Exmoor The Country Magazine Spring 2016 sample issue

EXMOOR THE COUNTRY MAGAZINE

diary VICTOR DARTNALL RACING

EASTER RECIPES

www.exmoormagazine.co.uk

ISSUE No. 74 Spring 2016 £3.20

FAREWELL TO WANSBROUGH

Spring discoveries

The Grey Seal Bluebells Heaven Reedbed Wildlife Combe Martin Walk

Natural creations

The Antler Men Exmoor Wool Project Moor Coppice Artworks

Hoar Oak Publishing Ltd

Looking back Early Vegetation on the Moor Exmoor’s Horse-drawn Transport Polar Dog! Sir Ranulph Fiennes’ ‘Bothie’ Ravilious Photographs: The Character of our Coast

stags.co.uk The West Country is Stags Country BROMPTON REGIS8 Acres Sampford Peverell 7.8 Acres

Lorem ipsum dolor sit,period consectetur A charming detached cottage adipisicing elit, sed eiusmod situated in a tranquil location with tempor incididunt ut et dolore direct access to footpaths and sed sed magna aliqua.

Ut enim extensive bridleways leadingminim onto veniam incididunt ut et dolore open moorland.

Kitchen, sittingsed. room, Lorem ipsum dolor sit, consectetur dining room, utility/boot room, adipisicing sed eiusmod tempor 3 bedrooms,elit, bathroom, stables, incididunt ut et dolore sed sed gardens, parking and paddocks. magna aliqua..

Webfind: Find:73559 12345 EPC Band F. Web GuidePrice: £1,750,000 Guide £520,000

Tiverton Office 01884 256331

Dulverton Office 01398 323174

CENTRAL DULVERTON Sampford Peverell

8 Acres

SIMONSBATH Sampford Peverell

5.98 Acres Acres

Commercial investment premises with the benefit of two lucrative holiday Lorem ipsum dolor sit, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed eiusmod tempor282 incididunt letting apartments and a prominent retail unit.

Retail premises sq ft floor area plus preparation room, retailveniam position, first floor ut et dolore sed sed magna aliqua.

Ut prime enim minim incididunt ut et dolore 2sed. bedroom apartment, 1 consectetur bedroom cottage, courtyard.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit, adipisicing elit. Web Find: 12345 EPC Band F. Web find: 76287

An outstanding location in the heart of Exmoor for this 4 bedroom Lorem ipsumfarmhouse, dolor sit, consectetur adipisicing elit,stables sed eiusmod tempor incididunt substantial 2 bedroom cottage, and paddocks.

Stunning views and aliqua. wonderful outriding with access to open ut et dolorerural sed sed magna Ut enim minim veniam incididunt ut et dolore moorland. potential. sed. Lorem Income ipsum dolor sit, consectetur adipisicing elit. Web Find: 12345 EPC Band: E. Web find: 73373

KNOWSTONE Sampford Peverell

CARHAMPTON Sampford Peverell

Guide £1,750,000 Guide Price £350,000

Tiverton Office 01884 256331 Dulverton Office 01398 323174

8 Acres

A delightful one bedroom character Grade II Listed cottage in a very Lorem ipsumvillage dolor sit, consectetur elit, sedequally eiusmodsuited temporfor incididunt convenient location with adipisicing accommodation holiday or permanent Hall, Ut sitting with ut et dolore sed occupation. sed magna aliqua. enimroom, minim study, veniam kitchen, incididuntbedroom ut et dolore en-suite bathroom, workshop/store, patio garden. sed. Lorem ipsum dolor sit, consectetur adipisicing elit. Web Find: 12345 EPC: Band: F. Web Find: 70791 Guide £1,750,000 Guide Price: £167,500

Tiverton Office 01884 256331 Dulverton Office 01398 323174

Cornwall | Devon | Somerset | Dorset | London

Guide £1,750,000 Guide Price £795,000

Tiverton Office 01884 256331 Dulverton Office 01398 323174

8 Acres

A charming 16th century 4 bedroom thatched cottage in a quiet location Lorem ipsum open dolor sit, consecteturHallway, adipisicing elit, sed eiusmod tempor incididunt overlooking countryside. sitting room, dining room, kitchen, breakfast room, study, cloakroom, bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, ut et dolore sed sed magna aliqua. Ut enim minim4 veniam incididunt ut et dolore summerhouse, garage. sed. Lorem ipsumgarden, dolor sit,double consectetur adipisicing elit. Web Find: 12345 EPC Band: G. Web find: 67862 Guide £1,750,000 Guide Price £399,950

Tiverton Office 01884 256331 Dulverton Office 01398 323174

Gapperies, West Porlock- £550,000 Occupying an outstanding elevated setting in this much favoured residential area enjoying fine views from the front over the bay of Porlock to the Bristol Channel and Hurlestone Point - an individual detached 1960's Scandinavian influenced 4/5 bedroom bungalow with flexible and spacious accommodation.

1 Moorlands, Minehead- £495,000 A well presented and spacious four/five bedroom semi detached house along with an individual building plot with outline consent for the erection of a single dwelling, situated in an imposing elevated position on the slopes of North Hill enjoying stunning panoramic views over the town to the Bristol Channel, the Quantock Hills, Hopcott, Periton, Grabbist, Conygar Tower, St Michaels Church and North Hill to the rear, and adjoining open fields.

Minehead Office

Williton Office

London Office

8 The Parade • Minehead Somerset • TA24 5UF T 01643 706666 E post@chaninandthomas.co.uk

9 Fore Street • Williton Somerset • TA4 4PX T 01984 632167 E chanin.williton@btconnect.com

Cashel house 15 Thayer Street London W1U 3JT

in association with

Homes from Webbers

Fine &Dulverton,Wellington Country Local expertise, National presence, Fine & Country Somerset Taunton, Minehead, & Wiveliscombe Offices International audience

170,000 buyers seeking UK properties 14,000 properties for sale globally Offices 29 West Country 225 UK 75 International

An inspiring place to live The brief was simple. Create a design tour-de-force. Use space, use light, created elegance with the focus on quality, not cost. Use state of the art environmental technology but retain practicality.The result was “The Observatory” a stunning contemporary home.

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Located in a prestigious location and positioned to take full advantage of the coastal views, this stylish modern eco-friendly home was traditionally built in 2007 and has predominantly hardwood timber clad exteriors with extensive and versatile accommodation of over 3350 square feet arranged over three levels.The accommodation includes; a superb top floor living space with bespoke fitted kitchen designed by Discovery Channel presenter Mark Selwood

Napoleon Wilcox, Director, Fine & Country 01398 324666

who was commission by the owner to create a functional kitchen with a “wow” factor that would benefit the property, an impressive atrium entrance hall, library area, media/TV room, family room, five bedrooms (two en-suite), bathroom, shower and sauna, three person lift, surrounding gardens and terrace, double garage and parking.

SOLD Designed to minimise environment impact the property utilizes a range of new technologies to include heat replacement system, rainwater harvesting, underfloor heating, Sarnaveret Green Roof system, integrated vacuum, state of the art insulation. Lexcon and Home Network wiring audio, phone or data.

Noel Sexton, Dulverton office

Kevin Prescott, Minehead office

01398 324818

01643 700210

Buyers from East Sussex

MINEHEAD £695,000 Detached home, coastal views, open plan upper floor living space, 5 bedrooms (2 en-suite), 2 reception rooms, shower and sauna, bathroom, utility, life, double garage and gardens.

Tel: 01643 706917 kevin.prescott@webbers.co.uk Kevin Prescott, Minehead

Lindsay Braddick, Lee Hussell, Barnstaple/Lynton Ilfracombe office office 01271 347861 01271 869112

Mike Cooke, South Molton office 01769 575797

Serving Exmoor for over 170 years

The leading property professionals in the South West

Our extensive expertise covers every aspect of property including:

Taunton: 01823 277121 Tiverton: 01884 243000 South Molton: 01769 574500

16 Offices

across Somerset, Devon & Dorset also Mayfair London

■

Residential Sales, New Homes and Lettings

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Commercial Property Agency

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Property Surveys and Valuation Services

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Development Land, Planning and Architectural Services

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Farm Agency, Agricultural, Professional Services, Estate Management and Specialist Livestock Sales

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The sale of Residential, Agricultural and Commercial Property by Public Auction

■

Livestock Auctions at Sedgemoor Auction Centre

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Antiques Saleroom and Valuation Service

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Weekly Livestock Markets, Machinery Sales and Furniture Auctions

www.gth.net

26 53 Exmoor Magazine is independently owned and run on Exmoor by Naomi Marley, Elaine Pearce and Sue South. We are not part of a chain and we are sold through around 140 local shops, along with Co-ops, Waitrose and M&S. The magazine is also available direct.

To enquire please call 0845 224 1203* or go to www.exmoormagazine.co.uk.

Published by: Hoar Oak Publishing Ltd. Exmoor Magazine, PO Box 281, Parracombe, Devon EX31 4WW T: 0845 224 1203.

PLEASE NOTE: When sending items to the editor please enquire first for address.

Website: www.exmoormagazine.co.uk Facebook: www.facebook.com/exmoormagazine Twitter: twitter.com/ExmoorMagazine Subscriptions & Office: Sue South office@exmoormagazine.co.uk Editor & Designer: Naomi Marley editor@exmoormagazine.co.uk Editorial Director: Elaine Pearce hoaroak.publishing@googlemail.com Assistant Editor: Katy Charge Associate Editor: John Dunscombe Colour Management & Associate Designer: Colin Matthews Website: Mike Bishop & Naomi Marley Advertising Sales: Grant Harrison & Susie Walker (Zara Media) T: 01392 201227; email: info@zaramedia.co.uk Printing: Warner Midlands PLC, Bourne IMPORTANT NOTICE We do our best to ensure that all advertisements and articles appear correctly.

We cannot accept responsibility for any loss or damage caused directly or indirectly by this publication. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of the publisher or editor.

Copyright Š Hoar Oak Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited without written permission. * Calls cost 5p per call plus 5p per minute after 60s, plus your network access charge.

Cover: Widmouth Head and Watermouth Harbour, by Craig Joiner. See p.92 for details.

6 Exmoor Spring 2016

Contents

Spring 2016

8

NEWS

19

Profile The Antler Men: Tom Lock & Rob Follett

22

Tony James

35

ARTS Moor Coppice: Foresting and Woodcrafting with a Conscience Mel Roach

FARMING The Exmoor Horn Wool Project Michelle Werrett

41

RECIPES European Easter Treats Ian Jarmarkier

26 UP THE COMBE AND DOWN THE WATER Jane A. Mares

32

FAMILY PAGE Uncle Willow in the Reedbeds Endymion Beer

44

A VISIT TO Tarr Farm Naomi Marley

19 73

47

49

53

56

58

61

66

TOAST OF EXMOOR Exmoor Ales' New Home Adrian Tierney Jones

ACTIVE EXMOOR Shooting Stars Tony James

PAST TIMES The Drive for Progress Jeff Cox

WELLBEING Giuliana Fenwick Jane Alexander

reader's exmoor On a Bicycle Made for Two Jackie Winter

ECOLOGY Early Vegetation Change on Exmoor

73

77

WALKING Secrets of Combe Martin Sue Viccars

COUNTRY MATTERS The Grey Seal Trevor Beer

79 COMMUNITIES Atwest Tony James

83

84

PROPERTY Internet Update for 2016 Jim Weir

OUTDOOR LIVING Creative Canvas Sandy Francis

96

BOOKS: NEWS & REVIEWS

99

CROSSWORD

101

IN THE STABLEYARD Victor Dartnall

105

LAWHORSE Paws for Thought

107

111

Bryan Cath

Elaine Pearce

Jill Headford

SPRING DIARY Compiled by Katy Charge

FINAL PAWS The Intrepid Terrier Mary Bromiley

Dr Ralph Fyfe

PHOTOGRAPHY The Character of our Coast Kathryn Burrell

88

91

GARDEN NOTES Know Your Other Onions Rosemary FitzGerald

WILD GARDENS My Blue Heaven Rosemary FitzGerald

Exmoor Spring 2016 7

A Sad Farewell for Watchet Editor's letter

by Maurice Chidgey

W

elcome to our spring issue.

No doubt many of us will be looking to do some personal streamlining after the excesses of Christmas, myself included. As usual, walking with Hurley and gig rowing are my chosen methods.

If you're looking for inspiration, this issue pushes you gently in the direction of North Devon for the great outdoors.

Sue Viccars describes a lovely walk from Combe Martin and this is complemented by the evocative images

by James Ravilious and others from the Beaford Old Archive.

It is an honour to feature Ravilious' work on our pages again and I am a particular fan of his photographs as they speak of a slower pace of life and one fuller, perhaps, of local nuance and voice.

This rich variation is still there of course, but you have to look harder for it.

Luckily, Exmoor Magazine has every opportunity to savour a past way of living and describe things in an 'old-fashioned' way. Every three months I visit Jane Mares to look through her photographs and collect her hand-typed article. It's not a modern way of doing things and it's not very streamlined.

But the moment I arrive at her cottage I relax. What a peaceful respite from screen-based work this provides.

For this issue in 'Up the Combe and Down the Water' (pages 26-30), Jane and I debated whether to leave in her more-numerous-than-usual dialect words. We decided we would. To omit them for fear of people not knowing them would be to jump on that streamlining, standardising train and we're not ready to board just yet!

I hope that you enjoy immersing yourself in this language, which is rooted in the area, and finding out what those words mean if they are unfamiliar. I'm told that Frederick Elworthy wrote a good book on our local dialect (The Dialect of West Somerset, 1875) but I've yet to find a copy. So if you need assistance or would like to share your own dialect words, please get in touch...

Happy reading and reminiscing.

8 Exmoor Spring 2016

W

ednesday 23 December 2015 will go down in history as one of Watchet's saddest days, when the gates closed for the last time on paper-making at the Wansbrough Paper Mill site after over 250 years, with the loss of 175 jobs. The bombshell announcement by mill owners D.S. Smith Plc. first came in the summer of last year, mainly due to the ageing of the plant and the loss of a major contract. When it came, the pre-Christmas closure was a very emotional day for staff, both present and past.

I can still visualise scores of mill workers over the years walking or cycling to the mill to work their various shifts, carrying their dark-blue billycans of tea.

Top: Close-up view of Watchet Paper Mill, by James Date, late 1800s (courtesy Halsgrove).

The 1871 census records that at that time the mill employed 26 men, 23 women and 10 boys.

The prominent residence on the hill was the home of the mill's proprietor, Alfred Wansbrough, and was known as Belmont Villa.

John Wood, the first of four generations of that family Above: Capt. J.H. Wansbrough, to run the Watchet mill, took over the tenancy in 1727. mill manager, 1896.

Paper-making has been the main life-blood of the Watchet economy, providing employment for thousands of local people over the years. The manufacturing of paper appears to have been a local industry for over three centuries, the earliest paper being made in 1652 on a site near the Wansbrough paper mill and described as Snailholt. Paper was also being made in 1721 at Egrove, situated between Williton and Doniford near the River Swill.

Left: Ernest James Binding, who retired from the mill in 1963 after 70 years of continuous service. He started work at age 13, working 12 hours each day, 6 days a week. Ernie, as he was affectionately called, was connected with the local Methodist Church all his life.

A keen soccer enthusiast, he was a referee for 17 years and an ardent Watchet Town supporter.

He died in 1967, aged 87.

Above: Wansbrough paper-making machine, 1931.

News The Wood family held the mill until 1834. Several members of the family were strong supporters of Methodism, as also were the later owners of the mill, John Wansbrough, William Peach and James Date (quite possibly not the same, contemporaneous, James Date renowned for his photography). Early in the 1800s a hymn book was published by local man, Thomas Hawkes, for the Methodist Church from paper made at the mill.

The first paper-making machine was introduced in 1869 by the then owner, Mr A.C. Wansbrough, who lived above the mill at Belmont Villa. In 1896 the business became a limited liability company under the name of The Wansbrough Paper Company Ltd, with Captain J.H. Wansbrough as manager; he also lived at Belmont Villa. In 1898 there was a disastrous fire, resulting in much of the mill being rebuilt. The making of paper bags (both by machine and by hand) was also undertaken and in this department output was enormous, with bags of every description being made.

In 1871, when the main power supply was a steam engine, 26 men, 23 women and 10 boys were employed at the mill. By 1900 these numbers had risen to a total of 350 being employed in paper and bag-making and the mill was the largest producer of its kind in the country; by 1960 the workforce totalled over 500 (bag-making had then ceased).

The Wansbrough Paper Mill hooter, which ceased sounding the start and end of shifts in the early 1950s. It was powered by steam and could be heard clearly at Watchet and Williton

In 1903 the mill was purchased by Mr W.H. Reed and from 1910 formed part of the Reed and Smith Group. It gradually expanded, new machinery being installed which (photo by Joyce Chidgey). resulted in increased production. In 1910 the company purchased its own steamboat, the SS Rushlight, to become arguably Watchet's most well-known ship. For many years she made regular trips to South Wales for small coal (culm) to fuel the boilers at the mill. The Rushlight was broken up in 1953 and replaced by the SS Arran Monarch until 1963, when diesel oil and gas replaced the old fuel. Thousands of tons of woodpulp for paper-making were imported to Watchet from Scandinavia, which meant employment for many men on the docks as well as revenue for the town.

The ownership once more changed hands in 1977, this time to St Regis International of New York. New machinery for recycling waste paper was installed, and on 4 November 1977 the mill was graced by the presence of HRH Princess Alexandra to open the new Phoenix paper-making machine. She was welcomed by an admiring crowd, including many schoolchildren. Later, the mill became part of D.S. Smith Plc., the UK’s largest producer of paper from recycled material with manufacturing operations in many parts of the UK and Europe. And this served as the final chapter, for there appear to be no more mill owners. Instead, we must hope for an entirely new and exciting tale from this historic site.

The indomitable community spirit of Watchet has sustained past major adversities and will no doubt do the same after this massive blow to the mill staff, town and the district’s economy, resulting in the loss of West Somerset’s major manufacturer.

It is to be hoped that a fresh phoenix will rise at Watchet out of the ashes of the mill once more...

The Victorian chimney stack sited above Wansbrough Paper Mill, which was erected in the late 1800s, was dismantled brick by brick in August 2011 after heritage campaigners failed to stop plans for its demolition. It stood at the end of underground flues to overcome draught problems from the coal-fired boilers.

Dusty small coal (culm) to fuel the boilers was shipped across the Bristol Channel from South Wales. The iconic chimney was a major landmark in Watchet, but a representative of mill owners D.S. Smith Plc. said keeping the chimney was not an option, both on safety and cost grounds. A plaque was erected next to the chimney's former location by Watchet Conservation Society. This gives a brief history of the chimney’s erection, its use and dismantling (photo by Joyce Chidgey).

Left: HRH Princess Alexandra receiving flowers from admiring children at the opening of the Phoenix paper-making machine at Wansbrough Paper Mill, 4 November, 1977.

Exmoor Spring 2016 9

News

COAST

Shingle Ridge Threatens Safety of Sailors

by Tony James A massive shingle bank – now several metres high and growing – will threaten the safety of sailors visiting Minehead harbour this season if it is not removed, or at least marked, local boatmen have warned.

Extreme tides and gales caused the shingle to start to build up around the entrance to the main quay last October and it has continued at a speed not seen by harbour users for more than 40 years.

Three views of the ridge. The shot looking over the top of the harbour wall (inset, right) gives some idea of the size of this pile of stones. Ray Venture (who took these photos for us), says, "My guess is it's 50-60ft long, 7-9ft high and 20-30ft across. The cost to shift it must be going up daily."

Now officials from the local lifeboat station have called for the pebble ridge to be urgently removed as it presents a serious navigational hazard. "There is nothing to mark the ridge when it is covered by the tide and it could be absolutely lethal for any boat owner who is unfamiliar with the area," says RNLI local operations manager Dr John Higgie. "Our worries are around what happens when we start to get visiting yachts in the spring because their keels would simply be ripped off if they hit the stones.

It's vital that the harbour remains open and usable as a refuge for boats along this stretch of coast."

West Somerset Council, owners of the harbour, last cleared some of the shingle a year ago and have monitored its progress ever since. They are currently drawing up a plan of action to shift hundreds of tons of stones to previously-used dumping sites and in the meantime have issued warnings to boat users on the Council's website and on signs on the harbour wall.

"The size and shape of the shingle bank is changing almost daily," says councillor Martin Dewdney, whose environment portfolio includes harbours. He says the council's technical advisors are working on a solution which will be put into effect as soon as possible.

On the Minehead waterfront there is less optimism. Former assistant harbourmaster Michael Martin believes that the shingle will soon prevent any movement of boats in the harbour.

"The council has not taken advice from the locals and has let the stones build up and up. They used to be cleared twice a year but in recent years the council simply hasn't done enough and the stones come in at a rate of knots," he says.

10 Exmoor Spring 2016

Coastal snippets THREE EXCITING PROJECTS that will help inject new life into West Somerset's coastal heritage have won more than £90,000 from the Government's Coastal Revival Fund.

Minehead's Enterprising Esplanade has won £20,000 for its waterfront initiative to refurbish existing Edwardian buildings, create new trading posts and visitor attractions and improve links to the South West Coast Path. In Watchet, the Onion Collective has secured £50,000 to create a rope walk pathway leading from the Brunel-designed Boat Museum building, alongside the West Somerset Railway towards the East Quay harbourside area and Splash Point, to the refurbished Victorian Pleasure Gardens. Finally, the Friends of the Steam Coast Trail have won £24,000 to help to create a safe network of multi-user paths in and around the West Somerset coastline.

THE NEW ILFRACOMBE FISHERMEN'S STORES on The Cove are now complete.

The five new storage units will provide local fishermen with secure, purposebuilt storage facilities, which will keep the quayside clear of fishing equipment and improve the appearance of the area.

The project has also involved extensive cliff stabilisation work, which will ensure the safety of those working and visiting the quayside below.

NEW INTERPRETATION BOARDS are in place on Porlock Marsh, with a leaflet and new material online to come, thanks to funding secured from the National Park Partnership Fund with match funding from Porlock Parish Council and the South West Coast Path Association to deliver some of the actions identified in the Porlock Marsh Vision. The aim is to promote the conservation and enjoyment of this special place.

ILFRACOMBE HERITAGE RAILWAY POSSIBILITY. People are being urged to join a charity's bid to reinstate the Ilfracombe railway. The Combe Rail group now has registered charity status and is accepting membership subscriptions.

The group wants to set up a community and heritage railway on the track bed of the former Barnstaple-Ilfracombe railway and provide a boost for local tourism.

To find out more visit www.combe-rail. org.uk/membership.

-

4-7 years

Discover the West Buckland Pre-Prep

Set in 90 acres of beautiful countryside on the edge of Exmoor, West Buckland’s Pre-Prep provides a stimulating, caring and happy environment where children develop their individual strengths, self-esteem, confidence and abilities.

It is a place where children can enjoy learning, embrace the outdoors, discover new skills and receive the best possible start to school life.

Contact us to arrange a visit or taster day: Tel: 01598 760629 Email: enquiries@westbuckland.com www.westbuckland.com

West Buckland Preparatory School, Barnstaple, Devon, EX32 0SX Reg Charity No 306710

Exmoor Spring 2016 11

News

ENVIRONMENT

FLORA & FAUNA

Headwaters of the Exe

Wild Watch Update

The new Headwaters of the Exe project is working with farmers and land managers to ensure good water quality in the catchment of the River Exe. It is part of South West Water's Upstream Thinking programme. The project will run from 2015-2020 and is funded by South West Water and the Exmoor National Park Authority (ENPA).

It covers an area of 27,559 hectares and includes the upper Exe, the Rivers Barle, Quarme, Pulham, Haddeo and smaller tributaries, as well as Wimbleball Reservoir.

Exmoor Wild Watch continues for a third year in 2016 and ENPA would love to hear from you if you see any of the Wild Watch species. This year's list of wildlife stars include new species and old favourites.

The full list is: barn owl, daubenton bat, glow worm, toad, string-of-sausages lichen, waxcap fungi, harbour porpoise, hedgehog, common blue butterfly, cuckoo, red kite and kestrel.

The programme will deliver a range of work, including advice to farmers, foresters and game shoot managers; a capital grant fund; training events, site visits and demonstrations to promote good practice; rights of way maintenance to reduce erosion and run-off in high-risk areas; monitoring to identify any localised water quality issues relating to sewerage; and control of invasive species.

Support for farmers will consist of advice, training, events and grants of up to ÂŁ2,500 to carry out work on the farm to help protect water quality. Please contact Adam Lockyear on 01823 660684 or email adam.lockyear@fwagsw.org.uk to find out more.

The programme of support for woodland owners and managers includes events, advice and capital grants. Woodland creation will be encouraged in appropriate parts of the catchment. ENPA's specialist woodland officers can give free advice. Please contact James Mason, ENPA's Woodland Development Officer, on 01398 322275 or email jmason@exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk.

The widespread network of public rights of way, permitted paths and open access land are an important asset for Exmoor. However, surveys have shown that silt and mud can rapidly enter rivers and streams from these tracks and paths. A programme of work is being carried out by ENPA, focussing on those paths which have the highest risk of erosion and run-off affecting watercourses. Localised monitoring is being carried out to collect data relating to sewerage, particularly around discharge points for the smaller sewage treatment works. This monitoring will be undertaken by volunteers through the Riverfly Partnership/River Exe and Tributaries Association and will provide an evidence base for action under any future funding programmes.

The catchment includes the River Barle Site of Special Scientific Interest, parts of which are assessed as being in an "unfavourable condition", partly because of the presence of non-native invasive species including Japanese knotweed, Montbretia, Himalayan balsam and signal crayfish. The programme is supporting the control of non-native invasive species in the Exe catchment through existing partnership projects.

To find out more, please contact: Bea Davis, Programme Manager, on 01398 322278, 07970 099136 (email bdavis@exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk) or Katherine Williams, Exmoor Hill Farming Network Officer, on 01643 841455, 07970 795808 (email KWilliams@northdevonplus.co.uk). You can also find out more online at www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk/headwaters.

HeddonÂ’s Mouth

Farley Water

Horner Water

Weir Water

The Chains Pinkworthy Pond

Â

Map Š Exmoor National Park Authority, 2012.

12 Exmoor Spring 2016

One of the Wild Watch success stories of 2015 was the brilliant extra data collected on string-of-sausages lichen – nationally very rare but Exmoor provides an ideal habitat – and your records highlighted a number of sites including Molland Moor, Watersmeet, Withypool, Winsford Hill, Wimbleball and Haddon Hill. Are there more undiscovered sites? This time of year is great for spotting lichens.

Go online to www.exmoor-nationalpark. gov.uk/wild-watch to log your sighting!

AMEND

Please keep your eyes open for barn owls during the early months of the year. This much-loved bird has suffered a decline in numbers nationally, and any recorded sightings will be invaluable in helping gain a better understanding of the status of the barn owl in the National Park.

Chetsford Water

Alderman's Barrow

Casper the Barn Owl.

In our winter issue article on Quantock houses we described all of the houses as no longer being private residences.

Owners of Crowcombe Court, Kate and David Kenyon, have asked us to point out that in fact Crowcombe Court is their private residence, as well as being open for weddings, events and pre-booked tours. www.crowcombecourt.co.uk.

New for 2015/16

Michael Morpurgo Library and Sixth Form facilities now OPEN

Open Day Monday 2nd May 10.00 am

Reg Charity No 306710

West Buckland is a friendly, successful school with an impressive record of academic achievement and some exceptional new facilities. Contact us to arrange a visit and discover what makes West Buckland unique and so exciting.

Forward Thinking

Tel: 01598 760281 Email: enquiries@westbuckland.com Barnstaple • Devon • EX32 0SX Boarding and Day

Boys & Girls 3-18

Nursery, Prep, Senior, Sixth Form

www.westbuckland.com

Exmoor Spring 2016 13

News "We've heard that the Maharajah of Jaipur's elephants were exercised on the beach at Minehead when he visited to play polo at Dunster in the 1930s. This and other stories the Project will be exploring during the year, but we need your help," says Louise. "Please get in touch and if you would rather talk about your memories than write them down then our trained volunteers are available with dictaphones to record special memories and stories.

HISTORY

Holidays Past

"We have scanners too so that postcards and old photos can be digitised and hopefully shared with the wider public."

The History of Tourism is the focus of the Lynmouth Pavilion Project's third year and a key theme running through the whole year will be the collection of memories of Holidays Past on Exmoor.

When asked, an amazing 85 per cent of visitors said that they have been returning to Exmoor year after year. Recently a member of the Project team was talking to a visitor who has been coming here for 30 years, making two trips every year! Honeymooners flocked here during the 1950s, some returning every year to celebrate their anniversaries. One such couple are about to enjoy their 62nd annual visit to Lynton.

Abbie Thorne and Louise Reynolds, who are managing the Project, are appealing for accommodation providers who have visitors that return year after year, local residents who were once visitors themselves or anyone who has been coming here for a long time to share their special memories. Special 'Holidays Past' packs are available which contain a book for writing down your memories.

Like to help? Please get in touch with Louise or Abbie by phone on 01598 751065, email loveexmoor@gmail.com or drop into the Lynmouth Pavilion. The Lynmouth Pavilion National Park Centre is also host to lots of the work produced through the Project, and Louise and Abbie are always happy to discuss it.

Photograph: The stagecoach at Castle Heights, Lynton (donated to Lynmouth Pavilion Project by Ade Kamp).

If you'd like to see highlights from Lynmouth Pavilion Project Years 1 (Coast) and 2 (Inspiring Landscapes: woodland) please visit www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk/ living-and-working/lynmouth-pavilion-project, have a look at their Facebook page www.facebook.com/LynmouthPavilionProject, follow them on Twitter @LPavilion or see all the film footage the Project has produced on the Exmoor National Park YouTube channel.

COMPETITION

Win a Mini Break!

The fifteenth-century Luttrell Arms, which sits in the heart of the historic Exmoor village of Dunster, is offering our readers the chance to win an overnight stay with breakfast for two.

look left to see a world-famous view of the castle above the medieval streets.

The hotel was awarded Inn of the Year 2016 by The Good Pub Guide for its lovely, individual rooms, some with fireplaces, four-poster beds and stunning period features, others with a wonderful contemporary style. All the rooms are en suite, with the comforts expected by twenty-first-century guests.

How to enter Simply answer the following question by 15 March 2016: Q) How many en-suite bedrooms are there at The Luttrell Arms Hotel? Please give your name, address, email address and phone number and say, in under 40 words, what makes the Luttrell Arms Hotel so special.

The hotel's rich history dates back to 1443, when Richard Luttrell purchased one of the buildings that form part of the hotel that stands today. Step out of the front door onto the main High Street to the iconic Yarn Market and

You can send you entry by post to: Exmoor Magazine Competition The Luttrell Arms Hotel 32-36 High Street, Dunster Exmoor National Park Somerset TA24 6SG

14 Exmoor Spring 2016

Or email enquiry@luttrellarms.co.uk with your answer and the same information, putting 'Exmoor Magazine Competition' in the subject line.

