village life | The Dorset Rambler

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Happiness is snow shaped :)

Now Dorset and snow don’t usually go together, especially South Dorset! We get the occasional light scattering, just to tantalise us and remind us of what we are missing and it has usually gone within hours. But recently we actually had a fall of snow that was worth walking in……and I did just that ! Now I don’t like snow for what it does to the community, the slippery roads that can make driving difficult, and the effect it has on the elderly who can’t get out, but I love it for the effect it has on the landscape, turning it into a magical fairyland, a delight to walk in!

This walk started from a wonderful Dorset village, probably one of the prettiest you could wish to see, a designer village that exists simply because one man didn’t want the view from his manor house spoilt by houses and cottages! But more of that later.

A designer village cottage

The village nestles in a valley with its single street lined on both sides with identical cottages and with its almshouses and church part way down. These cottages are always picturesque but with the myriad icicles hanging from the eaves of each one, they took on a real fairy story look – you could almost expect to see Hansel and Gretel appear from the doorway!

I have said that the cottages are all identical, and they are from the outside, but internally they now differ. With their single front door, you would imagine that they were all built as substantial single dwellings but in fact they were semi-detached – inside the front door of each was a lobby with secondary front doors into separate cottages on each side. There was much overcrowding in the days when these were built and it is said that at one time as many as 36 people lived in one of these small cottages……with two bedrooms! Many have now been knocked into one single larger cottage.

The post office and shop

As I walked down this street, I met one of the villagers and we fell into conversation – I was to bump into him again later in the walk. He had lived in the village for 14 months and was undertaking a project to film the village through the year. Naturally with rare snow on the ground, he was making the most of this as he captured the scene! As I left him and continued down the road, I wondered if he was still filming and if I would feature in his production!

A beautiful lane

From the village, my route took me down a lovely lane with parkland on each side and past one of the many manor houses that stand in the area. High on the side of the hill, this manor house had commanding views across this beautiful valley.

One of the manor houses

But this manor house would pale into insignificance compared to the main feature in this part of Dorset, the magnificent Milton Abbey and House.

Milton Abbey and its grounds

The abbey was originally founded in 925 by King Athelstan although those buildings were destroyed by fire in 1309. The current abbey dates from the 14th and 15th century and as huge as the church is, it is only a fraction of what it was meant to be as the eastern chapels have been demolished and the main nave was never built. An interesting story is told of John Tregonwell who at the age of 5 fell from the tower……and lived! It seems that his petticoat which was the fashion of the day acted as a parachute, enabling him to ‘land’ safely!

The parkland around the abbey, designed by Capability Brown, is truly magnificent and my walk took me through this beautiful countryside.

Through the parkland

Coming to the end of the lane in the picture above gives us a chance to turn and look back at not only the church itself but also the impressive mansion that is attached to it. This was the home of Joseph Damer, later Lord Milton. He bought the estate from the Tregonwell family who had acquired the abbey after the dissolution of the monasteries to use as their private residence. Joseph Damer had the ‘new’ mansion built in 1774.

At the time, the village, then known as Middleton, was below it in the valley but Joseph Damer did not like his view being ‘spoilt’ by the cottages so he had them all demolished and built a new village out of sight round the corner! As hard as that was for the then villagers, one of whom refused to leave and had to be literally flooded out, I guess we have him to thank for the picturesque 18th century designer village we now see.

The abbey and house, as is often the case with old mansions, has now been turned into a private school.

Across the Capability Brown parkland

But we must move on! For a short time, our route takes us along a quiet country lane where I again bumped into my friend with his camera filming a different view of village life. And in the distance we can see the next unspoilt village on this walk.

Down the country lane

But we don’t stay on the road long before detouring across the fields and footpaths to reach that village.

Across fields and footpaths

Eventually the path brings us out to another of those quintessentially Dorset villages with its delightful thatched cottages and its church standing proud in the centre.

An unspoilt Dorset village

It is always a pleasure walking through this interesting village whatever the time of year but all too soon, we have to head out into the country again to climb up to one of the highest points in Dorset with its amazing views over the Blackmore Vale and across four different counties.

The route up will take us through varied scenery.

Through beautiful woodlands…….

……..through lovely open farmland…….

…….and out onto the open hillside with another of my favourite views back down the valley. Amazingly, the gorse here was still in flower and provided a lovely splash of yellow in a monochrome landscape.

On the open hillside

Reaching the ridge of the hill, my route took me along the country lane which was a blessing because the views are spectacular and walking on the road means that you can enjoy the scenery to the full without having to look where you are walking……..well, apart from the occasional patch of ice ! Now I know why I carry a walking pole – it has saved my backside several times !

The Blackmore Vale

Soon though I had to turn off the road and drop down into another snowy valley and along this section, it was 12 inches deep in places………apart from where the sheep had worn it away in their quest to find grass.

Snow grazing!

And I even managed to find some virgin snow, not yet walked upon, it almost seemed a shame to spoil it. I never could resist a gate or stile and in the virgin snow, this gate looked particularly attractive.

The gate and the virgin snow

So I spoilt the snow by walking across it and then continued down the valley along a lovely farm lane.

Looking both ways!

As I was walking down this section, the clouds produced a spectacular display and it seemed like it was just for me as it added a different dimension to the pictures. Eventually I had to climb up the side of the valley again and spoil yet more virgin snow which came up to my knees making it hard work climbing up what wasn’t really a very steep hill. But there is always something special about being the first person to walk in the snow !

Almost too lovely to spoil!

And it was the same as I crossed the next field; and looking back with the snow, the sunshine and the blue sky, it was quite breathtaking. Just stand with me a moment and admire the creator’s handiwork. ’The fool has said in his heart there is no God’.

Rolling hills of snow

And so it was on down the farm track again where I could feel less guilty because the tractors had already christened the snow ! It was along this section that there was a sad sight – animal tracks in the snow with drops of blood at regular intervals ! I wondered what had made the tracks and whether they had survived……..I hope so!

Tractor tracks

We are nearing the end of the walk now but there is yet another valley to drop into and a view made all the better by the foreground stubble that has managed to poke through the layer of snow on this more sheltered side of the hill. With the patchwork quilt of snowy fields on the opposite hillside, it made a delightful view as the light faded into evening.

In the fading light

And so my route brought me full circle as I dropped into the designer village again to pass the now redundant old school with its streetlamp shining brightly out into the gathering gloom. And the rows of cottages in the distance seem to welcome me back.

The old school

As I look back at this walk, it brings back such great memories, memories of post card perfect views across not only a designer village but also a designer landscape with its natural beauty enhanced by a heavy fall of snow. It was a 12 mile walk that felt more like 20, but it was 20 miles of heaven on earth ! But aren’t all walks in this amazing creation like that?

I have put up more pictures than I normally would but I hope you have enjoyed walking with me!

Be blessed!

Thanks for stopping by and reading the ramblings of The Dorset Rambler.

Until next time,
Your friend
The Dorset Rambler.

If you would like to contact me, my details are on my website which is http://www.yarrowphotography.com – comments and feedback are welcomed.

All photographs, poems and words in this blog are the copyright of The Dorset Rambler and must not be reproduced without permission.

Tags: church, country life, Dorset, farming, nature, photography, rambling, snow, village life, walking, weather, wildlife

Comments 11 Comments
Categories Dorset, Photography, Rambling, Walking

Twas on a cold wintry day……

23 Dec

Ah what a fabulous walk this was! For almost the first time this year I could walk on solid ground, not because there wasn’t any mud but because for once the mud was frozen. After the rain we have had seemingly all year, it was such a refreshing change to have seasonably cold, frosty weather which froze even the deepest puddles. So it was hat and gloves on, and a hot drink to have on the way!

Mind you, before I even got to walking, the camera came out as I passed the beautiful valley in the picture below – I thought it looked as if Santa had passed by in his sleigh on his way to deliver presents to all the lovely children !

