Rivers, Lakes, and Tarns

 

Firstly, let me wish you all a happy summer. The solstice passed last week, so where better to start our journey than at a stone circle. No-one has come up with a definitive reason as to why these were built, but solstices and equinoxes figure in most theories. 

Cumbria is particularly rich in these megalithic monuments, with over fifty of them. This is probably a numbers game: given Cumbria's climate, there's a reasonable chance that an errant shaft of sunlight will fall upon at least one of them on Midsummer's Day. This one is Blakely Raise, near Ennerdale, which is where we're off to next. It's pretty well windswept moorland up here, but there are odd patches of Cotton Grass dotted about. It's quite a useful little plant of the sedge family, having been used for candle wicks, paper making, wound dressings, and pillow stuffing. The leaves and roots are edible, and it has been used medicinally for the treatment of gastrointestinal disorders. It is also the county flower of Greater Manchester. The last two facts are probably unconnected.

Meanwhile, over at Ennerdale, the Lepidoptera are out in force. Meadow Browns are two a penny, and the Burnet Moths are hatching in great abundance. Unfortunately, the Cleg Flies are also pretty numerous. Although attractive to look at (as flies go), they have a vicious bite. It is only the females that bite; they need a blood meal in order to reproduce (and who would begrudge them that?).

Let's head south now to Devoke Water. Although the Lake District is famous for its sixteen lakes, there are also nearly two hundred smaller bodies of water; the tarns. This is the largest of them and it is magnificently remote. Buzzards wheel in the sky overhead, Swallows skim the water, and the occasional Northern Wheatear stands guard. In the drystone walls that line the lane, Pied wagtails and Wrens are nesting and escort us down the road, politely asking us to be on our way. The shallow puddles around the edge of the tarn are a great place for dragonflies, a true harbinger of long, hot summer days.

Heading north via the village of Ulpha, we run alongside the upper reaches of the River Duddon (the estuary of which, we visited last summer). A lovely spot to stop and have a picnic. There are minnows in the shallows, and a Grey Wagtail flitting about. Growing on a rock, down in the rapids is a lonely little Selfheal. A nice little pot herb that can be eaten raw or boiled, it's name derives from its use in traditional medicine. Good for cuts, scratches and boils apparently.

And finally... some news from the Old Corn Mill. We have a new young Heron on the block, possibly the offspring of Harry and Sally. One of the Mallards has had five ducklings, and she's sharing our neck of the Derwent with a Goosander and her brood of four. It's a veritable avian soap opera outside my front door.

Steve's Vintage Collectables. (click to visit)

I've just opened a new section in the shop this week: Terrific Toys & Games. Pretty self indulgent really, as I love old board games. Pop in and take a look.

Steve's Books (click to visit)

Keep an eye out for me at Wordsworth House on Saturday lunchtime. Poets Out Loud are part of Cockermouth Live and I may even give you a blast of comic poetry from Chubby's Crematorium and Burger Bar.

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All the best,

Steve

Hanging on to Summer

 

Quite a lot of people suffer from SAD, Seasonal Affected Disorder. It's 8.30 in the morning as I write, it's tipping it down outside, it barely got light an hour ago, but there's something warming and comforting about viewing the outside world from my study window, all snug inside (even if the current energy crisis makes it injudicious to put the heating on!). Astronomically speaking, it is still Summer, at least until tomorrow (Friday 23^rd September). The equinox is a late one this year. The date varies because the calendar year is 365 days but the Earth actually takes 365 and a quarter days to travel around the Sun. But although the clocks go back at the end of next week, let us embrace the Autumn, season of mists and mellow fruitfulness as Keats put it, get out and about when we can and snuggle down when we can't.

Autumn is a great time for foraging. The brambles are laden with blackberries, hazelnuts are ripening nicely and the woods are full of delicious fungi. For those of you with gardens, it's harvest time, and one of my favourite places at this time of year is the kitchen. Stuffed marrow is on the menu tonight. Recipe in Steve's Wild Kitchen plus Stuffed Halloween Pumpkins.

Autumn is also a lovely time of year for bird watching. Taking Mattie for a walk, down on Parton beach earlier in the week, turned up a couple of Gull species, a Little Egret, a Redshank and a Curlew, plus a Northern Wheatear. This bird holds the record for the longest migration of any songbird at 9,000 miles each way from Alaska to sub-Saharan Africa and back.

Insects are still about too. In the past week I've seen grasshoppers, leafhoppers, beetles and butterflies and quite a number of the large, furry Fox Moth caterpillars. They are out and about looking for leaf litter in which to hibernate over winter. They will emerge in the Spring as fairly large moths, reddish brown in the case of the male and greyish brown in the female. Both sexes have two creamy lines across their wings.

Tips From Yesteryear

I try to live life simply, here at The Old Corn Mill, and often think back to how my grandparents used to do things (and I'm old enough to be a grandparent myself, so we're going back a bit). They didn't live in the throwaway age and nothing was ever wasted. Potatoes that had sprouted too much for the pot were returned to the earth where one potato produced a handful. The roots cut off spring onions were placed in a pot on the kitchen windowsill to produce another spring onion. It wasn't called recycling then, it was just what people did.

Talking of yesteryear, I'm pleased to say that my little on-line antiques shop, that I started at the beginning of the year, is doing rather well. This is in no small part due to the series of blogs I've been writing called 'Steve's History of Things', which gives some fascinating insights into the history of everyday objects. Here's a list of the series so far, and feel free to browse around the shop: Steve's Vintage Collectables

Steve's History of Things 1 Introduction		Steve's History of Things 2 5 Good Reasons to Buy EPNS
Steve's History of Things 3 Fielding's Musical Tankards		Steve's Hstory of Things 4 Jasperware
Steve's History of Things 5 Blood Pressure Monitors		Steve's History of Things 6 Chodov Porcelain
Steve's History of Things 7 The Pottery Detective			Next week: Royal memorabilia

Happy Equinox,

Steve

Beetles and Butterflies; spiders and scorpions; woodlice and worms. How do you tell them all apart? To say nothing of crane flies, dragonflies, bee flies and yet more butterflies. Are they all flies? If not, why call them so? If you're fascinated but confused by the beautiful world of the very small, then this is the book for you. 82 pages of information on all aspects of the world of minibeasts, with over 100 photographs and illustrations, this book will help you track down and identify any arthropod, in its adult or juvenile state, anywhere in the world. See all of my books at author.to/SteveDaniels

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