Getting out of town again - a short walk at Shipley

It's been eleven weeks since I've walked anywhere other than around the local housing estate, and I'm getting concerned that I'm not taking enough exercise. There are playing fields and a wood within easy distance of home, but they've been crowded throughout lockdown and anyway I wanted to see proper open fields and countryside. 

Shipley Country Park seemed like a good place to head to - it's generally not busy, especially late in the afternoon of a dull day, and the walk follows a private road with lots of space for passing other folks, rather than the narrow footpaths that have proved a problem in our local wood.

It turned out that a lot of people had perhaps thought the same things, as the car park was busier than I've ever seen it, but there was space enough for everyone and keeping a good distance away from anyone was easy.

I was right about my lack of fitness. The road heads uphill from the car park, not steeply but generally enough to leave me out of breath before it flattens out. This time I had to stop a LOT on the way up!  My legs and lungs have totally got out of the walking habit.

Because of this, I thought it best to cut the walk shorter than usual - up the hill, then a stroll through the beech trees of Horsepool Hill and back down to the car. Even that didn't quite go to plan. The woodland paths were a little slippery, and cautiously making my way downhill I managed to twist a knee, so now I'm intermittently hobbling.

It was good to get out though - to see miles across fields, to walk under trees, and to spot wildflowers growing -especially as this month I'm following the Wildlife Trusts' 30 Days Wild challenge.  As soon as my knee recovers then I'll be off out somewhere again. Life is maybe gradually returning to normal, and I'm more enthusiastic about walking in the countryside than heading to the shops.

Dunham Massey

 Dunham Massey has become a place we drop round to quite frequently since our youngest daughter moved up to Manchester - and stopping off to see her on the way back from Appleby-in-Westmorland we decided, yet again, to have a jaunt out of town for some fresh air.













We weren't particularly early in the day, so there was just time for some late lunch in the National Trust cafe before a dash to get into the gardens before last entrance time.










There were a few soggy roses still trying their best to flower but mainly the beauty of the garden came from autumnal trees and shrubs; both their foliage and the bare bones of trunks and branches- ignored during summer when covered by leaves

Unfortunately the bell was soon being rung to signal the closing of the garden, but as we wandered back to the car park a surprise was waiting.











 In the area around the old stables we spotted two deer - the first seemed a little shy, standing against a wall nibbling the moss from it; the second was out in the open near a busy path but having eaten whatever he'd found headed off to join the first. An enchanting note to end our visit on.

Appleby-in-Westmorland - a free First Night with Air BnB

Last week I spent a few days near Appleby-in-Westmorland courtesy of winning a free night away through Air BnB. It wasn't quite so much a 'competition' as a 'get in there first', but Air BnB were giving away single nights, on the condition of buying at least a second, in areas around the UK which are perhaps ignored in favour of better known neighbours; Pwllheli, Callander and Pontefract were among the other places on offer. I suspect most people just rush past Appleby on their way to the Lake District or south-west Scotland without stopping to explore the town or surrounding countryside (I've certainly done it) and this seemed an ideal opportunity to explore somewhere new.




The Appleby area is much less touristy than the places I've visited in the Lake District, but we found plenty to do on a weekend break, even though we seem to have ended up with the only wet day of the whole week!

The first evening we wandered round Appleby, to get a feel for the place - walking by the river Eden, through the churchyard (it was Halloween after all), and up its old main street to the walls of the castle which overlooks the town. The castle is now converted to a hotel and open to the public with guided tours, but, with basically one day there, we didn't want to tie ourselves down to one.






Our AirBnB was a self-catering cottage in the village of Long Marton, about five miles from Appleby, so the first thing to do on our 'holiday day' was walk round the village itself.

The Settle-Carlisle railway runs through the village (we saw trains but not a steam train), and you can even stay in the old railway station, now holiday cottages ideal for railway enthusiasts. 

Then we headed back down to Appleby, walking round the town and through the woods alongside the river Eden where we spotted a red squirrel scurrying among the similarly-coloured leaves, and a heron waiting patiently for dinner.

In the afternoon we visited Acorn Bank gardens (a National Trust property not far away). The gardens themselves were probably not at their best this time of year but the woodland walks, to quarries turned into nature reserves, past a watermill, and along a small river, were beautiful in their autumn colours.

Afterwards, as night drew in, we headed to Penrith, then on to Pooley Bridge with the intent of seeing at least a little of one of the Lakes. Unfortunately it was dark by the time we reached there, but the swans and geese could still be heard out on the water.

On our last morning, and with the sun now shining brightly, there was time to stop for another wander under trees by a different section of the river. At this spot the castle can just be seen above the trees - but although we saw another red squirrel, that's again hiding among the leaves.

I think most of us drop into a rut and just visit familiar places, so it was nice to go somewhere completely new. This is definitely a place I'd return to. There are ruined castles at Brough and Brougham that I'd love to explore, longer walks to be taken round Appleby, and of course another time I'd like to actually see a Lake

Timber Festival 2019 - 5th-7th July

So, another bank holiday has come and gone, which the usual mixed weather, and now it's time to really look forward to summer - to getting outside, walking in the countryside, picnics and barbecues ... and festivals! I'm not talking loud music festivals here but smaller, more intimate, quirkier gatherings, with a mix of entertainment, activities, and something to stretch the mind a little.