Terms and conditions Only one entry per household. There is no cash alternative. The prize is an overnight stay for two people in any bedroom including breakfast. The winner will be notified by 31 March 2016. The prize will be valid for three months and subject to availability. Your personal details will not be passed to a third party but may be used to send information of special offers unless advised otherwise.

www.luttrellarms.co.uk

Where reaching your potential is a realisation not a dream

Blundell’s Preparatory School

Open Week Monday 2nd - Friday 6th May We invite you to join us for a guided tour of the school at 9.30 am each day during which you can meet our children and staff.

For more information please contact the School on 01884 252393.

7+ Junior Scholarships Applications are now invited for Year 3 September 2016 entry

Scholarship Day Friday 4th March 2016 Closing date for applications Monday 22nd February

TEL: 01884 252393 EMAIL: prep@blundells.org WEB: www.blundells.org/prep Blundell’s Preparatory School Tiverton, Devon EX16 4NA

Experience The Tantivy Traditional Shop, Café and Deli

Exmoor Spring 2016 15

News

ARTS NEWS

Creative Journeys Exhibition Art and photography pupils at King's College, Taunton, have been challenged to create a piece of work to hang in a selected group exhibition responding to the theme 'people and places' at the prestigious Brook Gallery in Exeter. This new collaboration is born out of a shared belief between gallery director Angela Yarwood and King's Head of Art, Clare Schmidt, that pupils need to learn about the commercial side of the art world as well as developing their practical skills.

Window Wonderful The new stained-glass windows crafted

by Clare Maryan Green at Minehead Spiritualist Church, Alcombe, have been described as "Fab, wonderful and magic".

"Everyone who visits the church remarks on them," says Steve Maris, Treasurer.

The Brook Gallery is one of the most prestigious outside London. Based in Exeter and Budleigh Salterton, the collections include a broad array of media and styles, and a catalogue of some of the most established, collectable and influential artists in the UK. As a practising artist who has exhibited in London and abroad, Clare knows only too well that making the art is only half of the story. Understanding the requirements of gallery owners and curators, being able to communicate and market your work and having general business acumen are all vital to a successful career. In her new role Clare is keen to give pupils opportunities to experience the commercial side of the art world and build skills to help them move forward in the creative industries once they leave education. This collaboration will enable pupils to consider how the creative journey changes when they are making work for a public audience or a gallery environment, rather than a school wall or portfolio. Pupils will need to meet the exacting standards of the gallery director and write a personal statement to accompany their work in order to be considered for selection.

'Creative Journeys' opens on Saturday 27 February 2016 and runs for two weeks.

A drinks reception will be held at the start of the launch, from 4.30-6pm. For more details please contact, Head of Art Clare Schmidt: CASchmidt@kings-taunton.co.uk.

Simonsbath Festival Call for Artists The Simonsbath Festival, which is now in its fifth year and runs from 2 May to 24 June, is calling for West Country artists to submit 2-D work for this year's Art Exhibition.

The theme is moorland and coast, its wildlife, culture and landscape and it is open to all artists.

Dawn by Nicola Friedrich

Last year the exhibition attracted work from 23 artists, many of whom are based on Exmoor and its fringes. The 66 pieces of work shown were varied, interesting and all related in some way to wild moorland landscape, wildlife and culture, or the rugged North Devon coast. There were watercolour, oil and acrylic paintings on show and a number of prints. Artists exhibiting included printmakers Julian Witts, Luna North and several from the Dartington Printmakers Group and painters including Jo Minoprio, Judith Westcott, Iain Biggs, Chris Howe and Lucy Pearn. In addition, there were some stunning photographs by Nick Simpson. All the work was for sale, many pieces at very reasonable prices, making original art accessible to everyone.

The exhibition will be held once again in Boevey's Tea Rooms, in Simonsbath, right in the very heart of Exmoor. If you are interested in submitting work, please contact Sandy on artexhibition@simonsbathfestival.org.uk.

See p106 for more details on the festival.

Now, a calm, blue light floods the church, and, when the sun shines, rainbows dance around the walls. The windows are the realisation of a dream for Tony Blake, President of the church, who has worked hard to raise funds and co-ordinate the project over the last four years, from planning to completion.

Clare says, "It has been my great pleasure to work with Tony on this lovely project, making these windows, and I would especially like to thank carpenter Keith Green, glazier Michael Thresher and all at Roman Glass Minehead Branch, plus of course the members of the church whose generosity has made the dream come true.

If you would like to visit the church to see the new windows, please phone Tony Blake on 07831 104896. More details can be found on the church website: www.mineheadspiritualistchurch.co.uk.

19,240 Shrouds Late January saw the launch of a very unusual creation – the 19240 Shrouds of the Somme Project, an art installation of figurines to commemorate all 19,240 soldiers killed in the first four hours of the Battle of the Somme on 1 July 1916.

Over the next few months, the work will build into a sea of individually hand-stitched shrouded miniature statues created by artist Rob Heard and laid out in Exeter's Northernhay Gardens on 1 July 2016.

For more information and to follow progress on the project please visit the website: www.thesomme19240.co.uk.

16 Exmoor Spring 2016

OPEN DAY

B E PA RT O F T H E E X P E R I E N C E Saturday 30th April —10 am arrival Please contact us to reserve your place Co-educational day & boarding: ages 13 –18 > telephone: 01823 328204 admissions@kings-taunton.co.uk > www.kings-taunton.co.uk A Woodard School

STOVES • RANGE COOKERS • COOKWARE • RENEWABLES

HEATING, COOKING & LIVING Rangemoors have one of the largest selections of Stoves and Range Cookers in the South West and are specialists in Renewable Energy solutions. At our purpose built showroom you can see these products in action, live! Our knowledgeable and experienced team can help guide, advise and install an appliance that’s perfect for you and your home. From beautiful traditional designs to stylish, ultra-contemporary appliances, we have something to suit every interior and budget. Find us just outside Winkleigh, Devon - on the A3124 towards Torrington.

Call 01837 680068 • www.rangemoors.co.uk Please check our website for opening times.

PROFILE

The Antler Men: Tom Lock & Rob Follett WORDS by Tony James PHOTOS by Andrew Hobbs

S

pring on Exmoor. Soft scrolls of bracken unfurl among primroses and violets beneath the vivid yellow of young gorse flowers, and on the edges of the hanging oakwoods sharp eyes are on the look-out for another of nature's spring bounties: newly-fallen red deer antlers.

Late March, April and early May are the times when the largest stags in Exmoor's 3,000-strong red deer herds shed their antlers and enthusiasts scramble to find their cast-offs. Some hunters even spend their holidays on the moor searching for the ultimate treasure – a majestic pair of matching antlers from a full-grown stag.

Whoever finds the best, biggest and most impressive, it's a fair bet that a good number will find their way to the windswept village of Hawkridge and into

the Victorian workshop of Tom Lock, Exmoor's celebrated 'Antler Man'.

Antlers have fascinated Tom for as far back as he can remember, and that's a long time. He's 90 now and was born on the moor. As a lad he collected antlers with his brother and was fascinated by their shape, texture and arcane history. Nearly 50 years ago he began to cut and carve them into useful and quaintly charming objects as a relaxation from the busy family carpentry business and an unlikely new career was born.

For centuries Exmoor folk had mounted stag antlers on their walls, but Tom set them free from their plinths and sent them out into the world as everything from buttons and candlesticks to napkin-rings, chandeliers, knife-handles

and jewellery-trees, even fearsome-looking but surprisingly comfortable armchairs, which take 18 months to make.

"I like challenges," Tom says, and he certainly had those when he was tasked with creating a shepherd's crook for a bishop, a staff for a white witch and an antler crown for a film. Since his grandson, with whom he is now in business, persuaded him to venture onto the internet as Exmoor Antler Creations, Tom has been on television several times and antler buffs from far and wide find their way through the lanes to Hawkridge.

"We've had people from Europe, America and Australia. An Arab chap wanted to buy everything in the shop. It was tempting, but I had to think of other people who

Exmoor Spring 2016 19

Profile

were making the effort to find us in the back of beyond."

Tom Lock was born in Hawkridge and has never wanted to live anywhere else.

His family have been carpenters and wheelwrights in the village since 1840.

His great-great-grandfather made his own coffin years before he died and stored blankets in it under the bed. His greatgrandfather ran an off-licence and tobacconists in the ancient workshop – there's still a sign on the wall which reads: WILLIAM LOCK LICENCED TO SELL BEER ALE AND CIDER NOT TO BE DRANK ON THE PREMISES. ALSO A DEALER IN TOBACCO. "Most of the work came from farms on the moor – fences, gates, sheds and repairs to buildings – but every April we would take loads of bark down to Porlock which was used for tanning leather.

The wagons would leave at 3am and we'd come back with a year's supply of Porlock cider. At nearly 1,000ft, Hawkridge was too high to grow apples.

20 Exmoor Spring 2016

"We weren't supposed to sell cider for drinking on the premises but if anyone came to do business they usually had a drink. I remember a policeman called in from Dulverton and got so drunk he couldn't go home in daylight. A farmer took him back in his pony and trap when it was dark."

Tom joined the family firm from school, took over when his father suffered a stroke, and worked until arthritis forced his retirement at 64. Now two of his sons run T. H. Lock & Sons, but Tom had no intention of doing nothing. He had always enjoyed going out on the moor in the early morning with his dogs, watching the deer and hunting for antlers.

"In those days stags went around in a herd and you got to know where the antlers would be – usually near trees or large bushes. In spring the blood supply to the antlers dries up until the base becomes brittle and any rubbing or jolting causes the antlers to drop.

"Stags grow a completely new pair of antlers every year – it only takes about

three months so if they fall off in, say, April, they will have a full-grown set by August.

They can live to 15 or 16 but the best antlers come from stags of around eight or ten. After that, the antlers start getting smaller.

"When we were working out on the moor you could see a difference in a stag every day. The old boys used to say that in the spring a deer's antlers grow at the same rate as the bracken.

"I had been making things out of antlers for some time but now I started doing it more seriously. When I said I was going to make an antler chair, my brother burst out laughing. I'd read in the paper about an old chap in Dunster who had made an antler chair which used to be in The Plume of Feathers pub in Minehead.

"It took me a year-and-a half to make my first chair because you have to wait for the right bits of antler. I sold one chair for £25 to a couple and when they died I bought it back for £420. They sell for a lot more than that now...

Profile

"I started off making walking-sticks, corkscrews and things like that and I got ambitious when people began to come here and ask me to make things. I liked the challenge of making something I hadn't done before."

Today, Tom still spends time in the workshop he has known all his life, with its racks of antique tools and cobwebbed gadgetry of another age, but his arthritis now limits what he can do. But any fears that the ancient Exmoor tradition of antler-carving might die with him were dispelled when his grandson Robert Follett showed he had all the skill and enthusiasm needed to carry it on.

"As a lad I came to Hawkridge from Taunton for holidays and was fascinated by the deer and what granddad could make out of antlers. He was dubious when I said I wanted to have a go but he started me off on a few key-rings and I think he was a bit surprised that I took to it."

Tom goes a bit further than that. "Rob got on very well from the beginning.

He has a natural gift and one day he will be better than me – after all, I've taught him all I know!"

Tom and Rob started Exmoor Antler Creations in 2012. "We are developing other styles and trying to offer work to a wider audience," Rob says. "But granddad is the master craftsman and I'm learning from him all the time. He has done all the hard work and shown me all his secrets.

"For instance, I said it would be nice to make a chandelier in a different style and when I next came to the workshop granddad had started making one and we completed it together. The same with chairs – he has a lifetime's experience.

He has an amazing eye for antlers and can even tell you what article can be made from one while it's still being carried by the stag!"

Now in his tenth decade, Tom remains entirely unaffected by his unexpected celebrity. Quietly-spoken, friendly and unassuming, it didn't take him long to get the measure of the media circus when it

rolled up to his door in the form of showbiz countrymen with hazel sticks and haversacks looking for interesting rural characters.

"This chap was supposed to be walking across Exmoor, dropping in on farms, and arrived with a TV crew in a couple of Range Rovers. He got out, knocked on the door and said, "Hello Tom, I've just walked all the way from West Anstey", when, so far as I could see, he'd walked all the way from the Range Rover to the front doorstep!

"I'm not complaining. Normally I was selling about 30 antler-topped walking sticks a year. After that programme was on TV I sold over 100. That's show business for you."

For further information visit: www.antlercreationsexmoor.co.uk.

ROB'S STAG NIGHT Rob Follett has another stag-related talent: he's twice won the Annual World Bolving Championships at Dulverton for successfully replicating the mating call of a red deer stag and persuading it to answer back.

Last year over 300 people turned up for the event on an October evening to raise money for the Devon Air Ambulance service.

Champion in 2013 and 2014, Rob says, "When I entered in 2013 it was my first time in the competition and I wasn't expected to win. I just went along for a laugh and got a lot of stick from my mates. I wasn't able to compete last year, but I might try to win the title back in 2016. After all, I have made a new antler-decorated trophy for it!"

Visit www.andrewhobbsphotography. co.uk and search 'bolving' to see images of the 2013 championship.

Exmoor Spring 2016 21

FARMING

The Exmoor Horn Wool Project

WORDS by Michelle Werrett FARM PHOTOS courtesy Robin & Lindy Head MILL PHOTOS courtesy John Arbon Textiles

E

xmoor is sheep-farming country. The landscape and vegetation have been created by centuries of sheep grazing and most of the area's market towns were developed through the wealth generated from wool. In recognition of the foundation of its success, South Molton has a sheep in the town coat of arms which can still be seen today, high on the wall of the Assembly Rooms in the square. In pre-industrial times the most valuable commodity produced on Exmoor was wool.

Through medieval times the cloth industry developed from the availability of local wool and was really flourishing by the beginning of the fifteenth century, with great demand for cottage industry spinning, weaving, dressing, fulling and all the skills deployed in the production of serge cloth.

Many craftsmen and women worked for the industry on a self-employed basis, taking modest yet numerous pieces of work to do at home. By the end of the seventeenth century there was a greater financial turnover in the South West woollen industry than any other trade in the country and for three centuries it made this area wealthy.

The Industrial Revolution, with the development of mills in the north of England and then the importation of cotton, instigated the decline of the local wool trade and the later introduction of synthetic fibres really sealed its fate. The income from wool, that used to pay the farm's rent, dropped so low it wouldn't even pay the shearers' wages.

22 Exmoor Spring 2016

Farming But Exmoor is sheep-farming country and if wool was unprofitable, at least lambs could be reared for the butcher. The loss of value in the wool was never replaced but the land here is too harsh for dairy cows, too steep for corn and, whilst some beef cattle can be kept, most do not thrive on poor herbage in really rough conditions and need to be brought indoors over the winter. Sheep, however, particularly the ancient, indigenous breed of Exmoor Horn, are entirely suited to living on Exmoor.

ram, Terry, looks after his little flock of ewes with stoical propriety. Although of good conformation, Exmoor Horn lambs tend to be small so the Heads also use a Poll Dorset ram to produce a crossbred ewe and then a Suffolk as a terminal sire to produce a larger and more valuable carcass. In total, they lamb about 100 ewes and finish all their lambs to sell at South Molton market. In true cottage-industry tradition, Lindy also hand spins some Exmoor Horn wool, producing a lovely textured, pearly yarn.

The Exmoor Horn is a hill sheep of wide renown. It is a compact, wholly white, woolly sheep with very strong teeth, giving it longevity, and both ewes and rams have horns.

They are docile sheep, easy to handle, yet with a certain attitude about them and, quite unafraid, will look you straight in the eye. The ewes are extremely good mothers, wisely leading their lambs to sheltered spots and defending them fiercely from predators.

They produce plenty of nutritious milk to give their lambs a good start in life, ensuring that they finish well.

Such small family farms can no longer provide a viable income and Lindy and Robin both have other work outside the farm. Lindy also runs a bed and breakfast business from their lovely comfortable farmhouse, where she can make the most of her good cooking and generous hospitality. She also sells balls of her hand-spun wool to the guests. One day an Australian guest asked Lindy where she could buy more local wool.

She told Lindy that wherever she travelled she liked to collect some of the local wool to take home and knit. This set Lindy thinking. Around 30 years ago there were several shops in Tiverton and South Molton that specialised in woollen yarn for knitting, crochet and craft work, but somehow knitting had gone out of fashion and, at that time, they had all disappeared.

So farmers continue to keep this versatile, local breed which produces both a fine fleece and a good quality butcher's carcass. Lindy and Robin Head run a small flock of purebred Exmoor Horns on their farm near Oakford. The registered Exmoor Horns have brands on their horns – an anchor for Exmoor with the flock number on their left horn and the year of registration on their right.

The Heads' very fine Exmoor

That little question set the germ of an idea in Lindy's mind. Gradually a plan formed.

Lindy put together a project proposal and took it to the

other members of the Exmoor Horn Sheep Breeders' Society.

The idea was received cautiously at first – farmers have long memories of past disappointments – and the scheme would need financial support, as well as time and work, so their commitment had to be carefully considered.

Eventually Lindy's enthusiasm proved sufficiently infectious and they agreed to support her plan. In the end, it wasn't just their trust in Lindy that convinced them – it was their belief in their sheep.

So the Exmoor Horn Wool Project was born to produce and market wool from the breed. The project could not have gone ahead without backing from Exmoor National Park Partnership Fund, who offered 39 per cent of the initial costs of setting it up.

The rest had to be put in by the farmers.

Members of the Exmoor Horn Sheep Breeders' Society sell all their wool to the British Wool Board depot at South Molton, where it is received and graded before being sent to Bradford to be auctioned. There, a merchant acts on behalf of the group to buy back some of their wool.

Raw wool is generally sold in manufacturing quantities and the minimum lot size is normally eight tonnes, which would be far too much for the project to cope with at this stage, so Lindy was pleased that the merchant managed to secure a two-tonne lot and further split it so that the wool project could just have the one tonne it needed at a reasonable price.

After scouring, or washing, in Bradford, the wool comes home to South Molton, to John Arbon's textile mill where it is carded, combed, gilled and finally spun into yarn. These various processes transform the wool from loose fleece coming into the mill in sacks to skeins of yarn leaving. John uses traditional worsted machinery that he rescued and renovated from mills in the north of the country that were closing down. Some of his vintage machinery dates back to 1900 and his is one of only a handful of small-scale worsted mills still operating in this country. He moved to South Molton three years ago from Coldharbour Mill at Uffculme, where he used a workshop within the Working Wool Museum, and he is now reviving the long association of South Molton with wool spinning.

Exmoor Horn wool is actually seventy per cent pure Exmoor Horn blended with thirty per cent Exmoor Mule, which is a crossbred sheep resulting from a Blue Faced Leicester ram on an Exmoor Horn ewe.

This produces a soft, strong wool with a crisp, springy feel.

It is very warm and very hard-wearing.

The wool is dyed using low-impact synthetic dyes which, unlike natural dyes, need no toxic mordants to fix the colour. Colours for the wool have been chosen to reflect the colours of the Exmoor landscape: fern green, heather purple, gorse yellow, dark skies blue and earth red (from the north-east corner of Exmoor), as well as the natural

Exmoor Spring 2016 23

undyed pearly cloud colour of the Exmoor Horn sheep.

Country socks are the first product that the group has produced, knitted in attractive combinations of landscape colours and named after local places; these are true Exmoor socks. They have reinforced heels and toes and a patterned turnover top in the style of a classic shooting sock. Worn in walking boots or wellies, they keep your toes cosy for walking, gardening, farming or enjoying any of the traditional field sports for which Exmoor is world famous. They can be bought from the National Park Information centres.

Gary Atkins shearing.

Wearing Exmoor Horn wool is really like wearing a part of the landscape. Find out more at www.exmoorhornwool.co.uk.

24 Exmoor Spring 2016

At Lindy and Robin's farm, balls of wool and packs of socks are ready to be dispatched to mail order customers. Inside a corner of an ancient stone and cob barn Robin has built a wool store. Walk through the door into this uninteresting-looking container and your senses are treated to an opulence of delight! You enter a little perfumed room with shelves on every side stacked from floor to ceiling with jewel-coloured wools.

The scent infusing the interior emanates from the shelves, which are built of untreated Cedar of Lebanon wood.

This delightful resinous fragrance will keep away moths, which could damage the stock and, of course, the store is also thoroughly mouse-proofed.

The Exmoor Horn is an adaptable, multi-purpose breed worth so much more than just the value of a lamb carcass. Hopefully the Exmoor Horn Wool Project will promote the breed and help to revive the long-forgotten value of its wool, so ensuring this minority breed has a future as an intrinsic part of the Exmoor landscape it helped to create. Exmoor is, after all, sheep-farming country.

Beef, Pork & Lamb direct from the farm.

Beef boxes, Half lamb, Half pig or mixed boxes in a range of sizes.

Individual cuts available phone to discuss.

Order by phone, website or from Farthings Farm Shop Local delivery & national mail order

We take pride in our stock that is raised and loved at Kendle Farm.

Please take time to create divine dishes.

Pauline, Rob, Tim & Nicky Kendle Farm, Exmoor National Park

Dulverton, Exmoor National Park

01643 851 298 01398 323 878 E m a i l : s a l e s @ ke n d l e f a r m . c o . u k

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Up the Combe and Down the Water WORDS & PHOTOS

by Jane A. Mares

26 Exmoor Spring 2016

M

id-March on the high moor, a winter-drear prospect – slants of distant rain gusting on a sharp-edged wind. But in a hollow among the hills a foal doses, cosy as though snuggled in an earth-womb. Furze rims the north side of the combe, a dense bulwark against wind-chill; its lee side, cheerful with blossom, dispenses an inviting fragrance. The filly blinks long lashes and wrinkles her soft nostrils. A new world, a time of first things. Tomorrow she will discover the elation of mutual grooming, standing close on wankly legs, reaching as high as she can to nibble her dam's coat, sharing taste and smell, copying the rhythmical licking that strengthens the bonds of belonging: through her dam to the herd, through them to the moor.

The mare grazes intently but never far from her foal, cropping in a protective circle.

New growth is scant, but between reefs of old year's bracken the sward is sweet, seldom visited and therefore clean of cowpats, sheep-sheckles, even rabbit-truckles. A meadow pipit runs and stops, runs and stops, picking up tiny insects disturbed by the pony's hooves until a skylark chases it off. The combe is part of the lark's breeding territory. Cresty and passionate with spring fervour, he is easily provoked and stays hard on the smaller bird's tail, matching every swerve as they flash away low and fast over the ling. Heather is an untrusting plant, still semi-dormant months after the lowlands have welcomed violet, primrose, the pink and white canopies of apple blossom. Its small leaves do not admit to green until the year is maturing into summer.

The triumphant lark flutters upward, pouring a continuous melody, seeking the blue beyond the cloud. Near and far the sky over the moor peals with song; vivid as sunspots the furze brightens across the commons. Lark-song and

gorse-fragrance, these are the advocates of the upland spring, defying the biting wind, sweetening the bitter air.

Their inception is often in the sheltering combe, place of many secret births, foal, deer-calf, lamb. Pronounced 'coom', spelt variously comb, combe, coombe, the word has links with Old English 'cumb', Welsh 'cwm', Danish 'kum'. There are combes in the north, Cumbria, Scotland, crescent-shaped hillside valleys. In the southern chalklands the term is used for small coastal valleys. But it is the western quarter – the land of cleeve and goyal – that is the true country of the combe.

From Combe Martin to Combe Sydenham, the map of Exmoor abounds with them.

Technically defined as the rounded head or end of a valley, also as a cross valley, a hollow in the flank of a hill – beyond that there is a relaxed vagueness: size, shape, distinctive features to be supplied by personal experience, or furnished by the imagination.

The Combe was ever dark, ancient and dark.

Its mouth is stopped with bramble, thorn, and briar; And no one scrambles over the sliding chalk By beech and yew and perishing juniper Down the half precipices of its sides, with roots And rabbit holes for steps. The sun of Winter, The moon of Summer, and all the singing birds Except the missel-thrush that loves juniper, Are quite shut out. But far more ancient and dark The Combe looks since they killed the badger there, Dug him out and gave him to the hounds, That most ancient Briton of English beasts.

'The Combe' (1914),

by Edward Thomas (1878-1917)

Above, from top: Common blue; female azure damselfly, Coenagrion puella; ragged-robin near Bryant's Bridge on the way to Brompton Ralph.

Below, from left: Scattered hawthorns near the Hoar Oak; mare and foal at Clannacombe; middle reaches of Hoar Oak Water.

Facing page: A backwater off the East Lyn.

Exmoor Spring 2016 27

Main image: In Thurley Combe.

Above: Whinchat's egg shell; wood sorrel.

28 Exmoor Spring 2016

Old indeed are the combes of Exmoor.

The soil often peat-black, hoof-prints betraying the unstable stretch of mire, legacy of a long-vanished or hidden watercourse, often presided over by the horned skull of a sheep, slowly merging with root and rock, returning its minerals to the earth. Such forbidding pockets are countered by the combes that cup the sunlight, floored with heather or close-grazed sward where flowers the yellow tormentil, eyebright and milkwort (Polygala vulgaris that comes in shades of pink, blue, white, lilac), slopes warm with fern or furze, the overhead sky crossed by the wings of butterflies, linnets, the quick shadow of a hunting merlin. In autumn, festive with the berry-hung rowan; in spring, fair with the May-snow of scattered hawthorns. And in every season blessed with a profound quiet, precious as the dark nights that enable the

eye to explore galaxies and star nurseries, the billion pinprick lights of outer space. Released from the constant static of human activity, the hearing sharpens, the ears seem to prick and lengthen, stretching to catch and interpret the tiny sounds that seem only to intensify the hush – the voice of a grasshopper, the long flight of a bee...

A bird with a white eyestripe drops to the ground, seizes a caterpillar and is up again on the highest spine of the gorse bush. He is a furze-topper, a whinchat, Saxicola rubetra, only to be encountered from April to October, for when insects dwindle he is obliged to take a winter holiday in Africa. Not a resident then, but still a bird of Exmoor, for home is surely where you choose to raise a family. Already his mate is considering nest sites, somewhere low among furze-root or grasstuft or leaning

Up the Combe & Down the Water her plants growing as and where they please, her wild creatures free to call their souls their own.

Right, from top: Grasshopper and friend chatting about the weather; bog pimpernel at Weir Water; mayfly nymph, on its maiden flight; ivy-leaved bellflower; old Longshanks, the grey heron. bramble where the vivid blue-green eggs may be safely nursed. In the quiet, every note of his song is clear: short, snatched phrases, rather like his visual dart-and-disappear habit.

He offers a bar or two from a thorn twig, lobs quickly over to the bracken-bed and sings from a dead stem, one leg higher than the other in a characteristic pose. A wayward, disjointed tune, at times scratchy, at times melodic, as though he aspires to music beyond his skill to deliver, or half-recalled lines from a greater work.

Or perhaps he is offering up borrowed notes he has overheard, eavesdropping among the furze prickles. For his medley has hints and echos of a stronger singer, bafflingly reminiscent of ...whom? Robin, stonechat, redstart... none are a true match. Whinchat's song is his own, invoking the greening of the uplands, belonging to the forgotten nooks, the secluded dips and hollows where nature lives largely undisturbed,

A liquid sound, teasingly irregular, so faint it would be lost on a day less calm, in a place less tranquil. Trace it to the shadowy ravine seaming the side of the hill, a goyal too steep and narrow for any but deer to attempt. It is a water-stair where hidden droplets seep and trickle, issuing from the mouth of the gully in a clear handspan rill that threads quietly through a wet flush, home to butterwort, ivy-leaved bellflower, bog pimpernel. The character of Exmoor is as much a project of water as of land: of mist, cloud, quag and standing pool.

Of spring, riverlet, brook, stream, water and river. Like Shakespeare, the great rivers – Exe, Barle, Bray, etc. – require no title. Fed by many tributaries, they acquire a presence, a gravitas that invokes respectful acknowledgment.

Only the lesser courses require a qualifying label, as in Winn Brook, Hoccombe Water...

Like the word 'combe', the term 'water' is rich in associations particular to Exmoor. There are the woodland waters flowing between drifts of bluebells and white anemones in spring, fern-green and light-freckled in summer, topaz, terracotta and Titian red with the spilt beech leaves of autumn. And there are the upland waters, hurrying over stoney beds under open skies, swirling around mossy boulders where the dipper bobs, once, twice, gathering momentum for flight. Pellucid, multi-toned, sometimes the sound of a freshet is the only voice rising and blossoming in the silence where the tall hills meet.

Startled by a fisherman on a stretch anglers rarely visit, the heron veers aside with a harsh expletive and flaps on to hunt for fry in the higher reaches, or to lurk in ambush for the bulbous toads, drawn to crowd their spawning grounds among the yellow iris. Study as you may, you will never be as conversant with the waters as old longshanks, whose prying eye knows every branch on the leaning willow, every grassy overhang and shadowy undercut, every rock and riffle. He does not overlook even the caddisfly larva, its case bracketed by the stem-tips of rushes, still green, very cumbersome, inching its way along the watermarge. Now and then it is rolled over by a stray pulse from the main stream, so that its naked head and waving forelegs are exposed.

But each time it heaves itself up and toils on, creeping from fine gravel to the silty mud of the shoreline into which it burrows, disappearing just before a grey wagtail comes skipping from dry pebble to dry pebble, crossing the waterways with short hop-flights while plucking flies from the air. A cock bird, stone grey and daffodil yellow, dipping his tail as

Exmoor Spring 2016 29

if to some catchy rhythm, attuned to the restless spirit of the waters like all the Motacillidae, the dishwashers. He takes a moment to preen, under his wings, down his chest, and when he is spruce he sings – short phrases full of zees and tees, easily sharp and shrill enough to pierce the water-warble – and on the last note he is airborn and already flitting off upstream.

Water runs away with time. It is caught in surface puckers and whorls, dazzled by winking sun-stars, distracted by dragonflies. It floats away on rafts of white bubbles, is lost in the shifting lights and blurring colours that flow without flowing away. Day slips unnoticed into evening.

All along the waterside and out over the current, mayflies engage in courtship flight.

From spinner to spent gnat, many frail bodies are soon trapped in spiders' webs. But always there are more lifting skyward, rising into the last sunlight as the long spring twilight wanes, sinking gracefully on beautifully veined wings, body arched, tail filaments raised, descending toward beds of water forget-me-not, ragged robin, marsh orchid. Some cling to the tall stems of water dropwort, gathering strength before launching again into the love-dance designed to transform them from ephemeral to immortal, to ensure their species endures for as long as the crystal waters of the moor flow freely to the sea.

Top: Scottish blackface at Clannacombe, Badgworthy Water.

Above: Can you see the shape of Violet, from Martin Rosen's 1978 Watership Down in the bubbles?; common darter, Sympetrum striolatum, at Wimbleball; common toads at Weir Water.

This image: Mayfly, Ephemera danica, on water dropwort at Badgworthy Water.