Where is Santa

I arrived at the starting point of my walk and parked in a delightfully picturesque village with its picture postcard cottages and leafy lanes. With the dappled sunlight, it made a beautiful start to the walk – but later, the darkness would reveal something even more special!

Dappled light on a village street

Leaving the village, the first mile or two took me down one of those quintessentially timeless Dorset country lanes. With the crisp frost and the dancing sunlight, it seemed that I was walking in an age more familiar to my grandparents and I almost expected to see a horse and wagon come by on their way to market. It is truly wonderful how some things just don’t change, especially in this fast moving 21st century technological society that we live in. How grateful I am for these timeless places, these quiet moments, and for the ability to enjoy them.

Timeless

Turning off the lane, my route took me onto a farm track, passing the farmhouse on the way. Seeing this farmhouse bathed in sunshine on this crisp day made me understand afresh the pleasures of living in a rural area. I know there are ‘disadvantages’ to being a farmer like having to get up at 4.00 am every day but, hey, as they say, ‘every silver lining has a cloud’! Hmm, or is that the other way round !

The farmhouse

But just standing there gazing at the view…….well, you couldn’t help but sigh and drink it all in. With the frost in the foreground echoing the shape of the fence, and the gentle mist settled over the valley in the early morning light, it was magical What a morning, what a view! Stand there with me and realise afresh the truth of the poets words, ‘What is life, if full of care, we have no time to stand and stare’!

‘What is life, if full of care, we have no time to stand and stare’

But, move on we must, before the cold freezes us to the spot! From here, the route winds its way across farmland…….and loses its way a little! A lack of signposting and some poor stiles can make it difficult to follow the path, especially when one field looks much like the next, but this is all part of the enjoyment of a good walk, creating some small challenges along the way and making the compass and map worth carrying.

We have a good system here in Dorset, a system that allows any problems with the footpath to be reported to the local authority – you can love or hate the Internet, but how did we manage without it? Within days of my sending through the report, I received an email advising me that the corrective works had been commissioned so next time I walk this way, the path should be clear again ! I bet they love me!!

One of the things I love about this county of Dorset is the variety of habitat and terrain. After the farmland, the path gently winds down into a lovely area of woodland with the frost clinging to the trees and shrubs creating a fairytale land. If you let your imagination go, you could almost expect to see little snowmen running free. And then, it is out into the open hillside again to be greeted by the most wonderful view.

Across the open valley

Lunch time was beckoning and I knew that there was a lovely village church not far away. That is significant because it is always nice to sit down to eat but that is not something that is straight forward in the winter when the ground is so wet. However, most churchyards have a bench or two which solves the problem ! I often think it would be nice if more farmers would provide a seat or two beside footpaths crossing their land – it doesn’t need to be a padded sofa, just an old log or two will do ! But on this day, it was a churchyard, and a beautifully peaceful one at that, and as I sat there, the weak winter sunlight falling on the delightfully coloured gravestones caught my eye.

In the graveyard

On these cold days, it is always nice to have a hot drink so I usually carry either a flask or my small camping stove which in many ways is even better because it means I can brew a hot drink whenever I want to. And today I wanted to! Sat in that peaceful churchyard with food and a hot drink reflecting on life is one of the pleasures even on a cold day like this. And so often, these country churchyards are a haven for wildlife too.

The second half of the walk crosses some pristine parklands, with two old stately homes to pass, with the usual array of cottages. I think the one below with its mansard roof and country garden must be the perfect place to live.

The country cottage

And then a little further on, another old and now disused but beautifully positioned building which probably housed farm workers in time gone by. Its days of usefulness are long gone and it looks forlornly out across the land that its inhabitants once served. And yet it still has a picturesque beauty that enhances the distant view, and a heritage that stretches even further.

Empty but beautiful

Climbing up onto the ridge just as the sun was setting, my route took in some amazing views across the valley. The evening mist was creeping stealthily across the low lying land creating a mystical atmosphere which was lit by the gentle pastel colours that are typical of a Dorset winter evening. And the frost that had lingered on the ground all day, grew crisper as the temperature dropped even further.

The evening mist settles across the valley

And as I dropped down off the hillside again, the village of Evershot was sat in shade with the blue mist creating a winter wonderland.

A winter wonderland

Passing through the village and out into the countryside again, I looked back to see the last vestiges of the milky sunset reflecting off the smoke from the bonfires in the cottage gardens.

Bonfires in the sunset

The last two miles took me across the most perfect parkland with its landscaped grounds and beautifully laid out trees. One in particular seemed as if it was standing out from its peers, like a lookout on the ramparts of a hill fort.

The lookout

And as darkness fell and the frost grew heavier and whiter still, I walked on alone apart from the many deer that roamed free. They were my company for what I often think is the best part of the day.

The parklands

And of course past the old mansion itself, now looming out of the darkness.

The old mansion

Eventually, I walked back into the village I had started from and it was there that the darkness brought to light that ‘something special’ that I mentioned at the start. It was a beautiful nativity scene set up in the window of one of the old cottages, lit up and glowing with its warm light shining out into the cold, darkness outside. I stood and looked, and thought what a great message, light shining into darkness, and a what a wonderful reminder of what this Christmas time is all about!

Be blessed!

Thanks for stopping by and reading the ramblings of The Dorset Rambler.

Until next time,
Your friend
The Dorset Rambler.

If you would like to contact me, my details are on my website which ishttp://www.yarrowphotography.com – comments and feedback are welcomed.

All photographs, poems and words in this blog are the copyright of The Dorset Rambler and must not be reproduced without permission.

Tags: church, churches, country life, Dorset, farming, nature, photography, poem, poetry, rambling, trees, village life, walking, wildlife

Comments 11 Comments
Categories Dorset, Photography, Poetry, Rambling, Walking, Wildlife

Of summer and autumn, Dorset heathlands, memories of a hero, and a spider rescued!

5 Oct

Betwixt and between seems to summarise where we are at the moment and this was a betwixt and between walk! In terms of flora and fauna, summer has not quite gone and yet autumn is here; in terms of weather, autumn is definitely here! On this walk there was evidence of both seasons and there is such beauty in both and so much to be enjoyed if we just walk with our eyes open.

The walk started off by crossing some classic old Dorset countryside……although there is precious little of it left now – I mean that mix of conifer plantations and open heathland that was made famous by one of Dorset’s great authors, Thomas Hardy. At one time, much of Dorset was covered with open heathland but gradually over the years it has either been built on or reclaimed for farming, making it a rare commodity in the 21st century. Fortunately some pockets remain dotted around the county and this walk took in several.

The beautiful Dorset heathland

Having crossed the high heathland in the midst of changing from its summer dress to its winter garb, my route dropped down into woodlands with ferns in a similar state of change. These look delightful as they gently unfurl in the spring but are equally delightful as they change into autumn colours on the ‘forest’s ferny floor’ as Walter De La Mare describes it.

The forest’s ferny floor

It was at this juncture that I rescued a spider!! Well to be exact, I avoided destroying him and his web! I was walking along the forest track just listening to the birds singing their myriad different songs – its strange really, who told the wren that he had to sing that particular tune, or the yellow hammer his particular tune? The wonders of this wonderful creation!

Anyway, as I walked, I noticed something glistening immediately in front of me so I stopped for a closer look. It was a single slender strand of web that stretched a full 10 feet from one side of the path to the other and that supported the web with the spider in the middle waiting for his prey to fly by (it conjures in my mind pictures of me walking into the web and being bound up by the spider like something out of a horror movie )! Well, I didn’t want to destroy his handiwork and it was at the wrong height for me to get over or under it so I detoured around it by fighting my way through the brambles and undergrowth to the other side, not an easy task!

A very grateful spider with his lunch!

