Adventure in the Maize Maze

Today I took Victoria and Sophia to the Maize Maze at Brereton Heath. This is an annual event for us and this year the paths took the shape of a tractor, which you would only be able to see from the air! So having donned wellies, armed with the flag and ...........the map, the intrepid explorers set off - perhaps never to be seen again. I never know how people do it without a map but I think they run round until they find the exit by chance. I even traced the route beforehand having no spatial awareness once in the maze. We found all the quiz posts but as usual some of questions were hard like ' Do brown hens lay brown eggs!' Last year it was on Butterflies and we could answer a lot of questions. There is always a lot of cameraderie around and we helped a couple of people with our map and rescued a 9 year old girl on her own. Afterwards we had fun on the play stuff and I got to do some action photography.

An Organic Garden

Today I went with my gardening chums to Pete Woollam's organic vegetable and fruit garden at the back of Alderley Edge. The weather forecast was not good as we were on the tail end of Hurricane Bill but as one of our members said "It will be an adventure!" Fortunately the afternoon stayed dry and 9 of us browsed and sampled this wonderful plotof land. There were lots of edible unusual plants that we had never heard of - like huckleberries and wine berries. And lots of grassy paths to explore with hidden corners - all mingled with a profusion of flowers to attract beneficial insects. No harmful chemicals are needed in this garden.

Pete is talking to a gate-crasher as we are a group of all women!

Anderton Boat Lift

Yesterday a friend and I had a day out at Anderton country park near Northwich. In the morning we had a short walk in the extensive country park, trying not to get lost as we were booked onto the 12.30pm boat. The first part of the trip was in the boat lift which was a very ingenious system to lower and raise boats in big bath tubs from the upper Trent and Mersey canal to the lower River Weaver. You needed a bit of an engineering degree to understand the mechanisms involved but the commentary made it sound easy. Originally it was developed to transport coal, pottery and salt in the good old days, but after the restoration in 2002 it is now used for leisure transport. Then we had a 30 minute cruise up the river to Northwich and back.

Details can be found at http://www.andertonboatlift.co.uk/

All these trips out makes me feel like I'm on holiday at home!

The Roaches

Today I completed this year's challenge for myself by climbing the rocky outcrop of The Roaches beyond Leek. The lake in the distance is Tittesworth reservoir.

Along the ridge is the lovely little Doxey Pool.

I have a better video of view but need time to work out how to remove this one!

Swettenham walks

Yesterday my friend and I had lunch at the Swettenham Arms followed by a pleasant stroll round The Quinta arboretum. We had fun watching 'fashion shows' as weddings were taking place both in the Church and the pub. The lavendar field is used a a backdrop for the photographs. Today it was in it's purple glory and heavenly fragrance. We were amused to see that the plastic pathways between the plants were being used as tramways for the young children to run up and down (makes a change from the dance floor!).

A few weeks earlier and after what seemed like an eternity of rain, I had a morning walk from Brereton Heath Park car park along the Swettenham bridleway - a very favourite walk of mine.

It was comforting to feel the warmth of the sun as I dropped down to what must be the best bit of the lower River Dane valley as it meanders across the Cheshire plain. I've introduced many of my walking friends to this area but this day I was solo enjoying my own thoughts.

My mid morning hot chocolate was taken on a nice seat in the secluded churchyard, where one gravestone has always intrigued me -

Tim Barton

Beloved and Wayward Son of

Brenda and Jim

Died 30 June 2001

Aged 51 years

Also Brenda died 2007

Aged 89 years

This day the lavender field was humming with thousands of bees.

Rudyard Reminiscences

This morning was sunny so rising early I set off for the Rudyard lake walk (5 - 6 miles). I parked at the north end of the lake and did the hilly bit first. As I walked and being on my own I started reminiscing to myself. This was where we (or rather Tony) had a brief spell sailing an 'Enterprise' in 1968 when Allison was a baby. But my memories went back further to when I was a teenager and my Dad took me on cycling tours and we stayed at Rudyard Youth Hostel which looks like a mock castle and now a private residence. A few years ago when on an historical walk I learned that this area used to be golf course and greens can still be seen if you know where to look. I have taken many friends here and last year I captured these images.

Banksy would be proud of this one!

My half way break at the south end of the lake was spent watching various craft on the water. And remembering in later years when roles were reversed and I drove Dad here to go cruising on the old tugboat.

The miniature steam train runs most of the length of the lake and the track ran from Leek to join the Manchester main line. My grandchildren love to ride it at Christmas when Santa and his dog wave from a boat on the lake.

Bristol and Banksy

I've just been for a couple of nights down to Bristol on the train to see my younger son Graham in his new home. He has been successful in getting a lectureship at the University of the West of England.

On our day out together in the city we had hoped to see the Banksy exhibition in the Museum and Art Gallery however there was a 3 hour waiting queue so I had to be satisfied in taking a photo of an image on the side of a house and buying the book.

Although it rained we had a good time taking in the cathedral, floating harbour area and lunch at a 'Boston Teaparty' cafe. I felt very cosmopolitan in this trendy city.

Reckless Rocky Ramble

Last week with a couple of like-minded chums I had a day out in Derbyshire. Our destination was to find Bronze age rock carvings on the rocks behind The Druid Inn at Birchover. As I used to camp nearby with the family in the early 1980's I was appointed 'tour guide'.

After a splendid lunch at The Druid and armed with sticks and cameras we scrambled up to the extensive millstone grit outcrops, where I discovered that half a pint of 'Druid ale' cured my vertigo! We discovered lots of carved steps and seats but the ancient carvings were elusive even with photos and directions from the website

www.stone-circles.org.uk/stone/rowtor.htm

Then after an amble to nearby down town Winster with it's Market Hall owned by the NT, no visit to Derbyshire would be complete without a browse in Brierlow book store (see previous post Jan I think) . We limited ourselves to 30 mins so we could fit in tea at Longnor before heading home.

Yes folks it was another action-packed day out for 3 ladies of an uncertain age.