30 Exmoor Spring 2016

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Exmoor Spring 2016 31

Family Page

Uncle Willow in the Reedbeds

WORDS and ILLUSTRATIONS

by Endymion Beer

32 Exmoor Spring 2016

D

awn and dusk are the best times to observe wildlife, for while we may be tucked up, warm and snug in our beds, wildlife is free to move about and feed undisturbed. Sitting amongst the reeds at the crack of dawn, situated on the edge of Exmoor farmland, I am well hidden. The sun has yet to rise high enough to burn through the effects of the mist which has whitewashed the landscape. The higher and warmer the sun becomes, the more the colours of springtime are revealed.

I had heard that bitterns had been spotted here, and hoped to hear their booming calls, but it is a little early in the year – they will 'boom' during the breeding season. All is quiet here today. My owner says that the bitterns' calls can be heard from up to one mile away and that they can grasp clumps of reeds with their feet in order to climb the reedbeds! The colour of their plumage camouflages them well amongst the reeds so perhaps they are here – just hidden away, as am I. Bitterns belong to the heron family, but are stockier in build, with brown plumage heavily streaked with black markings and they have green legs. As with the heron, males and females are indistinguishable in their appearance. It is a sad fact that the drainage of reedbeds has caused a loss of habitat for bitterns and has resulted in their decline, after they made a comeback in the 1950s.

Frogs will have finished spawning now, and will be looking to move up onto dry land as soon as the weather begins to get warmer, leaving behind masses of frog spawn. Much of it will be predated by birds, newts, other tadpoles and other wildlife. The surviving froglets will not leave the water until June. They have almost finished the miraculous process of metamorphosis, but for a short time their stump tail from tadpole days will still be visible. At this stage they are small and vulnerable to predation, especially from birds, but enough will survive to secure the next generation.

A grey heron fishes nearby. The heron is the emblem of The British Naturalists' Association, which was established more than 100 years ago and celebrates British wildlife.

I watch. The grey heron is still, intent on the water, awaiting the slightest movement of a possible passing fish...

It stands statuesque against the reeds for some time. I eventually see it strike the water with its beak to successfully catch a medium-sized fish. The heron swallows it so fast I cannot not tell you which species of fish it has caught! Then it moves away, further up into the reedbeds, to try its luck elsewhere.

I hear a plop of something dropping into the water followed by the whistling calls of otters. Through the reedbeds I can see them tumble in play. Otters are playful mammals. They have no fixed breeding season as such, although they tend to mate when food is plentiful, so spring and summer remain the most popular times to raise cubs. It makes a difference to see them like this when usually all I find are the five-toed footprints the otters leave behind in wet mud or sand. They are aquatic mammals with webbed feet, designed for swimming.

Even their ears, eyes and nose are positioned on one plane, which is perfect for swimming submerged with very little exposed, yet with all of the senses able to detect the slightest signs of danger.

They are a joy to watch.

However, my favourite sighting is a male reed bunting close up. Perhaps there is a more quietly coloured female nearby and perhaps a cup-shaped nest will be built close to the ground among the reedbeds soon. It is pleasing to think that 4-5 olive-brown or buff-coloured eggs with blackish-brown markings could be laid in such a nest. In a good year, when food is plentiful, 2-3 broods could potentially be raised in this habitat. Such a happy thought makes me want to bark, but if I do I will most certainly frighten all the wildlife away.

Only the male reed bunting wears the black hood and throat. They are never found far from water; reedbeds, marshes, farmland hedgerows and other drier locations all offer suitable habitats. No doubt this bird has expanded its range of suitable breeding grounds to compensate for loss of reed bed availability generally.

Perhaps if I sit long enough I will spot a water vole munching waterside plants.

Water voles can be confused with the brown rat but they have rounder, fatter faces, short furry ears, a blunt nose and a shorter tail. They have a territory of about 130m². They only live for a year to eighteen months, so it is vital that they breed in order to secure the next generation. "Sit and let the wildlife come to you." That's what my owner says, and he is right, because most wildlife is territorial, with insect life circling back around the same location frequently.

You never really know what is just under your nose unless you take time to stand and stare!

For now, this is Uncle Willow signing off. Woof!

Optional task Ask an adult for a clean empty wine bottle. Make sure there is no sharp metal on the neck or any chips on which you could hurt yourself. Press the opening of the bottle to your bottom lip, purse your lips and blow into the bottle.

See if you can make a booming call like that of the bittern in breeding season.

Exmoor Spring 2016 33

I

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Easter events at Arlington Court Cadbury Easter egg hunt, 25–28 March, 11am-4pm, £2.50 including chocolate egg.

Daffodil trail, 29 March-10 April, 10.30am-4pm, £1 including prize.

Follow the clues to find locations of riddles and learn more about these golden hued plants.

Spring lamb talks, 25 March-8 April, 3pm Meet a new flock of spring lambs and enjoy a talk by a local farmer.

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34 Exmoor Spring 2016

Barle Valley Forestry “Unlocking the potential of woodlands” l

Woodland Management

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Timber Harvesting

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Tel: 01398 323213 | www.barleforestry.co.uk

ARTS

Moor Coppice: Foresting and Woodcrafting with a Conscience WORDS by Mel Roach PHOTOS courtesy Paul South

Exmoor Spring 2016 35

Arts

I

t could be said that Paul South was born to wood. Growing up at Farley Water Farm just off the moor in the valleys below Brendon Common, Paul remembers his father putting a chainsaw in his hands when he was in shorts and a t-shirt so he could clear up as the hedges were laid.

Today, Paul is a craftsman, a sustainable forester and a passionate advocate of promoting education and understanding of Britain's woodlands.

I seem to end up in many of Exmoor's nookier valleys interviewing folk for this magazine, the kind of places where, should you ever live in them, the edgeways hills claim you and you almost resent having to leave for anything. Paul's cosy cottage falls well into this category; I arrive on a blustery, white-skied day and find it tucked away near the crevice of Farley Water next to which his grandfather has farmed for coming on 60 years. Two hazel-stick chairs with great rounded backs are perched near the front door.

Paul makes me a coffee in the cottage's Rayburn-toasted kitchen and tells me his story. His formative years were spent in these hills acquiring on-farm skills such as hedgelaying and dry-stone walling and doing some forestry jobs locally.

Following a degree in Environmental Education at Bicton College and the University of Plymouth, Paul became involved in giving talks on British woodlands and sustainable woodland management for the National Parks.

He soon realised, however, that, whilst he was passionate about promoting understanding and appreciation of woodlands, he was at his happiest actually in the woods. "I wanted to be doing what I was talking to people about," he tells me.

Keen to further develop his skills in woodcraft and sustainable forestry, Paul contacted renowned Sussex woodsman Ben Law, who took him on as an apprentice for a year, giving him invaluable experience in woodcrafts and low-impact, low-waste, woodland management.

Combining a strong belief in working woodlands with a keen sense of conservation, Paul believes there is an antidote to the often destructive nature of commercial forestry practices. By infusing creativity into the process, making bespoke products from the raw materials of the forest, woodlands can be managed in a gentler way, avoiding injurious, mechanised extraction methods and waste. "I practise low-impact use and

management, this is what I push for, especially in a place like Exmoor where all the valleys are so steep – you can't get vehicles in, and some areas aren't being managed because there's no profitable gain."

Undertaking forestry-related work on a self-employed basis and/or in exchange for wood, Paul creates items of use and beauty from the woods he manages and still gives talks and advice on sustainable woodland management approaches.

The craft side of his work has developed considerably over the last couple of years and he hopes to build on this. "I decided to go it alone more, so began making more craft items. I made a pole lathe, then someone invited me to a show to demonstrate – this year it has built up like that, with more people asking me to come and do things."

Several years ago, Paul did a few stints working with commercial forestry enterprises, but was bothered by the industry's somewhat cavalier attitude to leftover wood. "It was very wasteful," he tells me. "A lot of wood can't be used and is just left. This is why I started carving spoons; I started just taking waste bits home and carving in the evenings.

I didn't realize how much it got me down

Page 35, main image: Hazel hurdles crafted at Combe Park.

Page 35, small images from top: Chairs made from hazel and sweet chestnut for and with Ben Law, which are featured in his new book and which sit next to Ben's pond; turned bowls in cherry (top and bottom) and birch (two in middle); Paul working at his shave horse in the woods in Sussex; in June 2015, Paul took part in the National Trust's West Exmoor butterfly month, selling his wares at the Heddon Valley and demonstrating how to make his fan butterflies based on real species and paint them with coloured inks.

Left: Paul makes a variety of bespoke garden structures and is also a dab hand at dry-stone walling.

Above: Four sycamore spoons and one apple spoon roughed out to dry before the finishing touches.

Above right: Sweet chestnut stools made for an outdoor kitchen/bar/hide at Ben Law's in Sussex.

Right: Creating a hazel chair at Combe Park.

36 Exmoor Spring 2016

Arts doing the commercial forestry work until I started working with Ben, then I knew exactly where every stick I felled was going and it would usually have a use.

I am really interested in getting people to actually use woodlands and see them differently."

Paul has a keen and up-to-date knowledge of woodland-related matters in the UK. We discuss some of the different approaches to woodland management.

Something of a dichotomy exists in conservation circles regarding the benefits of worked vs 'wild' woodlands, with differently-focused arguments made in favour of each. Paul feels that many UK woodlands are significantly undermanaged, and points out that our woodlands have been historically managed for thousands of years, and that plants and animals today have adapted to live in managed woodland. "With 80 per cent of our wood being imported, we need to be able to make better use of our own woods." He acknowledges woodland creation isn't straightforward, but sees scope for some expansion of forest cover in the UK. "It is a difficult one, we do need to feed ourselves, but there are plenty of areas of land not being used for food production that could be turned

over to woodland. We could have a much more productive system here."

Paul places a stack of newly-turned greenwood bowls of various woods and sizes on the kitchen table; beautiful, rustic, deep, chunky, autumnal bowls, purposely rough-textured, revealing toolmarks.

"I made those up this morning before you came – I've been doing bowls for a couple of months, I'm on about bowl number 20 now." Paul made his own woodturning pole lathe and all of his own tools. He is modest, even slightly critical, of these, but the adeptly-fashioned, bowl-carving hooks he showed me were a thing to behold. I was doubly impressed to learn that he had never before used a bowl-carving hook when he first set out to make one. "There was a bit of trial and error and backwards and forwards!"

Paul explains how the tools are 'reactive' to the individual craftsman's style of turning, so it is usually necessary to fashion some of your own to achieve the sought-after effect. Paul resurrected his great-grandfather's forge and constructed the toolheads from old fork tines.

Woodcraft allows Paul to "see things come full circle" from the woods he has

Above: This lounger, made entirely from sweet chestnut, was a collaborative design between Paul and Ben Law, and is also featured in Ben's new book.

Right from top: Paul turning a cherry bowl on a traditional Viking-style pole lathe. The images, from top, show the hook tools which Paul makes in his forge, then Paul turning the bowl, breaking out the core and using a bottoming knife to finish.

Exmoor Spring 2016 37

From top: Paul's fan birds and a sculpture made from copper wire and an oak tree root.

FIND OUT MORE Paul's main point of contact is his facebook page, where he also has lots of photos. You don't need to be 'on Facebook' to visit his page – www. facebook.com/moorcoppice. You can also email paulmsouth@gmail.com or call 07734 945467. Keep an eye out for him at fairs and shows this year.

He also plans to give a number of talks in various places in 2016.

38 Exmoor Spring 2016

managed. "For almost everything I make I will have cut the tree down myself as well and that is important to me – to see it from the living tree turned into things that are beautiful or useful." Paul's connection to the raw material is unassailable; he casually lifts up the bowls in turn. "I remember this tree," he says, gesturing with one, "and this cherry tree!"

intricate-looking handcarved birds with splayed wings. The birds are carved and split from a single baton of wood. Paul also shows me an exquisite sculpture quite unlike anything else he's made – a copper wire and peridot tree woven onto a wizened oak root; the kind of piece that makes you very curious to see what he will do next.

Paul has a good relationship with the National Trust, for whom he undertakes tree work from time to time. "They put certain trees 'aside' for me which is nice and they helped me locate some elm wood for a stool recently. The trees I take down for them are all removed for conservation felling purposes, I'm not just a wood poacher!" Conservation forestry methods require enough wood to be left behind after felling for habitat-creation, but in hard-to-access forest areas, where extraction of the felled trees is not practical, there is often plenty of surplus felled wood for the occasional craftsman to fashion a bespoke something-or-other.

"I generally go to the places which vehicles can't access and just take what I need. I either carry it out or sometimes work it there in the woods – the woven chairs outside were made next to the coppice stumps they were cut from. It is easier to carry the product than a big bundle of wood, so I try to make as many things as possible down in the woods."

Does he have favourite woods? "Well it depends on the project of course, ash is a favourite to work and to look at – I am a bit distraught about ash dieback. I like working with birch as well, it is easy to work, easy on your tools and your arms.

I've had arguments with apple. I got quite frustrated with it – the bowls took me a day each because it was so tough, I've got a pile outside I was going to work, but I'm now thinking it looks like good firewood!"

We discuss the bespoke nature of craftsmanship and the difficulty of making a living from niche markets while mass-production mimics (usually poorly) the artisan at a fraction of the cost.

"I would really like to balance my forestry and land management work with my craftwork so I can be doing more on the craft side, but trying to make a living from craftwork alone is very hard – to make the stick chairs outside took many, many hours of work; even if I paid myself a modest hourly wage, it would still be a bespoke, expensive product and a small market – and you can buy a similar-looking chair from Ikea for £40!" This is disappointingly true, and a grotty symptom of disposable culture – it can't be debated that Paul's chairs, carefully wrought from Exmoor coppice, win out by a country mile for character and sustainability and, I suspect, for durability as well.

Aside from furniture and bowls, Paul makes utensils, cooking and eating spoons, hurdles and sculptures – a top seller at the shows and fairs he has attended are

As well as selling woodcrafted creations at shows and fairs, Paul continues to give educational talks for a number of organisations and/or events. "I was really keen to start doing the talks for the National Park because it gives me the possibilty of putting myself out there and having conversations with people.

It's incredibly important for future generations to continue sustainable forestry, it is a big motivation for me.

One thing I wanted to put across is that cutting a tree down doesn't kill it – there is a balance to be achieved. It is also about promoting British wood – wood miles are as important as food miles and this is something a lot of people don't see, which I am trying to put across in talks.

"I want people to walk through the woods and appreciate them, think about where wood products come from, enjoy woods and support local people who are utilising them when buying gifts – see who is doing what in your area."

Does he have any advice for would-be wood whittlers? "I started this process because I was in the woods a lot – people often look at beautiful craftwork without thinking of the woods it came from.

It isn't witchcraft or magic, it is all fairly straightforward, just have a go. An obsessive personality helps. I carved a spoon a day for 30 days which was a good exercise – the ergonomics of an eating spoon and having something that feels nice is something you can get perfectionist about. This last month I have gone to bed thinking about bowls almost every night."

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Exmoor Spring 2016 39

ADVERTORIAL

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Lunch and refreshments will be served during the day.

There will be lots of Claire's chef tips, which can be used at home, and you will learn how to use seasonal vegetables and herbs to make an amazing family meal on a budget.

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Come and grab a bite and meet the local producers too!

Claire's Kitchen is now taking 2016 bookings for restaurantstyle pop-up nights, event catering (weddings, birthdays, funerals and corporate events) and private cheffing in homes and holiday rentals across Devon and Somerset.

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40 Exmoor Spring 2016

Treat yourself to Afternoon Tea The Coach House by Michael Caines has recently launched Afternoon Tea, featuring a variety of homemade treats crafted by our talented chefs.

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Kentisbury Grange, Kentisbury, Barnstaple, North Devon EX31 4NL CoachHouse@kentisburygrange.co.uk | 01271 882 295 www.kentisburygrange.co.uk

Pisanki There are lots of ways of producing dyed eggs, depending upon your artistic skills and patience. The simplest type, 'krasanki', are just boiled and dyed. The next step up are 'drapanki', where the dyed eggs are decorated by scratching away the dyed surface of the shell. The ultimate egg is the 'pacenki' (although many just use the term 'pisanki'), where the egg is either dipped in wax then a pattern is scratched though to the shell, or a pattern is drawn onto a bare egg with wax, then dyed.

To dye your eggs just hard boil them, then put them into a cup of dye made from water, a teaspoonful of vinegar and another of food colouring. Alternatively, make natural dyes using beetroot juice, turmeric or by boiling onion skins in water.

The time taken for the dye to work will depend on what you are using (from five minutes to one day, so you'll need to experiment!). Make sure that you don't get greasy fingerprints on your eggs as this will stop the dye taking. The vibrancy of your final colour will depend on the concentration of your dye, the amount of vinegar and how long the egg is immersed.

RECIPES

European Easter Treats RECIPES & PHOTOS by Ian Jarmarkier

W

e all have our own family traditions, in particular when it comes to holidays such as Easter. Along with the familiar treats of Pancake Day and chocolate eggs, I grew up with the Polish traditions of my father and grandmother. This meant fish on Good Friday (normally trout or, hopefully, pike, caught by my father) and a major meal on Easter Sunday with a huge range of dishes, which in my memory were nearly all egg-based.

One of the great things was that my grandmother was an art teacher and delighted in showing us how to make decorated eggs. The results were beautiful, colourful and edible eggs that always seemed to taste amazing just because they were decorated and, if left to dry out, became objects of mystery! I remember ones made by my grandmother that were several years old where the middles had dried into hard balls that rolled around intriguingly within their shells. I have explained some of the techniques here; do give them a try. I have also included the recipe for my childhood favourite – stuffed eggs.

If you want really bright colours then try fabric dyes, but you probably shouldn't eat the eggs in that case.

To make pisanki you will need a metal skewer and some beeswax (it dries harder than normal candle wax and so works better). Boil your eggs and cool them, and melt your wax in a small pan. Heat the skewer over an oven burner or candle flame, dip it in the wax and draw your pattern on the egg. You will start each line with a drop of wax which you can draw out into a line. This limits the type of line and shape you can easily create, but with practice you can draw most things.

Once you have finished your design, put the egg in the dye and leave to colour.

Once dyed, remove the egg, leave it to dry, then heat it with a hair drier to soften the wax and then wipe it off. You can also create more complicated designs by adding another wax design after the first dyeing, and then dyeing the egg in a different colour.

But I don't only want to focus on Polish food as, over the years, I have found plenty of interesting Easter delicacies in other countries and want to share a couple of those with you as well. One is from Italy, the orange-scented Easter bread, Colomba Pasquale, and the other is an unusual twist on the pancake tradition from Spain, Flores de Semana Santa.

Exmoor Spring 2016 41

Stuffed eggs Known in Poland as 'jajka faszerowane', these are very easy to make and delicious.

They can be served hot or cold.

Ingredients 6 eggs 1tblsp mayonnaise 2tblsp breadcrumbs a few chives or some fresh parsley salt and pepper a little butter

Method

Flores de Semana Santa Literally 'Easter flowers' and also known as Flores Manchegas, these crispy, beautiful creations are a cross between a doughnut, a pancake and a pastry. There are lots of recipes for the batter but this doesn't seem to make a huge difference to the finished product. Success is all about the technique and once you master this, it is easy.

The flowers are made using a special utensil which seems impossible to buy. I made my own by welding together four heart-shaped pastry cutters and a handle, but you can get very good results by just using a flower- or star-shaped pastry cutter held with a pair of tongs.

Ingredients 1 200ml about 6tsp 1tsp 1 pinch 1 pinch

egg water plain flour sugar anise powder salt icing sugar sunflower oil

Method Whisk together the water, egg, sugar, anise powder, salt and a splash of oil, then whisk in enough flour to give a runny batter (like single cream).

Heat a 25mm depth of oil in a small saucepan to about 180°C. Put your flores tool (pastry cutter) in the oil and leave to heat for a minute or so, then lift it out and dip it ž of the way into the batter. The batter should stick to it.

Lift the battered tool up and dip it back into the oil. The batter will puff up and come away from the tool but may need a poke with a wooden spoon handle to free it completely.

Cook the flores, turning occasionally, until golden brown (1-2 minutes), then lift from the oil and drain on some paper towel.

Once cool, the flores should be completely crisp and just need a generous dusting with icing sugar to serve.

42 Exmoor Spring 2016

Hard boil your eggs and let them cool.

Slice your eggs in half, through the shell end to end, and pick off any broken shell fragments (it will take a couple of goes to get the hang of this and it is worth trying a couple of different knives to find the one that works best for you).

Scoop out the egg, put the white and yolk in a bowl and put the shells carefully to one side.

Mash or finely chop the eggs, then chop the herbs and mix these in, along with the mayo and half of the breadcrumbs Taste the mixture and add salt and pepper as desired.

Refill the shells with the mixture, doming it up a little, and sprinkle the rest of the breadcrumbs over the top.

Dot the tops of the eggs with butter and then either grill or bake them for 10 minutes until golden and hot.

Tip To avoid your yolks going green at the edges and smelling really "eggy", put them into boiling water but then only simmer them really gently and take them out after 10 minutes. The smell is hydrogen sulphide released by the cooked white and the green colour is created when iron from the yolks reacts with this.

Colomba Pasquale This is the Easter dove bread from Milan.

The recipe has a lot in common with panettone and pandoro but has a slightly less tricky dough. Its origins are debated, but a widely accepted story is that it commemorates the Lombardians' defeat of the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in 1176, when two doves were said to have landed on the standard-bearing chariot. The less romantic version is that it was created in the 1930s by a Milanese bakers to make use of their panettone machine after Christmas! Either way, it is an established Easter tradition and a delicious thing, so worth trying your hand at.

To get the dove shape you ideally need some dove-shaped cases. These are hard to find but are available from Bakery Bits (www.bakerybits.co.uk). It would be fair to say that the finished loaves only have a broad resemblance to doves but some well-placed flaked almonds help!

As with all enriched breads, Colomba Pasquale is best served slightly warm or makes amazing toast after a few days.

Tip You can get a fluffier, tastier loaf by making a third of the dough (without any fruit or zest) 4 hours in advance, then incorporating this with the remaining ingredients and following the method.

Ingredients 450g 2 plus 1 125g 1tsp 150ml 2tsp

125g 1tblsp 1tblsp 1

strong white flour eggs yolk (and keep the white) very soft unsalted butter fine salt water sugar vanilla extract fresh yeast grated zest of an orange candied peel ground almonds icing sugar flaked almonds 750g paper Colomba case

Method Dissolve the yeast in the water, then mix in the eggs and yolk. Pour the yeast mixture, the flour, sugar, vanilla and salt into a large bowl, mix together, then turn out onto a work surface and knead well for 15 minutes (or, as the dough is soft and sticky, it can be slowly mixed in an electric bowl mixer with a dough hook).

Add the melted butter, zest and peel, then knead/mix again until fully incorporated.

Return the dough to the bowl, cover and leave to prove for 3 hours.

Turn out the dough and separate in half, then split one piece in half again.

Shape the large piece of dough into a sausage and place this head to tail in your Colomba case.

Shape the two remaining pieces of dough into ovals and drop them into the empty wing spaces of the case.

Place an upturned bowl over the bread and leave to prove again for 2-3 hours, until the edge of the dough has reached the edge of the case.

Heat your oven to 180°C. Mix your leftover egg white with the ground almonds and icing sugar and gently spread this paste over the top of the dough, then decorate with flaked almonds.

Bake the Colomba for about 40 minutes until brown and a skewer pushed into the middle comes out clean.

Exmoor Spring 2016 43

A VISIT TO

Tarr Farm WORDS by Naomi Marley

I

have been to Tarr Farm for all sorts of reasons over the years – a drink after a long walk, cream tea with visitors, a big Sunday family lunch – but somehow, probably because it isn't exactly a hop, skip and jump from home, I've never been in mid-winter.

Driving over Winsford Hill on a Thursday in January with Pete as it just began to snow, we agreed that Tarr Farm is 'a bit of an effort' so must be something special for a night out!

Actually, because we both fancied a glass of wine or two, we were keen to stay; a big treat after the endlessly wet winter on one of the only crispy-cold nights of the season. It was not to be. A large shooting party were responsible in the main for this, perhaps tempted by Tarr Farm's recent accolade of being voted one of the 'Top Ten Shooting Hotels' by GunsonPegs and Fieldsports Magazine.

Much as I enjoy a voyeuristic look at Grand Designs and slick, statement venues, I like the rooms I actually inhabit to be more traditional; full of character, beams, higgledy-piggledy-ness and tucked-away corners. Tarr Farm is this kind of space, making it perfect territory for groups of different sizes and occasions to enjoy simultaneously without changing the experience for their fellow diners. Whilst the large shooting party enjoyed the spacious back dining room (pictured), complete with their own sofa area, fireplace and bar, we settled into a niche at the other end of the building, with Hurley flat out near the fire, unable to hear a peep about the day's sport. Another couple and a group of three also took their own private corners in this quiet end of the inn, where the music was just right and the lighting really lovely (v. important!). The other couple arrived on a quad in wellies, had a quick burger and a pot of tea and left, presumably to continue work after refuelling. The three friends had travelled from fair distances separately for a catch-up – again, testament to Tarr Farm's appeal. We felt cosied in but still part of the whole.

Proprietor Hilary Lester chatted with us, explaining some of her plans for the business – including forthcoming events (see end

44 Exmoor Spring 2016

notes) – and going through the menu. Pete and I reluctantly agreed not to choose the same thing but to share and compare, so he went first. Selecting exactly what I would have chosen(!), he opted for scallops with black pudding, crispy pancetta and cauliflower purée to start, and fish of the day from the specials menu for his main course – pan-fried fillet of salmon, lemon and thyme couscous, rainbow chard, Moroccan-spiced king prawns and red-pepper coulis. Also on offer among the starters on the restaurant menu (there is a good bar menu too, which we will save for another day), were soup of the day (cream of mushroom with truffle oil), a blue cheese tartlet, whisky-cured gravadlax with kohlrabi and lime mayonnaise or – and here I was torn – venison carpaccio with pomegranate and rocket or half a roasted partridge, with butternut squash purée, wild mushrooms and Madeira jus. I decided to try the partridge as it is not something I would ever normally choose.

I was extremely surprised to find that I prefered my starter to Pete's, although the scallops were lovely. Generally far "more discerning" than me, he told me he was glad the scallops were trimmed, said that the pancetta was very tasty and, best of all, the black pudding was the right balance with the scallops, which are often a bit dwarfed by their companion medallions of rich, meaty pudding. This black pudding was delicate and not overpowering. The first thing that struck me about the partridge was that it was properly hot; not 'zapped in the microwave at the last minute' hot but 'the chef is going to be in a bad mood if this doesn't go out right now' hot. The dish felt cooked for me. This may sound basic or perhaps my expectations are too simple, but isn't it annoying if you feel like part of a conveyor belt when treating yourself to eating out? My food made me feel special – and this despite the fact that it was a very busy night in the kitchen with that group of 16.

The meaty partridge was a sunny-tasting dish, with the plate full of bright colours and the mushrooms and squash looking and tasting

earthy and unfussy. Hilary gave us a taster of the venison anyway and this gave me another attack of food envy. It was incredible.

After a short gap the mains came out – again, piping hot. I don't order steak all that often because, ten years ago, after six weeks at sea, I arrived in Buenos Aires, Argentina, deprived of fresh food, especially meat, and was then suddenly awash with it in the land of steak and wine. I ate the best steak and salad in the world solidly for three weeks and never got bored with it, resigned to the fact that nothing would ever taste that good again and I'd be back on the boat eating freeze-dried 'chunky chicken' before I knew it. So, I may not be an expert foodie, but I have high expectations of a fillet steak. Tarr Farm delivered the best I've had since the one I ate on that unforgettable first night in Buenos Aires, this time accompanied by confit onions and blue cheese croquettes, dauphinoise potatoes and green beans.

The only thing I would say is that the meat is good enough to order rarer than you would normally go for. I asked for it medium-rare – which it was – but regretted not opting for rare.

The weekend before, Pete and I had a roast with friends elsewhere, during the course of which he described his veg as "how Granny used to murder them". This was the opposite, both with my beans and with the veg that accompanied his salmon. His fish was "perfectly seared and with lovely crispy skin" and I found it had escaped the 'slightly wet' fate that so often seems to befall salmon fillet and thought it tasted very fresh. I didn't want swappage for long though and reclaimed my steak asap. We agreed that we would also have been happy with the other main course options – a smoked corn-fed chicken, a duo of lamb saddle and slow-cooked pressed shoulder of lamb or the vegetarian dish, a spinach and ricotta roulade.

Pete declined dessert, not having a sweet tooth, and tried one of the cheeses "just because", having never tasted brie with 'a vein of truffle through the centre'. Delicious. We both liked the fact that you can select three cheeses or six, to create a cheese board tailored both to your taste and available tummy space.

www.exmoorholidaybarn.co.uk .uk etails: More d olidaybarn.co rh o o ww.exm

w

I only ever justify dessert if there is a citrus option or a crème brulée on offer or, of course, if it's in the name of work; allowed! My blood orange tart was worth the guilt and in fact I did not feel horribly over-full as we finished our meal – a last sip of Australian pinot noir for me (and I didn't even get close to describing the 16-page wine list) and an espresso for Pete.

We will be back!

Tarr Farm now runs a series of special events throughout the year. A few of the ones coming up include Seafood Night (11 March), a Children's Easter Egg Hunt (27 March) and Tarr Trek (run and/or cycle) in aid of The Stroke Association (17 April). They also take bookings for corporate, sporting and wedding parties. Find out more at www.tarrfarm.co.uk.

Exmoor Spring 2016 45

The

Black Venus Inn

Liz, Marc and family welcome you to the Black Venus Inn, situated in the beautiful village of Challacombe, on Exmoor.

Historic 16th century beamed Inn Excellent home made food using local produce Food served seven days a week throughout the year Beer garden and large car park Open all day during school holidays Challacombe, Barnstaple, Devon EX31 4TT

Tel 01598 763251 www.blackvenusinn.co.uk

Traditional home-cooked meals with ‘weekly specials’, vegetarian and light snacks.

Sunday & Wednesday Carvery lunch and evening meal times.

This old coaching inn is situated at Wheddon Cross, the highest village on Exmoor. We pride ourselves on our high standards of service and accommodation which is full of olde world charm and friendly hospitality.

Comprehensive wine list.

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twitter.com/wickedwolfgin

Locally produced real ales.

01643 841222 Voted Devon Life Gastro Pub of the year 2014

EXMOOR ALES

A FINE TRADITION IN BREWING Exmoor Ales founded in 1979, based in the historic brewing town of Wiveliscombe on the fringes of Exmoor National Park, is now the largest brewery in Somerset.

EXMOOR ALE • ABV 3.8% The brewery’s first beer and winner at GBBF 1980, Best Bitter.

Pale brown beer, with a malty aroma, a full dry taste and malty bitter finish. A classic session bitter.

