033Foxgloves and dry-stone wall (480x640)

Lots of Foxgloves were growing by the wall

034Bedstraw (640x480)

Heath Bedstraw was growing in the grass

035Mouse-ear Hawkweed (480x640)

and so was Mouse-ear Hawkweed

036Mouse-ear Hawkweed with flies (640x480)

which was popular with the flies

We passed by a farmhouse with some sheep.

040Sheep (640x480)

Just a little further on over the fields the views were very good.

043View (640x480)

Rolling countryside

We then re-entered woodland.

045Tree trunks (out of focus) (640x480)

I loved these tree trunks so had to include this photo though it is terribly out of focus

By this time we were approaching Danebridge and it was lunchtime.  We climbed over a stile and joined the lane that led to the village.

046Carved stone at stile (640x480)

This was the slab of stone we stepped onto when we got down from the stile. I wonder where it came from and what it had been in a former life.

I immediately noticed a little pink flower at the side of the road.  The photo doesn’t show how pink it was.

047Pink purslane

Pink Purslane – Claytonia sibirica

This is a plant introduced from North America and is widely naturalised.

We walked down to the river thinking we would eat our sandwiches next to it but we couldn’t see anywhere suitable to sit.

049Rock strata River Dane (640x480)

Strange rock strata at the edge of the river

050Rock strata River Dane (640x480)

This shows it a little more clearly

053Enchanter's Nightshade (480x640)

Enchanter’s Nightshade

053Enchanter's Nightshade

I like this plant’s name. It belongs to the same family as the Willowherbs.

Mathias De l’Obel, a 16th century Flemish botanist, in trying to identify a magical plant that Discorides (an early Greek physician) had named after the mythical sorceress Circe, eventually chose this plant.  Enchanter’s Nightshade’s botanical name is Circaea lutetiana – lutetia is the Roman name for Paris, which is where De l’Obel and other botanists worked.The Anglo-Saxons had used this plant as a protection against spells cast by elves.  Their name for it was aelfthone.  This is the only Willowherb that doesn’t disperse its fruit with the help of the wind.  Instead, it has hooks on its fruit that catch onto fur or feathers like burs.  It is pollinated mainly by small flies.  I find it fascinating that plants can adapt to their surroundings like this.

054Hart's-tongue fern (480x640)

Hart’s-tongue fern

055Yellow poppy, hart's tongue etc (480x640)

A yellow Welsh poppy has joined other plants growing out of this drystone wall

We stood on the bridge at Danebridge.

056River Dane (640x480)

River Dane

From the bridge we could see the buildings of a local micro-brewery.

057Wincle Brewery (640x480)

Wincle brewery

Wincle is a village just up the hill from Danebridge and a woman walking her dog informed us that there was a pub up the hill just beyond the brewery.  The word ‘pub’ worked as a clarion call to arms and R was up that hill before I or anyone else could say Jack Robinson.  As we powered up the hill I just had time to admire this door set into a wall.

058Door in dry-stone retaining wall (640x480)

I love doors like this. I imagine such a lovely garden beyond this one with stone steps on a winding path up to the house.

We found the pub as we neared the top of the hill.

062The Ship Inn (640x480)

The Ship Inn

064Ship Inn sign (640x480)

The Ship Inn sign

It seemed so strange for a pub, many miles from the sea or even a navigable river, to be called ‘The Ship’.  There was a little information displayed in the pub and I have also looked on-line to find out more about this.  There is a ‘History of Wincle’ site which has been very helpful.  Sir Philip Brocklehurst of Swythamley Hall (a couple of miles away) sailed with the explorer Shackleton on one of his expeditions to the Antarctic from 1907-9.  The pub sign depicts the Nimrod in Antarctic ice ( not the more famous Endeavour of the 1914 expedition).  Shackleton was also Sir Philip’s best man when he married Gwladys Murray in 1913.

