There and Back

We had visited the Sherwood Pine cabins before, and enjoyed ourselves greatly. So this time we asked Hayley and Izobelle to share a cabin with us and it proved a good choice - enjoyed by all! This site is just a mile or so from the real Sherwood forest which was a place to visit during the week. This was our cabin set among the pines. To keep Izobelle amused, we had a choice of onsite activities. `Let's try archery` we thought. Obviously the smaller archers` had to use a smaller bow etc, but Izobelle quickly showed us all up with her accuracy, seeming not to be daunted by the whole process. Putting the bow back on the rack. The bow being nearly as big she is! Sculpture of Robin Hood and Little John fighting at Sherwood Forest Visitor Centre The Major Oak.  Whilst no one knows an exact age, we do know it’s been standing for anywhere between 800 – 1100 years. If we go by the earliest estimate, it has stood through the Vikings, the Battl...

Today we tried something that we had not done before, and that was to attend a Photographic walk with local photographer, Gillian Moon. (Gill)  This was a free walk, and about 8 to 10 of us  set off with Gill for an amble through the forest. Look Down and look Up  and find Textures said Gill and these are some of my results offered here! Looking down - a carpet of Pine cones. Violet Webcap - looking down Common Puffball - looking down Fungi unknown - looking down. Straight up the tree - looking up  Sawfly caterpillar on birch - looking up Textures on tree bark - Textures. These walks are a good idea for (a) Bringing like minded people together, and (b) having some useful tuition from Gill. Gill has a great website which is here. As you will quickly see, she loves Suffolk and Norfolk!    Index of posts

It is only in recent times that I came across an article about a nearby Church of `King Charles the Martyr`. I must confess that this was quite a surprise as I had never heard of one before, and this one was reasonable close to where we live. Having done some research, I paid a visit to get some photos of course, but also to see this quaint 18c Parish Church, having never heard of the village of Shelland where this church is situated. But first some background information surrounding the unusual name. Charles I, head of the House of Stuart, was King of England, Scotland, and Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his death on 30 January 1649. He believed in a sacramental version of the Church of England, called High Anglicanism, with a theology based upon Arminianism, a belief shared by his main political advisor, Archbishop William Laud. Laud was appointed by Charles as the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1633 and started a series of reforms in the Church to make it more ceremonial. This wa...

Marks Hall Arboretum and walled gardens are well worth a visit at any time of the year. We had visited at least twice this year already as they had 230 or so sculptures arranged around the site and it took us two visits to see them all. Plus it's just a great place to wander. Complete with great cafe - what's not to like! In 1163 the manor house and estate of Markshall were granted to the Markshall family after being confiscated from Hugh de Essex. It descended in the Markshall family until the estate was sold to John Cole, who renovated parts of the house. It was then sold to Edward Deraugh in 1581. In 1605 Robert Honywood purchased Marks Hall from Deraugh's grandson, William, pulled down part of the old timber-framed house and built a new brick building in 1609.  Decades passed, until Thomas Phillips Price (1844-1932), a Welsh landowner, mine owner, and Liberal politician, purchased Marks Hall, then a mansion and deer park, at auction in 1898. He made provision ...