Dedham

22nd Sep

Dedham Parish Church - credit:S

We woke to a beautiful morning in Dedham. Why Dedham you may ask? When I was a kid,our local library rented out framed prints of famous paintings and my Mum was smart enough to get one every week and hang it above the table where it became the subject for dinner time conversation. I had two favourite artists - Brueghel and Constable. I always remembered looking for the church tower in Constable's pictures, as it made an appearance in most of them. This church tower is in Dedham, and today I could see it out the bathroom window, as we're about 200m from it.

As it happens Dedham is a delightful little village that's been around a long while - many buildings are medieval. There are a few half timbered buildings but most of the properties along the High Street look Georgian: lots of imposing facades, albeit on a mini scale. Turns out quite a few are really only facades attached much earlier houses and shops. There are no power poles or street lights so it remains very photogenic, if not a little too perfect. We're staying in a Georgian home that has been beautifully renovated. The owner told us how their elderly neighbours pretty much dictate any changes to the village - the council tends to defer to them. On the plus side, their passion has kept the village from being over developed, but on the negative side, it makes renovating a nightmare.

River Stour - credit:S

Our first stop for the morning was Dedham's St Mary's church built from 1492 to 1522, with the 131 ft tower completed in 1519. The tower is a particularly good example of the traditional flint clad buildings in East Anglia - blocks of flint in mortar, with all the small off cut chips wedged in the mortar. I loved the old wooden carved doors, and small things like a camel decorating a memorial panel from 1632 (not many camels in Dedham - how did they know what they looked like!).

Most of the sites of Constable's Dedham Vale paintings are within walking distance, so we headed off along one of Britain's many public footpaths that cross farmland and other private land. This one went along the banks of the River Stour and over the Stour Bridge where we stopped for morning tea, sitting out under the trees, right next to the dry dock where river barges used to be maintained. These were also a subject of Constable's paintings as were the nearby locks (no longer the originals of course!). It was then a short walk to Flatford Mill, where Constable lived. Right outside Flatford Mill is the pond and Willy Lott's house that feature in the painting The Hay Wain. The sun wasn't at the right angle to do it justice, so we planned to come back closer to sunset - which we did the next day, and this is the result:

The Hay Wain - credit: S

Dedham church a la Constable - credit: J

It was such lovely weather (although getting cloudy), we continued walking north to East Bergholt, again using the public footpaths to stay off the narrow country lanes. It's no wonder Dedham church appears in so many Constable paintings as it seems to pop up regularly between trees and across fields. They say that Constable is popular because he captures countryside that is quintessentially English, and it sure is! There was also something about the light and clouds that seemed just right too.

East Bergholt church with bell cage - credit:J

There is a very old church in East Bergholt that has a very unusual feature: a bell cage. There are a few of these in existence, but in this case the story goes that 5 huge bells were purchased to go into a new tower to be funded by Cardinal Woolsey. With his downfall went any hope of a church tower. Instead, a wooden cage-like building was built to house the bells. They are the heaviest bells in the UK and sit upside down in cradles. Unbelievably, they are still rung every Sunday - I'm glad I don't live next door!

We found a quaint little tea room for afternoon tea (nothing between a a cream tea!) before wandering back along more footpaths to Dedham. The downside of these public footpaths is that their routes aren't always obvious: we went wrong somewhere, had to climb over a gate, and almost ford a stream (until we saw the little foot bridge) not having the faintest idea where we were until thankfully a few landmarks appeared.

Our hosts recommended a place for dinner that we could walk to - along yet another public farmland footpath. As it was dusk, we saw lots of rabbits. Fortunately the sign "Bull in Field" was not a reason for concern, as the bull was way off the distance. We had a very nice meal before braving the country lane in the dark - no street lights! Still better than the farmland footpath.

23rd Sep
An even more beautiful morning - sunshine with a hint of autumnal crispness. Our charming Airbnb hosts provide us with a more modest healthy breakfast thank heavens, so we don't waddle out the door. I had two aims for today, both related to Arthur Ransome (of Swallow and Amazon fame) rather than Constable for a change. He wrote two books set in this part of England: Secret Water and We Didn't Mean to go to Sea. In both, they start out at Pin Mill on the River Orwell (more of an estuary at this point, as it's close to the coast).

Hanford Water Reserve - credit: J

Secret Water is set on what is now known as the Hamford Water Reserve, inland from Walton-on-the-Naze. The original plan had been to take a boat tour on the reserve, however the tides were not in our favour. It's an extremely low, marshy area where acres of extremely soft squidgy mud are revealed at low tide. Boats can only pass much of it at high tide and today those were very early in the morning and in the evening. Instead, I used Google Maps to find a road into the reserve area. This turned out to be quite a cross country adventure over a very unmade road (giant potholes) and of course with the low tides, all we could see at the end of the road was mud and tussock-like grass. But that's exactly like the book, so I didn't mind. I say that the road ran out but in fact it turned into a causeway that we weren't brave enough to take as it wasn't in great condition. I did however walk part way out on it, and couldn't resist testing the mud on either side - definitely the sort to lose gumboots in! I'm pretty sure that this is what Ransome used for the "wade" where kids get the tides wrong and end up stuck out on the causeway as the water is pouring in.

