I recently finished reading a book ‘Telford The Making of Shropshire’s New Town’. I moved to Telford at a very young age (my dad worked for the development corporation) and have grown up with the Town.
I have always appreciated the lovely green spaces within the town but until I read the book I had not realised just how much effort had been put in to encourage and allow industrial wasteland to be reclaimed by nature. Alongside planning the development of new housing the landscaping of the town involved the planting of around 15 million trees creating a ‘city within a forest’.
In 2018 to celebrate Telford’s 50th anniversary a new walking trail ‘The Telford T50 50 Mile Trail’ was researched and developed by local walking groups. Since then I have been looking forward to the publication of the guidebook to the walk.
The book launch was today and although I was not able to attend the ceremony, later in the day I was able to make a short walk in the rain to pick up a copy from the Telford Park information centre.
I spent and indulgent afternoon reading it from cover to cover and have planned my first walk. It takes in a local walk that I often do and also another local walk that I have been meaning to do for over a year…
I have been inspired and know I will walk that section of the T50 50 route very soon 
You can read more about the trail and download walks routes on the Telford T50 Trail website, although I would recommend that you purchase the guidebook. The guidebook provides comprehensive information about the industrial heritage and history of the area and also takes us on a journey to enjoy nature within the created ‘city’, leading to unexpected delights.
Below are some photos from some of my walks that coincide with the full route that I have not yet walked.
Tags: #walk1000miles, City within a forest, New Town, Shropshire, T50 50 Mile Trail, Telford
My previous post shared my afternoon canal experiences courtesy of a Christmas gift.
Today Mr C and I were booked in for a Wedgwood Ceramic Experience with Afternoon Tea (another Christmas gift).
We used the SatNav so that we could take early morning traffic situations into account. We were directed along a delightful countryside route which was enhanced by it being a lovely sunny morning.
To our surprise we arrived at the Wedgwood factory a lot earlier that either we or the SatNav predicted. We had 45 minutes to spare…
Now what should a girl do with all that time? Sit in the car and wait patiently or get out and explore the area…
Mr C prefered to sit in the car whilst I went out to explore. I enjoyed the landscaped gardens near to the factory and found woodlands beyond. I need to go back and enjoy a walk in the woodlands
Later in the day we enjoyed chilling out on our patio as the sun went down. Our visiting bat (from the local woodlands) chose to briefly grace us with his appearance
Tags: #walk1000miles, 1000 miles, A Christmas Gift, Afternoon tea, Ceramics, Decorating, Gift, Wedgwood, World of Wedgwood
The photo I posted yesterday to accompany my ‘Cherie’s Place Thought’ was taken by Mr C whilst we were enjoying a lovely lazy sunday.
Our first port of call was a boatyard near Trevor basin to board a longboat for a leisurely lunch as we travelled along the canal (the lunch experience was a Christmas gift). The boat journey culminated in spectacular views as we travelled across the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and back. WOW!
After our lunch experience we were not quite ready to return home. We parked at Blackwater Meadow marina near Ellesmere. From there we had a gentle stroll along the canal path and through the Ellesmere Tunnel, taking in the view of Black Mere pool before retracing our steps to the marina and our car.
Tags: #walk1000miles, 1000 miles, A Christmas Gift, Blackwater Marina, Canal pathway, Ellesmere, Ellesmere Tunnel, Jones the Boats, Pontcysyllte Aqueduct, Shropshire Way, There's Always One, Walk
Love each other.
John 15:17
Photo taken by Mr C
All too soon our holiday had come to an end and it was time to return home. As we we were checking out of the hotel I couldn’t resist photographing the two permanent residents in their cosy home underneath the hotel reception desk.
We were in no rush to get home, allowing us to choose one last adventure. We decided to visit Berkeley Castle, which has some fascinating exhibits within its walls. On our way to the castle we heard singing as we walked past St Mary the Virgins’ Church. Later in the day, after lunch, we visited the church which has a lovely interior interesting historical features.
Before visiting the church we visited the castle’s butterfly house briefly (it was so hot and humid), where a butterfly took a fancy to me and almost landed on my head. I flinched (oops) and it fluttered on by…
We also visited Dr Jenner’s House and Museum which is next to the castle. Dr Jenner was the pioneer of vaccination against smallpox leading to its eradication.
Once we had finished exploring we headed home in glorious sunshine, stopping off to pick up some tasty ingredients to enjoy fine dining (at home) later in the day.