Some say The Ship is named after another vessel, ‘The Swythamley’, which was owned by a friend of the squire and sank off the Cape of Good Hope in 1862.  As the pub is also said to date back to the 17th century it is possible that the name is linked with ‘shippen’, a local word for a sheep shelter.  Or the name could be linked with a much earlier boat.  In fact, so far no-one seems to know for sure why it has this name!

059Flintlock on wall of pub (640x480)

A flintlock displayed on the wall of the pub.

There are stories about royalist rebels visiting the pub in the 17th century and the gun belonging to one of them was displayed on the wall until fairly recently as well as a framed article from a Manchester newspaper of the day.  Both these items went missing at some point.  The flintlock now on display was acquired fairly recently and, if I remember correctly, it was discovered that it was made at the same time and by the same gunsmith as the original gun.

We sat outside the pub and sampled their beer.  We asked if they sold the locally brewed beer but was told they didn’t so we had some JW Lees beer instead, which was very good.

060J W Lees beer (640x480)

I only had a few sips of my beer and had to give the rest, reluctantly, to R.  I am not supposed to drink alcohol as it reacts badly with the medication I am on and anyway, I try not to drink much of anything on walks because of the lack of convenient ‘conveniences’.  I have a horror of being ‘caught short’ as the saying goes, and being discovered by walkers, with a dog…

After a pleasant rest we continued on our way.  We went back down the hill to the bridge and found the path we needed which climbed up through more woodland very steeply at times.  I remember that for most of the walk we were listening to wonderful birdsong.  At the top of the path we came out of the wood onto fields again.  Here we rested again and ate our sandwiches.

065Fir cones (640x480)

Fir cones on a tree at the edge of the wood

066View over stile (640x480)

View over a stile

This is one of the many stiles we climbed over that day.  We followed a track by a wall belonging to Hangingstone Farm and then saw the Hanging Stone itself.

067Hanging rock (640x480)

The Hanging Rock

We didn’t have the energy to climb up to the rock to read the inscriptions there.  One plaque is dedicated to Courtney Brocklehurst, the brother of the aforementioned Philip, who was killed in the 2nd World War, and the other is to a pet hunting dog of an earlier Brocklehurst.  This dog was very well loved and when he died was buried under the Hanging Stone.  The dog’s name was Burke, because he was such a good hunting dog.  In 1828, Burke and Hare were accused of killing sixteen people and then selling the corpses to Dr Robert Knox who dissected them during his popular anatomy lectures.

068Thistle (640x480)

A rather lovely Spear Thistle

069Thistle (640x480)

070Tormentil (640x480)

A carpet of Tormentil

072Bedstraw (640x480)

A carpet of Heath Bedstraw

075Grass (640x480)

I liked the delicate grass heads with the heavy blocks of the drystone wall behind

We were now walking over more open moorland.

079Heather (640x480)

The Heather, or Ling as some call it, was beginning to flower

081Heather (480x640)

Little pink-purple bells

082Cedar (640x480)

A good-sized Cedar tree

The more open terrain here meant we could now see the edge of the Roaches, a gritstone escarpment which has spectacular rock formations.  The name comes from the French ‘les Roches’.

085The Roaches (640x480)

The Roaches

087View (640x480)

A gentler view.

089View (640x480)

The fields are all separated by stone walls

We then started descending slowly towards Back Forest again.

090Wall, grass, bilberries (640x480)

The walls are wonderfully constructed. Bilberry bushes are growing against this one.

092Back Forest (640x480)

In the woods again.

We diverted a little way off the path back to Gradbach to see Lud’s Church again.  This is a natural rift which is about 200 yards in length and varies in width from 12 feet to 50 feet wide and is about 59 feet deep.  We didn’t go far along it as we were both getting very tired.  We will go again some time,  walk its length and photograph it.

094Lud's Church (480x640)

It is a very atmospheric place; mossy,cool and quiet.

095Lud's Church (480x640)

The sides of the ravine are covered in ferns and other damp-loving plants.