A little farther along the trail, I came across some evidence of summer, just to contrast with the autumn heathland that I had just walked through. This was a hover fly on a corn marigold. It was almost as if summer was saying, ‘I haven’t quite gone yet!’

Hover fly on a corn marigold

For a time I left the heathland behind (although I would return to it later) as my route took me to the resting place of one of Dorset’s heroes. To get there, I had to cross the river, and a beautiful river crossing it was too with its hugely long and thin bridge alongside what was a ford. In fact whilst I was there, a group of cyclists thought it still was ‘fordable’ as they all rode into the river for a short distance before each in turn got stuck as their wheels sank into the shingle……and they fell off!

A delightful river crossing

The goal was St Nicholas’ Church Moreton, famous for being the resting place of T E Lawrence, Lawrence of Arabia. It is a beautiful church with some spectacular windows, each engraved with lovely scenes. The original church was badly damaged in the Second World War when it was hit by a German bomber and instead of repairing the windows, it was decided to commission Lawrence Whistler to create new ones. They are beautiful and world famous!

St Nichols’ Church, Moreton and its windows

Lawrence’s grave itself sits in a small detached part of the graveyard.

Lawrence of Arabia’s resting place

For the time being, I left T E Lawrence but there would be more reminders of his life further on in my walk. My route took me back across the long bridge and through another pocket of heathland. This one was covered partly with wonderfully picturesque long, yellowing grass. I love this grass and I sat and ate my lunch in the middle of it, just listening to the gentle sounds of the Dorset countryside. It was a delightful place.

The lunch stop

And here too was a reminder (or is that a remainder!) of summer, with a plethora of butterflies all around me.

A speckled wood butterfly

All too soon it was time to leave my idyllic surroundings and continue on my way to an altogether different area in more ways than one. My route took me out of the heath and onto a country lane, but not just any country lane, this was the very place that T E Lawrence met his untimely death on 19th May 1935 at the age of 46. Having achieved and survived so much during the Arab campaign, Lawrence finally succumbed on this stretch of Dorset road when he lost control of his motorbike whilst trying to avoid two boys who were cycling in a hidden dip. It seemed fitting that as I walked this stretch of road, an army tank passed by.

The spot where Lawrence died

Of course Lawrence was an author, famous for The Seven Pillars of Wisdom, but that wasn’t his only legacy. As a result of his accident, crash helmets were ultimately introduced for all motorcyclists. Just a short distance away along the same road sits Clouds Hill, Lawrence’s cottage home for many years, now in the hands of that National Trust.

Clouds Hill

Leaving T E Lawrence behind, I continued my walk, and crossed yet another pocket of heathland. Here again there was a mix of summer and winter with the delightful Bell Heather still bearing its summer magenta-purple plumage whilst the equally delightful Bog Asphodel had changed from yellow to a wonderful autumn orangey red.

Colours of the heathland – Bell Heather and Bog Asphodel

I was nearing the end of my walk now but there were two quintessentially Dorset villages to pass through, picture postcard perfect villages! Apart from the usual array of delightful thatched cottages, the first village had a rather interesting village post office ! Sitting beside the old village hall, the shop was in what was at one time a granary with its arched foundations designed to keep unwanted visitors out! This was a wonderful village to walk through although I suspect that there may be less residents there now with some of the cottages having been turned into second homes. It is a shame that the soul has gone out of a lot of our lovely villages as local people are priced out by the ever increasing prices of these cottages!

A delightful village

The old granary

My final stopping point was another village of picture book cottages and the nice thing about this one was that although there is recent development, it has all been designed to blend in with the old. It does give you some faith in the authorities that control the planning requirements and a greater hope that our wonderful heritage will never be lost !

New and old alike

I started of by saying that we are betwixt and between and this wonderful walk contained much to prove that. It highlighted the beauty of both summer and autumn – in fact every season has its beauty and this is never more true than in this county and country of ours. With the changing seasons and weather, we never have a chance to tire of anything and I think that is a real positive………..unless it is rain, and I think we have had our fair share of that !!!!!

Thanks for stopping by and reading the ramblings of The Dorset Rambler.

Until next time,
Your friend
The Dorset Rambler.

All photographs, poems and words in this blog are the copyright of The Dorset Rambler and must not be reproduced without permission.

Tags: church, churches, conceptual photography, country life, Dorset, farming, flowers, Lawrence of Arabia, nature, photography, rain, rambling, Thomas Hardy, village life, walking, weather, wildlife

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Categories Dorset, Rambling, Walking, Wildlife

A walk of contrasts, of new birth, of a disappearing ghost, and a jar of chutney :)!

24 Aug

Well it’s a grey day outside as I look out of my office window – definitely a day for blog writing, and a walk I did a couple of weeks ago. It was a walk that took me past a number of lovely Dorset churches but the first one as I trod my way through the first village was one that I couldn’t visit. There had been a fire in the church earlier in the year and damage was caused to the roof rendering it unsafe. The good news is that it should be re-opening soon.

So having left the village, my route took me alongside the little stream that runs through the valley and past some historic machinery, relics and reminders of bygone days. These were the remains of sluice gates above the tunnel in the picture below. This was part of the 200 year old irrigation system that was used to flood the meadows, raising the temperature of the land early in the year to ensure a richer crop. Even without the flooding, the land around this area is still a relic in itself as it always seems muddy whenever I walk it!

The tunnel and the old irrigation system

The water meadows are delightful, with many wild flowers, bugs and bees around and it is lovely to walk with the chattering of the stream beside you, almost as if it was trying to talk to me about ‘the old days’. But all too soon, I had to leave its company and strike out further ‘inland’ to reach one of those lovely little hamlets with its own church. A picturesque and peaceful place and a church with an added bonus – there was a stall inside selling cakes, jams and chutneys to raise funds for the church. Well, naturally I had to support it even if it did mean carrying it around all day! I like these stalls though, they are part of Dorset life, and you often find some unusual chutneys on them !

A beautiful church with a chutney stall at the back

A picturesque cottage in the hamlet

Having left the hamlet (and returned 10 minutes later because I had left my hat in the church!), I continued along one of those very old ‘roads’ that always intrigue me. I wondered who had gone that way before me in years gone by – was it a drove trail to the local market, was it just a link between villages or farms? There are many of these routes in Dorset, probably busy byways in the days before cars but that have never been converted to modern roads. I’m glad of course because they make me think about what life might have been like in those days, and they make great walking routes too with lovely hedgerows on either side.

A few miles further on, I passed a beautiful old manor house and another puzzle – what was it now? I was to find out more a little further on in my walk !

A lovely manor house and a grand entrance – but what is it now?

It was actually in the nearby village that I found out more, a village that goes by the delightful name of Frome St Quintin. This village has a beautiful remote church that I have blogged before and I found out more about that too ! The church, in the picture below, has a rather strange tower which looks like some afterthought; that is because it was – the somewhat squat tower was added after the main church was built but what makes it so incongruous is the fact that the tower is rendered. The rendering is a much more recent addition, necessitated by severe damp problems.

What makes this such a lovely place is that the church is surrounded by fields and has no road access – tradition has it that there was originally a settlement immediately surrounding the church but that it was decimated by the Black Death, leaving the church isolated. The church was restored in 1881 so many of its features are late victorian, such as the beautiful carving on the altar pictured below.

The isolated church and beautiful carving of the last supper

While I was there, I met a lady from the village and we fell into conversation – it was she who told me some of the history of the church and also of the old manor house. So what of that magnificent old house? Well the original house built in 1212 was owned by monks from Milton Abbey and it was rebuilt as this amazing mansion in 1612, passing into the private ownership of Sir John Strode. It was said to be haunted by a ghost who on the same day each year would chant, ‘Search for Wat Perkins’ – many years later the skeleton of a murdered Scottish peddler was found in a ditch nearby and the ghost was reportedly never seen again!

