Wye Vallay

This is where we went for our brief break in March - if I'd known it would be so long before we got away again I might have made it a longer trip. It's the Hop Cabin, a Canopy and Stars property , situated at Kingstone Brewery just north of Tintern. We been to the area before when we stayed higher up the hill at Lichen Cabin and enjoyed it so much we though we'd go back.

On the way down we stopped off at Baddesley Clinton and. as there were intermittent hail showers, went round the house instead of the garden.

We were only away for two nights.so the next morning we headed off down the track to the main road and across by the old railway station to pick up the Wye Valley path where it wanders gently by the river and amongst flower meadows as far as Tintern Parva - and the Wye Valley hotel where we stopped for lunch..

Afterwards, we meandered back more or less by the route we'd come - past Tintern church and along the railway  - to the cabin.

In the afternoon, we went down to Chepstow to see round the castle.It's a while since we've visited and I didn't really remember it.

Then we went down to the old bridge over the Wye, and back up the hill to the car park.

Next day was time to go home, calling at Goodrich Castle and Hanbury Hall. 

 

Hiatus

 So, I've been taking an enforced break for a while as I've had a stroke - back at the beginning of April ; but then I've had another - and then a fall in the bath. 

The first wasn't bad - I spent  few days in hospital, then I was out and relatively normal, just a little dodgy on my feet. The second at the beginning of May, was worse and left me wobbling and unable to do much. Then I fell in the bath - and I was set back for a month or more.

It's been a time of not doing much. After the first stroke I managed to go out to Calke and Chatsworth but the second put paid to all that, and I'm only just getting out again. I'm determined it won't beat me though. I'm pottering around locally using my rollator or my walking stick, and I've started going out to Kedleston and Carsington. Such activities leave me tired the next day, so there's been a lot of sitting in the garden, watching the birds and butterflies, my husband take care of MY plants, and seeing the flowers come and go -the poppies, the roses, and the lavender. 

The weather has been hot and the garden is now turning parched, with grass like straw, and it's enough effort to keep the vegetables watered and the allotment looked after

I am now getting back to normal with visits here and there. First though I have some catching up to do on our holiday before.

Belton daffodils

I've been to Belton many times over the years, but I've never seen the daffodils looking this stunning

.

In part, this was heading there when the daffodils were in full bloom,instead of in the past heading there just because we were going away to Norfolk; this isn't the best way of catching flowers at their best. I think another thing was that stopping en route to somewhere else limits the time you can spend at any one property, so maybe we never got to see them. 

Whatever the daffodils were just stunning. Stretching as far as the eye can see!

We wandered beyond the pleasure grounds up to the lakes where there were still daffodils growing everywhere.

And even back along the main driveway to the house.These were by far the best daffodils we'd seen.

 

Kedleston daffodils

Another gorgeous day and another walk amongst the daffodils