During the 15th century, according to local legend, Lollards (followers of John Wycliffe, an early church reformer) used to worship here in secret during the time of their persecution.

Many researchers have identified this place as the Green Chapel in the 14th Century alliterative poem ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight’.  The author describes this district well.  Gawain rides off searching for the Green Chapel ….

‘Then he gave the spur to Gringolet and galloped down the path,

Thrust through a thicket there by a bank,

And rode down the rough slope right into the ravine.

Then he searched about, but it seemed savage and wild,

And no sign did he see of any sort of building;

But on both sides banks, beetling and steep,

And great crooked crags, cruelly jagged;

The bristling barbs of rock seemed to brush the sky.’

Translation by Brian Stone.

Another legend is that a hunter was killed here and that he still roams about the cleft covered from head to toe in moss and leaves.  He is known locally as the Green Man one of many ‘green men’ to be found in Britain.

We joined our path again and soon reached the bridge over the River Dane and then Gradbach mill.

 

 

 

 

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Tumblr
  • Print
  • Pocket
  • LinkedIn

Like this:

Like Loading...

A Walking Week Part One

05 Mon May 2014

Posted by Clare Pooley in domestic animals, fish, Insects, plants, Rural Diary, trees, Uncategorized, walking, wild birds

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

Adrian Bell, bird-scarer cannon, Blue Tit, buttercup, comfrey, cow parsley, cows, cut-leaved crane's-bill, daisy, fairy ring, field maple, fish, Germander Speedwell, goosegrass, great yellow-cress, greater spotted woodpecker, Greater Stitchwort, greefinch, Hawthorn, Herb-Robert, Lords and Ladies, May, orange-tip butterfly, perch, pineapple weed, pond, red campion, ribwort, sheep, St Mark's fly, stinging nettle, wedding ring, wild rose

I have managed to do a little walking this week and have enjoyed it very much.  Monday and Tuesday’s walking was mainly round the shops so doesn’t count as enjoyable walking.  For some stupid reason I mistook the time of E’s hair appointment and we arrived in Halesworth an hour early on Monday.  E kindly said she was happy to wait for an hour at the hairdressers but I thought she might go mad with boredom so we did the supermarket shopping and then I got more petrol for the car.  She then went for her hair appointment and while she was there I called in at the jewellers to see if anything can be done to my wedding ring to stop it cutting into my finger.  Twenty years ago we hadn’t thought that my ring would wear away so quickly.  Apparently, we chose the wrong ring – a 9 carat D-profile ring – and should have had a round-profile ring and something of a better quality.  Well, too late now!  This is my wedding ring, bought for me by my husband and blessed at our Marriage Blessing Service.  We weren’t able to be married in church as we had both been married before, but we had a beautiful Blessing Service after our Registry Office wedding.  The jeweller said either we could buy a new ring or have my one built up which would cost the same as a new ring.  A dilemma which we are still thinking about.

Both Monday and Tuesday were mainly cloudy days and no good for drying washing outside so I decorated the inside of the house with wet clothes.  I had more shopping to do in Bungay so drove there on Tuesday afternoon and I made my purchases.  On the way home I got stuck in a traffic jam!  This is quite out of the ordinary, living where we live.  The vehicle in front of me was a supermarket delivery van and not much holds them up usually!  I couldn’t see what the problem was as these vans are quite wide, so I edged round a bit and saw….

Image   Image

The cows took their time to leave their field and amble down the road to the farmyard.  The stockman had a busy time trying to get the cows out of people’s gardens where there were lots of interesting plants and trees to eat.  I took the photos with my phone and then enlarged the pictures so the quality isn’t that good.

E asked if we could watch a DVD together during the evening which I thought would be nice but no-one thought to tell my eyes to watch too.  As soon as I sat down they became extremely heavy and so I dozed most of the way through the film to the disapproval of my daughter.  This is not the first time I have done this.