EXMOOR FOX • ABV 4.2% Cunningly crafted from a blend of several hops and malts to produce a mid-brown beer of unusual subtlety and taste. Slight maltiness on the tongue is followed by a burst of hops and a lingering bitter-sweet aftertaste.

The Swan is the oldest pub in the charming historic town of Bampton, near Exmoor National Park, an area well known for its hunting, fishing, shooting and popular with ramblers and cyclists.

We have a passion for food and with this we like to embrace the use of local produce, keeping menus simple, yet bursting with flavours and imagination. We take pride in our well kept, locally sourced ales and fine wines, to whet the appetites and suit all tastes.

Eat, Drink & Sleep at The Swan, Bampton

EXMOOR GOLD • ABV 4.5% The original and first single malt “Golden Ale”. Golden in colour with a malty aroma and flavour, a slight sweetness is complemented by its long hoppiness resulting in a remarkable, well rounded beer.

EXMOOR STAG • ABV 5.2% Strong copper-coloured premium bitter, with a good malty taste, full hopped aroma and long dry finish. Originally brewed for Somerset County Cricket Clubs Centenary celebrations...so popular the brew became permanent.

EXMOOR BEAST • ABV 6.6% Remarkably drinkable strong “Porter” style ale. Once a “Winter Warmer”, now year round. Brewed making liberal use of chocolate and crystal malts. A smooth and complex beer with hints of fruitcake, rum, coffee and chocolate.

T: 01984 623798 • E: info@exmoorales.co.uk • www.exmoorales.co.uk

46 Exmoor Spring 2016

T. 01398 332248 E. info@theswan.co www.theswan.co Bampton | Tiverton | Devon | EX16 9NG

'm in the office of Exmoor Ales' managing director and owner Jonathan Price and he's telling me about their new site that began brewing in January 2015.

As I sit facing him, I can't help but see out of the window the old brewing chimney that used to be part of Arnold & Hancock, who ceased making beer at the end of the 1950s. Given the role of Exmoor (and next-door neighbours Cotleigh) in bringing brewing back to Wiveliscombe in 1980, it seems entirely appropriate that the chimney still stands, a reminder of the town's brewing heritage that began in 1807.

"Wiveliscombe has always been an integral part of Exmoor Ales," says Jonathan. "When we realised that we had to move from our site at the old brewery on the hill, remaining in Wiveliscombe was terribly important, even though shifting to industrial estates in other parts of the county would have been much cheaper.

When the opportunity came four years ago to purchase a good factory site some 50 yards from the brewery, it had to be taken, and in 2014 the big step to invest in the new brewery began. Altogether around ÂŁ1.5m has been invested. It's wonderful to be associated with the brewing heritage of Wiveliscombe."

The current home of the brewery was once a plastics factory, built in the 1970s.

However, before the first drop of beer could be brewed, "a lot of fundamental civil engineering changes had to be made, which involved a great deal of digging and bringing in massive blocks of stone."

The result is a spacious, well-organised brewery with plenty of room for expansion. The brewing kit has also evolved and can now produce 50 brewer's barrels in one go (a brewer's barrel is 36 gallons, which translates to 16,200 pints every brew); the previous kit could only make 20 barrels each time, which meant a lot of brewing shifts.

"Our future aspirations are very much more of the same," says Jonathan.

"I expect us to keep on growing, especially as the new brewery has space for doubling output and more. We employ 24 people and expect to grow that alongside as well. Our core market remains Exmoor, Somerset, and the South West, but our national business around the UK is now more than half our sales and we would hope that grows apace."

Exmoor Ales began life in 1980 under the name of Golden Hill and that year it famously won the Best Bitter award for its ale at the Great British Beer Festival.

In 1986, its bestselling beer, Gold, was brewed for the first time. "We are now coming up to its 30th birthday and are going to make quite a thing of that in 2016," says Jonathan. Gold sparked a revolution in British beers – it was the first 'golden ale', a style of beer that is nowadays ubiquitous.

In 2015, Gold was awarded top prize in the Campaign for Real Ale's South West Regional Champion Beer of Britain Golden Ale category. This pleased Jonathan no end, especially as, during the same year, he had learnt that those at CAMRA in charge of categorising beers for the national competition, the Champion Beer of Britain, had decided Exmoor Gold no longer suited the contemporary definition of a Golden Ale. A consequence of this was that it was declared it should be moved to the Best Bitter category.

TOAST OF EXMOOR

Exmoor Ales' New Home WORDS by Adrian Tierney Jones

Although not happy with this, Jonathan is not one to bear grudges, "This recognition from CAMRA members is much appreciated and it nicely crowns the quality of our Head Brewer's output from our new brewery this year."

Before buying the brewery in 2006, Jonathan had spent the previous 25 years running a large bakery business in the Midlands. When that was sold, he wanted to acquire his own business that he could control and develop.

"I looked at various business opportunities related to baking," he says, "and toyed with the idea of a hotel. In fact, at that time the Royal Oak at Winsford was for sale, a favourite place where we had stayed over many years. Then, by chance, I came across a small, successful brewery for sale in the Midlands. Although this came to nothing, it made me look at and develop some understanding of the brewing industry and the opportunities in it for small brewers making good-quality, cask-conditioned beers. Then Exmoor Ales came on the market at about the same time.

"Brewing is a 'nicer' industry to be in than baking. I enjoyed my baking days, but there is a different atmosphere in brewing. A good part of that is because it is a hospitality industry and it is also a much more diverse industry with so many

more players, and I've been surprised by the friendliness and openness of brewers between one another, both with the much bigger ones and the smaller ones."

The ghosts of Wiveliscombe's brewing past can continue to rest easy: Exmoor Ales (as well as Cotleigh) is going to be flying the flag for Wivvy ale for a long time to come.

Top photo by Andrew Hobbs; middle image by Tom Lindsey.

I

Exmoor Spring 2016 47

Wimbleball Lake

explore • discover • challenge • relax

Create n w o r u o y e r u t n e adv • walking • cycling • sailing • windsurfing • canoeing • rowing • paddleboarding • fishing • archery • climbing • camping • bushcraft or just relax in our café

Calling the ce van n ce tre in adeather w k ec ch to is conditions advised

01398 371460 Near Dulverton, TA22 9NU www.outdoorandactive.uk.com • www.swlakestrust.org.uk

48 Exmoor Spring 2016

S

aucer-shaped discs made of pitch and pulverised limestone fly out of a hole in the ground at 100mph and Ed Ling raises his custom-made Italian shotgun and, on a good day, will hit them virtually every time.

ACTIVE EXMOOR

Shooting Stars WORDS by Tony James PHOTOS by Laura Strachan (Steve, Ed and Theo) and Maria Sole Santasilia (Abbey)

So will his wife Abbey, his dad Steve, and his younger brother Theo, because they are champions in a sport which has been a way of life for almost as long as they can remember. The Ling family, who also find time to farm in a big way at Nynehead near Wellington, are a legend in the clay pigeon shooting world, but sitting around the kitchen table with mugs of tea at Heywood Farm, you'd never guess.

They're a modest lot, friendly and relaxed, but, to be honest, they haven't got a lot to be modest about. Ed, a world champion at 32 and Britain's number one, is heading for his third Olympics this summer.

He holds a world record for shooting 200 clays out of 200 in his specialist discipline, something never done before or since. It won him the European championship.

Abbey, whom Ed met on the top-class shooting circuit, is a four times ladies champion and a current British record-holder.

Steve Ling, father of the family and, one suspects, the dominant influence on what goes on, was a British champion, Olympic coach and is still winning vintage events.

But it's the Lings' 15-year-old son Theo, a student at Wellington School, who is currently the object of particular media attention as the youngest-ever winner of an under-21 world championship.

Now his eyes are on the 2020 Olympics – and, of course, beating his brother...

Some of us may have had a go at a few clays put up by a bloke behind a straw bale at a show or country fair, but that's

Exmoor Spring 2016 49

where any similarity with the Lings decidedly ends. We're on roller-skates, they're in Formula One. There are over 20 disciplines in clay pigeon shooting – formally known as Inanimate Bird Shooting – although most can be grouped under the main headings of 'sporting', 'skeet' and 'trap'. Until 1921 it was still legal to use live pigeons, and still-used terms like 'bird away', 'trap' and 'kill' hark back to former days.

Briefly, sporting, with its numerous angles, speeds and distances designed to simulate live birds, has the sport's biggest following, while skeet involves targets thrown from two towers some 40 metres apart at the opposite ends of a semi-circular arc on which there are seven shooting positions.

Olympic trap shooting and its variation, 'universal trench', are where you will find the Lings. These disciplines involve extremes of skill and precision and are regarded as the most difficult forms of clay pigeon shooting.

Shooters placed along a firing line 15 metres from traps in a trench that release 'going away' birds, can use two shots

50 Exmoor Spring 2016

a 'kill'. Each round involves clays being fired from 15 concealed traps and the unexpected heights, speeds and angles make this the ultimate shooting challenge.

Although shooting sports are a multi-million-pound industry, even the top clay shooters are still basically amateur. As British number one, Ed still works full time on the farm and, prior to the 2012 Olympics, was completely self funding. Since then he has had support from UKSPORT (World Class Performance programme).

"You need to have a job which will allow you to have time off and luckily farming lets you do that. I have my own shooting range on the farm so I can fit in with busy times."

There are plenty of those.

Heywood Farm, part of the family's wide-ranging Heywood Estate organisation, has a large-scale egg business, breeds pedigree Charolais cattle and is one of the district's biggest arable holdings.

If that wasn't enough, there are holiday lets, part of a leisure enterprise offering a range of country pursuits from fishing to walking and, of course, clay

pigeon shooting. Abbey has her own businesses, too – shooting tuition and country clothing (see links at end).

What's it like for one World Champion to be married to another? "I don't let his head get too big," she smiles.

Ed started shooting clays when he was 12. Steve remembers, "We had this old manual trap on the farm. One Sunday I put two or three clays up in the air and told him what to do. I could see straight away he could be something special.

He got into the England team at only 13 and became the county's senior champion. He's probably the only shooter to have won junior, European and world titles. He competed in the Athens Olympics when he was only 21 and in London 2012. He was very unlucky not to win medals in both of them.

In 2012 it was raining on the last line and he missed his first bird out. Let's hope it's third time lucky at Rio."

Abbey organises educational field sports events for youngsters including shooting, archery, dog-training and falconry. It's a chance for them to try sports which aren't usually accessible. Is there any worry about kids with guns?

"It's all in a fully controlled environment with highly qualified instructors," Abbey says. "We couldn't do it in any other way."

Starting young seems to be the key to clay shooting success and Abbey, a top coach, runs training courses at the farm.

She says shooting is probably in her blood – her grandfather was a gamekeeper – and she was shooting for England little more than a year after taking up the sport.

Recently she was in the team which won GB its first gold at the World Championships.

There have been some surprising results. "We had a young girl who is now in the country's junior ladies' team," Steve says. "Then there's a young boy from Devon who qualified for England in his first year when he was only 13. We've got an 11-year-old coming at the moment – Abbey found him on one of her open days – and he's just phenomenal. His grandfather has bought him a suitably fitted gun and comes for training every Saturday.

"Most youngsters, given a bit of help, can become good shots.

The hardest bit is teaching them to win. You can't try to win – you've got to let it happen."

Theo was only eight when he first picked up a gun. "My dad just said, 'Have a go and see what you think of it.'" At 13 he made the national team. In 2015 he qualified to compete alongside 21-year-olds.

He comes in from school in his smart uniform and has a confidence and slightly oldworld courtesy well beyond his years. He's getting used to strangers asking him personal questions and wondering why he's shooting clay pigeons when his mates are probably playing games on their iPads.

What do his fellow students think about Theo becoming the youngest-ever under-21 world champion? "They've always been very supportive and cheer me on, although I suppose the sport is a bit out of the ordinary.

"I do other sports, like tennis, hockey and rugby and I hope to go to agricultural college when I leave school. Of course, there is a rivalry with Ed, but he's always been an inspiration, too." "I'd like a recording of that bit," Ed says. "I can't believe what I'm hearing!"

Steve can see that Theo's catching up, "At the European Championships he beat Ed in the first 50 – he got 50 and

Ed shot 49. Ed eventually beat him but he really had to pull his finger out!

"It's great when we go shooting as a family. At the ABT (automatic ball trap) world championships in North Wales, Theo won the juniors, Ed got the overall high gun and I won the veterans. If we'd taken Abbey she would probably have won the ladies."

Steve believes that in the UK the sport doesn't get the publicity and recognition it deserves, partly because of the governmental attitude to firearms. In Italy, the Mecca of clay pigeon shooting, things are very different.

"Italy is the top shooting country and the best guns are made there. We are very short of shooting grounds but in Italy nearly every village has one – in one area there are about 20 shooting grounds and ten gun factories. Go there for a competition and you're shooting in front of hundreds of people. It's bigger than football."

Top shooters have customfitted guns and a very high percentage of top competitors would shoot guns manufactured

by Perazzi or Beretta.

Shooting clays, you fire at where you're looking above the gun. You don't sight it like a rifle. As Steve explains, "Competition guns have to have the right stock and be the right height and be set up to fire where you're looking.

Most people want a gun to shoot about 60 per cent above the point of aim. Ed's gun, at 30 yards, would shoot 100 per cent above point of aim. He's always wanted a gun that shoots high, but it's a personal thing. It's purely hand-to-eye co-ordination – you're using a subconscious part of the brain.

Top, left to right: Dad Steve in action at the World Championships in August 2015 at Fauxdegla, North Wales; comparing notes at the same event; Abbey with her gold medal at the World Cup in Italy in 2012; Theo (also pictured on p49) won the junior under-21s, Ed won the World Championship title and Steve won the B class and silver in the vets at Fauxdegla.

Below: Abbey modelling one of her jackets.

"When you're standing on that line, even after years of experience, you're still fighting the little demons in your head.

You can't think about the clays you've shot or the ones you've got to shoot. Most important of all, don't think about the ones you've missed."

Ed knows that. At the last World Championships in Spain he would have won a top-of-the-range Mercedes by scoring 125. "I reached 118 then missed the 119 and got 124. You've got to be positive.

At the end of the day it wasn't about the car but winning an Olympic place for Rio, which I did, so that was OK. It was a nice car, though... ".

FIND OUT MORE www.heywoodestate.co.uk (07789 480298) www.abbeylingclayshooting. co.uk.

Exmoor Spring 2016 51

Blue Anchor Bay Garage Blue Anchor, Minehead, Somerset TA24 6JZ Tel: 01643 821571 Mobile: 07756 341670 www.blueanchorbay.co.uk blueanchor@btconnect.com

Blue Anchor Bay Garage is situated in the small coastal village of Blue Anchor, in West Somerset.

As a family owned business the accent is firmly on Customer Care. The old fashioned belief that nothing is too much trouble and the knowledge that repeat business is essential for a local business to survive.

Our forecourt always has a well rounded selection of used vehicles including 4x4s but our true expertise lies in sourcing cars for people.

TELL US WHAT YOU’D LIKE AND WE’LL FIND IT FOR YOU!

CELEBRATING

40 YEARS

OF STEAMING TO THE

SEASIDE

WEST SOMERSET RAILWAY

February 16th to 20th - Half term steam trains including Snowdrops and Steam specials. (prebooking for Snowdrops and Steam strongly recommended) March 5th and 6th and 10th to 13th - Spring Steam Gala commemorating 50 years since the closure of the Somerset and Dorset Railway (discounted day tickets now available for advanced sales) Details of 2016 programme and bookings can be found on our website www.west-somerset-railway.co.uk or call 01643 704996

Download our Heritage Hunter App before you visit!

© National Trust Images/John Miller. Registered Charity Number 205846.

We also offer the following services: • Service and repair all makes and models • Main dealer computer diagnosis • Air conditioning servicing • Collection and delivery service • Free Courtesy Car • MOT Testing

Where will your adventure start?

Periwinkle Tearoom on Selworthy Green? The highest point at Dunkery Beacon? Bossington's pebbly beach? Horner's ancient woodland?

OLD FASHIONED VALUES OF HONEST, COURTEOUS SERVICE WITH A SMILE INCLUDED WE AIM TO TREAT YOU AS WE WOULD LIKE TO BE TREATED OURSELVES LET US TAKE THE WORRY AND HASSLE AWAY FROM BUYING YOUR NEXT CAR, WE CAN MAKE THE PROCESS PAINLESS AND PLEASURABLE

52 Exmoor Spring 2016

Holnicote Estate

Walk, cycle or ride over 150 miles of paths, discover picturesque villages or just sit and admire the views on the Holnicote Estate on Exmoor.

01643 862 452 nationaltrust.org.uk/holnicote-estate

PAST TIMES

The Drive for Progress WORDS by Jeff Cox

I

n the years leading up to the First World War, the narrow and rutted lanes of West Somerset rumbled to a lively tussle of new and old technologies. The reliance on traditional horse-drawn transport was being challenged by the convenience – and the noise and the fumes – of the new-fangled motor car, now a common sight trundling along the thoroughfares.

'King Petrol' was on the move.

During the first years of the twentieth century, a number of local garages had geared themselves up for the Motor Age, competing to sell and repair these wondrous new machines. And, to handle this new traffic, stretches of local roads, mainly in the towns, were being surfaced with asphalt, to the consternation of bruised and angry horse riders whose mounts often lost their footing on the slippery, hard surface.

Also competing for space on the rutted lanes were the private horse-drawn brakes, the public horse-buses and the carters ferrying goods between villages. And each summer, the traditional big four-in-hand coaches were still clattering along the coastal highway from Minehead to Lynmouth.

Top: Riders watch the Red Deer coach make its perilous descent of Porlock Hill.

Above: An advertisement from a Free Press of 1916.

In fact, unlike in the rest of the country, this was the heyday of the four-in-hand coach in West Somerset. Ever since the 1870s, the railways had brought the visiting masses as far as Minehead (1874) to the east, to Dulverton (1873) in the south, and, eventually, to Lynton (1898) to the west, but journeys further into the moor were only possible by horse.

Elsewhere in the country, the expansion of the railway had proved the death knell for most stage coach companies, but on Exmoor, because of the challenging terrain and the failure of rail to penetrate the moor, the horse-drawn coach remained master of the moorland highways deep into the twentieth century.

So, each summer, locals and visitors alike thrilled to the clattering of the two coaches, the Red Deer and the Lorna Doone, evocative of a bygone age, with liveried driver and guard, but with a notable absence of any modern comfort.

Rolling along the dusty, unsurfaced tracks on solid wheels and with no suspension, it was a rough ride for the four passengers inside, and even more so for the 16 or so brave souls seated precariously on top.

To climb the precipitate incline of Porlock Hill, with its notorious one-in-four hairpin bend, the coach first paused at the Ship Inn, to harness an additional pair of horses for the climb; for the steepest sections, all able-bodied passengers were encouraged to get off and walk. It was equally challenging coming down the hill: metal wedges were used to lock the rear wheels, to help ease the weight off the straining horses, so the stage coach more often slid, rather than rolled, down the slope.

The first four-in-hand coaches connected Minehead to Taunton and Bridgwater in the early 1800s, but it was not until 1841 that the first coach service was opened westwards up and over Exmoor's coastal ridge through to

Exmoor Spring 2016 53

Lynton and Lynmouth. But the poor road conditions meant that a regular daily service was only possible in the summer; the journey was attempted just once a week in the winter.

From 1884, a similar four-horse coach, the Tally Ho!, ran for a few years from the Carnarvon Arms at Dulverton to Lynton, via Simonsbath, and another, the Wild West, ran from Dulverton to Minehead, also during the summer season.

By the second decade of the twentieth century, however, the district was demanding modern transportation; something more reliable, more comfortable, and certainly more affordable. The three-hour haul up over Porlock Hill and down Countisbury into Lynmouth cost each passenger seven shillings and sixpence one-way, eleven shillings and sixpence return – more than most local people earned in a week.

In 1914, the last few months of peace before the outbreak of war saw the first open-topped motor charabancs motoring along some of the less challenging routes, taking visitors on day excursions to Exmoor's scenic attractions.

These 'wagonettes', run by several competing local companies, had an extended chassis that allowed seating for up to 14 passengers.

Although this looked stylish, the fact that the charabanc was open to the weather, rode on solid tyres and lacked spring suspension must have made for a challenging ride.

Top: The Staddon charabanc, on its trial run in 1914, making way for the Red Deer coach up above Porlock Hill.

Above: Two advertisements from a Free Press of 1916.

54 Exmoor Spring 2016

The growing demand for regular, reliable and affordable public transport in the district was soon recognised by a local pioneer of the motor bus business, James Hardy, of Messrs Hardy and Company of the Avenue, Minehead.

He had recently taken over a local firm that ran a fleet of horse-drawn transport around the district, including the old stage coach, the Red Deer. In 1915, he invested in the future,

buying the district's first motor bus – a 25hp mahogany-coloured Napier charabanc-style Public Bus, registration Y 401, weighing more than two tons and seating 22 passengers, running on solid rubber tyres.

With this new vehicle, Mr Hardy started running return trips between Minehead and Porlock Weir, but it was not until the following year, in May 1916, that West Somerset's first scheduled motor bus service was finally started, when Hardy sold the Napier charabanc to a new local consortium, the Porlock Weir, Porlock and Minehead Motor Service Company Limited.

The new service was an immediate success: during the summer of 1916, the consortium invested in three more motor vehicles, including a 50hp Karrier bus, registration Y 4265. This was a proper passenger bus, as we would recognise it today: it weighed four tons, had four rows of leather seats at the front and more wooden seats at the rear, and seated up to 35 passengers in all, under a roof with a luggage rack. The Karrier became the mainstay of the daily bus service and was promptly dubbed 'The King of The Road', the name proudly emblazoned above the vehicle's bonnet.

The service started at Minehead Railway Station, with four daily return journeys scheduled to the arrival of the trains on the branch line from Taunton. With a maximum speed limit of 12mph, the bus trundled its way along the A39, with stops at Woodcombe, Brakeley Steps (for Luccombe), Budleigh Hill (for Selworthy), Allerford, Newbridge (for Horner Woods), Porlock and on to Porlock Weir. The turn-around time at Porlock Weir was meant to allow passengers time to walk through the woods to Culbone Church and back, before catching the return bus.

Past Times The company housed its motor buses in a large garage in Quirke Street in Minehead (along with its fleet of excursion charabancs) and in a smaller shed at Porlock Weir (in the premises now used by Exmoor Adventures, on entering the village). There were ticket offices at Minehead Station and at the western end of Porlock High Street – both with new bus shelters and telephones.

In July 1916, the West Somerset Free Press printed the following: When motor vehicles first appeared on the highways... their early performances were somewhat lame and uncertain and very few foresaw then what wonderful strides would be made in motor transport in a few more years.

The cars of the company are of light but strong construction, elegant in appearance and powerfully engined for the conveyance not only of passengers but also of their goods, as were the old (horse) 'buses, which for so long held the road but which have now had to make their final bow in favour of petrol-propelled vehicles.

But the paper also observed that two years into the Great War, with so many local men fighting in France and in the Middle East, was not, perhaps, the best time to start such a new venture.

Nonetheless, the fledgling service was to be the inspiration for a number of post-war transport businesses; several servicemen returning home in 1918 had learned useful engineering skills in the ranks, and thus put them to good use helping to set up new bus operations in the district.

After the war, with paid holidays for the working masses, and relatively cheap rail transport, there

was a surge in holidaymakers visiting the district: this was really the start of West Somerset's mass tourism business, and local bus companies invested in the new more powerful vehicles to match this demand, both for scheduled services and holiday excursions.

By 1920, the Porlock Weir company, that only four years earlier had started with just one vehicle, had transformed into the Blue Motors company, whose buses and coaches, decked out in their distinctive dark-blue livery, were to further expand and develop bus services in the district for the next 30 years.

The 1920s also saw the start of scheduled motor bus services eastwards from Minehead, via Dunster and Williton to Bridgwater and also to Dulverton to the south, via Wheddon Cross.

The arrival of the country bus did much to ease the isolation of so many of the district's scattered rural communities.

As for the old four-in-hand coaches, amazingly they were still running after the First World War, but only for another couple of years.

In 1920, more powerful motor buses – with significantly improved brakes – were confidently tackling the steep inclines of Porlock Hill and Countisbury; this was to be the last the district would see of the old four-in-hand coach, that magnificent reminder of a bygone age that, still clattering along West Somerset's coastal highway less than a century ago, had survived here longer than in almost any other part of the country.

Top: Tourist charabancs brave the steep gradients of Porlock Hill, c.1920 (courtesy Halsgrove Publishing).

Above: The King of the Road, the district's first scheduled bus.

In researching this article, I am indebted to Roger Grimley, co-author, with the late Michael Hawkins, of A Century of Coaching on Exmoor, for the history of transportation in West Somerset. Many details of the district's first motor buses are available in The Blue Motors Remembered, by the late Roy H. Lee. Some of the first motor cars seen in West Somerset, at a rally in Dunster in 1905.

Exmoor Spring 2016 55

WELLBEING

Giuliana Fenwick WORDS by Jane Alexander PHOTOS by James Fenwick

Giuliana with Ollie.

56 Exmoor Spring 2016

G

iuliana Fenwick looks for all the world like a fairy – petite and pretty with gossamer blonde hair. She sparkles – not just emotionally (she simply oozes warmth) but literally (there are glittery streaks in her hair and shimmer on her eyelids).

Her Porlock home is equally magical. Mirrored hearts and fairy lanterns guide you along the winding path to the chalet she uses as her therapy room.

Yet the stories Giuliana hears are not tinged with fairy dust.

She has devoted her life to helping children with special needs, many of whom struggle to cope with school and life.

It all started when her own son Ollie (now 17) hit what she calls 'a terrible patch'.

Ollie has Asperger's and, while he flourished at middle school, he floundered when he started the GCSE syllabus.

"There was zero support," says Giuliana. "He developed severe anxiety and chronic OCD. He even started to hear voices. One day I found him crumpled on the bathroom floor crying "Make it stop." It was the most terrifying time of my life."

Giuliana had trained in a variety of therapies (including Indian head massage, reiki, craniosacral therapy and shiatsu) and so she intuitively sank down and started gently calming and centring him. To her surprise, the impromptu treatment worked and Ollie relaxed enough to sleep – more deeply than he ever had

before. Giuliana followed her instincts and continued working with Ollie. "I refined and specialised my head massage using Ollie as my guide and blended several different therapies into it," she says. It certainly worked for Ollie and, after three weeks, the voices had gone and his OCD was down to manageable levels. After six weeks he was coping at school and he went on to get ten good GCSEs. Giuliana realised she was on to something and she was determined to get the therapy out to other children who might be suffering like Ollie.

"I started my business for free by knocking on endless doors at schools," she says. "And then after a few weeks I began to be paid as the results were very noticeable." The children became calmer, more focused, more relaxed and there was no disruptive behaviour when they returned to class.

"This isn't New Age rubbish," says Giuliana. "It's real and can be explained scientifically. It works on a neuropsychological level.

By gently working on various areas of the head and spine, you can directly affect different parts of the brain."

For example, the frontal lobe of the brain is connected with clear thinking and planning – it's an area Giuliana will focus on with people with ADHD and autism. Points on the side of the head can affect areas of the brain connected with processing emotions, with empathy. "Instead of giving children Ritalin, you can naturally stimulate dopamine and serotonin levels, the feel-good biochemicals of the body."

A registered teacher with the Complementary Medical Association, Giuliana now works within pastoral and special educational needs sectors at schools, colleges

and specialist academies, treating young people with a wide variety of 'special needs', including dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD, OCD and Tourette's, Down's Syndrome, mild to severe autism, learning difficulties and behavioural issues, anxiety, depression and psychosis. She is determined to stop the discrimination these children and young people face. "These children need their voices back," she says firmly. "I do every treatment with my eyes closed and each treatment is slightly different because I am guided always by the client. It's all about listening – to their voices but also their bodies."

Giuliana is now well recognised as an expert in her field. She does a lot of public speaking to raise awareness of special needs and therapies in schools and she has trained charities such as ADHD, ASC & LD Family Resources Belgium (AFRB) as well as The Such Project, which is part of MIND. She recently raised nearly £1,400 for the learners at Foxes Academy in Minehead.

"I donated a day's wage and was sponsored to do 18 head massages non-stop in a day."

In July 2015 Foxes Academy awarded her the Community Award at the graduation ceremony. This is the only non-learner award given and is taken from the whole community and chosen by the learners.

Giuliana would love this work to be more readily available.

She's begun training specialist colleges, NHS staff and local authorities and she runs workshops to show parents, teachers and counsellors how to do the massage themselves.

Her first book, Indian Head Massage for Special Needs, has just been published (see page 96). "I don't want anyone in the hole I was in with Ollie," she says. "My hope is that, wherever people live, they can buy the book and learn how to help their children for themselves."

I'm keen to try Giuliana's unique treatment so she invites me to sit in a special chair with my arms wrapped round a softly padded armrest.

I remain fully clothed and Giuliana asks if I'm happy to have some music in the background. Her touch is gentle yet assured and I can feel the tension in my shoulders drop as she works up and down my spine. She does work on my head but it's nothing like standard Indian head massage and I can feel her other influences come into play – a touch of shiatsu here, a feel of craniosacral therapy there. Bottom line: it's bliss.

I walk back down the path feeling totally different; relaxed, calm and yet energised. As if I've had a magic wand waved over my body and mind.

Seems Giuliana really does work magic, after all.

Giuliana presenting Foxes with a cheque after her fundraising day, with her son Ollie and Tracy Clare Gray, Foxes principal.

Find out more: www.therapiesforspecialneeds.co.uk.

Exmoor Spring 2016 57

Reader's Exmoor

On a Bicycle Made for Two WORDS by reader Jackie Winter In 2015 reader jackie Winter got in touch to ask if we would like to include a little piece about her tandem travels around Exmoor with husband Allan, looking at some of the seats which have offered them rest and the stories behind them... here is what Jackie wrote.

M

y affection for Exmoor and the Quantocks dates back to 1974, when Allan and I spent our honeymoon at the Carew Arms in Crowcombe.

We live in Dorset but often visit Exmoor with our tandem and in April 2014 we spent a few days at a holiday cottage in Brendon.

It's a tough area for cycling but we love the quiet roads.

That first day we pedalled five miles before we saw a car, our solitude broken only by seven cyclists, two horses and a dog.

We cycled through Malmsmead, then on to Tippacott, Barbrook and Martinhoe, before joining the toll road leading to the Christian retreat of Lee Abbey, where we settled down on a seat with stunning views of steep cliffs rearing from a lavender sea.

I'm always interested in dedications on the seats we find on our cycling travels and the stories behind them. This one had particular significance for me because Allan and I had recently celebrated our ruby

Dusty Miller's bench. Ken Almond's bench.

58 Exmoor Spring 2016

wedding anniversary. It read, "Given by Donald and Jean Knight. In Thanks to God for Married Happiness. 1946."

During the Second World War, Lee Abbey was used as an evacuated boys' school, and during this time the building fell into disrepair.

After the war a group of Christian friends bought it and began renovation work.