Pin Mill - credit:S

Clouds over the River Orwell - credit:J

We had a quick side trip into Walton to look for a public toilet (not a great seaside town) before setting our sights on Pin Mill. The small harbour area is still very much as it was in Arthur Ransome's day in 1930s with the Butt and Oyster pub and Alma Cottage (the pink one in the photo), looking very much like the illustrations in the books. The "hard" (road/ramp to provide access over the mud to the water at low tide) is still there, there are still boat builders and old river barges with brown canvas sails. Only the cars and modern sailboats spoilt the illusion of going back in time.

We consumed a leisurely and large lunch at the Butt and Oyster, so no dinner was needed that night. Good old sausage and mash, sticky toffee pud and apple crumble, accompanied by local Suffolk ale and cider.

Then it was back to Flatford to have another go at photographing the view in better light - well worth it as the evening sunshine was beautiful, even if not very much like Constable's dark atmospheric colours. Shame about the jet contrail! (see photo above).

The day ended with a lazy evening at our temporary home, including chatting with our hosts. James is a potter and I had a tour of his studio and the latest pots just out of the kiln this morning. He does domestic pottery, in shades of blues and sage greens, although he is still experimenting, so the colours aren't always as he expects. It was nice to do very little as we were facing a long drive the next day.

Barge at Pin Mill - credit: S

Bingley and southwards

20th Sep

Saltaire, Salts Mill - credit: J

We had a change of venue today, transferring to cousin Tessa's place in Bingley on the outskirts of Bradford. This included driving from Huddersfield to Halifax, just like happens endlessly in the TV series Last Tango in Halifax. It's a very hilly part of Yorkshire, due to the numerous river valleys that are also responsible for the siting of a large number of 19th century woollen mills. These are large, sometimes immense, brick or stone buildings, usually with a tall chimney. Those remaining are mostly now converted to apartments, offices and other commercial uses, but we saw a few derelict examples too. There is also the Leeds and Liverpool canal, and the railways following the original 19th century routes, so lots of reminders of the industrial revolution. The countryside itself is verdant green, and very country - farm land, trees, hedgerows - but the industrial heritage adds an extra twist when juxtaposed.

Saltaire, overseer's houses - credit: J 

After a rendezvous at Tessa's, the five of us (including cousin Kay and aunt Sally) visited Saltaire. This is a strange but fascinating place - a purpose built "model" (as in role, not tiny) village built to support a huge mill. The owner Titus Salt had 5 mills in Bradford and hated the appalling conditions the mill workers lived in, so in the 1850s built a much bigger mill on the banks of the River Aire, then built houses, schools, churches, infirmary, social halls, shops etc for the mill workers. The bosses got bigger terrace houses with gardens at the front, while the workers got small 2 up 2 down terraces.

Saltaire, workers cottages - credit: S

The downside was Titus Salt's egomaniacal streak (eg buildings had to be t-shaped to align with his first name), and his very strict rules, including no alcohol which he saw as a major reason for social issues among the poor. He wasn't however a teetotaller himself, so no doubt supped on fine wines while preaching the evils of liquor. There is now a bar called "Don't tell Titus".

Inside Salts Mill and Titus himself - credit: J

The mill itself is absolutely gargantuan - the photos don't do it justice: the internal photo shows a room that is about a third of the length at most, at the external photo is only one of the buildings. The main weaving shed was next door and housed 1200 looms. Weirdly, the primary source of wool was alpaca from south America. Now the village is just a normal village and the mill is a tourist attraction, filled with gallery space, shops and cafes. The artist David Hockney hailed from these parts, and a number of his works are housed here, including a recent collection all produced on an iPad!
There seems to be a link with the Glyde family - Reverend Jonathan Glyde from Exeter was Titus's friend with similar social views, and there is a plaque to William Evans Glyde in the church. I'm planning to research this further: Glyde is a rare name, there must be a connection to the Dorset Glydes.

Bangles 5 rise lock - credit:J

Later in the day, after tea and scones at Tessa's, we walked to the nearby canal to see the Bingley three rise and five rise locks. The Leeds and Liverpool canal was built in the 1770s for transporting coal and is 127 miles long with 91 locks, not surprising given that it crosses the Penines. The Bingley 5 rise locks are the steepest staircase locks in the UK and as they're not far from the 3 rise locks, it would make for a tedious trip along that stretch of the canal.

That evening, it was into Bradford for a "traditional" northern curry at the Karachi restaurant once visited and praised by Risk Stein. Great no frills curries, sublime mango lassi! And appropriately, we stopped in at the Titus Salt pub for a drink, and later Jeremy and Martin sampled a few whiskies.




21st Sep

Melton Mowbray - credit:J

Off down south today, with a 5 hour drive to Dedham in Suffolk (actually, it's just over the border into Essex, but who wants to admit to going on holiday to Essex!). The motorways delivered us very efficiently to our first stop, Melton Mowbray. Jeremy is a huge pork pie fan, and this is the home of the pork pie and of Stilton cheese. It's quite a nice little town, but the pork pies are the star. In spite of the dubious name, Ye Olde Pie Shoppe does the best pie around. Jeremy went for the Stilton topped pot pie, while I stuck with the more traditional version. They didn't disappoint.

Stamford School - credit: J

Next stop was Stamford, where Jeremy lived for a few years in the early 70s. The centre of the town is a historic gem, with wonderful old honey-coloured stone buildings, often rickety, sometimes very grand. We wandered through his old school, some of which had changed significantly, including the fact girls now attend (J said "we didn't have those in my day, I would have remembered them"). He actually boarded there for one term, so checked out his boarding house before going off to his favourite fish and chip shop (now a chinese takeaway) where he and his mates used to buy the little scrappy bits of batter for next to nothing.

The Glyde residence was slightly out of town in a country lane. It's now surrounded by a huge hedge so we couldn't see it, but it's still called Long Acre as named by Jim (Jeremy's dad) and is now a cattery. Last stop was Uffingham to see Jol's (Jeremy's brother) school. All the mums were clustered around waiting to pick up kids, so we couldn't do more than a quick photo.

Another 2 hours of motorways and we arrived in Dedham - more on that next time. We had a very nice early meal at the Sun Inn pub before crashing into bed for 10 hours sleep!

Penrith and Huddersfield

17th Sep

Sunrise - credit: S

Woke up early to a spectacular sunrise, so went for a walk to enjoy it, and to look for otters. Didn't see any, but the sunrise was revitalising for the soul! Then it was time to clean up the cottage and get ourselves to the ferry terminal. The last drive over our increasingly bumpy unmade road, past the highland coos, past the cemetery, through the Port Ellen maltings smoking another batch of barley. We were the last to arrive at the ferry (although we were there at 9:15 on the dot) so the last on board for the 2 hour trip to Kennacraig.

Barnacle Cottage (on right) from the ferry - credit:J

It was sad to be leaving Islay, such a wonderful place: wide boggy moors dotted with white cottages, pockets of pretty woodland, secret golden sand coves, picture postcard fishing villages, infused with history and brimming with wildlife. Then there's the ever changing weather, inducing wildly differing moods and lights, from stormy gloom and crashing waves, through misty mystery to blue sunny calm. Mind you, I bet the winters are tough!

The drive to Penrith took about 5 hours, once again skirting the shores of Loch Lomand, this time stopping for a late lunch in Luss, where we had a typical Scottish delicacy: fries topped with grilled cheddar!

Penrith Market Square - credit:S

We checked in to our very nice B&B in Penrith, just an overnight stopping point near the M6, then went for a look at the centre of this small market town. We had a quick drink in The Robin Hood pub before searching for dinner, deciding in the end to opt for a selection of ready-made delicacies from the local M&S Food Hall: salads, Eccles cakes, raspberries and scones already made up with the cream and jam.






18th Sep
Today was our the completion of our trip to Huddersfield to spend time with Jeremy's Aunt Sally, his cousins Tessa and Kay and spouses. The weather started out much better than expected, so we got on our way promptly (after yet another huge B&B breakfast) to give us time to visit Ullswater before heading south. You just can't be so near the Lake District without seeing a lake!

Ullswater - credit:S

Pooley Bridge, at the head of Ullswater, was less than 15 minutes from Penrith. It's named after the 18th stone bridge spanning the small River Eamont that flows into the lake. Sadly, it was washed away in the floods of 2015, but still a pretty spot. We went for a short walk along the shore, in the crisp morning sun, with the sheep, crows and heaps of dog walkers. The water was glassy smooth at first, so lovely reflections for our photos.

Ullswater Steamer - credit:J

The steamer ferry left the pier just as we got to the shore - a very cute wee version of the larger steamers on Lake Windermere.

Then it was off to the M6 for the 2 hour trip to Huddersfield, listening to podcasts on the car stereo via Bluetooth to pass the time.

Jeremy's cousin Kay is a manager at the large chemical factory, a major employer in these parts since the early 20th century, and in fact, today was their 100th centenary celebrated with an open day. Sam, Kay's wife, took us out to the factory where Kay was running the Kid's Lab demo - lots of fun with litmus paper and chromatography! We met up with Tessa, Martin and Nicholas, their son, for a tour of the Paraquat plant. Unlike our last factory tour, we weren't interested in tasting the end product!

That evening, we all headed off to a country pub called the Woodman Inn in the delightfully named Thunder Bridge. This part of Yorkshire is very hilly, so we had a great view in the last of the light. We had an excellent meal of, what else, but roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, albeit a slightly gourmet version.

19th Sep

Royal Armouries - credit:J

I decided to have a quiet day at home with Sally, while Jeremy headed off to the Royal Armouries museum in Leeds. We started the day with morning tea at Sam's florist/cafe - wonderful cakes! I then dropped Jeremy at the Huddersfield railway station. He spent a few hours wandering around the museum and was suitably impressed. It has a wide range of weapons from 10,000BC to Afghanistan, with dioramas of the Battle of Agincourt and Waterloo.

We finished the day with delicious home made pizza followed by brownie and fresh berries, courtesy of Sam.