In 1951 the Home Office acquired the house for use as a police training centre. At that time a lot of ‘modern’ buildings were added such as accommodation blocks etc. Being surplus to requirements, it was sold into private ownership again and has been used as a Christian retreat centre aimed at the American market, and for weddings etc. The house has been described as the best in Dorset and it would be great to see it restored to its former glory – but somehow I suspect that is unlikely!

This was a walk of extreme contrasts in many ways! As I climbed up to the ridge above the village I could hear the sound of many engines…..clearly the nearby Go-cart racing track was in use. I stopped for a quick look at these tiny machines racing round the track at breakneck speed with just the sound of the high pitched engines speaking of tension. Passing swiftly on down the other side of the ridge, their noise faded and I was able to walk in complete peace again. And in this valley, I experienced a very special moment!

Who will win!

There were sheep on the hillside and one particular sheep was all on its own, laying on the ground. I thought it looked unwell but it was also very big so I guessed it was heavily pregnant. What I hadn’t realised was that it wasn’t only pregnant, it was giving birth at that very moment! After a while as I stood and watched, she stood up and I saw the amazing sight of the head of a little lamb poking out as if it was just looking around surveying the scene to decide whether it wanted to come out! With a head at each end, it looked like something out of Doctor Doolittle !

It wasn’t long before the rest of the tiny lamb appeared and the mother then very lovingly licked it to clean it up whilst the little chap bleated at her – it was clearly a moment of mother/son (or daughter) bonding and it was very special to see. With no midwife, no vet, no farmer, not even other sheep around, the ewe gave birth to a bonny baby. Isn’t creation wonderful! I felt very much like an intruder, as if I shouldn’t be there, so I kept my distance rather than get too close. I did take a couple of pictures but the quality is not great because I have had to enlarge them quite a lot.

Amazing new life

After some time, I continued my journey and as I got to the bottom of the field there were more young lambs seemingly waiting for their new playmate. It seemed strange – new lambs in August. It once heralded the coming of spring!

Waiting for the new playmate

Strangely, in the opposite field there were some really attractive cows with rather ‘wonky’ horns. It seems strange to talk of a cow as being attractive, but I think these really were.

‘Attractive’ cows!

I continued down the valley to the ever present sound of the buzzards and eventually came into another picture postcard village. I have been to this village before and to the church but this time, I noticed something I hadn’t seen before. It was a fireplace actually in the porch beside the entrance door – this is something I have never seen anywhere else. Apparently, before the village hall was built, the porch was used for some village meetings, hence the fireplace!

The village church and its porch fireplace

The afternoon was drawing on and I still had a few miles to walk, so I moved on. I climbed up out of the village through the trees and the beautiful light of the golden hour beamed down between the foliage creating an ethereal atmosphere that took my breath away. I tried to capture the moment but the camera is a poor substitute for being there.

Golden hour sunbeams

And as I reached the top of the ridge again I stole a last look down into the valley and the picture postcard perfect village in the distance.

A delightful last look into the valley

My last couple of miles were down into the neighbouring valley and to the village I had started out from early that morning. This too was a delightful village but in many ways contrasting with the village in the other valley. A villager summed it up well when I stopped and chatted as I walked back to the car, this was a ‘working village’. But to me, it was none the less beautiful for that!

A ‘working village’

What a great walk this had been! Great weather, some interesting conversations, new birth witnessed, delightful villages and churches, and a jar of chutney ! What more could a man want!

Thanks for stopping by and reading the ramblings of The Dorset Rambler.

Until next time,
Your friend
The Dorset Rambler

The pictures on this blog are all the copyright of The Dorset Rambler and must not be used without permission.

Tags: church, churches, country life, Dorset, farming, nature, new life, photography, rambling, trees, village life, walking, wildlife

Comments 13 Comments
Categories Dorset, Photography, Rambling, Walking, Wildlife

Of wet and mud; of birds, butterflies, bulls and bullocks; and of tuneful church bells!

1 Aug

Well summer came at last to this ‘green and pleasant land’…….well for a time at least! And as is always the case with these changeable times and changeable weather, you have to make the most of it – and make the most of it I have! So much so, that there has been little time to sit in my office and write. In fact, over the last two weeks I have completed 7 full day walks (work gets in the way on other days), a total of around 100 miles on foot. And it has been great !

But today is drab outside my window so I can happily sit in my dry office and at least commit one walk to my blog. It is a walk I did a couple of weeks ago just as the wet weather was changing to sunnier climes for us. It was a varied walk in every sense of the word as you will see!

It started in a surprising way! Having parked up, I got out of my car and was just putting my walking shoes on when the church clock started to chime the hour. I thought nothing about it until something vaguely registered in my head……the church bells were playing a tune! In fact it was the National Anthem – very strange to hear it played on church bells. I thought maybe the bell ringers were practicing but it seemed unlikely. I thought maybe it was something to do with Queen Elizabeth’s Diamond Jubilee, but I was wrong on that too. I stopped a passing villager who told me that it happened every three hours and that it had done so since the jubilee of Queen Victoria. Very unusual, and a lovely start to the day. I determined that I would be back in time for the evening ringing so that I could record it!

‘God save our gracious queen’ say the bells of St Andrews

One of the things I love about walking is the fact that people are usually so friendly wherever I go – the same can’t always be said about the animals I meet but more of that later. Maybe it is because I am of the ‘older generation’, but most will say a cheery ‘hello’ and some will stop to chat for a few minutes or often longer. As I walked through this village and out into the countryside, three groups of villagers stopped to pass the time of day with me. Clearly this is a village where the natives are friendly !

Once out into the countryside I had company of a different sort with buzzards hunting overhead, making their distinctive pee-yaah sound as they soared. Later they were accompanied by the ever graceful swallows wheeling around catching insects. There were wrens too – I just love wrens! They are so diminutive and yet they have such a clear, crisp and loud song, so easily recognisable.

It wasn’t long before I reached another beautiful village with its own church standing proud in the centre. The first view I had of this was as I passed the end of the tiny lane that led off the road. With cottages on either side and lined with flowers, this was a delightful way to get to the church yard. As always, this was a place of peace and a place with some amazing stained glass too! Every window tells a story and none better than the one below.

The way to the church

The village church with its stained glass

As you can see from the photographs, the day that had started so promisingly had now clouded over, and worse was to come! Underfoot, the ground was difficult and crossing every field was like walking across a lake as there was so much surface water around after all the rain of recent months. Despite the waterproof walking shoes, my feet were wet! But hey, we are used to that! Also, it was rather like an obstacle course as every stile was swamped by overgrown shrubbery – wet shrubbery! I wondered why everything was so overgrown and I came to the conclusion that there are two reasons – one is the rain, and the other is the rain! Well not quite. The first ‘rain’ simply makes everything grow more; the second ‘rain’ keeps everyone indoors meaning that the paths haven’t been walked so much (and that after all is what keeps the paths clear usually) – well apart from The Dorset Rambler who of course is crazy enough to walk in all weathers!

Just as I left the village, I came across the remains of the ancient pound. These were a common sight in days gone by when animals were grazed on the common lands. If they strayed into areas where they weren’t meant to be, causing damage, they were impounded and only released to their owners on payment of a fine.

The Pound

Nearby, there is one of those typical village farmhouses, perhaps predictably called……Pound Farm!

The old farmhouse

So it was out into the countryside again, for a time along a very quiet country lane. Now although I usually keep away from roads, I have to say that I really enjoy walking along these quiet lanes. Because the walking is so easy, it means that I can focus on what is around me rather than where I am walking – especially on this walk! The hedgerows and verges on either side of the road were beautiful with all manner of wildlife, including the cabbage white butterfly that I posted about last time, and lots of Meadowsweet.

The Cabbage White

Meadowsweet

It wasn’t too long before I turned off the road and crossed another of those beautiful meadows. Not so many flowers in this one but the grasses were gorgeous. I am always amazed at the infinite variety of different grasses there are, and how beautiful they are when you take the time to look at them.