Lee Abbey was dedicated to God on 1 June 1946.

The Reverend Canon Donald Knight was the very first guest speaker and it would seem that in commemoration, he and his wife Jean placed a seat on the clifftop.

The photos above show Jackie and Allan resting on this bench and its lovely view.

After the Valley of Rocks, we pushed the bike along the Coast Path towards Lynton, where dramatic scenery greeted us at every turn.

We stopped at a seat dedicated to the memory of a Lynton man: "Dusty Miller.

Local Character. Sadly Missed

by Family and Friends."

Dusty's real name was Alexander but he was always known by his nickname, which

he earned while serving in the Royal Navy. He and his wife Barbara met as teenagers and spent 54 happy years together in Lynton where Dusty worked as a builder and part-time fireman. A sociable man with many friends, he possessed an enviable zest for life.

The next day we cycled to Watersmeet, before climbing the 1:4 hill out of the Doone Valley to the top of Porlock Hill. Here we freewheeled down the scenic toll road, stopping to admire the view from a seat we found: "In Memory of Ken Almond 1936-1991."

After training as a teacher, Ken worked as Area Youth Officer in West Somerset, before returning to teaching and becoming Head of Dulverton Middle School. A keen cyclist, he spent one summer holiday working as a carpenter to earn money for a top-notch bike.

Ken co-founded Minehead Cycling Club in 1984.

He enjoyed long distance riding and in 1986 he cycled from Land's End to John o' Groats in only four days.

There are very few seats on the scenic toll road and we

Betty and Harry Rawle's bench.

couldn't resist investigating the next one we found, which was: "In Loving Memory of Betty and Harry Rawle of Court Place."

Harry Rawle was the tenant for Court Place Farm during the first half of the twentieth century and the view from this bench takes in most of the land his family farmed. Harry used only horse power and never owned or worked a tractor. He employed several men to work with his horses and they did all the ploughing and cultivation.

Harry was very successful at growing malt barley and won gold medals for his crops.

On the last day of our holiday, we cycled to Tarr Steps, a favourite destination. Our homeward route took us into Exford, where we stopped at the tea rooms for a pot of Earl Grey and delicious Victoria sponge.

Then we visited the church of St Mary Magdalen, where we found another seat with an interesting dedication: "Major Wandy Swales. Died near here.

Prayed for here. Donated by comrades and friends.

27/8/1933-12/12/1997."

As a young man, Wandy Swales excelled at all sports. He played rugby for Northumberland and was a light heavyweight boxer and a competitive yachtsman.

An intrepid explorer, he founded a company called Swale Treks and in the 1980s he led expeditions to Indonesia.

He was gregarious, with an engaging sense of fun.

Christmas 1997 he was out walking with some Army friends when he collapsed on a lonely track near Exford. A passing horse rider summoned help at a nearby farmhouse and the emergency services soon arrived. But the Major died before reaching hospital and his devastated friends installed a seat in his memory.

Back in Brendon, we found one final bench outside the village hall: "TED LETHABY WE KNEW A MAN WHO COULD" Ted was born in Countisbury in 1925. Aged 27 he married Barbara, a lighthouse keeper's daughter. After the war he joined the AA, working the road from Lynmouth to Porlock. He was kept very busy because cars were constantly breaking down.

Ted patrolled on a motorbike and sidecar, carrying out repairs on the spot. He had to wait beside his AA box twice a day for 15 minutes, in case the office needed to get in touch.

Hopefully Allan and I will soon be cycling round Exmoor again, enjoying its beauty and discovering more interesting seats...

Jackie has written a book about 40 years of riding a tandem.

It's called Life In Tandem: Tales of cycling travels and is available on Amazon priced at ÂŁ1.99 (Kindle edition) or ÂŁ6.77 plus p&p.

Major Swales often visited Exmoor and just before Wandy Swales' bench.

Hinam Farm

Dulverton, Somerset TA22 9QQ

Exmoor National Park

Tearoom opens on the 29th April 2016 this year. [closes October]. Opening hours are 11am -5pm [last orders 4.30pm] Wednesday-Sunday.

Sunday roast all year round [bookings only].

Can sit up to 30 inside so can cater for all parties .

Directions from Dulverton; Head south out of town past Bridge pub with play area on your left. Turn right for Hawkridge. At top of hill turn right for Hawkridge, follow for 2 miles. At next junction turn left [you will see Scatterbrook farm] after 100 yards you will see our signs.

Tel: 01398 323405

www.hinamfarmexmoor.co.uk

B R O M P TO N R E G I S near Wimbleball Lake

Visit one of the oldest sites on Exmoor, mentioned in the Domesday Book (1086)

Pulhams Mill Craft Centre (OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK)

During January and February please phone for opening times.

Genuine Exmoor Gifts

HARDWOOD FURNITURE

by Ian Mawby, China by Pauline Clements, Local and British Arts & Crafts and gifts.

RIVERSIDE TEAROOMS

Ted Lethaby's bench.

Pulhams made cakes, puds, lunches weekday Book for Sunday Roast

GREEN OAK BARN

Visit our website for future events & courses woodcarving, painting, spoon making, plus more.

www.pulhamsmill.co.uk on the road from the bridge on Wimbleball Lake towards Brompton Regis village near Dulverton TA22 9NT

Mon-Sat 10-5, Sun 12.30-5

Tel: 01398 371366

imawby@aol.com Exmoor Spring 2016 59

Advising the Exmoor community for more than 200 years Good legal advice for individuals and business, from your local law firm.

Whatever your needs please give us a call for a free initial meeting.

Based in Wheddon Cross and servicing the whole of Exmoor and surrounding areas, Sheasby Tree Surgery are now in their seventh year and are continuing to build on their reputation for quality workmanship and customer care.

Wiveliscombe 01984 623203 Dulverton 01398 322100 Taunton 01823 251571 Williton 01984 632277 Minehead 01643 700008/ 703123

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Enjoy the rural life...

When you need legal advice, dealing with people who understand you gets things sorted quicker and easier.

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60 Exmoor Spring 2016

Offering tree removal, reductions, pruning, shaping and all other tree and garden related services, as well as consultancy and general advice, Sheasby Tree Surgery are committed to providing highly competitive prices for outstanding service, whilst maintaining their impeccable track record for health and safety.

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Unit 8, The Old Woolshed, Wheddon Cross, TA24 8DT

ECOLOGY

ECOLOGY

Early Vegetation Change on Exmoor WORDS by Dr Ralph Fyfe, Plymouth University

Monuments such as the Longstone (Exmoor's tallest standing stone) point towards a vibrant and busy past. Other monuments nearby illustrate major changes in the landscape, for example the Chains Barrow. Today this majestic barrow is surrounded by peat some 2-3 metres deep, but it was constructed on dry land some 4,000 years ago (Photo by Neville Stanikk).

Exmoor Spring 2016 61

Ecology

T

he moorlands of Exmoor have a strong pull. To many people they represent evocative spaces which connect to feelings of wildness.

A strong sense of nature and naturalness can be summoned on a hike up through Pinkery and up onto The Chains. The fragile blanket bogs that drape the shallow hills are some of the rarest habitats in Europe.

But was it ever thus? Is the mosaic of open moor, heath and bog that lies above the limits of modern enclosed farmland a true reflection of Exmoor's natural condition?

To the keen-eyed archaeologist a walk on the moor can reveal much about the past traces of human activities. Settings of diminutive stones that were placed in the second or third millennium BC can be found across open spaces such as Lanacombe. Enclosure banks and circular structures across Codsend and Hoar Moors are the most visible of a group of extensive field systems and farms across the moorland dating back to the second millennium BC. Majestic barrow complexes dominate the skyline across the Devon and Somerset border. These visible traces all point strongly towards a landscape with a clear legacy of human management, even in prehistoric times. The farming communities who know the moor best, and live by it, are deeply aware of the role of modern management in creating and maintaining the sense of place that the casual visitor acquires.

So what might this landscape have looked like in the past, and how and when did people first start to shape and mould their environment? Archaeologists have a rich toolset of methods available to develop insights into the nature of the past environment, and how that landscape might have been used. Charred remains of plants from sites such as the excavations of a Bronze Age settlement at Parracombe point to the storage and consumption of cereals on the moor in Prehistory. Charcoal from Iron Age and Roman iron production sites, such as Sherracombe Ford and Brayford, can tell us that oak and hazel wood were readily available, and that coppice management was well established in late Prehistory.

However, materials from archaeological sites often relate only to the immediate environment and time of the site, which means that we only ever get small parts of the story. The remains of plants, and in particular pollen grains, from peat bogs are used to fill around the 'direct' record that these sites yield. Peat bogs build slowly and steadily over time, and act as natural traps for pollen grains that are blown around the landscape. They thus represent near-continuous archives of the past environment that can span millennia, preserving delicate organic materials such as plant matter, and even beetles, from decay as a consequence of their high water tables. The particular character of Exmoor's landscape means that peat bogs are sufficiently common for detailed study of different parts of the upland, but sufficiently small that they can be found nestled within areas rich in archaeological remains.

The environmental history preserved within these bogs describes a landscape that has witnessed profound changes, and it is very clear that the modern landscape is very different from its past condition. The majority of pollen grains from 6,000 years ago, shortly before the start of Neolithic agriculture in Britain, are from trees and, in particular, hazel, oak and alder. In very rare circumstances even the remains of the trees themselves have been preserved. In 1997 the trunk of a large oak tree was recorded eroding out of a small peat bog on Halscombe Allotment; radiocarbon dating tells us that this tree died around the middle of the fourth millennium BC. Prehistoric tree stumps have been found under peat at Warren Farm, high up on the moor.

It was within this 'wildwood' that Mesolithic groups hunted red deer and gathered hazel nuts as part of their staple diet. Remains of prehistoric animals on Exmoor are extremely rare, but at Porlock Marsh auroch bones survive, providing more insights into the 'natural' condition of the environment. It is inevitable that this 'wildwood' was also home to more dangerous animals such as wolves and bears.

Recent excavations of a burial chamber on Dartmoor contained a bear pelt dated to the second millennium BC. Beavers would have been a feature of the rivers, probably even on the high moor: recent finds of prehistoric beaver-gnawed wood from high on the northern English moorlands tell us that they would have very much been a part of the natural landscape.

Top: Lanacombe (photo by Rob Wilson-North from his book, The Archaeology of Hill Farming on Exmoor, as featured in our autumn 2015 issue).

Above: The Chains in mist (by the late Brian Pearce by kind permission of Elaine Pearce).

62 Exmoor Spring 2016

Looking back a further 6,000 years would have revealed a very different Exmoor landscape again, one that was emerging from the grips of the last ice age. Wild horses, wild cattle, reindeer and even mammoth would have been found roaming across a grass-steppe. Global sea-levels would have been much lower, and the Bristol Channel may have been a wide coastal plain at the time. Birch, pine and scrubby willow would have been the only trees, scattered in sheltered locations.

So why has the landscape changed so much? And when? This is a complex story, starting first with natural 'climatic' changes that drove vegetation development.

During the last ice age deciduous woodland would have only been found in southern Europe, whilst northern Europe was in the grip of a 'big freeze'. By 10,000 years ago, when the world had re-warmed, oak and hazel woodland would have been slowly spreading out from their refuge, and it would have taken these trees some considerable time to spread all the way to south-western Britain.

Hazel was the first to reach Exmoor, and Mesolithic hunter-gatherers would have exploited the nuts heavily as a staple food source. The light and open canopy of a hazel wood would have been ideally suited to the large game animals that provided meat for early hunters. These grazing animals may have kept some areas open through browsing, and beavers would have created small riverside wetlands and cleared woodland around floodplains. Oak and elm reached southern Britain by around 8,000 years ago, spreading up and onto the moor. They were soon followed by alder on wetter ground, and other trees became part of the woodland communities, including rowan, ash and even lime in places suited to its growth. This woodland mosaic continued until the spread of agriculture and the arrival of Neolithic farming communities shortly after 6,000 years ago.

The first impact of the Neolithic communities on the vegetation of Exmoor was deliberate burning. Major increases in microscopic charcoal can be found in peat samples from the mires on the southern moorland edge. This burning had dramatic effects, most notably shrinkage of woodland from over two-thirds to around half of the upland, and the creation of extensive heathland for the first time, presumably to make space for domesticated cattle. Most pollen sequences describe this slow and gradual decline in woodland cover through the Neolithic and Bronze Age. By the end of the Bronze Age (around 800BC), it is estimated that perhaps only a quarter of Exmoor was wooded, according to the pollen data.

This agricultural intensification, and particularly the establishment of permanent fields during the Bronze Age from around 1,500BC, really began to define the modern character of Exmoor. It had become a heavily managed landscape of fields, outfield grazing and homesteads. We know that in the Bronze Age cattle, sheep and pigs were an important part of the economy of the South West's communities, and this would have been no different on Exmoor.

Intensive land management practices, and changes in the water cycle brought about by woodland clearance, would have had profound impacts on the natural soils of the high moorland. Fewer trees would have meant less interception and transpiration of water. Burning, alongside compaction and degradation of soils through grazing, would have reduced the ability of soils to drain so readily.

Moorland soils would have thus become wetter, and peat soils developed as a consequence. It is now thought, for example, that the Chains Barrow was constructed on dry land around 2,000BC, and was only engulfed in peat after this time. Thus the creation of the modern mosaic of bog, moorland grasses and heath are the direct consequence of land management practices in late Prehistory.

Emerging research indicates that the straightforward picture of continuous agricultural intensification on Exmoor hides a more complicated story. It is likely that even during the Bronze Age, between 2,000 and 800BC, there are cycles of land management. At Buscombe preliminary results of very detailed pollen analysis indicate a short (~100-year) period of intense pastoral activities starting at around 1,500BC. After a lull lasting several centuries, during which hazel woodland recovered, a second phase began at around 1,000BC. At this time there are indications of small-scale arable cultivation within a largely pastoral lanscape, and fire was used as a management tool to control the moorland vegetation.

Right, from top: Remains of a prehistoric oak tree eroding from a peat bog on Halscombe Allotment (Vanessa Straker); sampling peat at Comerslade – prehistoric tree stumps and branches could be seen in the base of the ditch; a beaver dam on a small French river system similar to Exmoor's streams (Bryony Coles); a spread of wood charcoal from the archaeological excavations at Black Lake Wood (ENPA); a peat core from Exmoor on Buscombe. Pieces of wood, probably alder, can be seen within the peat.

Exmoor Spring 2016 63

Ecology Again, this activity lasted no more than a couple of generations. The legacy of this second cycle, however, was the creation of a heather moorland. Finally, around 400BC (the middle Iron Age), pastoral intensification resulted in the final clearance of woodland and the creation of the largely open landscape of today. This is most likely the consequence of a major shift to sheep rearing in Iron Age society. Sheep became a major feature of the Iron Age economy across southern England, and in the South West would most likely have been the dominant animal on the moors.

The role of sheep was not simply one of providing meat, milk, cheese and fleece for cloth. Against a background of increasing agrarian intensification in the lowlands, they played an important role in providing a source of nutrients to maintain declining soil fertility, through manuring, for the farms on and around Exmoor.

The intensive use of Exmoor in later Prehistory was pivotal in shaping what we see and value today. The sweeping views of heath and grass moors are a direct consequence of intensive use of the moorlands for agricultural uses. The formal designation of Exmoor Forest in the medieval period did little to change this, as the open ground was valued as open deer-hunting spaces.

Changes in management, such as stocking densities, or swaling of the moorland, would have determined the character of individual parts of the moorland.

Burning would have promoted heather, whilst the grass moors are most likely a consequence of more intense sheep grazing.

What is clear from a long view of Exmoor's vegetation such as that described here, seen through the fossil pollen record and archaeological excavations, is that this is a landscape that has seen major changes in character. Initially these were natural, reflecting succession and migration of plants from ice-age refugia. But, since 4,000BC, the appearance of the moorland is almost all a direct consequence of human management. This does not reduce the stark beauty of a windswept moor on a winter's day, or the joy of spotting a herd of deer on Lanacombe on a summer's walk, but this is very much a created 'nature', a landscape tamed and bent towards fulfilling the needs of our changing society.

Dr Ralph Fyfe is Associate Professor (Reader) in Geospatial Information, School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences at Plymouth University.

Top: Preserved beetle wing case from an Exmoor peat bog (Ralph Fyfe).

Above: Pollen grains of (clockwise from top left) hazel, oak, heather and elm (Jessie Woodbridge).

This image: A reconstruction of one of the Lanacombe stone settings in its contemporary landscape (Peter Lorimer).

64 Exmoor Spring 2016

B&B

AT

BICKLEIGH CASTLE

Unique accommodation set in cottages around the Castle courtyard.

Spectacular views across the Castle gardens.

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Peaceful location Minhd 3mls, Porlock 5mls. Own produce. Walking from the door SW coast path.

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M A R S TO N L O D G E

C OA S T A N D C O U N T RY H O U S E H OT E L Beautiful, tranquil location with stunning coastal and Exmoor views. Spacious, en-suite rooms, licensed bar, cozy firelit lounge, snooker room, free Wi-Fi. Parking, Exmoor Mystery Tours.

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T R I M S TO N E M A N O R Characterful 3* Country House Hotel, 3 miles from Woolacombe & N. Devon coast. Indoor Pool, Gym, Games Room, Sauna.

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DUDDINGS COUNTRY COTTAGES

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R OYA L O A K F A R M Beautiful cottage in a pretty Exmoor village.

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WINSBERE HOUSE

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Photo by Mike Watson

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W O O L H A N G E R E S TAT E Woolhanger holiday cottages provide luxury accommodation in the peace and tranquillity of the picturesque Exmoor National Park.

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Exmoor Spring 2016 65

PHOTOGRAPHY

The Character of our Coast WORDS by Kathryn Burrell, Beaford Arts

T

he Character of our Coast is a new exhibition of rarely-seen historic and contemporary photographs demonstrating the impact of people and climate change on North Devon's coastal landscape over the past century. Beaford Arts and the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) have researched their photographic archives to illustrate the changes to present a 'then and now' display, supported by funding from the AONB's Sustainable Development Fund.

The photographic exhibition during March and April 2016 will be complemented by an illustrated evening talk and a guided coastal walk around Ilfracombe. Beaford Arts and the North Devon Coast AONB will link the past with the present, to help us learn about and consider what we want for our coastal landscape in the future.

More details about the exhibition and associated events are given on page 70.

66 Exmoor Spring 2016

Top: Seaweed gatherers at their work, Appledore, date unknown.

Above: Evacuees on Combe Martin beach (one of the few accessible during the war as most had barbed wire), date unknown.

Right: View over the harbour, Ilfracombe, date unknown.

Beaford OLD Archive background The work of much-loved photographer James Ravilious is widely known. For 17 years James, who died in 1999, worked as a photographer-in-residence for the Beaford Centre, creating a detailed document of the landscape and communities of rural North Devon during the 1970s and '80s.

The James Ravilious Collection is a body of over 70,000 negatives now stored in the Beaford Archive; only a small proportion of these have been digitised and are now publicly available through the Beaford Archive website.

Opening of the new sea wall,Westward Ho!, c.1928.

People, donkeys and carts above Barricane Beach on the old Woolacombe-Mortehoe Road, date unknown.

What is perhaps less well known about James Ravilious is his collection of older images that documented the same areas that he himself later photographed for the Beaford Archive.

Inspired by a local Women's Institute meeting where members' own photographic collections were exhibited, James began to ask his subjects whether they themselves had any old photographs of the area that they might like to include in the Beaford Archive. Working closely with his colleague George Tucker, James re-photographed images dating back as far as the late 1800s, building what is now known as the 'Beaford Old Archive'. James recorded the memories of the people who gave him the images, but those recollections were often partial, which has resulted in limited amounts of detail about many of the images. As part of the project, Beaford Arts will launch an online duplicate of the exhibition to provide a platform for public discussion and they are keen to invite people to tell them anything they may know about the images, so that they can build a more accurate record for the future.

One of the recurring questions about the Beaford Archive is why there are so many images of the coast in the Old Archive, when there are relatively so few in the James Ravilious Collection. We know that James spent most of his time documenting the inland communities of rural North Devon, and in fact it's from them that James collected many of the coastal images now held with the Beaford Old Archive.

As James’ widow Robin Ravilious explains, "The annual charabanc outing to the sea was such an exciting event that everyone wanted a pictorial record." James' own photographs of the coast were fewer because, says Robin, they "were often combined with a family trip to the sea.

He took pictures while we built sandcastles."

Pebble Ridge with group of people,Westward Ho!, date unknown.

View of Westward Ho! from the west, date unknown.

Postcard of Baggy House, Croyde, date unknown.

Beaford Old Archive Image Š Beaford Arts

Exmoor Spring 2016 67

Photography

Holidaymakers on the beach, Woolacombe, 7 September 1973, by James Ravilious.

Children playing on the beach, Saunton Sands, August 1975, by James Ravilious.

68 Exmoor Spring 2016

Photography

Coastal viewpoint, Ilfracombe, 14 August 1973, by James Ravilious.

Holidaymakers watching rough seas, Lee Bay, August 1982, by James Ravilious.

Exmoor Spring 2016 69

Photography

The AONB perspective The special qualities of the AONB's coastal landscape have been under recent scrutiny with the completion of a formal Seascape Character Assessment. This considers the natural and human interactions with land and sea that create the distinctive character of the coastline. The photographs and descriptions produced for this work highlighted to the team some significant changes to the landscape during the 50 years since its designation.

"I was looking for a way of starting a wider conversation with the people who live and work along the North Devon and Torridge coasts about the future of our coastline," says AONB Manager Jenny Carey-Wood. "Technical documents aren't for everyone and planning discussions can be contentious, but people love images of places they know and many would be surprised to see what has changed and why over the last 20, 50 or 100 years."

From his work on the Seascape project and liaising with the Beaford Arts team to identify key coastal photos, Dave Edgcombe, AONB Project Officer, noticed two distinct changes over the last century. "Whilst, in many places, little may appear to have changed, in some areas such as the coastal resorts, there has been significant landscape change as these settlements have literally sprung up. Natural changes due to climate effects such as storms, cliff falls and sea level rises can be clearly seen from the images in the James Ravilious Collection and the Beaford Old Archive compared with today's images.

"The James Ravilious Collection is a valuable heritage resource. While it is very much about people in the landscape, rather than a study of landscape with people, it provides a good 'snapshot' in time of how we used and enjoyed the coast of North Devon some 30 to 40 years ago. Some people will notice little change, while for others a whole way of life and work has changed."

Exhibition Partners Beaford Arts is the UK's longest-running rural arts organisation and in 2016 it is celebrating 50 years of supporting rural creative development across northern Devon. Through a programme of touring events and education projects, Beaford Arts works with communities across 1,350 square miles of rural North Devon, bounded by the Atlantic and moorland, providing access to high-quality arts experiences. Work developing the Beaford Archive aims to further support the culture and heritage of rural communities throughout the region. Visit the James Ravilious Beaford Archive online at www.beafordarchive.org.uk and the Beaford Old Archive at www.beafordoldarchive.org.uk.

North Devon Coast AONB has been a designated 'Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty' since 1959, in recognition of the spectacular coastal area and special qualities within it. The AONB covers 66 square miles and stretches from Combe Martin on the Exmoor coast to Marsland Mouth on the Cornish border. The work of the North Devon Coast AONB team is guided by a five-year Management Plan overseen by the AONB Partnership, which includes representatives from national, regional and local agencies, local authorities, voluntary organisations and local community representatives. For further details visit www.northdevon-aonb.org.uk.

CREDITS The Beaford Old Archive photographs shown on pp 66-67 are all © Beaford Arts.

The images by James Ravilious (pp67-69) are © Beaford Arts, digitally scanned from Beaford Archive negatives.

The images shown on this page are © Dave Edgecombe and included courtesy of North Devon Coast AONB.

EVENTS The Character of our Coast Photographic exhibition Monday 21 March until Saturday 9 April.

Combe Martin Museum.

Open daily 10.30am-5pm, free entry.

Changing Landscape Illustrated talk, led

by Dave Edgcombe of the North Devon Coast AONB Wednesday 23 March, 7.30pm, Sail Loft, Combe Martin Museum.

Going Out To See Guided coastal walk, led by Dave Edgcombe of the North Devon Coast AONB Saturday 2 April, 2-4pm, Ilfracombe.

Further information on the walk and talk can be found at www.beaford-arts. org.uk. Both events are free, but spaces are limited.

Please contact Beaford Arts to reserve your place on 01769 572573 or email archive@beaford-arts.org.uk.

Above: Lantern Hill from Capstone, Ilfracombe.

Left: View from Hillsborough, Ilfracombe, June 2013.

Here: Lee Bay, September 2009.

70 Exmoor Spring 2016

Pig 'n' Pot Slipware

The Blue Ball Inn

by sculptor

Brian Andrew.

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Picture Framing

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O R I G I N A L PA I N T I N G S B Y N E V I L L E C O X A N D D AV I D H U N T

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O P E N M O N D AY T O S AT U R D AY 1 0 : 3 0 A M - 5 : 3 0 P M

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W W W. C H U R C H G AT E G A L L E R Y. C O . U K Exmoor Spring 2016 71

Over the hills and come to stay

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72 Exmoor Spring 2016

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W O N H A M B A RTO N

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Photo by Andrew Wheatley

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WALKING

Secrets of Combe Martin WORDS by Sue Viccars PHOTOS by Andrew Wheatley, the author, Bryan Cath, Craig Joiner, David J. Rowlatt & Neville Stanikk

I

've always been rather fond of Combe Martin, tucked away on the North Devon coast and marking the western frontier of the National Park. This small bucket-and-spade seaside resort – a little faded in places, maybe – has a certain charm nonetheless. The essentially linear village has evolved over generations from the two original settlements of 'Seaside' (by the beach) and 'Cross' (around the church). It is said to have the longest main street of any village in the country: over two miles long (and with five different names along its length), squeezed into the bottom of a steep-sided valley.

coastal landscape, and much to discover just a short distance away from the main street – only accessible on foot. Sunken (and steeply ascending) lanes – this is a walk that will test the thigh muscles! – thread their way past medieval strip fields and overgrown sites of former silver mines. Silver mining here dates back to at least the late-thirteenth century – some say even longer, to the time of the Romans – as evidenced on the OS map via place names such as Silver Dale and Silver Mines Farm.

This varied 6½-mile walk starts off just above the beach from the Kiln Car Park. At a time There is much history tucked when communications were away in the foldsBridge of this(David hilly Rowlatt). easier by sea than through the View from Manley

hilly hinterland, limestone and coal from South Wales were landed in this small bay to be burned together; the quicklime produced was used to temper the acid Devon soils.

This route is especially glorious in late spring, with a wealth of different wildflowers. Near the start the walker plunges from the A399 into a wooded dell between banks of wild garlic (ransoms); on the steep ascent towards Knap Down their scent, evoked as boots brush past the dense mass of white flowers, cannot fail to rouse the senses. Native English bluebells, greater stitchwort and red campion crowd the laneside banks on Clorridge Hill; the warm coconut aroma

emanating from stands of brilliant yellow gorse accompanies the walker on the track towards Girt Down above the soaring cliffs. And in terms of wonderful views, from one of the highest spots on Exmoor's coast at Great Hangman to the long, gentle decline towards Combe Martin, this route is hard to beat at any time of year.

Main image: Looking east from Little Hangman (DJR).

Above, from top: The Coast Path descends gently towards Little Hangman (SV); the Coast Path is gained on the edge of Great Hangman (AW); Combe Martin Beach (BC); boat in the bay with Lester Cliff behind (NS).

Exmoor Spring 2016 73

Walking of steps; at the top continue along a tarmac lane above a small beach, passing houses.

Where the lane bears away sharp right keep ahead along a track; at its end follow a narrow path to the A39, reached on a bend.

Combe Martin Beach (NS).

2 Cross with care and turn left downhill for 50m; turn right along a lane at the entrance to Furze Park (public footpath), immediately plunging into a glade of wild THE ROUTE 1 From the car park entrance (by the toilets; Exmoor National Park Information Point and Combe Martin Museum to the left) bear slightly right along the lane to pass the access to the beach (great rockpools at low tide) and meet the road.

Turn right along the pavement; just before a car park follow the Coast Path half right along a tarmac walkway that runs along the restored Parade, just above the sea. Follow Coast Path signs left up short flights

banks of verdant vegetation bedecked with wildflowers.

Follow the track past buildings.

3 Where the track bears sharp left, pass through a small gate ahead onto a hedged path, which immediately starts to ascend steeply up the valley side. Pass through two big wooden gates at the top to enter a field, with increasingly good views. Continue up the left edge of the field; West Park Farm is seen away to the right. Glorious views of the coast start to open up to the left; the pointy coastal hill of Little Hangman (accessed near the end of the walk) can be seen to the east of the bay at Combe Martin.

The walk passes dense banks of pungent wild garlic (ransoms) (SV). garlic, a totally different feel from the coastal landscape enjoyed just a few moments ago! Where the lane rises left, keep ahead on the drive to Crackalands Farm, between

Little Hangman, seen from the ascent onto Clorridge Hill (SV).

Springtime wildflowers (SV). by a telegraph pole on a track.

Turn left along this to crest the hilltop, then start descending steadily into the valley past banks of spring wildflowers, soon passing through a gate by a stile.

At a track junction keep ahead, downhill. Eventually the track levels and the pinnacles of the elegant church of St Peter & Vincula (the building dates from the thirteenth century; extensive alterations two centuries later may be evidence of the relative wealth of the village based on the The church of St Peter & Vinicula (NS).

Pass through a gate into the next field; bear slightly right to pass a yellow-arrowed post

FACTFILE

8

9

7

1 5

2

6

3

4

© Crown copyright 2016 Ordnance Survey. Media 018/16

74 Exmoor Spring 2016

Map OS Explorer OL9 Exmoor, OS Landranger 181 Minehead & Brendon Hills Start Kiln Car Park, Combe Martin SS 578 473 Distance 6½ miles (10.5km) Time 3½ hours Terrain Tracks and paths, undulating fields and Coast Path Toilets Kiln Car Park Refreshments Pubs, cafés and ice cream outlets in Combe Martin Public transport Filers Travel Bus 301 Combe Martin to Barnstaple; Bus 300 Ilfracombe to Minehead via Combe Martin www.filers.co.uk; see www.travelinesw.com.

Walking local silver mines) come into view. Turn left through the churchyard, passing the south door and exiting onto a lane.

Turn right, then left to reach the main village street at the top of the 'High Street' section.

4 Turn right; after a few paces turn left up Corner Lane (almost opposite the road to Barnstaple/Woolacombe). A hefty climb ensues; at the top of the lane leave the houses and continue up a degraded and deeply-banked track.

One of Combe Martin's old sunken lanes, carved through solid rock (SV).

At a footpath fork bear left between rock walls; the path soon narrows, levels and improves. (The Silver Mine track – the right fork – is not pleasant to walk, and other than an ivy-festooned and dilapidated chimney stack, the remains of Knap Down Silver Mine, which closed in 1873, there is little to see.) Pass the upper valley-side houses to meet a track T-junction; turn right up a deeply banked (and permanently wet underfoot) track, soon passing a big barn (left).