Wednesday is ‘shopping with mother’ day which went very well as Mum was on top form and we had a real laugh together.  The weather on Wednesday was lovely too – a hazy start and then lots of sunshine.  When I had had some lunch at home I decided to walk down the lane to take advantage of the bright weather and to see what was to be seen.

Image

Lots of stinging nettles and goosegrass.  Goosegrass is a relative of coffee and quinine and has many medicinal uses.  At one time the seeds were roasted and used as a coffee substitute and apparently the young shoots are edible and can be cooked in soups as a vegetable.  All I know about it is that if I touch it, it brings me out in a rash!  The seeds are hooked and stick to hair and clothes – hence the plant’s other name of Cleavers.

Stinging Nettles are very useful, if painful plants too.  They can be used for making cloth, food and medicine.  My plant book says that the Roman belief that stinging nettles cured rheumatism still persists in Britain.  I can say that there is some truth in this as when I am stung on my hands my rheumatic joints there become less painful.  I can’t say I would care to roll about in them unclothed as some people recommend!

Image

These are Hawthorn flowers – May blossom.  ‘Ne’er cast a clout til May be out’ – either don’t leave off your winter clothes until the end of the month of May, or, don’t leave off your winter clothes until the May blossom is on the trees.

Image

This is the wild rose and already there are large flower buds as you can see.  This is early, as the rose usually flowers at the end of May and into June.

Image

A fine crop of old equipment and other rubbish in this field.  At the beginning of Adrian Bell’s book ‘Corduroy’ he talks of the Suffolk farmers’ habit of leaving implements in corners of fields or yards covered in nettles until they are needed for some particular function.  They are then returned ‘to some out-of-the-way corner, to be a sleeping Gulliver for the grass again’.

Image

These are the boys – male sheep, tups.  A bit stinky – sleeping and snoring in the sun.  Wandering about having something to eat now and then – not a care in the world.

Image

 

Common comfrey.  In medieval times the roots of this plant were dug up in the spring and grated to produce a sludge which was packed round broken limbs.  It hardened to a consistency similar to that of Plaster of Paris.

Image

A view over the fields.

Image

Cut-leaved Crane’s-bill.

Image

Great Yellow-cress.

Image

The lane.

Image

Herb-Robert.  In the Middle Ages they believed that a plant showed how it could be used through its colour or shape – the doctrine of signatures.  This plant turns a fiery red in autumn so they thought it should be used in the treatment of blood disorders.  It has a strange odour and in some places it is known as ‘Stinking Bob’.

Image

Daisies.

Image

Daisies and Germander Speedwell.

Image

Greater Stitchwort.

Image

A Buttercup.

Image

Pineapple Weed.

Image

A female orange-tip butterfly.  Note the lovely green-marbled underwing.

Image

The signpost at the end of our lane.

Image

A male orange-tip butterfly.  I have been trying for over a week to photograph these fast flying butterflies!

Image

Lords and Ladies.  This is specially for Heather!  At last these strange plants are flowering here.  I have some in my garden but they are hidden by tall grass and difficult to photograph.

Image

Cow and calves.

Image

This is the pond at the side of the lane.  I’m not sure what the fish are – perhaps perch? – but we have the same fish in our big pond.

Image

The pond next to the lane.

Image

Field maple leaves and flowers.

Image

A St Mark’s fly.  They usually appear about the same time of year as the Feast of St Mark – 25th April.

R and I went out for a walk across the fields when he returned home from his trip to Gloucestershire that evening.

Image

Red Campion and cow-parsley growing at the end of our lane.

Image

A Red Campion flower.

Image

Ribwort flowers – Turkish Caps,

Image

A ‘fairy ring’ caused by toadstools.

Image

A bird-scarer cannon.

Image

More stitchwort.

Image

St Peter’s Washes.

I’ll end with some photos of birds seen in my garden during the past week.

Image

A female Greater-Spotted Woodpecker.

Image

A bluetit.