Timber Festival - photo credit; Andrew Allcock

You might remember that last year I was delighted to be asked along to a new local festival, Timber, a collaboration between the National Forest and arts organisation Wild Rumpus, three wonderful days of celebrating nature and the 'outdoors', held at Fearnedock on the Derbyshire/Leicestershire border. Family problems limited the time I could spend there last year, but I visited for some time on each day, and enjoyed myself immensely.

I've already mentioned Timber briefly in my round-up of local festivals  but I hope your interest is whetted so here are more details.

It runs this year from 5-7th July, again at the Fearnedock site where, fittingly, trees are beginning to hide and heal the scars left on the landscape by open cast mining. I say 'fittingly' because at the heart of Timber's ethos is the belief in the restorative power, both physical and mental, of getting outdoors and immersing ourselves in nature; a belief I personally share.

With this in mind, Timber offers many opportunities to get 'hands on' in the forest environment. Head for the Shivelight zone, where there'll be classes in yoga, tai chi, forest meditation, reiki, and mindfulness, or you can just soak your cares away in a wood-fired hot tub. Author and naturalist Emma Mitchell shows how depression and anxiety can be alleviated by getting outdoors, and Sarah Spenser will teach you how to Think Like A Tree.

Elsewhere around the 70 acre site, you can get more physical with dance sessions for both children and adults - Bhangra Tots for the younger festival-goers, Maypole dancing, Bollywood dance workshops and Flat Footing, which sounds like something I might do but is an improvised percussive dance from the Appalachian area of the US. If you don't feel like dancing, then maybe a circus skills workshop appeals?

In more practical hands-on workshops, you could try traditional wood-working techniques with pole lathes and shaving horses, test your forest survival skills, learn how to measure trees (with lasers and hugs), get busy with Hammer and Chisel to create a unique playground or find your way through the willow maze. And my husband will be pleased to know the heavy horses are back. I think being able to actually have a go at long-reining was the highlight of last year's festival for him.

The Eyrie

This all sounds rather busy and tiring, so sit back for a while and let others entertain you. There are two main performance areas. The Eyrie Stage is dedicated to music and spoken word, with poets, a brass band, two choirs, folk-influenced music and a rock band. At 'Field Notes'  you can listen to a wide range of musicians and performers from folk to synth-pop, hear Phill Jupitus, Laura Barton and Peter Owen-Jones share their favourite nature related music tracks, listen to a discussion on the controversial topic of re-wilding, or Stuart Maconie talking about his travel book, The Long Road from Jarrow. Over at 'Elemental', Vybarr Cregan-Reid looks at how our sedentary lifestyles can cause irreparable harm, in two separate events Luke Turner and Jessica J Lee talk about their memoirs and of fighting personal demons through immersing themselves in nature, and Mahsuda Snaith figures out how you can stay in touch with nature while living in an urban environment.

photo credit; Samuel Mills

Timber's location with woodland and glades lends itself to the creation of small intimate spaces for art and light installations, telling stories round a campfire, or, in The Baron in the Trees, based on Italo Calvino's novel, a circus show devised specially for Timber combining slapstick and juggling with acrobatics and aerial stunts among the trees.

There's so much going on over the weekend that I feel I've rambled on for too long yet merely scratched the surface; I'd best mention food though. If last year is anything to go by there'll be a varied offering to keep your energy levels up, plus demonstrations from The Perfectly Edible Binner Party who will show how to avoid waste by creating a two course meal out of food that otherwise would have gone to landfill, and Creative Countryside will help you discover how to forage for wild food, and how to cook it.

Last year was a wonderful relaxing, enlightening weekend, with something for everyone from the very young to oldies like me, and Timber's award of Best New Festival at the UK Festival Awards seems well deserved. It's a place where something new is to be found around every corner or tree

Note - this is, as you may guess, a promotional post, but my ramblings are all my own, and Timber was definitely a wonderful experience last year. I'd recommend it to anyone with an interest in nature and the environment - but as I've said before, it's not for petrol heads or people only interested in chart-topping music stars

Mapperley Reservoir, Shipley Country Park

It's my belief that sunny evenings shouldn't be spent indoors, so off we went to Shipley Country Park one warm day earlier this week.

We didn't want a long walk, so parked by Mapperley reservoir and ambled round it. Along the northern bank there's a footpath which stays close to the water, leading to designated fishing spots, but it's been re-surfaced recently and is a bit stony and uncomfortable to walk on for now, so we followed the bridal path which is set further away from the reservoir.



















There were lots of wild flowers to be seen - red campion, cow parsley and dandelion clocks on this stretch with bluebells under the trees on the southern side, and even a couple of rhododendrons with their huge showy flowers.

And lots of things for a dog to investigate.

As we arrived back at the dam end of the reservoir, the sun was just setting - so good timing on our part for once

There were coots and mallards swimming around but walking back across the dam to the car park we spotted this exotic guy - a mandarin duck.