Tags: #walk1000miles, 1000 miles, Berkeley Castle, Dr Jenner's House, Museum, St Mary the Virgin's Church, Vacation
Our plan for the day was to visit Dorchester having changed our plans and bypassed it earlier in the week. I was keeping an eye on the weather and thinking about a visit to Muchelney Abbey, a place recommended as a wet weather visit by the member of staff we got chatting to whilst visiting Sherborne Old Castle. We chose Muchelney Abbey in Langport as sunshine and clouds were forcast there rather than the rain that was forecast in all other areas nearby. Muchelney Abbey is interesting with many rooms intact and has the only complete thatched monks’ lavatory in England.
While we were at Muchelney Abbey we had a long chat with the member of staff that was manning the entrance desk. We discussed the history of the area and some of its links to history in Shropshire. Later we walked around the corner to visit the Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul. As we entered we were surprised to see a groom with his best man and ushers and noticed that the church was all decked out ready for a wedding. They were just about to leave so were able to spend a few minutes to enjoying the features of the church without disrupting their preparations.
We then drove to Barrington Court, restored by Colonel Lyle between 1920 and 1925. We enjoyed a walk around the gardens before lunch, after which we took a tour of the house.
There was still time to spare so we visited Tintinhull Garden which we had noticed earlier in the day whilst we were on our way to Muchelney Abbey. Before walking around the gardens we had tea and cake, in my case cranberry and yoghurt flapjack. The gardens were delightful.
Before dining in the hotel, we had a sparkling elderflower gin and tonic aperitif. In celebration of World Gin Day the hotel was promoting this cocktail which included a sprig of elderflower from its own kitchen garden. Whilst dining we noticed that another couple had chosen the tasting menu and that they were being served at a much more leisurely pace than we had been the day before.
Tags: #walk1000miles, 1000 miles, Barrington Court, English Heritage, G&T, Langport, Muchelney Abbey, National Trust, Parish Church of St Peter and St Paul, Tintinhull Garden, Vacation
When we awoke we found that the weather was wet so we decided to visit the Royal Signals Museum. The museum is situated within Blandford Forum military camp meaning we had to sign in and show photo ID. I was signed in by a former Gurkha who gave me precise details for getting to the museum and about what to do with the temporary passes when we left. He then helpfully advised that photography was allowed inside the museum (but not outside) without me having to ask.
The museum is excellent. It tells the story of military communications from semaphore to cyber. We had a cup of NAAFI tea before leaving the museum and depositing our temporary passes in the designated place.
As we headed into Blandford for lunch at The Georgian Tea Rooms the weather improved. I chose Dorset Apple Cake for lunch because I had not seen it available anywhere we had previously eaten. Afterwards Mr C visited a nearby second hand bookshop. Whilst he was browsing I noticed a book; “The RSPB Guide to Birdsong With CD” which I couldn’t resist buying. I have been enjoying the birdsong in my garden recently and have not been able to identify the birds from their songs so the CD will help (I hope). Mr C came away with another two military books to add to his collection.
Next port of call was an English Heritage property called Fiddleford Manor. It was very interesting but rather brief so we had time on our hands.
We opted to visit Sherborne Old Castle which had a lovely atmosphere and is an idyllic setting above the New Castle. As we were leaving, we got chatting to the member of staff manning the kiosk and he told us of other English Heritage properties nearby, one of which was Farley Hungerford Castle. I mentioned that, when we had visited there many years ago, I had felt a presence (not unpleasant) as I walked down into the chapel. To which he replied ‘yes there is’ and proceeded to tell me of (orb activity) that he had witnessed over the tombs when he worked there. Going on to say that the orbs acted differently, sometimes more animated depending on the visitor (captured on CCTV). He also advised that several people had witnessed a ghost dressed in black. Things that make you go “Hmmm”…
We returned to the hotel but, before chilling out, I went for a brief walk into town which upped my step count for the day. We dined in The Green for a second time and found it rather quiet for a Friday evening. The waiter advised that we should visit the Cross Keys for a drink as it had re-opened that day after being closed for a while. I thought it had a nice atmosphere but Mr C wasn’t so keen he would rather have been in a traditional pub.
Tags: #walk1000miles, 1000 miles, Blandford Camp, Dorset, Dorset Apple Cake, English Heritage, Fiddleford Manor, Sherborne Old Castle, The Georgian Tea Rooms, The Royal Signals Museum