Image

Male and female Greenfinches

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Tumblr
  • Print
  • Pocket
  • LinkedIn

Like this:

Like Loading...

March

04 Tue Mar 2014

Posted by Clare Pooley in churches, plants, Rural Diary, Uncategorized, walking, wild birds

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

bacon onion potato sauté, blackthorn, cattle, chickens, Coffee morning, common reeds, cooking, ditching, Dog's Mercury, electric fence, farmyard, good food, greylags, Italian alders, ivy, lesser celandine, Lords and Ladies, marble galls, narcissi, nature, phone box library, photography, primroses, quiz night, rookery, Rumburgh Church, sheep, snowdrops, St James South Elmham, St Margaret South Elmham, St Michaels South Elmham, stinging nettle, the Beck, trees

A wet start to the month.  R and I went off in the rain to the benefice coffee morning at the Rector’s house.  We could find nothing to bring with us this time and, as usual, I had not done any baking, so we just took ourselves and a little money.  We bought raffle tickets, a classical music c.d., a jar of the Rector’s home-made lenten three-fruit marmalade (i.e. without whisky) and a jar of plum jam.  After indulging in a bit of chit-chat and getting the local gossip (no raffle prizes this time!) we left to go shopping in Halesworth.  Boring groceries shop in the Co-Op and then, while R read the paper in the car, I walked in to town to see if I could find some flowers for the church.  I eventually found what I was looking for in the third place I visited – some really pretty multi-headed narcissi, some in yellow and some in a creamy-white.  The individual flowers very tiny and delicate;  I bought two bunches of each colour.

The rain was easing off a little by the time we got to Rumburgh church but the path to the church was very puddly and muddy.  The snowdrops were still looking good and the primroses were just starting to come out.  The churchyard will be a mass of wild flowers very soon.  We found a suitable vase in the cupboard and just put the poor flowers in water.  I cannot attempt anything more than this and even this made the flowers look as if ashamed to be where they were.  They all huddled in the middle of the vase and faced inwards and no matter what I did they twisted back and hid their faces.  I eventually gave up,  put the vase on a ledge and checked that the other flowers in the church were all o.k.

I went out to feed the birds later that afternoon after the rain had stopped and the sun had come out.  Something, probably a squirrel, had pulled the top off one of my fat block feeders and had removed and taken away a block that I had only put in the day before.  I mended the feeder, replaced the block with a new one and wired up the top to prevent it being pulled apart so easily again.  We shall see!  I took a couple of photos of the geese and some of next door’s ****** chickens in the garden again.

020Next door's chickens (640x480)

 

 

022Pair of geese in garden (640x480)

I discussed with E what she would like for her evening meal and we decided on one of her current favourites – fried bacon, potatoes and onions.  I added some diced eating apple as I thought that might go well with it.  E was of a different opinion!

024Bacon, onion, apple and potato (640x480)

 

R and I set off for the quiz at St James at 7.00pm.  We had become quite reluctant to leave our nice warm home and get into my very cold, damp car.  It was just 1 degree celsius outside and it took the whole journey to de-mist the windscreen.  I drove most of the way bending forward and peering through the only clear bit at the bottom.  Fortunately, we met no-one on the journey but the real danger is in the deep ditches at the sides of the road.

The quiz was great fun and the six of us on our team all know each other and get on well.  We eventually came second which was very pleasing.  R and I also won two prizes in the raffle.  The food provided by the village hall committee (I suppose) and cooked by two ladies from the village was really good.  A pork casserole or a vegetable bake with a baked potato and a little pot of butter for the first course and then a choice of four or five (I can’t remember how many) desserts with cream or custard for the second course.  This was followed by tea or coffee with a chocolate mint – all for £8.00 per person.  There was thick frost on the cars when we left just after 11.00pm.

