21st June 2009

21st June 2009.

Dear All,

We have just enjoyed a great week walking in the Yorkshire Dales with the U3A. There were 30 of us in total and our base was at Malham; most of us stayed in Beck Hall which dated back to 1701 with a stream running close to the front.
On Sunday we assembled at Bolton Abbey for a walk and conducted tour of the Abbey. It was heaving with folk most of whom seemed to be sitting by their cars watching the river. Did you know that Fred Trueman is buried at the Abbey?

Bolton Abbey

Monday we had a circular route from the Hall via Gardale Scar, Malham Tarn and Malham Cove. There was a family of Peregrine Falcons at the Cove and the RSPB had telescopes set up for easier observation.


View from the top of Malham Cove

On Tuesday we repeated a walk Kate and I had done previously in Wharfedale starting and finishing at Buckden. The weather was fine all day and the flowers were exceptional. We stopped at a church and pub in Hubberholme where J.B.Priestley’s ashes are scattered (in the churchyard not the pub!). We visited Grassington on the way back.


Wharfedale

Wednesday was a rest day and we had arranged a trip on the Settle to Carlisle railway. This was good planning as it rained all day. We had an enthusiastic guide and stopped at Appleby before returning to Settle. In the evening we had a posh meal in a country house arranged at a discount price by our Lieutenant Colonel.


Ribblehead Viaduct

Thursday was the longest walk 14 miles around Dentdale, a steepish climb, a long contour walk and return along the river.


Dentdale

Friday there was another walk south from Malham and we returned to the Cove afterwards where there were some Redstarts.


Friday walk

We visited the Bronte museum at Haworth on the way home Saturday and arrived. home in time to inspect the new kitchen and download the photos.

Love


Mike & Kate

8th June 2009

8th June 2009.

Dear All,

Late delivery this week, Kate has cleared the kitchen and the workmen arrived on time this morning to strip the old units and tiles and install the new.
We attended a U3A lecture on “A New Way to look at the Countryside” this week by Dr Peter Friend. His son is in my cricket team and Peter who was a geology lecturer at CU has just written a new book explaining why the scenery looks as it does.
On Friday we also went to a photographic exhibition in Longstanton church mainly by Jeff Harrison a native of Longstanton who is a semi professional wildlife photographer specialising in kingfishers and barn owls. He gave an illustrated talk as well as showing stills and it was excellent, have a look on his website if you are interested: http://www.jeffharrisonphotography.co.uk/
It was Icknield Way section 4 on Thursday from Baldock to Therfield. This was the best section so far with good views and over hung leafy lanes.

Therfield near Royston

Icknield Way section 4

As a rarity we won both chapel and village cricket matches this week only hospitalising one man on Wednesday (ball in the teeth) and felling two with blows to the body on Saturday (neither incident anything to do with me) I managed 30 runs and 2 wickets on Saturday so there is still some life in the old dog…..
I managed to break the drive belt on the cricket mower last week and had an anxious wait for a replacement which did not turn up until Friday so we had to prepare the wicket in the rain.
We hope to go walking in the Yorkshire Dales next week so no letter.

Love


Mike & Kate

31st May 09

31st May 2009.

Dear All,

Chapel cricket started this week and we began with a 3 wicket win at Elsworth, village cricket continues to struggle with both 1st and 2nds losing again yesterday.
On the wildlife front this week we enjoyed the “march of the butterflies” as reported in the media. We had a stream of Painted Lady butterflies flying across our garden on Thursday evening – about one every 30 seconds. After this we were invited to Glynis and Richard Fenwick’s for dinner and to view the new allotments created in Mustills Lane. There are about 10 new plots which all look very well – must be getting good advice from the Over News Gardening column!
The walk this week was Icknield Way section 3: Pegsdon (North of Luton) to Baldock. The first half was on the Chiltern Ridge which was clear for a change with excellent views, the second half was a bit urban through Hitchin, Letchworth and Baldock.


Icknield Way near Pegsdon


Lunch at Ickleford


Baldock
Friday I collected items for Moldova from three locations in Over and Longstanton and transported them to NIAB for storage. We are planning another lorry in the autumn but have to raise over £2K to pay for it.
We had a visit to the tile shop on Saturday to choose some to go with the new kitchen units which should be ready for fitting in a couple of weeks.
In between these items it has been church commitments and gardening. We have interviewed a chap for the assistant church worker role today: a 38 year old bachelor and not too promising. Sunday lunch was a BBQ at Kate and Gordon’s with this mornings speaker from the Albanian Evangelical Mission. Tonight we have a combined “Christians in Over” Pentecost Praise service in St Mary’s.
Picked the first strawberries and peas yesterday and have spent too much time watering this week.

Love


Mike & Kate

24th May 09

24th May 2009.

Dear All,

Pleased to hear that Graham is home and hopefully feeling better – really the cousin’s dos are not that bad - you don’t have to keep creating excuses!
Kate and I went to Chelsea Flower Show on Tuesday travelling on the coach – Cambridge to Victoria for less than £6 return seems a bargain. Of course when you are used to attending the Monday preview day Tuesday is quite different, crowds and hardly a celeb in sight! but it was enjoyable nonetheless.
The large show gardens always seem a bit like showing off with displays of water and concrete but the small gardens were excellent this year and the standard of flowers in the tent and the surrounding artwork was fantastic.






Chelsea Gardens
Otherwise it has been lots of gardening and watering this week. We have planted Brussels sprouts, sprouting broccoli, cauliflowers, cabbage, lettuce, sweet corn, squash, pumpkins, cucumbers, melons, gourds, courgettes, aubergines, sweet and chilli peppers and radish. Planting is easy, protecting everything from pigeons, squirrels, deer and other pests takes ages.
On the wildlife front the spotted flycatchers returned this week (but not to the same nest), and in addition to the blue tits in the box we have located a wrens nest and a grass snake in the pond.
The walk on Thursday was a repeat of the New Years day walk from Halls Green, via Luffenhall, Cromer, Hare Street and Weston.
Last night John Law came for a “Chinese Evening” at chapel. He showed photos from his two trips judging the national Chinese photographic competition and very good they were. We had a Chinese takeaway and a collection for Moldova.

Plasticine Garden

Chelsea Flowers

Chelsea Hat

Chelsea Vegetables

Love


Mike & Kate

17th May 09

17th May 2009.

Dear All,

As we have seen most of you this week this is only a brief note.
Spent Monday with Ben looking at flats in Mitcham, he put in a couple of offers for one that had been well restored but fairly small but these were not accepted so the search goes on.
I actually went shopping on Wednesday for some new walking boots. This was achieved after trying on more than a few and I tried them out on our Thursday walk. This week we were on the Icknield Way section 2 from Winfield to Pegsden north of Luton. It was a decent walk but misty again and fairly long at 14 miles so a good test for the boots.
On Friday it was the cousin’s reunion in Essex meeting for lunch at Weeley, followed by a walk round the Naze and tea at Beaumont. For those that have not heard Graham was not well enough to attend having been diagnosed with “Community Acquired Pneumonia”. He had been feeling lousy for 4 or 5 days with no energy. Mary phoned yesterday to say that he is now in hospital as he was not improving.

Walk round the Naze: Mary, Peter, Annamarie, Kate, John, David

Naze Tower from Marina

Naze Tower

Cliff Erosion

38th Wedding Anniversary

I played cricket for the IIIs yesterday – first match with a very junior team. We came second by a margin and I top scored with 9!
As we had not had a decent rain for 6 or 7 weeks I wrote the Gardening Column on drought this week. It has worked quite well as we had a useful shower last night!

Love


Mike & Kate

10th May 2009.

Dear All,


Kate enjoyed having Esther and Mary-Ann here on Monday to help celebrate her birthday. We had lunch at an Italian Restaurant at Little Eversden then a walk through the bluebells in Knapwell Woods. Ben was ata friends wedding but we are hoping to see him tomorrow as we go down to Streatham to help him look for a flat to buy.
Not too much to report this week as I have spent quite a bit of time in the garden and three afternoons on the cricket square. Both are in serious need of some steady moisture. I hope you all have your runner and French beans planted out and have sown your sweet corn, courgettes and squash!
The walk this week met at Radwinter, between Saffron Walden and Finchingfield, and proceeded via Sawards End and Wimbush back to Radwinter. There were several patches of woodland, some with bluebells, a few hills and generous helpings of oilseed rape.

Wimbush Hall




Radwinter Plough Inn

We plan to strip out the kitchen and have new cupboards etc made in the village by the local carpenter, he came to check the measurements this week before starting on the construction and we went to the tile emporium at Dry Drayton to choose a short list.
Kate spent most of Saturday entertaining Toni and her two toddlers Charlie and Noah, she is bringing them up herself and sometimes finds it a strain as they are fairly lively. Their choice of venue for the afternoon was Willingham Windmill which had an open day – perhaps not the ideal location for fearless youngsters!
Hope to see some of you Friday.

Love


Mike & Kate

2nd May 2009.

Dear All,

Esther and Mary-Ann are here overnight to celebrate their mother’s birthday tomorrow; we have booked into an Italian restaurant for lunch. Last night we attended the Essex Musical Association’s performance of “The Dream of Gerontius” at Thaxted Parish church as Esther was singing and starred in the “semi-chorus”. It was very good but sadly their last concert as after 103 years there is neither the organisation nor finance to carry on.



Thaxted

Thaxted church

I have been to work a couple of days this week (what a strain I hear you say!) as we have a new contract to experiment with zeolite – an micromesh compound from volcanic sites used in water filters and to reclaim heavy metal contaminated soils. The company are now wishing to launch it in agriculture as a soil conditioner and slow nutrient release medium. We applied it to three carrot sites in east Suffolk (by hand) and need to monitor emergence, yield, quality and disease suppression.

Zeolite incorporation, Iken near Snape


Lots of gardening and cricket pitch work this week. With potatoes up 12” there is an anxious glance at the frost warnings each evening.
The walk this week started at Little Eversden and preceded via Great Eversden, Kingston and Toft – another good 10 miles but much more manageable when the ground is dry.


Little Eversden

David, Rebecca and family (our pastor and family) left for a month in South Africa yesterday so life is a little busier for a few weeks. We did not get off to a great start this morning as the visiting speaker got stuck in a traffic jam coming from St Neots and did not appear until 11.10 am.
One of our old neighbours, Lynne Medlock (of rabbit fame) has called in so I will stop now.

Love


Mike & Kate