Meadow grasses

Along this section of the walk, I passed a number of remote cottages and I confess to a tiny bit of envy – they get all this beauty straight from their own doorstep. Still, I guess there is beauty visible from every doorstep if you look at it the right way.

A beautiful country cottage

Having walked across ‘lakes’ and scrambled through overgrown stiles, my way was about to get worse! My route took me down one of those very old sunken lanes that I have referred to before in my blog. They always intrigue me and I often wonder what they were originally ‘built’ for. Was it to drive the livestock to the local market? Was it for farm workers to walk to work along? Did people use them to get to church on a sunday morning? Were they for the various landed gentry to drive their horse and carriage along as they visited their various properties? I guess they had various purposes and it is a shame that so many of them are being lost to the undergrowth because there is no budget to maintain them. This one started off beautifully as it was a clearly delineated lane with clear banks on either side and fairly easy to walk down. However, it soon deteriorated and I found myself hacking my way through brambles and nettles that were above my head. I could have found an alternative route but TDR is not to be beaten!

The sunken lane

And win through I did, to come out onto clearer ground. As I walked across the meadows and crossed the railway line that marked the final phase of the walk, the rain started to fall….and the track started to get muddier! The long meadow grass is beautiful, and the trees and shrubs are beautiful, but not so much when they are wet and when all they want to do is transfer their wetness to me ! They did that in abundance!

Crossing the railway line

There were still two more hamlets and two more churches to pass before the end of the walk. The first had the distinction of having an upside down font. If you look carefully at the picture below, you will see that the animals carved on the font have their legs in the air. In fact it is almost certain that the font was originally the base of an anglo-saxon cross which at some point was turned over and hollowed out to form the font of the current church. The church sits next to the 17th century manor house as is often the case.

The church with its upside down font!

At this point, things were getting difficult. I was walking in an area which was new to me and there using an OS map……which was getting increasingly wet and unreadable! Ah, the challenges of walking in England! Well no rain had been forecasted that day! Anyway, I continued on instinct more than anything else and very soon came across the final church, the smallest church in Dorset and apparently the second smallest in England. It was right next to a farmhouse and to get to it I had to cross the loveliest small hump back footbridge – and in doing so felt as if I was walking into someones private garden. The church is now redundant and maintained by The Historic Churches Preservation Trust who do a great work in maintaining these very old buildings that are so much a part of the heritage of this country. Their motto is ‘Creative spaces, sacred places’.

The way to the church

The smallest church in Dorset

Inside, apart from being dry , the church was light, airy and had a lovely sense of peace about it. As always, I wondered at the amazing legacy that it has and the thousands of lives that have been impacted by its witness. It was time to move on so I headed back out into the even heavier rain to cross a number of boggy arable fields….although these were nothing to what was to come! Amazingly, there were still lots of butterflies accompanying me despite the wet conditions. It surprised and delighted me that these flimsy creatures still seem to be able to fly even though they were wet. And they still looked happy – well have you ever seen a depressed butterfly??

A very gloomy evening!

The final stretch was probably the worst because it crossed a dairy farm, and where there is cattle, there is MUD! And boy was there MUD, literally knee deep in places. It made the going very hard. And on top of that I had to cross a field with a bull who eyed me up as I walked, but did no more than that. Well they are usually fairly docile. The next field was full of young bullocks, and they didn’t give me such an easy time – they chased me and charged at me incessantly as I crossed their field! They are harmless too, just nosy and with a bit of an attitude !

“You are probably wondering why I’ve called you here. I’ve had complaints from walkers that you have been charging at them and chasing them. You know your mothers wouldn’t allow that! And besides, it’s making a terrible mess, just look at this place! Now go and clean it up!”

Finally I got back to the car and the relative dryness – I was somewhat wet!! I had walked through waterlogged fields, scrambled across overgrown stiles, been stung and torn by brambles, hacked my way through impassable undergrowth, fallen numerous times, got soaked, glared at by a bull, chased and charged by bullocks……what a fabulous day! I was happy!

Oh, and the church bells? I was too late and missed them!

Thanks for stopping by and reading the ramblings of The Dorset Rambler.

Your friend
The Dorset Rambler

The photographs on this blog are all copyright of The Dorset Rambler and must not be used in any way without permission.

Tags: church, churches, country life, Dorset, farming, flowers, meadow, nature, new life, photography, rain, rambling, village life, walking, weather, wildlife

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Categories Dorset, Photography, Rambling, Walking, Wildlife

Back to walking in beautiful Dorset, a cat that plays ball…..and a car that doesn’t!

22 Jun

Well, having scaled the heights of Snowdonia in my recent posts, we are back in beautiful Dorset today – and beautiful it was with some strange blue stuff above me and even a big round yellow thing ! It was actually sunshine and blue skies which is something of a miracle this ‘summer’!!

I parked up in a north Dorset village right outside the church so before I even got walking I had a look round – village churches are always so interesting and this one was no exception. The thing that caught my eye was a lovely circular window with stained glass depicting the verse ‘Suffer the little children to come unto Me, for of such is the kingdom of heaven’. It was unusual to see a circular window.

Suffer the little children to come unto Me

Those who have been following my blog will know that I regularly look round churches on my walks. This is partly because I love the old church architecture and the different styles that were popularised through the ages such as Norman, Early English, Decorated, Perpendicular etc as well as the fact that everything has a meaning or conveys a message, things such as gargoyles, bench ends and so on. Not long ago there was a documentary on television called ‘How to Read a Church’ which was really interesting because unless you know what you are looking at, the messages are all lost. More than this though, I love the sense of all the lives that have been touched by these churches over hundreds of years – this is a far greater legacy than the purely architectural heritage and goes much deeper. And along with this is the pure witness of the churches – after all, when you approach a village on a walk, what is the first thing you see – it is the church tower standing proud and declaring the message of Christianity to all.

But I was challenged recently! I went into a church, looked at all the interesting features, took lots of photographs and was on my way out when I stopped short! This was a house of prayer and all I had done was look around and take pictures! So I made a decision that whenever I look round a village church, I will always offer a prayer for those who worship there, for the local people whose lives are impacted by its presence.

Once I’d got going on my walk, I very quickly came across the most beautiful meadows that were rife with wild flowers and butterflies. The flowers were comparatively easy to capture with the camera but not so the butterflies – but more of that later!

Dandelions and blue skies

I just love meadows! With the long grasses, dandelions, daisies, buttercups, orchids and all manner of other colourful flowers waving their heads in the breeze – for me, its almost as spiritual a place as being in church.

In the meadows

So back to those butterflies ! They are so pretty, delicate and harmless aren’t they, but I think they have a devious side! So there I am walking across this meadow and the butterflies, loads of them, flutter past me and settle on a stem of grass right in front of me. I get my camera out carefully and approach stealthily and they just sit there whilst I frame the shot and focus the camera. The shutter release is halfway down and I’m about to capture a classic competition winning shot…….and they take off leaving me with a lovely shot of a blade of grass. So I walk on a short distance, they flutter past me again, settle on a blade of grass, and the whole thing is repeated again! I’ll swear that they have a grin on their faces as they take off !! So I gave up and they won the day!

It wasn’t only the butterflies that toyed with me either! The cows, well heifers, did the same. I crossed several fields that were part of a dairy farm and they kept following me – they are inquisitive little things. Every time I stopped and turned round, they stopped too. Maybe they thought I was the pied piper of Hamlyn!

Nosy!

About half way round my circular walk, I came across another delightful village church. This one was full of photographic opportunities such as beautiful windows with the most gorgeous light coming through onto the flowers that had been placed on the window sills inside. I think the window below was really lovely in an understated way with its plain glass.

The church window

The window below had tinted glass which really warmed the soft light coming through.