A lovely bright morning and hardly any wind the next day.  We went to church at St Michael’s.  This is a very small church in the middle of fields and has only recently had electricity put in – only a couple of sockets though.  There is no electric light, I think, and no heating except for an enormous very old gas heater at the back of the church.  If they have evening services they have oil lamps which makes it look so lovely.  The lane is very narrow and there aren’t many places to park.  R squashed up as close as he could to the electric fence and had great difficulty in getting out of the car.  The fence might not have been switched on as there weren’t any animals in the field – we weren’t going to take any chances though!

058St Michael's Church (480x640)

 

 

057Electric fence at St Michael's (480x640)

By the time we had had lunch and washed up the sun had disappeared and the wind had got up again.  R and I went out for a walk in the lanes near our house.

There is still a lot of standing water about.  This water is as the base of a hedge on St Margaret’s common.

025Water under the hedge at St Margaret's common (640x480)

 

In the village of St Margaret South Elmham is the old phone box which they have converted into a mini library.

027The phone box library (640x480)

 

The rooks are busy in the rookery near the old rectory.

029St Margaret's rookery (640x480)

 

The geese who live at the old rectory were resting for a change!

030Cordelia's geese (640x480)

 

The churchyard is full of pretty flowers.

031St Margaret South Elmham churchyard (640x480)

 

Lots of common reeds in the ditches at the side of the lane all waving in the wind.

033Common reeds in ditch (640x480)

 

The tributary to the Beck at Froghall.

034Tributary to the Beck at Froghall (480x640)

 

Some lovely silhouettes of trees on the skyline.

035Trees on horizon (640x480)

 

Blackthorn just starting to come out in the new hedge.

039Blackthorn (640x480)

 

Marble galls.

040Marble galls in hedgerow (480x640)

 

The top of our lane.

041Top of our lane (640x480)

 

The fields in St James have very few hedges.  It is very windswept here and very cold!

042View across fields (640x480)

 

Primroses at the side of the lane.

043Primroses (640x480)

 

And lesser celandines.

044Lesser celandines (640x480)

 

A lot of work has been done here at the bridge to dig out the ditch again and lay new drainage pipes.

045Newly cleared ditch (640x480)

 

A row of Italian Alders with catkins.  Not a very clear photo because of the wind and my lack of skill.

046Italian alder trees (480x640)

 

The farmyard with sheep wandering about freely and cattle in the barn feeding from their manger.

047Farmyard (640x480)

 

Our lane again – muddier now.

048Muddy lane (640x480)

Even worse!

049Muddy lane (640x480)

 

More primroses.

050Primroses (640x480)

And these are ‘weeds’ in our garden.  All lush green plants – the arrowhead leaves of Lords and Ladies, ivy, dog’s mercury and stinging nettles.

051Lords and ladies, ivy, dog's mercury, stinging nettle (640x480)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Facebook
  • Email
  • Tumblr
  • Print
  • Pocket
  • LinkedIn

Like this:

Like Loading...
Follow A Suffolk Lane on WordPress.com

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 686 other subscribers.

I talk about what it's like living in a quiet part of Suffolk. I am a wife, mother and daughter, a practising Christian and love the natural world that surrounds me. I enjoy my life - most of the time!

My Posts

Feb 2023
M T W T F S S
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728  
« Feb    

Pages

  • About my Blog
  • GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations) and This Site
  • My Life in a Suffolk Lane

Archives

Blogs I Follow

Posts I Like

amphibians art Arts and Crafts churches cooking Days out domestic animals family fish Folk Traditions Gardening Historic Buildings holidays Insects Landscaping literature music Norwich plants Rural Diary seashore theatre trees Uncategorized walking weather wild animals wild birds wild flowers woodland

Tags

architecture autumn beach berries birds blackbird blackthorn butterfly church clouds common knapweed cow parsley crocus daffodils Diary dogwood family field maple flowers fungus garden gardening geese greylags ground-ivy Halesworth Hawthorn heather holiday Holly Holy Week horse chestnut Hoverfly insects ivy Lake District Lent lesser celandine lichen Lords and Ladies Mallard mallards Minsmere moorhen moss music Norwich Peak District pheasant plants pond ponds primrose primroses Rain rooks Rumburgh Rumburgh Church sheep Sheffield snow snowdrops spring Suffolk Suffolk Wildlife Trust sunset the Beck trees viburnum bodnantense walking weather wild cherry wild flowers winter-flowering honeysuckle witch-hazel

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Goodreads

Blog at WordPress.com.

