Rambles with Reg

Hello everyone. It's been months since I last wrote a blog, although I have tried several times to get some words down. It's been quite a busy summer, but more of that in another blog.Today, for the first time in ages I have felt the urge to create a blog, so this one is completely out of date sequence but will, hopefully, pave the way for an absolute torrent of blogs shortly!

 I am currently doing a house sit only about 15 minutes from home but it is on a farm situated down a long driveway with only one neighbour and is incredibly quiet and peaceful. My charges consist of a few poultry, 3 cats and Reg the Labrador. Apart from feeding everything and letting the poultry in and out, my only real job is to walk Reg twice a day. The morning walk is usually the longer of the two because that's when I feel most energetic, and the weather has also been better then as well. Today there was the first frost of the year and it was quite sharp down here in the little valley where the farm is situated. After everyone had been fed and the chickens and geese let out of their houses, Reg and I set off. 

I love these beautiful early autumn days: conkers and craneflies, frosts and fruits, mists and mud! We decided (it was a mutual decision) to head off along a footpath that winds through trees and beside a stream before turning almost at right-angles and climbing uphill past the ruins of an old papermill.   

The wall of the mill and mill race

The weir by the mill

 I may have written about this before, but it's worth revisiting (in my opinion). There were many paper mills in Somerset in the early 19th century situated mainly along the line of the Mendips owing to the purity of the spring water and the one here at Stoke Bottom, near Stoke St Michael, produced watermarked writing paper of a fine quality and also processed logwood which is a tropical hardwood that produces a rich purple dye. Unfortunately, I could find no reference to what this was used for within the paper industry. The mill gave rise to a small hamlet, all traces of which have since disappeared apart from some crumbling walls in the grounds of the 'big house' which was, presumably, the mill owner's dwelling.

The mill had fallen into disuse by the end of the 19th Century but the weir and mill race still exist as do the imposing stone pillars on either side of what must have been the driveway to the mill and house.

The stone pillared gateway

 

This driveway is now a washed out footpath with large ankle-busting stones tumbled everywhere and this is the way that Reg and I took to get into the top field and then out onto a lane. We went straight across the lane and entered a fairly scrubby field where there are many youngish oak trees that, this year, are absolutely laden with acorns. In the woods proper there are a lot of mature oaks and the ground is literally carpeted with acorns. I tried to stop myself but about 10 acorns made their way into my pocket to be planted later when I get home! 

Immature oak laden with acorns

A carpet of acorns!

We entered the woods near the ruins of the old Keeper's Cottage which is now a protected bat roost and went down the slightly vertiginous stone steps to cross the bridge over the stream and up some more steps on the other side. When we did this walk the other day we kept to the well-defined footpath but today Reg was most insistent that we went along 'the path less travelled'. He knows these woods much better than I do so I let him lead the way with me slipping, sliding and stumbling after him. At one point I had to crawl under a fallen tree that had obviously come down fairly recently. The wood is mixed woodland with mature oaks, beech, conifers and some very diseased ash trees. In fact I got quite nervous when we were walking there the other day as the wind was strong and gusty and some of the trees are very tall. 

Mixed woodland against an autumn sky

Eventually, Reg brought us out, through a grassy, sunlit glade, onto a path I recognised that dipped back down to the stream and a pool into which Reg immediately plunged. He was very disgruntled that I hadn't thought to bring a ball for him to retrieve and showed his disdain by chewing up every stick I threw in for him. He is a funny dog! 

Reg feeling disgruntled

An old stone bridge over the stream

We came out into a field where there are some cows and calves but they took no notice of Reg and he took no notice of them, which was a relief as I'm never sure how these encounters are going to go. From there we climbed over a stile back onto a lane and came back to the farm on another footpath that goes past the bottom of the papermill, where I found (and picked) a bag of sloes. I've missed most of the blackberries this year as they ripened so early and took me by surprise, along with the elderberries, but at least there'll be sloe gin for Xmas.

Autumn bounty - sloes

Another view of the mill ruins

I'm glad that I've finally got some words down and it will, hopefully, have released the writer's block so that I can get you up to date with summer's happenings. Much love and autumn blessings to you all. x