Beautiful light

But it wasn’t only the interior, the churchyard was lovely too. It had the most gorgeous copper beech tree and the afternoon sunlight really brought out the fabulous colours of its summer foliage. I often eat my lunch in graveyards which might make me seem strange but they are great places for finding wildlife……and besides, they are often the only places you can find a seat !

The graveyard copper beech

Part of the walk took me down some country lanes. Now normally I like to avoid roads but country lanes are different provided they are quiet. They can actually be very pretty in the summer when the hedgerows are vibrant with wild flowers and there are usually some lovely old typical Dorset thatched cottages to add interest as well as the odd orchard or nature reserve to detour onto. The hedgerows seemed to be particularly vibrant on this walk.

The hedgerows

There seemed to be a lot of the plants in the picture below – like miniature conifer trees. I believe it is great horsetail and that lovely fresh green colour looks striking with the low sunlight streaking through from behind.

Great Horsetail

There was a surprising amount of what I call ‘autumn’ colours too – I loved the subtle changes in tones in the picture below, ranging from the deep red new growth, through reddish orange and yellow to green. God is such a great ‘painter’ of colours!

Subtle hedgerow tones

And hogweed, probably not the most attractive plant but its hairy stems always look great when backlit by the sun.

Hogweed

Eventually the country lane led me to another village and here, it was The Dorset Rambler to the rescue again!! This time it was a little bird, a blue tit, in the mouth of a cat! Actually I didn’t set out to rescue it, I could just see that the cat had something in its mouth and when I went towards him he let it go and it flew unharmed up into the tree in the cottage garden. I was glad I happened along at that moment though!

The cottage garden

The last few miles of the walk took me through the most beautiful parklands that surrounded the local manor house. It was the golden hour, the time when the sun is getting low in the sky and the light is at its best – if you are a photographer you will know that morning and evening light is by far the best. The grounds had been landscaped and planted with a whole variety of different trees so naturally I spent more time taking pictures than walking!

Parklands

It was a spectacular end to a fabulous day’s walking back in my beloved Dorset – but sadly the day wasn’t to end as I’d hoped! As I drove home feeling very satisfied, the car broke down and I had to call the RAC who were unable to fix it so it had to be transported back on a rescue truck. I spend a lot of time sat by the roadside waiting to be collected. So what does a photographer do when he has time on his hands……take pictures of course. I wandered off with my camera !

Beside the country road

Whatever happens and wherever you are, there is always something beautiful if you just look for it !

PS – I did get home safely at about midnight and the car is now at the car hospital having an operation !

Thanks for stopping by and reading the ramblings of The Dorset Rambler

Your friend, The Dorset Rambler

The pictures on this blog are all copyright of The Dorset Ramble and must not be reproduced or used without permission.

Tags: church, churches, country life, Dorset, farming, flowers, meadow, nature, photography, rambling, trees, village life, walking, weather, wildlife

Comments 13 Comments
Categories Dorset, Photography, Rambling, Walking, Wildlife

A walk with great company :)!

15 May

This was a walk with a difference – I had company, and just the best company too ! Because I mostly walk during the week, I normally walk alone which is fine because I am quite happy in my own company and besides, you are never really alone out on the trail because you always bump into some interesting people along the way. But this time my son Paul and his lovely wife Laura came with me ! Now Paul is a best friend as well as my son – we are kindred spirits, and the three of us make a great team out on the trail. And what a great walk we had!

It started in some beautiful meadows, famous meadows in fact, with bluebells everywhere and even an orchid or two! Plus of course lots of orange tip butterflies, so called because their wings have……..orange tips!!

An Early Purple Orchid with bluebells

There were several ponds along this 16 mile walk, some man made and some natural…….in fact there were some ponds on the footpath itself because of all the rain we have had recently – but more of that later! The pond below is actually part of a fishery and it is in a beautiful setting in a small hamlet. Overhanging the pond and tied to a tree branch was a swing which just needed someone sat on it to create a prize winning photograph. We tried to persuade Laura to pose on it for us but for some reason she declined !

The fishery pond

A swing just begging for someone to sit on it

After all the rain we have had recently, everything looked so beautifully clean, fresh and lush. In fact we decided that the word of the day should be VERDANT because everything everywhere was just that! At one point we dropped down through a valley and the light coming through the tress threw such lovely shadows across all the greenery – it was just magic!

Verdant, the word of the day!

Mind you, that rain brought problems too as the paths in many places were extremely muddy or even impassable because they had ‘ponds’ of their own. On occasion it meant detouring off the track and following an obstacle course over fences and through hedges just to get round the obstruction. It was either that or take off the shoes and socks and paddle!! I did suggest to Paul that he should do the gallant thing and carry Laura through the puddles, but we climbed fences instead !

An unforeseen ’pond’

Part of the obstacle course

Apart from puddles and ponds, something else we had aplenty was clouds, lots of fluffy white sky sheep swimming across the deep blue swimming pool of the sky. Very photogenic!

Fluffy sky sheep – or is that an airship?

Half way round our circuit we passed the lovely Manor House in the picture below. It sits in an idyllic position in a tiny hamlet in a beautifully picturesque valley, and it was clearly well looked after. We met the current ‘lord’ of the manor – although he is not really a lord any more, just a wealthy person. He was another of those friendly country folk that I so often seem to get talking to on my travels and he told us a bit about the house and the hamlet it sits in.

It was once a village with around 100 inhabitants but with the declining manpower needed to run the farms, it is now down to a small hamlet of about 16 people. The Manor House itself dates mostly from the 17th century and at one point it became almost derelict. So much so that an underground spring actually ran through the lounge which was very useful to the local pig farmer who took his pigs into the lounge to be slaughtered so that the blood would be washed away by the spring! A bit gruesome but it is part of the history and heritage of the now restored Manor.

The hamlet has its own church dating from the 1870′s and this too is now owned by the current ‘Lord’ of the Manor who paid the princely sum of £50 for it not long ago. It has to be maintained in good order as a church so it’s great that he felt able to take it on and preserve a part of history that might have otherwise become derelict!

The manor house

Shortly after passing the Manor, we came across another pond with some great photographic opportunities…….and Laura almost provided a great action shot opportunity for me, but she resisted ! Paul is taking a photograph by the way so was oblivious to what she was doing !!!

Go on! There’s a great picture to be had!

Now normally, I try to avoid any convenience food or drink when on a walk, preferring to have my sandwiches sat somewhere in the countryside. This walk however took us through a town and when we heard the chimes of an ice cream van, we couldn’t resist!

Ice cream time, even if it doesn’t go with the rugged outdoor image

This is another walk that takes in one of those sunken lanes and you can get a sense of scale from the picture below. These lanes always intrigue me – it could be that it was formed simply by water running off the hills but I prefer to think of it as having been deliberately dug to make a route for smugglers carrying their contraband in unseen! It really is an awesome place to walk!

A smuggler’s route?

As always, there were many sheep with lambs on the route and for the third time recently The Dorset Rambler came to the rescue of one little lamb. There was a tree in the particular field which had a fence around it and somehow the lamb had found its way into the fenced off area and it couldn’t get out. It was bleating pitifully and was throwing itself against the fence in an effort to escape – sheep are a bit dense I think! With some difficulty because it kept running away from me, I managed to get it out and ran happily across to its mum…….and a good feed!!

Happy families!

Shortly after, we met another interesting character! He was the local farmer who was using a JCB to dig a hole in the middle of one of his fields. It seemed a bit of a random thing to do so we stopped and asked him, ‘Why?’ Apparently there is a network of land drains running throughout the field and one had exploded and needed repairing. Without it, a verdant green grassy field would become nothing more than a useless quagmire! He told us all about his farm which was several thousand acres of arable, sheep and cows, all operated by 5 people. In the past of course that one farm would have been split into numerous smaller farms, each of which would have employed many men. And of course the huge field we were stood in would have been numerous smaller fields too. How times change with the coming of more sophisticated machinery! With the loss of all those hedgerows that provided cover for much wildlife, the change is not all good!