Interesting Literature

A Library of Literary Interestingness

naturechirp

Celebrating God's creatures, birds and plants...

Sophie Neville

Writer

Going Batty in Wales

Developing a more sustainable lifestyle in SW Wales

Our Lake District Escapades

Exploring the Lake District and beyond

Short Walks & Long Paths

Wandering trails on the coast of Wales

Dukes and Princes

History, heritage and genealogy about Europe's highest ranking aristocrats

The Biking Gardener

An English persons experience of living and gardening in Ireland

Nan's Farm

A Journal Of Everyday Life

Walk the Old Ways

Rambling Journeys in Britain with John Bainbridge. Fighting for the Right to Roam. Campaigning to Protect Our Countryside.

Writer Side UP!

Waking the Writer Side...and keeping it "Up!"

Meggie's Adventures

Travel, thank you notes and other stories from Meg King-Sloan

amusicalifeonplanetearth

Music and the Thoughts It Can Inspire

lovefoundation.co.uk

Traveling Tortuga

Simply Living Well

Pakenham Water Mill

Historic watermill in the beautiful Suffolk countryside

Take It Easy

Retired, not expired: words from the after(work)life. And music. Lots of music!

Secret Diary Of A Church of England Vicar's Wife

thanksfortheadventureorg.wordpress.com/

The Beat Goes On

#TBGO

PLESZAK

Frank Pleszak's Blogs

John Bainbridge Writer

Indie Writer and Publisher

roughwighting

Life in a flash - a weekly writing blog

Walking the Old Ways

Rambling in the British Countryside

CapKane

thoughts on social realities

SkyeEnt

Jottings from Skye

jodie richelle

embracing my inner homemaker

Skizzenbuch/Blog

Just another WordPress.com weblog

Author Kevin Cooper

Life, Love, Tears & Laughter: Then, Now & Hereafter.

Have Bag, Will Travel

The Call of the Pen

Flash Fiction, Book Reviews, Devotionals and other things.

John's Postcards

Art in Nature

You dream, I photographe it !

Smile! You’re in Barnier World......

theinfill

the things that come to hand

Dr. Mary Ann Niemczura

Author of "A Past Worth Telling"

Provincial Woman

LIFE IN MUD SPATTERED BOOTS

A Quiet Celebration of Life on a British Farm

The Pink Wheelbarrow

Luanne Castle: Poetry and Other Words (and cats!)

Poetry, Other Words, and Cats

The Family Kalamazoo

A genealogical site devoted to the history of the DeKorn and Zuidweg families of Kalamazoo and the Mulder family of Caledonia

everythingchild

The Book Owl

Canberra's Green Spaces

people, places and green spaces in Canberra

Paul Harley Photographer

WALKS WITH PUMPKIN

bowlandclimber

Walks and climbs

M T McGuire Authorholic

Humorous fantasy fiction author... the books are quite funny too... seeking an agent, a publisher and my fortune.

Tails from a Norfolk cottage

Moments from a Norfolk Country Cottage. The furred & feathered & the worn and weathered. A Druid Herbalist with a Passion for Cats, Vintage, Dogs, Interiors, Nature, Hens, Organic Veggie Food, Plants & Trees & a Kinship with The Earth.

Woodland Wild flowers

Of the Wye valley and beyond.

  • Follow Following
    • A Suffolk Lane
    • Join 686 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • A Suffolk Lane
    • Customise
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

    Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
    To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
    %d bloggers like this: