Sunshine and showers

The weather has been intermittent showers and lovely sunshine. I took the dogs for a beautiful walk from Larcombe Foot near Winsford to Exford and then back over Room Hill to the river valley and home. The dogs loved it and didn’t stop – even dear old Abby kept bowling along and walked the whole 3 hours without a break. Not bad for a dog with a pin in her hip and who in human years is 112 years old! Later on in the week we went over to Aldermans Barrow. As you can see from the photos, the weather was very mean and moody and the dogs had a wonderful time!

At the weekend Ally and Martyn came for the day and after a day of catching up on news, needless to say my throat was sore by the evening. They are going to be grandparents and are thrilled at the prospect.

Great excitement in the village on Saturday as it was our first Beetle Drive. For those of you who haven’t experienced this thrilling and absorbing game, the idea is to draw a beetle depending on the numbers thrown by the dice. (Why does everyone on the table say out loud the number thrown)? The age range was from 10 to 92 and I have to say that that for sheer cunning and dexterity of hand (arthritis allowing) the older the contestant the more skilled they were!

I went down to Otter Nurseries yesterday and met mum, my sister Julie and Ally for lunch. Otter Nurseries started off very small but has grown into a huge concern with a fantastic array of plants, garden equipment and gifts. We spent a happy couple of hours chatting, browsing around and buying some Christmas presents and generally having a ‘girlie’ day out! Although we are very rural, we are only an hour away from some great places to spend a day.

Lovely weekend in London

After a hectic October, things should have become a little quieter – but far from it. I suppose now that the days get darker so much earlier, it seems that we have to pack far more in each day. As a result by the time 6.00pm comes we are both ready for a ‘quiet night in’ (mind you it could be an age thing – look at the comment about vintage clothing below)!

Last Thursday we took the train up to London to spend 3 nights with Tim and his partner Bexs. We visited Covent Garden and the Seven Dials area, National Gallery, popped into the Royal Opera House (plus several shops) and generally drank up the ‘buzz’ of London which looked lovely with all the Christmas lights. We went into a vintage clothing shop and there were 3 garments that I used to have in my wardrobe. The chap in the shop said that the 1990’s are coming back but as I pointed out – what I was looking at went a lot further back than that!

On the Saturday the plan was to go to Hampton Court via boat and arrive in style. As usual the Brown’s left it too late as the boats stopped running in October so we arrived by train instead! The gardens have given me some food for thought and I did suggest to Derek that we could use a few ideas from Hampton Court at home – Derek was not impressed! It was a lovely weekend and it’s great to see Tim and Bexs so happy in their new flat.

We soon got back into the swing of things when we got home as we welcomed a lovely American party to our Exmoor home. We were worried as to how they would cope with the weather (which to be honest was a little wild and woolly) but they had a great time exploring the area. Its so interesting meeting people from different parts of the world. Joy was describing life in Utah and the buffalo roundup which happens each year. Derek’s main wish now is to go and see it for himself (has always fancied himself as Clint Eastwood since he saw Pale Rider) and we have an open invitation to go and visit.

We have also had a party of ‘off road’ cycling friends come and stay to ‘enjoy’ the challenges of Exmoor. They set off and expected to be back by 4.30. After coping with 4 punctures between them, navigating the very steep and muddy terrain plus failing light, they eventually got back at 8.00!

We have been out several times with the dogs for some lovely walks. The other afternoon we were out at Aldermans Barrow and saw several starling murmuring displays. With the cold red sky behind them, they looked spectacular as they dipped and weaved in fantastic patterns. Several of our guests have commented on the fact that we have several sparrows living in and around our veranda as apparently in parts of the country, the sparrow is becoming quite a rarity.

Beautiful autumn

I can’t believe it’s been so long since I put fingers to keyboard – no excuse apart from the fact we have been very busy with our bed and breakfast visitors. Helen came back again with her walking group for 3 days and everyone had a good time. As it was a big party, I provided evening meal for them. Helen came for her last break of the year as did Julie and Lori and Julie and Helen. It is lovely when our guests become good friends and we are looking forward to catching up with everyone again next year.

If Derek has time, he sometimes takes Julie and Helen for rides on the horses – his excuse is to try and get the horses fit but we just think he is trying to get some help in cleaning the tack and feeding the horses!

We have had a fantastic autumn and the trees are magnificent and Derek took these photos this morning from the veranda. As you can see - Wistful the spaniel was pretty realxed about the whole thing! Yesterday I took the dogs for a beautiful walk up at Dunkery Hill Gate. We walked down through Blagdon Woods, crossing the river at the bottom and then up the other side of the valley. With the bracken getting darker and the light starting to fade, I didn’t see the large herd of deer with a stag until I was really close to them and they started to move off. There were loads of pheasants and a couple of woodcock plus some rabbits and squirrels – a wildlife haven.

The rutting season has just finished and we were lucky enough to see (and hear) some very large stags with their herds of hinds over at Nutscale.

Yesterday was the great Exmoor Beast cycle event across the moor. Once again Derek and I were too busy serving breakfasts to be able to take part. It’s such a pity as I’m sure that we would be up there setting the pace and leading the field! Luckily for the competitors, the weather this year was a lot better than last years when there were gale force winds and driving rain.

We had a lovely surprise visit from Derek’s brother Ray and his wife Mary. It was lovely to see them both and they were up with friends enjoying Exmoor. We have also had Dave and Sylvia staying for a night – friends from Exmouth. It’s great to catch up and hear the news from East Devon.