Care, exploding land drains!

As evening settled over the countryside and the beautiful golden hour approached, we passed through another lovely wooded area. How the scene changes at this magic time of day. Even the conifers look picturesque with their new foliage uncurling!

A lovely evening woodland walk

Even the conifers take on a special beauty in the golden hour!

As we neared the end of the walk, the sun was setting and we dropped down off the hilltop and into the valley. And there was just time for one more photograph, a reminder of a special day! Memorable for great scenery and sun, memorable for lots of water and mud, memorable for fences climbed and lambs rescued, memorable for interesting and friendly country folk, but memorable most of all for the company of two great people who are close to my heart!

Two special people!

Thanks for stopping by and reading the ramblings of The Dorset Rambler!

Your friend,

The Dorset Rambler

Please note that all photographs on this blog are the copyright of The Dorset Rambler

Tags: church, churches, country life, Dorset, farming, flowers, meadow, nature, new life, photography, rambling, spring, trees, village life, walking, wildlife

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Categories Dorset, Photography, Rambling, Walking, Wildlife

Two castles, two ponds and two very different people!

10 May

This was another lovely walk, 21 miles through the beautiful north Dorset countryside and some interesting things and interesting people on the way!

It started with two castles, an old castle and a ‘new’ castle! To be more exact they are fortified palaces with the original one being built in the 12th century and destroyed by the Parliamentarians in 1645 during the English Civil War. It was at one time owned by Sir Walter Raleigh having been gifted to him by Queen Elizabeth. He originally tried to improve the old castle but in the end he gave up with that and in 1594 built a lodge which was eventually to become the ‘new’ castle. Just as an aside, Sir Walter Raleigh fell out of favour with royalty and he was beheaded in 1618. Apparently his head was embalmed and given to his devoted wife and it is said that she kept it in a velvet bag until her death some 29 years later when it was reunited with his body in his tomb!

The old castle on the left across the water and the new castle on the right

Having passed the castles, the walk took in some really beautiful parkland with great paths to walk on – it made a great change after the muddy paths of recent walks. I think you can just imagine royalty riding along these paths in their carriages, or whilst out with the hunting parties.

Beautiful parkland

Shortly after exiting the parkland, I came across the first of the ponds – or rather a series of small ponds. They were in a beautiful setting on the edge of a village beside a farm and it wasn’t clear whether they were private or not. They weren’t fenced off and there were no signs so I took the opportunity to grab a picture or two.

Pondlife

On this walk there were many rape fields, and very beautiful they were, like bright yellow table cloths laid out ready for a spring picnic. It seems really strange that these crops which are so pretty bear a name which has such horrible connotations and it made me wonder where the name comes from – it apparently derives from the Latin word for turnip! The fields do seem to be particularly vibrant this year!

Beautiful rape fields

Whilst I was walking, they were spraying the crop….which concerned me a little! I am not sure what they spray it with, but I am sure that it is not intended for human consumption particularly when it is in neat form. Fortunately the day was still and I was able to avoid getting too close so I managed to avoid breathing it in. On the plus side, it was interesting watching what looked like an aeroplane driving up and down the fields…….and of course it gave me a nice focal point for a picture !

Ah, lovely fresh air

It wasn’t long before I came across the second pond, a much larger affair than the earlier pond and equally beautiful. The public footpath circled right along the bank so I was able to enjoy the labours of the landowners.

The second pond

The pond was part of the grounds of a ‘manor’ house (I use inverted commas as I am not sure that it technically qualifies as a manor although it was a very large house with many acres of land) and in fact the ‘Lord and Lady’ of the manor were showing some friends around their grounds. The ‘Lady’ and I fell into conversation and I commended her on the beautiful grounds and she was very quick to give the credit to others, saying, ‘We have a good gardener’. She also told me that they had recently improved the stiles across their land which is quite refreshing as many landowners neglect the public footpaths that they are meant to keep in good order! These were lovely people and I bade my farewell and moved on.

A beautiful place for a public footpath

There were a number of lovely village churches on this walk. The church below was renovated in the late 1800′s and when the survey was carried out, it was discovered that most of the church, including the tower, had only one foot of masonry below ground and virtually no foundations. The restoration improved the situation and the church still stands although as you can see in the picture below, the walls lean at a slightly crazy angle!

The church with leaning walls

One of the interesting things about this church is the east window which is ‘stained glass’ but more modern than the other glass in the church. It depicts the crucifixion scene and Christ’s tomb.

An interesting ‘stained glass’ window

The church also contains a 15th century tomb with an alabaster effigy. As is often the case, this is partly set within the wall of the church. I was impressed with modern technology when taking the picture below ! Cameras these days often have face recognition so that they automatically focus on the face if there is one in the picture. Well, my camera automatically focussed on the effigy’s ’face’ even though it barely has one!

The tomb

At another church just down the road, I noticed a strange sign!! The church was locked but the sign indicates that the key is available in the porch of the farmhouse on the left……and promptly points to the right !

How does that work – left, right??

During the afternoon, the route took me through the most delightful woodland which was beautifully brought alive by the afternoon sun. All the trees were dressed in their brand new clothes and were stood on a lovely bluebell carpet. It was a quite magic part of the walk! Strangely, I fancy the carpet is not so blue as it usually is – perhaps it is because of too much rain and not enough sun!

Spring greens on a carpet of blue

A perfect place for a spring walk

Towards the end of the day, I passed another two tiny churches. The first one, pictured below, was in a delightful little hamlet which was typically Dorset. The second one was in reality only part of a church – just the chancel. The rest of the church has long since disappeared!

Having looked around the outside of this second church, I decided to go in but the door was jammed and as I tried to push it open, a voice came from inside saying, ‘Hold on’! Shortly after, a man opened the door for me. At first I thought he was the cleaner but it turned out that he was in fact a homeless man who had lived, or rather slept, in that little church for 7 years! Some might say that it was inappropriate for him to be there but he was doing no harm to either the church or anyone around – he was just using it as a night shelter.

He was another friendly individual who told me all about himself – both his parents had died 10 years earlier and it had sent him into a tailspin that resulted in his losing his home. He talked about the difficulties and challenges of being homeless and the freedom that it brings too. How the summer is easy once you get used to having no home base, but how winter is so difficult because of the cold. He told me of winter nights when he just had to walk all night to keep warm! He was in his sixties and now claiming a pension and the prospect of another winter sleeping rough at that age was not appealing! In addition to that, he had that day lost his glasses so was unable to read – I felt for him! One unusual thing about him was that he didn’t touch alcohol – he must be one of the few homeless people who don’t drown themselves in drink to help them cope with their lifestyle! We chatted for quite some time – I think he was glad of the company – and he waved to me as I set off again down the trail.

A little church in a Dorset hamlet

It was interesting, the total contrast in social status between the ‘Lady of the Manor’ and the homeless man, and perhaps just because of circumstance! In my eyes, and God’s eyes, they are both equal and I enjoyed sharing part of my journey with each them. Isn’t that what life is really about! We rub shoulders with many different people on life’s journey – hopefully we leave a little something behind with each one as we travel. These two certainly contributed to a memorable walk for me!

Thanks for reading the ramblings of The Dorset Rambler!

The Dorset Rambler

Tags: church, churches, country life, Dorset, farming, flowers, homelessness, new life, photography, rambling, spring, trees, village life, walking

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Categories Dorset, Photography, Rambling, Walking

New walk, new birth, and a badly placed hole!!

3 May

I had a great walk yesterday, and saw areas that were new to me! That’s one of the things I love about walking – no matter how much you do it, there are always new areas to explore and new sights to see. And in different light, different weather, different times of year, different times of day, even the familiar can look different and new. I never tire of Dorset and its wonderful countryside!

Yesterday’s walk was in west Dorset and started with the familiar, but from a different angle. This was Colmer’s Hill, a much photographed landmark with its tiny clump of trees on the top. The hill was named after the Reverend John Colmer who was once Rector at Symondsbury and the trees were apparently planted around the time of the First World War. Someone once asked me how you get to the top, but in reality, I don’t think you can because there appear to be no public footpaths that go there. It is one of those places that you always view, and photograph or paint, from another vantage point. And what a great subject it makes too!

Colmer’s Hill

I had trouble with the footpaths on this walk! There was one particular half mile stretch that I needed to find and it just wasn’t there, or in reality, it was there but was impassable! It was an old ‘lane’ which was probably used in olden times to take the cattle, sheep etc to market but it has long since become boggy and overgrown. I spoke to the farmer who owns the land and he explained that the lane hasn’t been used for many years despite the fact that it is still shown on the OS map. The old farmer had a job to stand, leave alone walk, and he had an amazingly broad Dorset accent. Now I am Dorset born and bred and people say I have a broad Dorset accent, but even I had a job to understand what he was saying as he tried to direct me to another footpath!! Perhaps it was because he was elderly!

I had more footpath trouble as I came across a badly placed hole! You’ll need to picture the scene here!!! I was walking across what was a nice flat and even field and as I walked, I was looking intently at the map trying to work out the route…….when I suddenly disappeared down a fox hole! Well, to be more precise, one third of me disappeared down a fox hole and the other two thirds fell forward face first into the mud! It was like something out of a Laurel and Hardy movie – you know the sort of thing, they are walking along together when one disappears down a man hole and the other one can’t work out where he has gone! What would have seemed even more strange had anyone been watching was to see The Dorset Rambler laughing out loud for the next hour because it was so funny. I just couldn’t get the Laurel and Hardy picture out of my mind!!

A badly placed hole – hmm, should I sue the farmer under health and Safety laws

What was a real privilege on this walk was to watch a ewe give birth to two beautiful lambs. The farmer and young vet were just delivering them when I crossed the field so I stopped to watch and chat to them (the farmer and vet that is, not the lambs )…..and of course to take a picture or three ! Apparently ewes can have anything from one to four lambs depending on the breed. It’s interesting how it works – hill sheep only have one because they need to be bigger to cope with the rougher conditions.

Brand new!

Off to the nursery, aka the barn!

This is another walk that took in a lovely village church and this one is known as the ‘Cathedral of the Vale’, such is its size. It was in a beautiful village with the great name of Whitchurch Canonicorum – don’t you just love the Dorset names!! The church is constructed out of the local warm coloured stone and for a village church is impressive inside and out.

The Cathedral of the Vale

One of the interesting things about this church is the tomb below. It has three oval openings at the bottom and it is said that people used to put their hands or legs in those alcoves in order to be healed. This is one of only two shrines in England that have survived intact after the Reformation!

The healing tomb

The village itself is certainly pretty and as you can see from the picture below, is quintessentially English!

A quintessentially English cottage

I have to say that despite all the rain we have had recently, the meadows are already beginning to burst into life with bluebells, dandelions and other wild flowers starting to bloom, as well as butterflies and even a slow worm. This was a delightful part of the walk as the meadows ran alongside the river that seemed to chatter to itself, or to me, on its way down stream to the sea.

The meadows burst into Spring life

Ultimately the route took me to the sea. All along the coast of Dorset there are reminders of the days when smuggling was rife. Sometimes ships wrecked by storms would be plundered and at other times, the ships would be deliberately lured onto the rocks so that the cargo could be stolen and stored until later. The contraband would often be hidden amongst the rocks and caves and then would be sneaked inland under cover of darkness. A favourite place to stow the contraband was St Gabriel’s Church and nearby there is a sunken lane still known as the Smuggler’s Path. It is not clear whether this was a route used by the smugglers or whether in fact it was a path created by the Excise Men to help them patrol the area. Either way, it makes a very pleasant place to walk today!

The Smuggler’s Path

And one of the places that the contraband would certainly have been landed is St Gabriel’s Mouth which is just a short distance from the church. Strangely, in all my years of walking in Dorset, I had never been to St Gabriel’s Mouth until this walk. It is always great to see new places and to see well known landmarks from a different angle so I rather enjoyed this trip. To see Golden Cap, the highest point on the south coast of England, from below was something new and special.

St Gabriel’s Mouth

In fact I decided to continue my walk along the seashore rather than climb back up over the headland as I usually do……..but it was a slightly risky decision as the tide was coming in and there were several miles to walk along the shingle. So much so, that I ended up having to climb up above the beach and try to walk on the soft and clingy clay around the point in order to reach the safety of the beach the other side. It was a difficult ‘walk’ and in hindsight, although the climb up over the headland at Golden Cap would have been steep, it would most certainly have been less tiring!

The cliffs along this stretch of the coast are made up of Liassic Clay which is very unstable. As you stand below them they look very imposing and almost threatening but somehow this, and the difficulty in walking actually makes it more enjoyable and challenging.

The imposing, and crumbly, cliffs below Golden Cap

One strange thing I did see here is the rock below – I thought it looked like some sort of sea monster that had been petrified !

The sea monster

The end of the walk was at probably the best place to finish any walk, on a Dorset beach. As the light fades, Golden Cap stands defiant as the sea pays homage around it! What a beautiful end to the day!

Golden Cap from the beach

Thanks for visiting and for reading the ramblings of The Dorset Rambler!

The Dorset Rambler

Tags: church, churches, country life, Dorset, Dorset Coast Path, farming, nature, photography, rambling, village life, walking, wildlife

Comments 9 Comments
Categories Dorset, Photography, Rambling, Walking, Wildlife

And where are the souls?

30 Apr

Just a single picture today, taken on a recent walk. This is the church of unknown dedication in the lovely Dorset hamlet of Whitcombe. The famous Dorset poet William Barnes preached his first sermon here in 1847 and his last in 1885, and in between that he went on to become rector of Winterborne Came just a few miles away. William Barnes is known mostly for writing his poetry in the Dorset dialect – I must say, it makes it difficult to read even for a Dorset man!

And where are the souls?

As I was processing this picture, I was listening to an album by the Celtic Christian rock band Iona – I love their music. One of the songs that came on was called Beachy Head (there is a link to the song below) and is about all the people who over the years have committed suicide by jumping or driving off the high cliffs onto the rocks below. It basically asks the question ‘Where are the souls?’ of all those who have died. It just seemed a perfect title for this picture since I couldn’t help but question ‘Where are the souls’ of all those who have worshipped in this church over the 500 or so years since it was built? There would have been people of all ages, races, occupations, personalities etc from the Lord of the Manor to the farm labourer – but now the church is empty and redundant, partly because the village has shrunk to the tiny hamlet it now is! I can’t help but ask as I always do in these places, ‘Where are the souls?’ The song answers the question – only God knows!

Thanks for reading the ramblings of The Dorset Rambler!

The Dorset Rambler

Tags: church, churches, country life, Dorset, Iona, photography, poetry, rambling, reading, village life, William Barnes

Comments 1 Comment
Categories Dorset, Photography, Rambling, Walking

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The Dorset Rambler

Happiness is snow shaped :)

Twas on a cold wintry day……

Of summer and autumn, Dorset heathlands, memories of a hero, and a spider rescued!

A walk of contrasts, of new birth, of a disappearing ghost, and a jar of chutney :)!

Of wet and mud; of birds, butterflies, bulls and bullocks; and of tuneful church bells!

Back to walking in beautiful Dorset, a cat that plays ball…..and a car that doesn’t!

A walk with great company :)!

Two castles, two ponds and two very different people!

New walk, new birth, and a badly placed hole!!

And where are the souls?

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