View down the lane (at the start of point 5) (SV).

The path narrows and climbs steadily again (and can be quite overgrown in high summer). Follow a footpath arrow left through a permanently open gate; continue right, uphill, across a grassy area and past a beautiful copper beech. The path narrows and runs between banks of ransoms, climbing steadily to reach a lane.

5 Ignore the track opposite and turn right uphill, signed to Great Hangman. Pass a handily placed memorial bench: great for a breather!

Take the next signed track on the left (footpath to Girt Down), ascending gently. The track reduces to a lovely path, Increasingly good views of Little Hangman are enjoyed from the path across Knap Down (SV).

East towards Holdstone Down, Exmoor's highest coastal hill (SV).

and the National Trust Great Hangman sign ahead. Go through (or cross the stile) onto open access land.

gate bears the Coast Path acorn. The path soon bears right to run along the cliff edge; descend a short flight of steps after the next gate.

Along this stretch blackthorn will be in flower in early spring; frothy hawthorn blossom can be enjoyed in late May. Looking east from Little Hangman (NS).

The Coast Path crosses Great Hangman's eastern slopes (AW).

7 To reach the top of Great Hangman ignore paths leading off left through the low-growing gorse and keep straight on along a grassy way to meet the Coast Path; turn left to ascend to the cairn on Great Hangman, with magical views in all directions.

Reach a wall corner at the 'neck' of Little Hangman; turn right for the short sharp climb to the top (well worth it).

Looking west from Little Hangman (DJR).

Great Hangman summit cairn (BC). eventually becoming less steep and sheltered by a line of hawthorn flanking the right side. Enjoy glorious views across the valley immediately behind the coastal ridge – a secret world! – and towards Little and Great Hangman on the coast.

6 The path ends on a concrete road and footpath junction by Girt Down Farm.

Turn left, downhill. Pass the farm; ascend through a gate (yellow blob), then follow a track past a line of beeches, bearing left at a ruined building between banks topped with hawthorn and brilliant yellow gorse.

The track passes through a gate, then another by a barn (right). Follow the right bank ahead, still climbing gently, aiming for a wooden gate

8 Once past the summit cairn start your descent back to Combe Martin, with views across the sea to Lundy Island on a clear day. Note how The path towards Little Hangman (SV).

Little Hangman looks far less impressive when seen from its larger neighbour! The next

9 Return to the Coast Path to descend and skirt the back of Wild Pear beach across grass, then narrowing between dense banks of blackthorn.

Pass through a gate to reach a junction; stay on the Coast Path ahead (path to CM left). Just past two benches the official Coast Path bears sharp left but keep straight on, descending steadily, to emerge onto the open grass of Lester Cliff above the bay at Combe Martin. Bear left to regain the Coast Path and car park.

Lester Cliff (CJ).

Exmoor Spring 2016 75

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COUNTRY MATTERS

The Grey Seal (Halichoerus grypus) WORDS by Trevor Beer PHOTOS & WATCHING ADVICE courtesy Lundy Island

G

rey seals are not a common Exmoor mammal by any means, yet these large and beautiful creatures are to be seen.

My most recent sightings were at Heddon's Mouth and further around the coast at Lee Bay, close to Lee Abbey, and below Duty Point.

fawnish. Regular hauling rocks may show shed hair, particularly in spring. Though seals are rarely found on sandy beaches, when they are they leave tracks similar to those of common seals, but wider. Cows moult from January to March, bulls from March to May.

Halichoerus grypus is from Haliss, Greek for belonging to the sea, and Khoiros is Greek for 'a sea pig'. Grypos is Greek for hook-nosed; in profile the nose is distinctly rounded. It is said that in autumn there are more seals living round the UK's shores than all other areas globally put together.

Pups are born in white natal fur, which is shed in 2-3 weeks. Adult males are much larger than females, with heavy neck and shoulders always showing much scarring.

Long slender claws on the fore flipper of the grey seal aids identification.

The colour is very variable and not useful as a field character. Spots are larger and less distinguishable than in common seals. The head is large, the muzzle high, giving a 'Roman' nose or equine appearance to the face, the top of the head flattish.

The head shape of young grey seals is similar to that of young common seals.

Looking for signs of grey seal presence is useful. Droppings are dog-like and brown or

The mother grey seal stores up to 68kg of fat prior to producing her 14kg pup and during 3 weeks of lactation she loses 3.6kg per day whilst the pup gains 1.6kg per day.

Thus, by the time the pup is weaned, the mother has lost up to 65kg of her fat, retaining just 3kg for insulation!

Outside the breeding season much of a seal's time is spent at sea, but they haul themselves onto rocks or shore to bask. At moult time they rest for long periods on rocks above high tide level

and newly moulted seals are easily spotted because of their bright coats.

Seals live mainly on fish, adults eating about 10kg (22lbs) per day, although they do not feed every day. The diet includes cod, whiting and salmon.

A cow returning from feeding finds her pup by first recognising the place, then picking out its voice and finally sniffing the pup to recognise its scent.

Once pups are weaned they leave breeding beaches and may not return for several years, until they are fully adult.

Cows mature at 4-5 years old, then come ashore to breed each year until they are about 35 or more. Bulls may mature at about 6 years old but do not gain and defend a territory until about 9, when they are big and strong enough. They then breed each year for about 4-5 seasons, though the strain wears them out and few survive beyond the age of 20.

Trevor will answer your nature queries. Just drop him a line at Roselea, 38 Park Avenue, Barnstaple, Devon, EX31 2ES.

HOW TO WATCH SEALS Watch seals from a distance and do not be tempted to approach them when hauled out – particularly seal pups who can be abandoned by their mother if disturbed; if very young pups are scared into the sea they can die as they are not yet ready to enter the cool waters. Seals scared into the sea experience a lot of stress and expend a great deal of energy escaping from a perceived threat, which can be harmful. Taking photos of individuals and sharing them with the Cornwall Seal Group and with the team on Lundy is incredibly valuable as it assists them with research into seal movements around the North Devon and Cornwall coasts.

Main photograph: The grey seals' spots can be used to identify individuals as they are unique. (Image by Mike Deaton) Top: Around 30 grey seal pups are born on Lundy each year.

(Image by Jonny Aird)

Above: Lazy lady! The nose of the female grey seal is relatively flat in comparison with the more Roman nose of the male. (Image by Jonny Aird)

Exmoor Spring 2016 77

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and then Atwest came along. It's been an absolute Godsend."

If you're elderly, not too well, have to count the pennies and live off the beaten track, West Somerset and Exmoor are not the best places to be. For instance, West Somerset has the highest ratio of elderly people in the UK. Over 20 per cent of rural pensioners live alone in areas no longer serviced by commercial buses.

COMMUNITIES

Atwest

WORDS by Tony James

A stone's throw from Minehead's Tesco, from a building looking like a cross between a Swiss chalet and a cricket pavilion, and surrounded by its brood of minibuses, Atwest – or, more formally, Accessible Transport West Somerset – has been working over the past ten years with surprisingly little publicity to reach out to people in the countryside who feel isolated and forgotten.

The statistics of success for this community transport charity are impressive indeed: since 2005, Atwest's 23 minibuses have travelled more than a million miles and last year carried more than 46,000 passengers on over 12,000 journeys. Nearly 80 per cent are over 65 and a third are over 80.

But statistics are only part of the story of how Atwest can change people's lives.

"A lot of people hardly see anyone in remote areas of the moor until we knock on the door to take them shopping, on a daytrip or to medical appointments," says Barbara Middleton, who has been with the charity almost from the beginning, and is now its project and fund-raising officer.

"They love getting on the bus. The average journey to hospital is at least 50 miles there and back. Often it's miles down a maze of lanes just to pick up one person. No ordinary bus can squeeze down these lanes nor can afford to provide such a service.

Top: Project and fund-raising officer Barbara Middleton with general manager Brian Worrall (photo by Viv Merson).

Here: Regular users prepare to board the popular Luxborough bus.

I

t looks for all the world like a bog-standard silver minibus with SHOPPER in squiggly writing on the front, but to folk living in the village of Roadwater at the entrance to the steep and relatively remote Luxborough valley, it's a lot more than that. It's their passport to the outside world, a laugh, a chat, a coffee with friends, seeing people, something to look forward to. A phrase, repeated like a mantra, is: "It gets me out of the house."

The minibus goes as far as the hamlet of Luxborough, six miles from a main road.

When Quantock Motor Services decided it wasn't worth running a bus up the valley three years ago, pensioners with no car found themselves with no transport, no shop and a taxi fare of nearly £40 to get to a hospital. "We were stuck," a 79-year-old retired widower remembers. "I tried to sell my house so that I could move into a town, but couldn't. Things were looking really grim

"You can do all the costings and statistics, but what it's really all about is people getting up in the morning, knowing what day it is, getting out of their houses onto the bus and into the shops and seeing life. There's a lovely atmosphere on the buses, banter with the drivers. Often it's as though they're going on holiday."

A day out on a Shopper bus is £2 for someone with a travel-bus pass and around £7 for someone without. Passengers are collected from their homes and the driver will help with shopping and passenger care.

Buses have a wheelchair lift if it's needed.

A total of 11 Shoppers run weekly to Minehead from a variety of remote destinations and represent just one of Atwest's wide range of services, some of which are run in conjunction with Somerset

Exmoor Spring 2016 79

Communities County Council, and all of which are designed to get people out and about at minimum cost. There's the Slinky bus service for anyone unable to access conventional transport for any reason and the Atwest travel club which organises four or five trips a month to anywhere from beauty spots, restaurants and tea-rooms to city shops and garden centres. The Moor Rover takes parties onto Exmoor for walking, cycling or other outdoor activities, and Atwest joins with 14 other local voluntary car schemes to take nearly 7,000 frail, disabled and elderly people to hospital and health appointments each year.

It goes without saying that all this costs money – Atwest raised over £400,000 last year from contract work, grants and donations – and there are worrying times ahead. Consultations with the cash-strapped Somerset County Council could result in the reduction of travel concessions, which could mean that a trip to the shops could cost an Atwest passenger £7 instead of the current £2.

"That's an awful lot of money to many people," says Atwest general manager Brian Worrall. He got involved when he was running the stores and post office at Wheddon Cross and someone asked him to put up an Atwest poster.

"I was eventually dragged in to look at their computer system and then did a bit of part-time driving. It all just snowballed from there. We had funding at the beginning from local authorities but not any more.

We rely on contracts like school buses and healthcare and we've just kept on growing.

When we started we had three vehicles and 400 passengers. Safety and reliability are what we're all about. And having fun."

Drivers – who have special training in bad weather and rough terrain driving to cope with conditions on Exmoor – do a lot more than just take buses from A to B. Brian remembers the case of a 100-year-old passenger who suffered a fall on a trip to Barnstaple and was taken by ambulance to hospital.

Barbara Connor, aged 100, enjoying a trip to Tarr Steps. driver tell me, "If I can't help the old folk you can sack me. I won't stop doing it."

What can you say? When I was driving I felt the same."

Barbara had retired from a career in education and was working in a local advice bureau when she was asked to help with staffing problems at the newly-launched Atwest and ended up as general manager, eventually retiring, and then returning as projects officer. "We just can't get rid of her!" Brian says.

"Brian was a great help," Barbara remembers.

"He was very good with computers and we began to get proper scheduling for routes and timetables. Before that, there was very little regular passenger transport to remote areas, particularly on Exmoor.

"Now there are a lot of people who completely rely on the shopping buses for everything. Without them they would be utterly cut off. One woman told us that if the shopping bus stopped coming she would have to walk five miles to the nearest main road – and she's over 70. The other alternative would be to move from the village where she's lived all her life."

"The driver took all his other passengers back home then jumped in his own car, drove back to the hospital, waited until the lady was discharged, drove her home and made sure she was settled in before finally clocking off for the day."

Mrs Sandy Towler, a mere 51, first organised the Luxborough Shopper three years ago when the Quantock buses pulled out and often travels on the Wednesday and Friday services to Minehead, which take in three supermarkets and the hospital.

She's invariably the youngest passenger.

The oldest is 90. On Wednesdays, the minibus goes to Williton and is popular with anyone wanting to visit the library, the doctor or the dentist.

Another driver, on hearing that an elderly woman's heating had broken down and that it wouldn't be fixed until after the weekend, provided her with an electric heater and made sure she was warm and comfortable.

"It's not strictly part of the job but they all do it," Brian says. "Only recently I had a

"For some people going on the Shopper is their only outing of the week," Sandy says.

"It's their lifeline – a social event with a lot of laughing and camaraderie. What better way to meet friends and get a bit of exercise?

If anything happened to this service, a lot of people would be devastated."

80 Exmoor Spring 2016

The Luxborough Shopper is much more than just a bus. It's a rosy glow in an increasingly grey world. It shows that people care. Passengers write poems about it.

We'd just like you to know We're so grateful for what you do You're diamonds through and through Though we don't always say so…

And short and to the point: Thank you for our bus For looking after us.

They mean it, too. A recent Atwest survey of 80-year-olds showed that having regular transport had made a massive difference to their lives. A typical response was, "It's been our liberation. What better way to meet friends? And we've joined in with other village things because of it."

As an 81-year-old retired businessman, a regular passenger, put it, "I get out and have a chat and don't have to sit watching Countdown! It's good for my brain to have to do my shopping."

"It's hard to realise just how solitary life can be for an old person in some remote parts of Exmoor," Barbara Middleton says.

"I remember one old lady saying to us, 'Life goes on and because of your buses we're still part of it.' You can't sum it up better than that."

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L I M E WA S H I N G AND RENDERING

Internet Update for 2016 Jim Weir, Exmoor Technology

T

his year will see dramatic changes in terms of internet availability across the moor, with much of the BT Openreach fibre to the cabinet deployment complete and live, and delivery of the Airband Fixed Wireless contract delivering superfast internet to 97 per cent of moorland properties and a major uplift to the remaining few.

Many have discussed the selection of Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) in preference to a greater rollout of fibre – either from the cabinet or direct to the premises – with some suggesting that FWA technology is inferior to the Openreach fibre option, that it is similar to satellite internet or that this approach has been tried previously on a smaller scale and was found lacking. So a little clarity is probably useful.

In simple terms, Fixed Wireless is not quite the same as the WiFi used in homes and offices but it has many similarities. FWA is u sed worldwide to provide dedicated high-speed network links, particularly for backhaul applications – the links that create and connect the internet as we know it. Take a look at almost any mobile phone mast and you'll see similar transmitters providing backhaul connectivity for the mobile network. FWA is also very adaptable for difficult terrain, making it highly suitable for Exmoor.

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One of the main drawbacks of satellite internet is caused by the distances signals must travel to the satellite and back to earth. This 'latency', or delay, causes the connection to feel less responsive and makes satellite internet unsuitable for two-way communication such as video conferencing, Skype or online games. In comparison, FWA has a very low latency, often lower than a dedicated fibre depending on the network design and degree of line of sight between transmitters. FWA is also very scalable; once the infrastructure is in place, capacity can easily be expanded with little or no downtime.

A number of wireless ISPs (internet service providers) have provided localised services around the moor and its perimeter for many years. Some have fared well, but none have had the scale required to support high numbers of users over large areas of complex terrain. With state funding support, Airband is able to build the robust infrastructure required to support thousands of users simultaneously, while providing low-cost superfast internet to households and a premium service to businesses with more complex bandwidth requirements.

The Airband service will require a small radio unit mounted on the exterior of each connected property. These are small, discreet units, but positioning is dictated by the location of the most appropriate service mast. The radio unit is then cabled into the property, connected to a local power supply and plugged into a wireless router. Unlike traditional broadband, no phone line is required.

Getting ready for superfast internet, whether serviced by Airband or Openreach, requires some attention to the internal network; we often hear complaints of slow WiFi when the broadband provides superfast internet. With slow ADSL services, typically 1-5Mbps for rural areas, slow WiFi will not be noticeable, but once superfast internet over 24Mbps is connected, network bottlenecks and restricted WiFi performance are highlighted and are the cause of much frustration! Last year OFCOM produced an app allowing users to try to pinpoint WiFi issues in their home, and there was even a media flurry about Christmas lights interfering with WiFi! For impartial advice please contact Exmoor Technology (01392 984131 or www.exmoor-tech.co.uk); they can help you get the most from superfast internet, improve WiFi coverage, and even help those outside the moorland Airband area to improve their internet speeds.

Exmoor Spring 2016 83

OUTDOOR LIVING

Creative Canvas WORDS by Sandy Francis

B

ritish craftsmanship and manufacturing have, as we know, clashed somewhat with modern processes and the boom in Asian trading. Low-priced imports from stadium-sized factories with competitive running costs can easily undercut homespun goods here on 'Treasure Island', the tongue-in-cheek nickname given to the UK by business people abroad. Economists tell us how it came to be that the playing field is so potholed and why it is notoriously difficult for businesses to compete.

Success stories under these conditions become all the more newsworthy and the resilience, creativity and gritty determination of the protagonists gives them a kind of heroic status like characters in a story, or, in the case of Albion Canvas, like characters in a joke, for the story literally starts with the line "Two men walked into a bar...".

Here and below: Longlands Safari Lodges near Kentisbury (www.longlandsdevon.co.uk).

It was about 25 years ago in a local pub; one of the men, John Chadwick, made rugs for horses and the other designed military vehicles. It was the first Gulf War and there were problems with the vehicles' canvas coverings that John, along with his business partner Steve Handsford, knew how to solve. A contract was drawn up between the maker of the military vehicles, Nick Jones of Supacat (another local business success story) and John and Steve, who quickly named their own fledgling company Boldscan, a title bought in a rush for a nominal fee from Exchange & Mart!

They set up a workshop, fulfilled the M.O.D./Supacat contract and started to think in terms of what else they could do with their expertise and the new equipment. When the war ended, they designed and built marquees and started hiring them out for weddings and functions. It was the beginning of the infamous 90s recession and the two optimistic directors of Boldscan figured if they could make the business work when no one had any spare money, they would be in an excellent position when the economy recovered. It wasn't easy and this is where their combination of creativity and stoicism became an asset; the business diversified into sign manufacturing, making and printing the kinds of canvas banners you can spot a mile off announcing 'Opening Soon!' and 'Massive Car Boot Sale!' Aluminium frames, pop-ups, flags and tents were all produced at the company's Wellington base.

The fitting of Supacat's vehicles, making and hiring marquees and the signage kept a steady flow of business coming into Boldscan through the turn of the millennium and beyond. The company's reputation was such that things would probably have continued to tick over nicely for years; but the kind of entrepreneurial flair that made Boldscan a success doesn't switch off just because things are going well. About five years ago John retired and Steve teamed up with Alan Wenham and Albion Canvas.

Alan's business, like Boldscan, had already negotiated obstacles in order to survive some 20-plus years prior to joining Steve.

Like Steve, the key to this longevity has been to stay a few

84 Exmoor Spring 2016

steps ahead of the game. Alan could have been disheartened when cheap nylon imports suddenly annulled his skill as a canvas kite maker, but instead of going down he busied himself making a tipi, something he had always wanted for personal use.

Word of mouth led to him designing and building beautiful covers for tipis and yurts until, once again, the market was flooded by the kinds of camping gear so cheap that we now have the twenty-first century phenomenon of the 'disposable tent', with literally thousands abandoned every year at the end of festivals. Alan had to be extremely creative to outrun the glut of cut-price goods and he moved into creating geodesic domes, the most windproof temporary structures which, Alan accepts, are not everyone's cup of tea but are well known to withstand our country's strongest gales. His eye for trends, however, drew him to notice that demand for a different kind of camping was on the rise. When his company joined Steve's company, Alan was already making bell tents, yurts and domes for the newly conceived glamorous camping market and wondering where this could possibly go next.

The answer is now evident in an ever-increasing number of locations in the UK, Europe and across the world, where Steve and Alan's extraordinary canvas structures provide unique spaces for bespoke services.

Opposite page top, this page and page 86: Geodesic domes can be combined with kitchen and shower tents as here at Ekopod in Cornwall (www.ekopod.co.uk).

Exmoor Spring 2016 85

Bottom: Alan (on the left) and Steve in the workshop.

Boldscan and Albion Canvas have merged to create what is now a three-strand business, having sold the marquee hire section in 2014 to concentrate on the exciting new ventures.

They still work with Supacat, they still provide a full service around all kinds of canvas graphics and display frames, but now they are also one of the UK's leading manufacturers of stunning designer tents that look like camping but are a million miles away from washing in a bucket.

Referring to their six-berth safari 'tent' as a tent is a bit like calling Dunster Castle a house. Tent just doesn't cut it, yet it is also important to acknowledge that staying in one of Steve and Alan's safari range creations is not like being indoors; it is as comfortable as, as warm as, as civilised as a very nice hotel but it still provides the outdoor experience that we all love about camping. It is, quite literally, the best of both worlds; nature with knobs on.

They still make geodesic domes along with a range of bespoke clubhouses and canvas lodges that can be used for all kinds of things from canteens and bars to offices or studio spaces, meeting rooms or bunk houses. It became clear during my conversation with Steve and Alan that they will tackle any task, any ask, large or small, and that, importantly, they provide a full service, from consultancy in the early stages of ideas, through the planning phase and the essentials of decking and plumbing, to the structure, design and, ultimately, the delivery and installation. All of the canvas structures can be adapted to fit anywhere along the luxury spectrum, from eco off-grid to hot tub and jacuzzi.

At the moment there are Albion Canvas safari tents in luxury holiday destinations; geodesic domes in eco-camps, one-off lodges and small-scale glamping projects in the UK, Belgium, France, Switzerland and Australia. The company is currently building 35 safari tents at Chessington World of Adventure but the team pays as much attention to providing one local potter with a workspace and shop in her garden.

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Versatility and durability are among the major plusses of canvas structures. They require only temporary planning permission, which takes about eight weeks to come through. Following approval, the process from order to delivery is only about six to ten weeks depending on the time of year. Everything Albion Canvas uses is designed and manufactured in the UK and the emphasis is on the individual, with a full interior design service covering the tent liners, upholstery and bedding. Customers can choose whatever they want, from subtle patterns and natural colours to huge printed internal walls, sunset scenes, the night sky; if you can think it, it seems Albion Canvas can do it. If you can't, they will create something beautiful on your behalf.

The company is also at the forefront of providing accessible glamping options for people with different mobility needs.

Steve and Alan are approached by a variety of potential customers from many walks of life. Occasionally they cater for individuals who want a single temporary dwelling in their garden, but most business comes from farmers and other landowners looking to diversify and take advantage of what is still currently a niche market in high-end holiday accommodation.

Listening to them talk about where they have been and where they are today, their optimism is evident and they sound full of energy for what lies ahead. It might not be the kind of business story that will be turned into a movie Steve-Jobs style, but it is still a story with a certain rags-to-riches romance about it. Home-made tipi to four-poster bed under the stars; horse rugs to safari luxury. It will be interesting to see what the next chapters bring.

FIND OUT MORE www.albioncanvas.co.uk

Photo by John Spurr

Under the stars: camping and caravanning on Exmoor

unplug, reconnect, revive Get close to nature. Immerse yourself in a simpler way of living. Unplug from the daily rush. Gaze at star filled skies.

Book now for the Ultimate Glamping Experience! www.longlandsdevon.co.uk, email us at info@longlandsdevon.co.uk or call 01271 882004.

B U R R O W H AY E S F A R M

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CHANNEL VIEW

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A select family site in the glorious Horner Valley. Just 2 miles from the coast. A walkers paradise.

Burrowhayes Farm Caravan & Camping Site & Riding Stables West Luccombe, PORLOCK, Nr Minehead, Somerset TA24 8HT

T. 01643 862463 E. info@burrowhayes.co.uk www.burrowhayes.co.uk

HALSE FARM CARAVAN & CAMPING SITE Halse Farm is the ideal location for tourers and tents in the heart of Exmoor. Clean heated shower block. Childrens play area.

Channel View Caravan & Camping Park, Manor Farm, Barbrook, Lynton EX35 6LD T: 01598 753349 E: relax@channel-view.co.uk

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Family run park set in beautiful countryside overlooking Rockham beach. Holiday homes, tourers and camping.

Shop, showers, children’s play areas.

Halse Farm, Winsford, Exmoor, Somerset TA24 7JL T. 01643 851259 E. info@halsefarm.co.uk www.halsefarm.co.uk

Adults only, flat, spacious campsite. Every pitch beside River Exe or the Mill Stream. Clean, heated facilities. Shop, village pub 2mins walk.

Family run camping & touring park within Exmoor National Park.

Stunning views.

Excellent walking direct from site. Holiday Caravans available.

RTE

A M PI N G

FA PA

Mill House, Bridgetown, Dulverton, TA22 9JN T. 01643 851432 E. info@exevalleycamping.co.uk www.exevalleycamping.co.uk

WESTERMILL FARM

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Mortehoe, Woolacombe, North Devon, EX34 7EG T. 01271 870381 E. info@northmortefarm.co.uk www.northmortefarm.co.uk

Westermill can be found tucked away at the end of a private valley, deep in the rugged heart of Exmoor.

Westermill Farm Camping and Cottages, Exford, Nr Minehead, Exmoor TA24 7NJ T: 01643 831238 Mob: 07970 594 808.

E: info@westermill.com www.westermill.com

The perfect site in the perfect place in an area of outstanding natural beauty.

Lobb provides a warm welcome to every one.

• Great surfing at Braunton, Croyde, and Putsborough • Windsurfing, kite-sufring, water skiing and perfect bathing for children • Rock climbing horse riding and fishing • Bicycling all over Devon including the Tarka Trail and Exmoor • Magnificent Walks • Families, children, Senior Citizens, sportsmen, dogs and those seeking a peaceful holiday

Lobb Fields Caravan and Camping Park, Saunton Road, Braunton, North Devon EX33 1HG Tel: 01271 812090 • Email: info@lobbfields.com • Web: www.lobbfields.com

Exmoor Spring 2016 87

garden NOTES

Know Your Other Onions

by Rosemary FitzGerald

W

hen I was a child in Ireland I was fascinated by accounts of the Breton onion sellers who came to England on their bicycles, strings of onions over their shoulders and handle bars.

I craved the chance of buying these famous bulbs, surely far more wonderful than the ones from the garden whose harsh skins were boiled for a dreadful drink believed by one of my grandmothers to cure colds. Then, in the 1960s, a young adult enthralled by Elizabeth David's cook books and David Hicks' cool furnishing style, I naturally wanted the woven strings to decorate my kitchen. So this familiar vegetable, one of our commonest food plants, always appealed to me, and during years of botanical and nursery work the whole genus Allium became increasingly interesting.

We have a long history with onions; the Romans were very fond of them and Britons seem to have taken enthusiastically to the savour they can give to subsistence foods, though of course garlic was a different matter, treated with suspicion as foreign and not quite nice until well into the last century. The wild onions also wander in and out of this historic relationship, because the whole genus is edible (at a pinch) and some species make excellent food.

From top (and left to right): Deceptively pretty, the invasive 'White Bluebell' near Porlock Weir (by Neville Stanikk); charming but destructive, the Three-cornered Leek; Chive flowers can come in various pink shades; the flowers are the gourmet part of Ramsons; Ramsons carpet a Somerset wood (by Rosemary FitzGerald).

88 Exmoor Spring 2016

An ancient example in England is our familiar Wild Garlic or Ramsons (A. ursinum) because the latter is an unchanged Anglo-Saxon word (a rare occurrence in plant names).

Ramson or ramsen means 'rank', making graphic reference to the foul taint given to milk or eggs when farm animals eat the tempting early green leaves. It's amusing to realise that names like Ram's Coombe or Ramsey are more likely to be referring to nasty butter than anything to do with sheep!

Of course, Ramsons are also a familiar Somerset woodland plant, making displays almost as spectacular as Bluebells (see pages 91-95), influencing and inspiring the 'drift planting' so important in some gardening styles. In shrubberies they do need to be introduced with a care warning – they spread vigorously and are hard to eradicate later – though extremely pretty in beds where control is possible, and especially good under ferns which will grow up to hide the dying leaves in early summer.

They get quite a bit of press as a fashionable wild food, and are certainly easy to collect. Cooking can reduce the flavour of the green leaves but they are great in salads.

The flowers, in particular, each with a tiny garlic bulb at its heart, make the prettiest and most delicious of garnishes.

Another very pretty plant is A. triquetrum Three-cornered Leek, and this has turned out to be an enemy in disguise.

Introduced from Iberia by Tudor nurserymen, it grows easily in our climate, flowers early and looks delightful, but, like the more famous Rhododendron ponticum, it has become a real danger to our native flora. It's invasive and loves hedgebanks and grassy places, particularly near the sea, so has become common enough in the West Country to have the nickname 'Cornish (or White) Bluebell'. But its abundant leaves come up before Christmas, making a thick blanket which later droops over any primrose or violet close by, blocking out light and eventually killing all surrounding plants.

It's one of an increasing number of 'invasive aliens', including Japanese Knotweed, Kaffir Fig (Carpobrotus edulis), and now the water weed known as Parrot's Feathers, which we gardeners have released unaware as the plants

seemed such a good idea when newly introduced.

Exmoor has an example of a much larger and rarer onion, A. babingtonii Babington's Leek. This may have been introduced as a food plant centuries ago, and there is a jokey botanical speculation that this could have been 'the leek served at King Arthur's table' as the Tintagel area is one of its strongholds. Always found only in areas of ancient settlement, it's known also in Dorset, the Isles of Scilly, and an old field on Porlock Marsh!

We all love the splendid selection of large, decorative onions currently available, and many gardens have grand purple or white drumsticks on show in spring and early summer, but I'm a huge fan of a much more modest example, A. schoenoprasum Chives. Compulsory as a culinary necessity, whether among the just-alive supermarket plants struggling on the kitchen windowsill or in the smartest of designed herb gardens, it's universally familiar.

However, it remains largely overlooked as a good garden plant in a wider sense. The wild species is relatively rare in the UK, growing in quite tough habitats. For instance, populations on the Lizard in Cornwall grow near the most exposed cliffs, in shallow soils which are in effect puddles in the winter, and this can give a good hint regarding how to avoid the annoying rust which can disfigure Chive leaves in summer. Grow plants in the sunniest, airiest place possible, and EAT THEM OFTEN! The more the leaves are cut (the flowers too are delicious and decorative in salads) the

less build-up of tangled older leaves which might encourage moulds.

The 'wild' flower colour is that familiar pink/purple which can have a rather dulling effect, but there are a whole range of other colours available.

Paler, rosier pink shades and white are attractive in containers or on rockeries, for instance with small hardy geraniums, and my favourite 'Black Isle Blush' has near-white flowers with lovely crimson veins, and dark stems.

It's available from Poyntzfield Herb Nursery, near Inverness, where the selection was discovered.

There's also a close cousin, A. tuberosum Chinese Chives, which is valuable both for flavouring and as an excellent late-flowering front-of-border plant. The leaves are rather wider than ordinary Chives, and die down later in the season, while the flowers are pure white, held in neat umbels from August onwards, and later display sparkling little black seeds. This plant, like the other Chive varieties, is excellent for edging paths in kitchen or flower gardens, or can be grown purely for decoration. In China the whole plant is blanched as a vegetable.

It's so easy to get both eating onions and flowering onions, whether you buy British locally, or buy Dutch through the bulb catalogues, but whichever you favour, do spare a thought for some of the humbler species, if only because they have been our close companions throughout history and are enduringly rewarding garden plants.

This page, from top (and left to right): Large purple drumsticks make a fashionable garden statement; Babington's Leek lives in ancient landscapes (here the Aran Islands in Co Clare) (by Rosemary FitzGerald); a lovely colour variant, 'Black Isle Blush'; Chinese Chives in flower at Barrington; wild Chive flowers; exposed Chive habitat at Kynance Cove on the Lizard (by Rosemary FitzGerald).

Exmoor Spring 2016 89

Great Selection of Plants, Trees & Shrubs Hanging Baskets & Containers Planted to Order

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Castle

This beautiful venue snuggles within the Exe Valley surrounded by trees, fields and rivers inspiring many a writer, poet and historian. A very popular venue for corporate events plus Bed & Breakfast, the Castle has a variety of rooms & outdoor spaces available, accommodation in cottages surrounding the Castle Courtyard, a lounge, free wifi, a tennis court, croquet lawn, bar, grounds to relax in and lots of things to do in the area.

It is also a very popular and ‘exclusive use’ wedding venue, with civil ceremonies being held in the Great Hall or outside in a beautiful Victorian style pagoda, with blessing services in the charming 6th century Chapel.

Please visit our website or contact us for further information.

01884 855363 / info@bickleighcastle.com / www.bickleighcastle.com

90 Exmoor Spring 2016

WILD GARDENS

My Blue Heaven WORDS by Rosemary FitzGerald PHOTOS by Adam Burton, Andrew Wheatley, Bob Giddonas, Craig Joiner, Ursula Franklin & the writer.

Exmoor Spring 2016 91

I

n 2002 the conservation charity Plantlife organised a national poll for people to vote for their 'County Flower'.

Somerset's, unsurprisingly, is the Cheddar Pink, but the Bluebell votes were so many that it became specially rated as 'Britain's Favourite Flower'.

It has iconic status in the British flora, and is clearly deeply loved, so it is surprising to find that its nature and existence are beset with problems and, although it seems common, it is seriously threatened in global terms.

Above: An archetypal scene – 'Bluebells' from a set of British flower stamps issued in 1979 (designer: Peter Newcombe).

Far right: Bluebells also thrive on coastal cliffs, such as this site looking down and across into Watermouth Harbour with Widmouth Head centre shot, Burrow Nose tucked behind and the Hangmans in the distance (by Craig Joiner).

Even its botanical name seems hard to interpret.

Hyacinthoides non-scripta, a hyacinth without writing on it? The origin comes in the 'notmany-people-know-that' category – Linnaeus, the great namer of plants in the eighteenth century, had the kind of classical education rarely acquired now, and knew the touching myth of the god Apollo's cry at the death of his lover Hyacinthus. The heartbroken sound is transcribed by the letters Ai, visible, with a little imagination, in flowers of the true Hyacinth, so he named our unmarked Bluebell, which is in the same family, 'without writing'.

Bluebells grow throughout Britain and Ireland, in woods and hedgerows, on cliffs, among bracken, in permanent pasture, on roadsides and railway banks, in a wide range of habitats (only really excluding fens and bogs). We are used to seeing flashes of blue from trains and motorways, as well as close to home, and think the species abundant, and it is, still, in these islands. But there is a scary aspect to this abundance, because we have more than half of the world's Bluebell biomass, and are crucially responsible for its future. Bluebells are a real oceanic species, loving our damp Atlantic climate. They are found in parts of France and the Netherlands and in cooler corners of Spain and Portugal. The distribution forms a thin band across Europe, just reaching the Italian border but not dropping south of the Mediterranean or extending north into Scandinavia, and Britain and Ireland have much the most substantial populations.

So we can be deservedly proud of our national favourite, but we also need to become more conscious of its threatened status, and do what we can to sustain healthy populations.

The dangers are various, but the biggest general heading must be 'management'.

Bluebells are hardy plants, with populations surviving for years in stable situations. In fact, they are thought to be allelopathic, producing

This image (by Andrew Wheatley) and page 91 (by Craig Joiner): Barton Wood about half way between Rockford and Watersmeet, a mile or so upstream from Watersmeet House on the East Lyn River.

Managed woodlands like this with a clear understory are best for good flowering.

Above: Room Hill with Lyncombe Hill in the middle distance (by Andrew Wheatley).

92 Exmoor Spring 2016

chemicals at bulb level which discourage competition from other plants. They endure wind and cold, and can even manage years with inadequate light levels. Deciduous woodland with plenty of light in early spring is ideal for them, but they flourish under management such as coppice rotations where growing trees make increasing shade for years and the ground flora has to wait for a clear-felling phase to bring proper daylight back. Bluebells in such woodlands can endure 17-year cycles or even longer, making spectacular appearances when the shade is removed. So the species does what it can to help itself survive, but an insidious modern threat is lack of management.

A common misapprehension about nature conservation is that 'leaving it to nature' is

the best idea, but plants like Bluebells have flourished throughout history, since shortly after the ice sheets retreated, with a great deal of intervention from humans, and our actions have become important to their survival.

A highly publicised threat in recent years is the possible corruption of 'pure' Bluebell woods with strains of garden hybrid origin. This can happen (though for me suitable management must always be the most crucial factor).

Plantlife really raised the matter, in 2003 and 2004, and were very successful in making a wider public aware of 'Bluebells In Need'.

Being 'hybridised out of existence' sounds wonderfully apocalyptic, and gave a dramatic focus, but all too often the biggest danger

Exmoor Spring 2016 93

This image: Spring sunlight in mature, deciduous Barton Wood favours Bluebell growth (by Adam Burton).

94 Exmoor Spring 2016

Wild Gardens is ignorant and careless management by landowners, and equally ignorant and uncaring management by intensive farmers. Many such people would claim to be in favour of keeping their Bluebells, but traditional management costs money, and has to be properly understood to be effective. Sites can sadly be lost or damaged by default rather than deliberate destruction.

The hybrid question can arise because in the seventeenth century nurserymen, especially in London, were importing many plants from the Continent. One of these was Hyacinthoides hispanica, the Spanish Bluebell, which proved easy to grow and popular. It has a sturdier stem than our native, with wide-open flowers which look outwards rather than having the graceful droop of wild Bluebells. Colours are variable, with many shades of blue, and white and pink occurring quite commonly. Many old gardens had it, and bees do buzz, and a fertile hybrid H. x massartiana (sometimes called the Garden Bluebell) readily occurs. Both the Spanish and Hybrid varieties are vigorous, and almost impossible to get rid of once established, so near Bluebell woods there is often some introgression, but a sudden dramatic takeover is unlikely! A bulldozed ancient hedgebank, or a once-managed woodland now choked with brambles or laurels, are much more probable disasters.

There is another threat of which gardeners in particular need to be aware. The 'wild' gardening style is hugely popular now, and a little Bluebell wood in the shrubbery is a delightful thought. We are all learning not to take the descriptions in bulb catalogues as gospel, but in this case the ambiguities can be twofold. The bulbs you get will often not be Bluebells in fact, but the Hybrid, and even if you get the real thing, can you be sure that the bulbs are ethically sourced? Cases of wholesale robbery of woodland bulbs, dug to sell, are becoming rarer as the Wildlife and Countryside Act begins to show some teeth, but it's legal to dig wild plants with the landowner's permission, so there is still a wide loophole for dirty deeds.

Please consult the RHS Plant Finder for reputable sources of genuine Bluebells and, indeed, for 'wild' Snowdrops, and Wild Daffodils.

This image: Woods worked for coppice, with close-grown young trees, can still support wonderful displays (by Rosemary FitzGerald).

Be aware! Watch over your favourite Bluebells, and speak up for them if you think they are in danger.

Top, left and right: Spot the difference: the true Bluebell has deep blue narrow bells, but Spanish and Garden Bluebells have paler, outward-facing flowers with light-coloured anthers (by Bob Giddons, Natural Image).

Centre: Pink Campion and Bluebells growing prettily together on Bagborough Hill (by Ursula Franklin).

Exmoor Spring 2016 95

Books news & reviews The Heritage Handbook, John Bradbeer and Terry Green, Museum of Barnstaple and North Devon, 2015, pb,186pp.

Numerous illustrations & colour photos.

ISBN 978-09933596-0-6. £12.50 (or £10 for NDAS members). Order from www.ndas.org.uk.

This is a book for the glove-shelf of the car, the rucksack, or the pocket of the anorak. Alternatively, stay at home, read it – and become one of those people who say, "Oh, I can tell you all about that...".

Despite its slightly austere title, this is a delightful, painstakingly-researched and excellently-produced book from North Devon Archaeological Society, which sends us on an alphabetical journey through our area's long and colourful history, from the earliest evidence of human occupation on the beach at Westward Ho! to the relics of World War II training on Braunton Burrows.

As the authors note, "This is not primarily a gazetteer of archaeology, although most of the classic sites find a place somewhere among the entries, but rather a handy reference work for the curious."

So come across, say, the disused lime kilns of Bucks Mills, and turn to 'L', to discover that after eighteenth-century farmers took to applying lime to their land, limestone was shipped in from Pembrokeshire and Gower, along with coal from the Forest of Dean.

The kilns were kept burning continuously from March to December, and it took two tons of coal and eight tons of limestone to produce six tons of quicklime which was spread on the land every three years.

They went out of business with the arrival of modern fertilisers. Not many people know that. Putting a place in historical context adds another dimension and brings extra, unexpected, pleasure to a visit.

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They made gloves in Torrington, shirt-collars in Bideford and malted barley in South Molton, Chittlehampton and Hartland. There was a thriving industry, long forgotten, making clay pipes. Only recently, an excavation unearthed over 40,000 fragments of nineteenth-century pipes near Barnstaple.

There are golden nuggets of information on nearly every page. Who could have guessed that three million cream-coloured bricks were produced every year at Peters Marland or that dummy pillboxes at Baggy Point were used for D-Day landings rehearsals?

I now know that the wreck of Sir Oswald Mosely's schooner Goldseeker lies in the Torridge estuary. Sadly, will anyone ever feel the need to ask me about it?

Tony James Indian Head Massage for Special Needs, Giuliana Fenwick.

Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2015, pb,176pp.

Colour illustrations & photos throughout.

ISBN 978-1-848-192751. £14.99.

Although Indian Head Massage is a relative newcomer to the UK, it has been practised in India for thousands of years.

Giuliana Fenwick, who lives in Porlock, developed a unique take on the massage while working with her son Ollie who has Asperger's syndrome and Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

It works well for everyone, but those with special needs benefit in particular: the non-invasive massage can reduce feelings of stress and anxiety, calm sensory overload, ease frustration, help sleep patterns and boost wellbeing. Giuliana's technique has been approved by the Complementary Medical Association and

endorsed by a host of special needs charities and projects. Now she has written a book to share her knowledge of this gentle yet highly effective massage technique.

"It works on a neuropsychological level," says Giuliana. "By gently working on various areas of the head and spine, you can directly affect different parts of the brain." For example, the frontal lobe of the brain is connected with clear-thinking and planning – it's an area Giuliana will focus on with people with ADHD and autism. [See pages 57-58 to find out more in Jane Alexander's feature about Giuliana.]

The book is aimed at anyone who would like to use the technique – whether qualified therapist or complete novice, whether teacher, parent or carer. It's split into four sections. Giuliana first gives an overview of anatomy, physiology and neuropsychology – and then explains how ancient forms of knowledge inform many of the healing modalities we use today.

There is also a section of case studies drawn from Giuliana's own practice, heart-warming and inspiring stories of young people she has helped.

However, the major part of the book is practical, concentrating on the massage itself and how to perform it. Instructions are clear and every step is accompanied by a photograph (modelled by Giuliana and her son, Ollie) showing the positioning of hands and giving an indication of the touch. For each step Giuliana also explains the effects it has on the anatomy and physiology of the recipient, and also the effect it has on their emotional and mental wellbeing. She also gives clear contraindications – for example, some moves are not suitable for people with epilepsy Indian Head Massage for Special Needs is a valuable resource for those wanting to provide support for people with special needs, but really I'd suggest it for anyone who is interested in therapeutic touch.

Inspiring and practical in equal measures, I highly recommend it.

Jane Alexander

Devon Hedges, Devon Hedge Group and Devon County Council, with a Foreword

by HRH The Prince of Wales, 2015, pb, 97pp.

Numerous colour photos & illustrations. ISBN 978-1-84785-043-0. £15.

Those were the days, when hedges were a magic part of our young lives. They grew high above us, green and mysterious.

We caught our jumpers on their brambles and gorged on blackberries.

We picked sloes and hazelnuts, made blowpipes from cow's parsley and put dock leaves on nettle-stings. Then girls and bicycles came along and we forgot about hedges, but luckily there were plenty of people who didn't.

For the last 20 years the Devon Hedge Group has kept an eagle-eye on the hedgerows of the county – it's the oldest organisation of its kind in the UK – and this second edition of its encyclopedic handbook must surely be the definitive work on the subject and the primary source of reference for anything relating to the county's remarkable hedges.

It's a fascinating read, too.

It is generally thought that hedges have had a pretty hard time in the past 50 years or so and indeed they have in many places, but happily not in Devon, which still has some 33,000 miles of hedge, more than any other English county, Once intent on wrenching them out to make bigger fields, farmers, in Devon at least, seem to have had a change of heart and nowadays it's rare for hedges to be removed – indeed, many new ones are being planted. Hedges are better protected and highly valued – 20 per cent of the UK's remaining species-rich hedges are in Devon.

Hedges don't look after themselves – they cost Devon farmers over £6.5 million a year to maintain and their long-term survival depends on a careful management cycle involving trimming, laying, coppicing and probably, eventually, replanting.

Pretty well anything you could ever want to know about hedges is contained in the

book's lavishly-illustrated 17 sections, from coppicing and laying (known in Devon as steeping), to planting new hedges, repairing old ones and keeping them healthy.

The guide will prove invaluable to anyone, particularly farmers and landowners, looking for advice on practical hedge management, but the humble garden hedge is also the focus of a chapter, with advice on how to encourage wildlife, what species to plant in varied situations and soil conditions. And if you have legal trouble with the neighbours, there's good advice here, too.

In his forward, Prince Charles, in his capacity as patron of the National Hedgelaying Society, stresses that the conservation of Devon hedges is of tremendous importance – over 2,000 species of plants, animals and fungi can be found in a single hedge – and reveals that he enjoys a bit of hedgelaying in his spare time too.

Tony James A Walk Down the Rift (The Poetry Pin Project), Christopher Jelley, Tracey Roberts, Davina Jelley. Fly Catcher Press, 2015, hb, 111pp, ISBN 978-0-9933404-0-6. £10, available from numbersevendulverton. co.uk, 01398 324457.

"Hinkley Point – abomination or blessing?" is the vortex to which China recently gave an urgent spin. Everyone has a 'view'.

This book of poems and photographs offers less a rational view, more a gathering of insights, intuitions, and revelations.

Its drift, though, is unmistakeable.

Season by season, 15 poets walked the ancient, magical path between Shurton and the Bristol Channel in Hinkley's shadow, recording their response to the historic landscape and to the finally unimaginable impact of an enlarged nuclear power industry. Though this book can stand alone, it is part of a Poetry Pin Project (poetrypin.info/reveal.php), which invites the reader to "put on his coat and get down to Shurton Bars" where his mobile phone will reveal each poem in its precise birthplace. Here 44 photographs run in sensitive counterpoint with 38 poems. Warm images of ripe wheat, red berries, grassy shingle and lichened twigs

are immediately felt to be threatened by the cold, dark ubiquity of fence, screen, barbed wire and prohibition signage. The finality of Steve Pledger's opening quatrain makes the point: "On land which has kept and sustained us;/By waters that ceaselessly roll;/We're asserting our claim to dominion/ Over forces we cannot control."

The poets express unease about change, resentment because of exclusion, nostalgia for vanished innocent seaside pleasure and the desecration of distant history.

"Arrogant robots", "giant insects" suggest the flavour.

Poetry Pin was devised and developed by lead poet Christopher Jelley whose substantial contribution shapes the 'drift'.

'Greasing Palms' sets the initial facile monetary transaction against the cultural background it will come to destroy.

Meanwhile, as "the 'C' sleeps in limbo continued over...

Brief notes Maggie King, Monograph published by the Court Gallery, 2015, pb, 60pp.

ISBN 978-0-9573802-3-3.

Complimentary copy available from The Court Gallery, Landshire House, West Quantoxhead TA24 4DX. Maggie King is a sculptor and painter working in the beautiful and slightly sepulchral valley of Nettlecombe near Williton, West Somerset, which has always produced original and thoughtful artists, and here is another.

This is a pictorial record of some 24 sculptures and 34 paintings in acrylic, oil and ink. The sculptures are smoothlyflowing minimal shapes producing calm and quiet understatement. The paintings, mostly small-scale and delicate, brief gestures of line and colour, give a sense of balance and safety. I must disclose an interest: I have one on my wall.

Not surprisingly, Maggie's reputation is growing. She has exhibited widely and her work is now in private collections in the UK and Europe. What is she striving for? "To produce something that is calm.

I like the large expanses of polished stone as they seem to offer someone a space." We can all do with some of that.

Tony James

Exmoor Spring 2016 97

Books: News & Reviews state", there is summer beauty: " ...we count the common blues/The cinnabar moths with their curly cues/The rills of the meadow rich and compact/Ironically provided by this industrial pact." These treasures are, in another poem "pocketed... /like badges on lapels". In yet another, the resulting poems are mere "Tiny words for paper tombs". Overtly scornful of dubious science is 'Edible Temptress', which observes our headlong dash to the death of feeling. In 'The Final Word' this is a death sealed by our communal complicity, because "We turn our backs on the futures approaching" and "Choose to ignore the urbanity encroaching".

Waking up Davey and Davey to the Rescue, written

by Alan Bosley & illustrated by Mary Oldham, self published by Alan Bosley, 2015, pb, 36pp, ISBN 9-787809-813820 and 9-978000-0009784, £4.95 each, www.tractorstories4children.co.uk.

Cheerfully hopeful this focussed collection is not. Neither, however, is it depressing – energy, integrity, humour and delightful invention make sure of that. Encouraging, except for the cynics, is that this apparently unfettered enterprise was funded by EDF Energy and public money supplied through ARTlife, The West Somerset Arts Consortium. The project, of which this book is only a part, is a significant contribution at a deeply significant time.

Waking up Davey is the first in this series, written by Alan Bosley and illustrated by Mary Oldham, followed by Davey to the Rescue and there are two more on the way.

Keith Jones

As auntie of a farming-mad nephew and niece, Freddie and Millie (7 and 5) Cudmore, I'm aware that the main challenge when it comes to tractor presents is finding new ones!

At Christmas I asked Freddie and Millie's mum to see what they thought of Waking up Davey. Here's their report...

Fred says, "I liked that Davey is a real tractor and he is in places that I've been to like Porlock and Carhampton. I would like to know if he has a good home now?

I really enjoyed that there's lots of animals in the background and the grumpy

caravans were funny – it must have been very hard work for Davey to push them all around... Jennifer [an Austin Gipsy] was very kind and it's good that she helped him. The beginning made me excited about the rest and now I want to read the second book soon!" Sadly, we have run out of space here Fred, but, as the last page of Waking up Davey tells us, "That is another story for another time... when you have been very good."

Like Fred, Millie was a bit sad (about the same bit, which we won't spoil here), but thinks that, "It's a really good book and the best thing is that Davey got used again."

And there you have it. High praise indeed.

The Davey series is colourful, accessible, local and all based on a real tractor – which, I think, makes it a winner for local children, to be read again and again. As another parent has said, "I have read the book so many times to my child that I now know it backwards."

You can find out all about Alan Bosley, Mary Oldham and Davey and friends at www.tractorstories4children.co.uk, where you can order direct or see a list of stockists.

Naomi Marley & Mai Cudmore

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98 Exmoor Spring 2016

E XMO O R

Crossword Spring 2016 by Bryan Cath £20 will be paid for the first correct entry out of the hat on 15 April 2016. Send a photocopy if you would prefer not to cut your magazine up. Please post your answer to Crossword Competition, Exmoor The Country Magazine, PO Box 281, Parracombe, Devon EX31 4WW. The solution will be published in the next issue.

Spring 2016 solution from: Name: Address:

Congratulations to our winter winner, Mrs Joyce Jones, South Molton.

Clues across 1. Pointing the way to a star job. (8) 5. These seeds are awful posers. (6) 10. This umbellifer is found in Exmoor's oak woodlands, but not in scale strangely. (7) 11. Unrefined information spoilt by wear and tear without help from Erne! (3, 4) 12. Land on our planet. (5) 13. Straight-laced flowers often seen with 10. (9) 14. Gran's in plaits goes against tradition. (12) 18. Coleridge once lived here, 'on thy sweeter' he converted. (6, 6) 21. Around 400 million years ago you might have stumbled across a plaice zoo! (9) 23. Did this Greek goddess eat this aloe? (5) 24. When one ox dies it makes endless rust. (7) 25. Exmoor's high ground. (7) 26. A French port with an ant's quarter? (6) 27. Yet Helen developed this gas – knock out! (8) Clues down 1. An abnormally messy time is included in the method. (6) 2. Elmer was raised over the tracks and held signals. (6) 3. Does this Exmoor pony maybe go around with his mates? (4-5) 4. Use these to stop your feet getting wet when crossing the Barle. (8, 6) 6. The prisoner of war dithered over his energy. (5)

7. Are asses supposed to uncover their ability to think again? (8) 8. The most meagrely of outcomes for the trespass was awful. (8) 9. Courting Lorna includes time around this NT property.

(9, 5) 15. Late English combe running from Dure Down. (3,6) 16. It sounds like you can have a snooze on this hill above Combe Martin. (4, 4) 17. Was this the last lion to dismember a stag? (8) 19. As one nears a break we informally enjoy one of these! (6) 20. Leslie reports that his cylinder head has been taken by his tenant! (6) 22. No spruce were included in this dogma. (5) Answers from winter 2015-16 crossword: Across: 7. Tulip, 8. Dandelion, 10. Native, 11. Thriving, 12. Elworthy, 13. Byre, 15. Wassail, 17. Seafood, 20. Lees, 22. Forestry, 25. Morebath, 26. Priory, 27. Wasteland, 28. Marsh.

Down: 1. Sugarloaf, 2. Visitors, 3. East Lyn, 4. Adorable, 5. Clover, 6. Doone, 9. Nest, 14. Hoar frost, 16. Installs, 18. Festival, 19. Offhand, 21. Events, 23. Rope, 24. Rowan.

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Exmoor Spring 2016 99

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100 Exmoor Spring 2016

IN THE STABLEYARD

VICTOR DARTNALL WORDS by Elaine Pearce

T

he love of horses combined with 'a dash of the Irish' has pulsated through the Dartnall family's veins for generations and in order to get to know Victor Dartnall, whose racing yard is based at Brayford, North Devon, you have to start by stepping back one generation to his remarkable father, Desmond.

In the early 1930s, with typical 'daring do', Desmond became known as the 'Boy Wonder of the West Country', having triumphed in many a prestigious pony race and having many hundreds of winners under his belt. His partnership with the prolific pony Charlie Chaplin became renowned in the South West.

This was all achieved whilst he was still at school and living on his parents' farm in South Devon. Fame, however, has its disadvantages, as young Desmond discovered when he went to school one day carrying a sick note which attributed his absence from classes the previous day to 'a bilious attack'. "Oh yes?" said the head teacher, peering over the top of his spectacles and holding open the local paper which boldly proclaimed, 'Dartnall Goes Through The Card', after Desmond won every single one of the day's races. The game was up!

Before the Second World War, organised pony racing was held on tracks across the country. It was extremely popular and nowhere more so than at Northolt Park near London – the

Ascot of its day. Desmond won many a pony race on this track but during the war it became an Army depot and a PoW camp and afterwards all pony racing was disbanded by the Jockey Club.

Desmond, adventurous to the core, decided to follow in his father's footsteps and joined the Army. After a hair-raising time in Dunkirk, boredom set in and Desmond tried to get into the Commandos but was turned down because he couldn't swim.

He was a clever man, "But his love of a good night", says Victor, "prevented him from climbing the Army ranks."

He went to North Africa where he was captured by the Germans and handed over to the Italians, to be held in a PoW camp in Italy. On his third attempt he managed to escape with a small group of inmates. As the radius of the search for the escapees was widened, they laid low, close to the prison camp.

After six weeks of being looked after by local Italians, the group made their march to Switzerland and freedom. Desmond managed to get home before the war ended and was an unrecognisable six-stone skeleton of his former self.

After a period of recuperation and with the conflict not yet over, Desmond was sent to North Wales as a driving instructor and it was there that he met Kathleen (Kitty) Janvrin, Victor's mother.

She turned out to be the daughter of the famous Captain Janvrin who had fought in the great naval Battle of Jutland in 1916.

Exmoor Spring 2016 101

Page 101: Victor riding Perry Orchid at the Oakley point-to-point in the early '70s.

Left: Desmond riding on the Southern National Hunt circuit, 1950.

Above: Kitty show jumping as a young woman, in 1946.

Captain Janvrin could barely cover his disappointment over Kitty's 'intended', who he said was "of no particular background, a horseman, a ladies' man and, to crown it all, had a dash of the Irish in him."

With the war finally over and with the fresh responsibilities of marriage and fatherhood upon him, Desmond needed new employment and decided to return to racing. He rekindled his relationship with Bill Wightman, who, having trained racing ponies, was by this time a prominent racehorse trainer under National Hunt rules. Desmond went on to ride over 30 winners for Bill, turning down the offer of a job with the Queen Mother's trainer, Peter Cazolet, because he was happy where he was.

And it was in these surroundings that Victor grew up with his older brother Gerald (Gerry). His earliest memory of his father was of him riding for Bill at Fontwell.

When Desmond broke his back in a bad fall, he went on not only to recover but to ride one more winner for Bill before finally retiring from the saddle. From here he took on the job of Bill's Travelling Head Lad, a senior position full of responsibility.

Victor's love and understanding of horses blossomed when Desmond's work took the family to a large arable and stock farm in the Cotswolds, run by one G.J. Phillips. Victor and Gerry went to school at Northleach. Their home life was idyllic, being surrounded by brood mares, ponies, hunters and pointers. Victor and Gerry, then aged 15 and 16 respectively, were presented with a horse each on which to go pointing. They both rode winners for Mr Phillips and continued to ride for other farmers.

Their younger sister Jacqueline also rode in point-to-points a few years later in Wales.

When the family moved to a new house near Stow-on-the-Wold in 1965 they were able to build their own yard and train their

102 Exmoor Spring 2016

own horses. Gerry went off racing and turned professional, while Victor rode as an amateur, not letting Reading University (where he was studying agriculture) stop him from riding a winner at Cheltenham. He got a 2.1 for his degree and was so relieved to finish with university (and Reading) that he didn't even want to go back to collect his certificate!

By this time, he had already met his future wife, Anne-Marie Viney. She had first caught his eye at a point-to-point and it was whilst sitting on the ground (after falling at the first at Lockinge) that he noticed her again. She walked past him thinking (or so Victor assumed) that he was his brother, Gerry.

However, she accepted an invitation to go to the National Hunt Jockeys' annual dinner and dance with him at Evesham. Twelve months later, at the same function, they became engaged and a year after, in 1971, they were married.

Like his father before him, Victor thought he'd better knuckle down and find a 'proper job'. An invitation came from a fellow member of the National Hunt Jockeys' cricket team, Macer Gifford, brother of the late Josh, to help run his Uncle George's 800-acre farm in Huntingdon. Horses became a hobby whilst his passion for farming grew and during the three years he was there, his first born, Vicki, arrived.

The farm, with its suckling cows, was a good learning curve that stood him in good stead for his next job, as Farm Manager, at the 2,600-acre Temple Farm estate near Marlborough where he remained for 21 years. During this time, Victor reopened the Barbury Castle point-to-point track where he was Clerk of the Course for the first ten meetings. This led on to the laying down of gallops which trainer Alan King uses today. Leonora, known as 'Tibby', was baby number two, arriving in 1974, followed by Paddy, Izzy and Flora.

Above: Paratatess, owned by Mr G.E. Cloke and ridden by Desmond Dartnall, winning the Harlesden Maiden at Northolt Park, 25 May 1935.Handicap at Northolt Park, Above right: Izzy (top) and Flora show jumping as children. Izzy on Jubilee Magic at the National Schools' Show Jumping Championships, Hickstead, 1994, and Flora on My Florence, in an affiliated show jumping competition, 1994. Izzy recalls, "I remember one incident from our show jumping days when my younger sister Flora had got kicked when we were all out hunting. We were due to go to a show jumping competition the following day and we both had two ponies each to ride. As Flora had been kicked, Dad insisted on me riding her ponies as well as mine. I wasn't looking forward to riding Flora's ponies as one of them was naughty and I just wanted to ride my own two. Dad pulled me aside and said, "You will ride all four, as that is the only way you will learn how to ride properly by riding different ponies." I rode all four and came first and second on Flora's ponies, then third and fourth on my two ponies.

Dad was very happy with the result but Mum was mortified!"

During this time Temple Farm was sold to an Austrian, Count Konrad Goess-Saurau. Victor worked for Konrad for eight years and during this time he and Anne-Marie bought a 100-acre farm in North Devon as a holiday home with a view to retiring there in the future.

Victor never dreamed that he would be able to train there, other than the odd point-to-pointer. However, when his brother-in-law Nick Viney offered to back a training venture at Shutscombe Farm, the family moved to Devon, where Victor was able to pursue his dream full time.

Beginning slowly with just four horses, he built things up gradually, with the help of his friend Brian Murphy in Ireland, who to date has sold him well over 130 horses. Victor proved to be a prolific trainer of point-to-pointers. Among his champion runners the most famous was Butler John, who won 29 races, 17 of them back to back. He is still enjoying life now, at the grand old age of 28 and is still 'earning his keep' by supervising the youngsters.

In 1998, 11 years after buying Shutscombe, Victor took out his full licence, turned professional and had a good first season with 13 winners. This encouraged him to buy more youngsters and gradually he built up his business. In 2011/12 he had a fantastic season, with 24 winners including the Grand National Trial at Haydock and the Southern National with Giles Cross and Exmoor Ranger winning a £100,000 chase at Ascot. In 2004 Lord Sam, purchased from Brian Murphy as a four-year-old, became the highest rated 2½-mile novice chaser in England and Ireland, having won all his chases, including at the Punchesdown Festival.

It is now almost 40 years since Desmond died of cancer at the tragically young age of 54 and Victor still misses him dreadfully.

"He was a great inspiration to me and he taught me so much.

But you never stop learning: there is always something you can do better." This self-knowledge is probably why this season,

at the time of writing, this quiet, unassuming man has produced 15 out of 20 horses that have been 'in the frame', with plenty of youngsters coming along and showing great promise. Plus Victor now has the fantastic support of sponsorship from The Hartnoll Hotel, near Tiverton, and, most precious of all, the treasured help of his brother Gerry, who, having ridden many a winner for Victor, "knows a good horse when he sees one." As Victor assures me, "The yard wouldn't be what it is today without his help!"

And nowadays, the yard also resounds with the laughter of the next two generations – some already coming through and cherishing trophies, and the grandchildren well on the way.

Izzy has trained three point-to-pointers in her own right from Victor's yard, all winners; one at Holnicot three years ago, and two at Bratton Down. One of the horses was Izzy's own, one belonged to her father and another to Gerry. Tibby's eldest son, 17-year-old Max, is Victor's oldest grandchild. He rides out at Shutscombe at weekends and hopes to become an equine vet.

Next in line are the little ones – a tribe of boys to be reckoned with! Tibby's other sons, Toby and Freddie, are aged five and four and Vicki's boys Thomas and Silas are eight and six. Paddy's son Robin, who rides a pony called Pumpkin, is also six and Flora's son Rudy is just one but has already sat on Pumpkin.

Victor keeps two ponies on the farm for Toby, Freddie, Thomas and Silas to share – Gilly and Cuckoo, both 12.2hh. Cuckoo may be known to some as he has travelled to racecourses all over the country as a companion for runners from the yard. He was once spotted by the commentator who said, "I don't think Victor Dartnall will get very far with that particular horse today!"

But Victor and ponies go hand in hand almost as much as he and racehorses. Well before he started to train his own pointers, he liked to train his children and ponies for gymkhanas.

Exmoor Spring 2016 103

In the Stableyard Vicki remembers how Victor used to lunge the pony in the school and how she had to learn to vault on and off when the pony was cantering round. She particularly remembers Bobbie, a12.2hh strawberry roan who was as sharp as a needle. On one occasion, in the potato and bucket race, Victor was haring back down to the finishing line (Vicki having dropped her last potato in the bucket), convinced that they had won, only to discover that Vicki had fallen off as they turned for home and he was sprinting back towards the finish leading a riderless pony!

Dad would always yell "Go on, Bobby!" when he was watching us in gymkhanas, so people used to assume it was my name, but he was actually cheering on the pony, knowing that he was in charge!" says Vicki.

"It is a tradition in the Dartnall family," says Vicki, "that all of the children get on a pony before they can walk." Izzy was cantering at the age of three and Thomas is looking forward to heading up the gallops on Gilly this summer."

Victor is known as Grandpa to his seven grandsons and has to be the 'best Grandpa ever' because of the rides he gives them on his 'buggy', and – most important of all – because of the enduring love of horses which he has continued to pass down through the generations.

Find out more: www.victordartnallracing.com.

Thank you to Victor for giving of his time so generously and for lending us his very precious old photographs. These were carefully scanned by Courtyard Framing in Minehead.

Right: Max riding Master Hooper (photo by Debbie Tucker).

Left: Izzy on the right on the gallops in 2014, riding a very well-bred two-year-old for Ralph Beckett (photo by Mrs Sam Arnold).

Above, left to right: Thomas, Silas and Toby on the quad with Victor, 2014.

Above, three small pony pics, from top: Max leading Silas on Cuckoo;Thomas with Cuckoo; Freddie on Gilly.

Above right: Grandchildren and cousins posing for a photo in the buggy with Steve Saunders.

104 Exmoor Spring 2016

LAWHORSE

Paws for Thought Jill Headford, Tozers Solicitors

M

any readers with horses will be happy dog owners too. Perhaps your canine and equine are the very best of friends. Indeed, we would love to hear from you if you have a special tale of such a friendship.

But it's also worth flagging up a less happy trend, so that awareness and good dog training can be promoted.

Jill Headford, of Tozers Solicitors, explains the legalities of dog attacks on horses...

Over recent years there has been a huge increase in the number of dog attacks on horses, notably, and even more worryingly, an increase in dogs attacking horses being ridden or driven. Horse & Hound published the following statistics in April 2015: 39 incidents involving dogs reported to the British Horse Society (BHS) in March 2015 – "three times higher than this time [the previous] year" Over 850 incidents reported to the BHS since the end of 2010 The number of dog attacks in 2013 doubled from 2012.

Although incidents can be put down to a combination of factors, there is clearly a growing problem. But where does the law stand and what protection does it actually offer?

Under Section 3 of the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991, it is a criminal offence for the owner or person in charge of a dog to allow it to be dangerously out of control.

The law used to apply only in public places but was recently extended to cover any place in England or Wales, whether public or private.

This is important, as it means that if a dog attacks your horse on private land, the law now gives protection in the same way it would do if it were on public land.

The sentencing guidelines have also been toughened in recent years; a person in charge of a dog that is dangerously out of control can now face increased penalties of up to 5 years in prison if it injures a person and up to 14 years in prison if the victim of the attack dies.

If an assistance dog is injured or dies the maximum penalty is 3 years in prison.

Remember though that the increased penalties only apply if a person or their assistance dog is killed or injured. The law does not offer the same protection to horses as it does to people because horses are "mere property" in law. So, if a dog kills or injures a horse (as opposed to a person or assistance dog) then, although the dog owner is liable for the cost of the damage, the increased criminal penalties do not apply. Only the lower penalty of a fine or up to 6 months in prison applies, for the dog being dangerously out of control.

The horse owner can of course bring a civil claim for damages against the owner of the dog, but the practical drawback of such action is that the costs could be disproportionate to any damages awarded, unless the rider is fairly badly injured or the horse is valuable and is

ruined. It is far better to work at preventing attacks in the first place and that comes down to the better education of dog owners. The BHS website offers guidance on how to encourage harmony between dogs and horses and an awareness poster on 'Socialising Dogs and Horses', which riders are invited to distribute.

This is the link: www.bhs.org. uk/safety-and-accidents/ common-incidents/dog-attacks.

The website also provides sound advice to riders in the event of a dog attack. If you do find yourself, or your horse, the victim of an aggressive dog, try, if possible, to recall any distinguishing features of the dog (or owner) and report the incident to the BHS and the police. It is imperative that the situation is continually monitored so as to provide evidence and help lobbyists in their efforts to further strengthen the law to protect horses as well as their riders.

Reports can be made at www.horseaccidents.org.uk.

But let us not be accused of taking a one-sided view. What of the responsible dog walker who is intimidated by a rider: 'What do I do if we come across a horse cantering or galloping, they fail to slow down and this frightens the living daylights out of my dog?'

Again, the BHS provides very helpful advice in the form of its leaflet entitled 'Look at it from my point of view'. This contains as much commonsense guidance for riders as dog owners. It can be downloaded here: www.bhs. org.uk/safety-and-accidents/ free-leaflets.

If you need advice please email Jill at: j.headford@tozers.co.uk.

EDITOR'S NOTE Last year, we received a message from a reader who suggested we talk about changes to the law regarding dog ownership.

From April 2016 all dogs currently not microchipped will have to be chipped and registered with a database which is compliant with the new regulations and all breeders will need to microchip their puppies by the time they are eight weeks old, and before they go to a new home. The new keeper will also be responsible for updating the microchip with their details. Failure to comply could result in a fine of up to £500. To read up about this and the many other laws surrounding dogs, relating to all kinds of topics, from collars and welfare, to livestock and travel, visit: www.thekennelclub. org.uk/media/8277/law.pdf.

Finally, it's clear to most rural dog owners that the law does not cover all bases cleanly.

For example, whilst it's impossible to disagree with the legal obligation to pick up after your dog in urban areas, what about land used for agriculture, woodlands, rural common land, marshland, moorland and heath? Here you are rarely legally obliged to collect the mess, but there are, in places, compelling arguments for doing so, notably the fact that dog mess can cause real health problems for the stock where sheep graze (see p.112 of our Summer 2015 mag) and it can be pretty unpleasant for other walkers too, of course, if the footpaths are a minefield.

Equine clothing • tack • feed bedding stables • yard • paddock Visit us online at molevalleyfarmers.com for great equestrian offers Exmoor Spring 2016 105

Keep Exmoor Special

Join us and help conserve Exmoor now and for future generations.

A voluntary organisation founded in 1958. We support the purpose of the national park status and are constantly on guard to protect Exmoor's special qualities.

We want family farms to survive and the villages to be places where the Exmoor people can earn a living and afford to live. We encourage people to enjoy outdoor activity and experience wild open country, tranquility and well-being.

For further details of our aims and benefits to members apply to

Exmoor Society, 34 High Street, Dulverton, Somerset TA22 9DJ Tel: 01398 323335 Email: info@exmoorsociety.com www.exmoorsociety.com

Local Art, Crafts & Food

Enjoy spring at RHS Garden Rosemoor

Combine a visit with events such as our Spring Flower Shows, the Easter Holidays Lindt Gold Bunny Hunt, a Craft Fair or the Devon Chilli Fiesta. rhs.org.uk/rosemoor Reg. Charity No. 222879/SC038262

106 Exmoor Spring 2016

MARCH

Spring Diary 2016 Photo by Jane A. Mares

COMPILED by Katy Charge

Our diary gives a small sample of the type of events taking place locally. There are some useful online calendars and resources which we refer you to on page 109. ENPA's Exmoor Visitor also contains diary listings.

The dates here are submitted to us and as far as we are aware the information is correct at the time of going to press.

Contact details are included so that you can check events nearer the time.

Please email your summer dates to us by 31 March 2016 (see page 6 for details).

FEBRUARY 30 January-28 February Snowdrop Valley Exmoor Buses until 21 Feb, walking thereafter.

W: www.wheddoncross.org.uk/ snowdropvalley.htm.

2nd and 4th Saturdays of Every Month Open Nights/Concerts Respectively 8pm. Shammick Acoustic, Pack o’ Cards, High Street, Combe Martin. T: 01271 882366, W: www.shammickacoustic.org.uk.

Sunday 21 February Minehead Winter Classic Tour 9am-3pm. Organised by Minehead Motor Club, starting with bacon butties and tea/ coffee from Doniford Farm. A 65-mile route partly through Exmoor; finish at Doniford with optional Sunday lunch.

Open to members and non-members with classic cars/vehicles of interest.

Doniford Farm Park TA23 0TQ. Booking essential, entry fee per car TBC. T: Jenn Williams on 01643 706162, W: www.mineheadmotorclub.com.

Saturday 27 February Shammick Concert: Patterson Dipper Times and details as per 2nd diary listing.

Saturday 5-Sunday 6 March; Thursday 10-Sunday 13 March Spring Steam Gala 8am-6pm. Events to mark the 50th anniversary of the closure of the Somerset & Dorset Railway. Enhanced train service with seven 'guest' steam engines. Sales stands, model railways, workshops, museums. Adult £19, 60+ £17.10, age 5-17 £9.50, family 2+2 £47; discounted fare for 5s-17s Sunday 6th and 13th. No need to book. Minehead Railway Station TA24 5BG. T: 01643 704996, W: westsomersetrailway.vticket.co.uk.

Thursday 10 March Wildlife & Wonders of Iceland 7.30pm. A talk by Dr Sue Baker. Dulverton Group Exmoor Society members free, non-members £3. Refreshments. The talk follows the group's AGM, starting at 7pm, to which visitors are also welcome.

Congregational Church Hall, Chapel Street, Dulverton. T: Linda Hammond 01398 323954.

Friday 11 March Ladies' Pamper Evening 7.30pm. Allerford Community Hall.

Tickets cost £3.50 and this includes complimentary drink and cheese and biscuits. Demonstrations, sample products, aromatherapy, jewellery, gifts and beauty treatments. T: 01643 862831, W: www.allerfordandselworthyhall.co.uk.

Friday 11 March Concert: Kammer Philharmonie Europa 7.30pm. The Chamber Philharmonie of Europe are back in Minehead after their success here two years ago. Talented young musicians from 18 European nations. Booking essential, £15.

Regal Theatre, The Avenue, Minehead TA24 5UQ. T: 01643 706430, W: www.mineheadartssociety.org.uk.

Thursday 17 March 'The Iranian Feast' 7.30-9pm. Part thriller, part cookery lesson, Farnham Maltings Touring Theatre presents a tale of a family working out how life will be in the future. Early bird tickets £8, on the door £10, children £5. Porlock Village Hall TA24 8QD. T: 01643 863117, W: www.pvh.org.uk.

Friday 18 March Exmoor Trust Annual Quiz 7pm. Moorland Hall, Wheddon Cross.

T: 01984 641175, W: www.exmoortrust.org.uk.

Saturday 19 March Coffee, Cake and Clean-Up 10am-1pm. A pre-season clean-up of the Pebble Ridge in Porlock Bay. Coffee and cake will be on offer to encourage every volunteer who joins in this annual community event! Gloves, litter pickers and bags provided. Wear suitable shoes/boots for walking on pebbles. Meet at Porlock Visitor Centre. W: www.porlock.co.uk.

Saturday 19 March Porlock Horticultural and Crafts Society Spring Show 2-4.30pm. Floral classes including narcissus, early spring shrubs and other seasonal flowers, cookery classes, plant stall, book stall, raffle and refreshments. Entry £1 (Society members/children free). Porlock Village Hall. W: www.porlock.co.uk.

Sunday 20 March Run Exmoor 11am. A challenging run in the heart of Exmoor. 10 miles or 10km. Children's race 10am start, weather permitting. Bar & refreshments. Memento to all finishers, 1st prizes in all categories. Booking advised, £14 (advance), £17 (on the day).

Honeymead, Simonsbath TA24 7JX. T: 07837 718745, W: www.facebook.com/ Run-Exmoor-448603818676872.

Friday 25 March Book Sale 10.30am-4pm. A wide selection of titles in aid of the Dulverton Model Railway and Heritage Centre. The event is to be held outside, so will be dependent on dry weather. Free entry. Dulverton Heritage Centre, TA22 9EX. T: 07969 243887, W: www.dulvertonheritagecentre.org.uk.

Saturday 26 March Shammick Concert: Rattle on the Stovepipe Times and details as per 2nd diary listing.

Tuesday 29-Sunday 10 April Daffodil trail, ARLINGTON COURT 10.30am-4pm daily. Daffodil trail through the grounds; answer clues and riddles to win a prize. Just turn up, £1pp. T: 01271 850296, W: bit.ly/Arlington-Whatson.

APRIL Saturday 2 April Valley of Rocks 200 8am-9pm. 200km event for experienced cyclists across Exmoor and the North Devon coast. Starts from Honiton EX14 1PU. Booking essential £9; £7 for AUK/ CTC members (+£1 for online entry).

T: 07714 898969, W: www.ukcyclist.co.uk.

Exmoor Spring 2016 107

Diary Sunday 3 April FREE Easter Activity Day 11am-3pm. Activities for all ages. Pony rides (age 4+) and grooming. No need to book, small charge for some activities.

Exmoor Pony Centre. T: 01398 323093, W: www.exmoorponycentre.org.uk.

Tuesday 5 April Bushcraft Day 10am-2pm. Learn wild bushcraft skills, make simple tools and explore the woods with the Quantock Rangers on Cothelstone Hill. Lunch will be cooked over a fire.

Bring warm clothing and sturdy footwear.

No dogs. £10pp. Children to be accompanied. W: www.quantockhills.com/ events/view/wild_skills2.

Tuesday 5 April Seashore Safari 10.30am-12.30pm. Seashore rock pool ramble. Wear sturdy footwear. Equipment and guide provided. No need to book, £2 per child/unaccompanied adult. Combe Martin Museum. T: 01271 889031, W: www.combe-martin-museum.co.uk.

Wednesday 6 April The Big Moorland Adventure, HADDON HILL 10am-4pm. Explore the outdoors with family games and activities in some great Exmoor locations. Wear outdoor clothing and suitable footwear. No need to book, donations to Caremoor welcome. T: 01398 323841.

Wednesday 6-Saturday 9 April 'Jack & The Beanstalk' 7.30pm. Traditional pantomime with Jack and the Giant, a beautiful princess and Daisy the Cow, performed by the Dulverton Players and local young people.

Dulverton Town Hall. T: 01398 323474 to reserve tickets.

Saturday 9 April Allerford Village Open Day and Spring Bulb Show 10am-4pm. Free entry. Refreshments.

Games, stalls, car boot sale. To sell goods, book a pitch for £5. T: 01643 862831, W: www.allerfordandselworthyhall.co.uk.

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108 Exmoor Spring 2016

Sunday 10 April The Dunkery Dash 9am-4pm. Annual cycling event from North Petherton to Dunkery and back, catering for a wide range of abilities with spectacular scenery. Booking essential, £8-10 depending on membership of Audax UK. T: 07708 937308, W: www.bridgwatercyclingclub.co.uk.

Thursday 14 April Weather Patterns over Exmoor 7.30pm. A talk by Kevin Needham from The Met Office. Dulverton Group Exmoor Society members free, non-members £3.

Refreshments. Congregational Church Hall, Chapel Street, Dulverton.

T: Linda Hammond 01398 323954.

Saturday 16 April Charity Quiz 7pm. Hot supper with desserts. Bar. Prizes for winning team. Raffle. Booking essential, £12pp/£72 per table of 6.

Tickets from Dulverton Post Office 01398 323474 or smcottrell20@yahoo.co.uk.

Dulverton Town Hall. T: 07969 243887, W: www.dulvertonheritagecentre.org.uk.

Sunday 17 April Exmoor Beauty Cycle Challenge Sister event to the Exmoor Beast. 100km.

Booking essential, fee varies depending on when you enter. Tiverton High School.

T: 01614 083222, W: exmoorbeauty.org.

Monday 18 April Simonsbath Sawmill Open Day 10am-4pm. No need to book, advisable to ring though (10am-4pm). Parking and toilets at Ashcombe Car Park. Donations welcome. T: 01643 831202 (on the day), W: www.simonsbathsawmill.org.uk.

Saturday 23 April Historic Dunster Walk 2-4pm. Join a member of The Exmoor Society to walk gently uphill to Conygar Tower folly, the ancient Butter Cross and the Priory. 1.5 miles. Dogs on leads. Tea in the village optional. No need to book, donation from non-members welcome.

Dunster Visitor Centre. T: 01398 323335, W: www.exmoorsociety.com.

Saturday 23 April Shammick Concert: Sunjay Times and details as per 2nd diary listing.

Saturday 30 April Meet & Greet Peppa Pig & George 10am-4pm. Peppa Pig and George will be making appearances during the day at Minehead Station. Face painting, activities, children’s entertainer, vintage bus rides around town. No need to book, free entry. Minehead Station. T: 01643 704996, W: westsomersetrailway.vticket.co.uk.

Saturday 30 April-Friday 30 September 2016 Exhibition 'Set Sail' 10am opening; thereafter Mon-Sat 10.30am-4.30pm. The exhibition recounts the history and stories of the ships and sailing families of Porlock Weir. No need to book, donations welcome. Dovery Manor Museum TA24 8PS. T: 01643 863117, www.doverymanormuseum.org.uk.

MAY Monday 2 May-Friday 24 June Simonsbath Festival W: www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk; search 'Simonsbath Festival' on Facebook, Twitter: @simonsbath. See pages 16 and 106 for more details.

Wednesday 4 May Stallion Parade 10.30am-12pm. See both moor-bred and in-ground registered Exmoor pony stallions and learn about this native breed.

No need to book, free event. Ralegh's Cross TA23 0LN. T: 01884 839930, W: www.exmoorponysociety.org.uk.

Friday 6 May Ralegh's Cross Long Walk 10.30am-3.30pm. Explore the iron mining of the Brendon Hills, including Beulah Chapel, Brendon village, the Winding House, down the Incline to Comberow, Leighland Chapel, and a waterfall.

Bring a packed lunch, walking boots and rain gear. Approx. 7 miles, steep in places.

Booking essential, £6. Ralegh's Cross Inn. T: 01271 863001, W: www.wsmla.org.uk.

Diary

Thursday 12 May Dulverton Town Mills TALK 4-5pm. As part of National Mills Weekend, former owner of the Town Mills, Vicki Nuttall, will share her stories, recollections and photos. No need to book, £2.50 in aid of Dulverton Model Railway and the Heritage Centre. Dulverton Heritage Centre TA22 9EX. T: 07969 243887, W: www.dulvertonheritagecentre.org.uk.

Saturday 14 May Bampton Spring Fest A day of family fun around town. T: 01398 331777, W: www.bampton.org.uk.

LYNMOUTH PAVILION Lynmouth Pavilion is hosting a range of events this spring. T: 01598 752509.

W: www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk/ enjoying/events and also www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk/ enjoying/national-park-centres/ lynmouth-national-park-centre.

Saturday 20 February Meet the Moorland Mousie Trust Friday 11 & 18 March Stained-Glass Making Workshop Saturday 12 March, Wednesday 13 April, Wednesday 18 May Seaglass Jewellery Workshop Wednesday 30 March Book Reading by Victoria Eveleigh Tuesday 5 April Easter Craft Workshop Tuesday 5 April Cliff Railway Talk & Tour Thursday 14 April Evening@Pavilion: Exmoor's Dark Sky Saturday 16 April Your Exmoor Heritage

Find out more...

ENPA

www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk (a very useful diary for events across the area) Tel. 01398 323665 Twitter. @ExmoorNP fb. Exmoor National Park

EXMOOR SOCIETY www.exmoorsociety.com Tel. 01398 323335 E. info@exmoorsociety.com

EQUINE

www.horseeventsuk.com

FOOD & DRINK

A list of farm shops, local produce and regular farmers' markets is available on the Visit Exmoor site. www.visit-exmoor.co.uk/types/shopping/map

GENERAL WEBSITES www.visit-exmoor.co.uk www.everythingexmoor.org.uk www.quantockhills.com

NATIONAL TRUST

www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/local-to-you/ south-west Twitter. @NTSouthWest fb. National Trust South West

STAGE & SCREEN

barnstaple.scottcinemas.co.uk www.bidefordcinema.org.uk www.lyntoncinema.co.uk www.merlincinemas.co.uk www.northdevontheatres.org.uk shammickacoustic.org.uk www.theploughartscentre.org.uk regaltheatre.co.uk www.wellesleycinema.co.uk

VILLAGE LIFE

If you have a community website which is not here please get in touch. We would like to include a current site for each area. www.appledore.org www.bampton.org.uk www.bishopslydeard.org.uk www.aboutbraunton.co.uk www.bromptonregis.com www.visitcombemartin.com www.dulvertontowncouncil.co.uk www.visitdunster.co.uk www.hawkridgeexmoor.co.uk www.kingsnympton.org.uk www.lyntonandlynmouthscene.co.uk www.visitlyntonandlynmouth.com www.mineheadtowncouncil.co.uk www.northmoltonvillage.co.uk www.porlock.co.uk www.quantockonline.co.uk friendsofquantock.com www.visitsouthmolton.co.uk www.timberscombe.org www.watchetonline.co.uk www.wheddoncross.org.uk www.winsfordexmoor.org.uk www.wiveliscombe.com

Photo by Jane A. Mares

Sunday 8 May Taunton Bus Running Day 10.30am-4.30pm. Re-live the golden age of bus travel with free bus trips in and around Taunton! A great family event.

Castle Green. W: tauntonrunningday. wordpress.com or www.facebook.com/ vintagebusdaytaunton.

VISUAL ARTS www.containsart.co.uk www.crafts.org.uk (Devon Guild) www.creativesomerset.com www.devonartistnetwork.co.uk somersetartworks.org.uk www.somersetguild.co.uk If you know of a non-commercial community site which you would like to suggest we include, please email the editor (see p.6). To advertise call 01392 201227.

Diary ads (examples below) cost £35.

Wiveliscombe Farmers’ Market Every Saturday 9.30-12.45 Outside the Community Centre, by Thorne's butchers

2014

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Award winning local producers' market including pesticide free veg, cheese, fish, apple juice, cider, gourmet meals, flowers and Tracebridge Sourdough’s breads and pastries.

-instore bakery-award winning producemarket leading offers-locally sourced products-alcohol-tobacco-post officeplus much much more!

Exmoor Spring 2016 109

Tel: 01884 841100 At Western Counties we have the skills and experience to diagnose and treat your horse whatever the problem.

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We provide a full range of ambulatory services across Devon & Somerset complemented at the hospital by a caring team of nurses providing 24 hour on-site nursing cover.

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Exmoor Directory

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Our modern stabling barn provides accommodation for 12 horses including intensive care and mare At Western Counties we have the skills At Western Counties we have the skills and foal boxes. Other new facilities and experience to diagnose and treat and experience to diagnose and treat include video-gastroscopy your horse whatever the problem for diagnosing gastric your horse whatever the problem. ulcers, remedial We have a dedicated team of equine farriery and We have a dedicated team of equine vets, including RCVS certificate holders Equine Veterinary Surgeries vets advanced RCVS certificate holders in inincluding equine practice, medicine and equine dentistry. equine practice, and of equine surgery providingmedicine a full range ambulatory surgery providing a fulland range of services across Devon Somerset ambulatory services across Devon complemented at the Hospital by &a caring ies we have the skills and experience to diagnose Somerset, complemented at the team of nurses providing 24 hourHospital on-site by a caring team of nurses providing 24 rse whatever the problem. nursing cover. hour on-site nursing cover.

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quine vets, including RCVS certificate holders inOur equine practice, vets have experience in all equestrian disciplines ranging racing and Our vets have a vastfrom knowledge of the ne surgery. competitions breeding andPoint pleasure Racing world,to covering many to ange of ambulatory services across Devon & Somerset Points and National Hunt meetings. We horses. the hospital by a caring team of nurses providing hour on-site offer24 a full range of services for the racing Full diagnostic services including endoscopy, client including, Tracheal Washes and radiography and ultrasonography are Blood Profiles, which are processed in our available at home with or atsame the hospital uding artificial insemination packages. on-site laboratory day results and veterinary interpretation.

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EX15 3LA accommodation for 12 horses including and Radiographic imaging are available roscopy intensive careorand mare and foal boxes. www.westerncountiesequinehospital.co.uk at your yard at the Hospital. tric Referrals accepted for surgery including arthroscopy, colic surgery and medical Please contact us on the number below cases including and neonatal to discussgastroscopy your requirements with ourcare.

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Williton Pet Care & Animal Feeds 01984 631508

e:willitonpetcare@btconnect.com Pet Foods & Accessories Wild Bird & Poultry Feeds Horse Feeds & Bedding Grooming Salon

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110 Exmoor Spring 2016

Pop in for low everyday prices, great special offers and friendly local service.

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FINAL PAWS

The Intrepid Terrier WORDS by Mary Bromiley PHOTOS by Ran and Ginny Fiennes

D

escribed in the Guinness Book of Records as the world's most famous living explorer, Sir Ranulph Fiennes is associated with the many inhospitable expeditions he has undertaken, these not for self-gratification but to raise money for charity; to date his efforts have generated just under ÂŁ18 million.

While there is plenty of information about his varied expeditions, little is said about his undoubted empathy with all animals, both wild and domesticated, although he might debate if this extends to polar bears!

Recently, when questions were invited at a lecture, a member of the audience put up her hand, "Sir Ranulph, surely it was very unkind to take a terrier to the North Pole?" His reply was courteous, "Madam, not a terrier, a Jack Russell, and Bothie is the only dog to have left his mark on both Poles." Intrigued, I knew I wanted to hear about Bothie's travels.

Since the initial concept in 1972, arranging the Transglobe Expedition (September 1979-April 1982) had taken seven years of careful planning. Life became tense during the final months and a friend, Peter Booth, deciding it was necessary to lighten the atmosphere, prescribed a dog. This suggestion was ignored until he turned up clutching a small bundle of fluff. It was love at first

Looking north across the sea-ice towards the Pole.

Exmoor Spring 2016 111

Final Paws sight, but Ran and Ginny Fiennes were about to set off for three years, experiencing temperatures ranging from desert heat to Arctic cold, the latter, to them, the most worrying. Veterinary advice was positive; the dog's coat would adapt to the cold, indeed, there were many dogs living happily in northern Canada at -50°.

The vet was more concerned about the change in temperature, from African heat to Antarctic cold, so it was decided that the new expedition member should miss that section, re-joining the team in South Africa for the 2,400 mile voyage to the Antarctic.

After a decision had been taken that he could accompany them, the long-haired Jack Russell needed a name. He was not a Peter and Booth did not have an easy ring. Roget's Thesaurus solved the problem: Booth, lean-to, shack, Bothie. Polar gear was designed and, as balls were a passion, despite stringent weight restrictions, a stock was included amongst the gear and supplies required for the ice crossings Ran and two colleagues would undertake.

After a joyous reunion in Cape Town, Bothie settled on board, discovering the galley remarkably quickly. In storm conditions, when the ship could execute 45° rolls, he wore a harness with lead firmly attached to a stanchion, but the main worry was lest he try to follow a ball should it roll overboard. Fortunately, he seemed to realise the danger, instead opting to stick his head through a scupper and look longingly out to sea.

On 2 January 1980 the cliffs of Antarctica were sighted, and when a safe anchorage was discovered the unloading of over 200 tons of cargo began. Bothie had stared in amazement at the crowds of Emperor Penguins and lolling seals whilst still on board.

Eventually, dressed in polar gear – red jacket, hood and bootees – he was taken ashore. His first act was to remove his bootees and hood. He had one altercation with a penguin then wisely

112 Exmoor Spring 2016

decided these odd creatures were best left alone. Fortunately, he was able to run for safety when, not dressed in his red jacket, he had ventured off from the working party and was attacked, from the sky, by a Southern Skua.

Radio communication was established, camps were built and supply caches organised, all necessitating long expeditions on skis from base camp. When the 24-hour dark of winter receded, all was ready for Ran's group to set off for the South Pole, leaving an isolated Ginny and Bothie to man the radio. On occasions when the journey became particularly frustrating or they were stuck in blizzards, their misery apparent on the crackling radio, Ginny would begin to sing, with Bothie howling in response, the transmitted cacophony never failing to cheer the dispirited team.

When the Pole was reached, Ginny and Bothie were flown to join Ran, by now at the nearby American base. The next stages of the trip were uneventful. Bothie, a seasoned traveller, used to ships, small aeroplanes and following those on skis, showed no surprise when he was included in the ceremonies associated with crossing the Equator.

The Arctic crossing was considerably more fraught than that of the Antarctic; the weather was unseasonable, the sea ice had not thickened, other teams were trying to beat Ran's record attempt and fire destroyed all equipment in the main store. But all this was over Bothie's head, for love had taken over in the shape of a Labrador cross Newfoundland bitch pup. Despite opposition, Blackdog became a member of the family.

When the expedition reached the North Pole, supplies were needed to complete the journey and Bothie was crammed into the supply plane, a Twin Otter, enabling him to congratulate his master and make his mark on the Union Jack flagpole.