There and Back

Flatford Mill is a beautiful site at most times of the year, but the appearance of a good frost said `off to Flatford and a walk by the river`. What we were not expecting was the whole area covered in a Hoar frost. Beautiful! This image is of Bridge Cottage from the start of the Deham riverside walk.  So onto the different types of frost (nothing is simple is it?) Ground frost - A ground frost refers to the formation of ice on the ground, objects or trees, whose surface have a temperature below the freezing point of water. During situations when the ground cools quicker than the air, a ground frost can occur without an air frost. A grass frost, an un-official type of ground frost, can occur when other surfaces - such as concrete or road surfaces - don't experience a frost, due to their better ability at holding onto any warmth. It is possible for a grass frost to occur in late spring or even early summer when the risk of more wide-spread frosts has disappeared a...

The Mill at Flatford was once owned by John Constable’s father and Constable made the Mill and the surrounding area the subject of many of his works of art, which are now world famous. The famous `Willie Lott`s Cottage` at Flatford, taken in 2011 on a summer evening.  Valley Farm is the oldest building on site at Flatford. Built in the mid-15th century and is a good example of a medieval, open hall house which is now a Grade 1 listed building.  At one time Willy Lott's grandparents (English and Mary Lott) lived at Valley Farm and it was later owned by Willy Lott’s brother John (a farmer like his brother) who lived there with his wife and 14 children. Up until the 1930's Valley Farm was surrounded by buildings for all sorts of different agricultural uses. A fire in the 1930s destroyed nearly all of them.  Outside, the walls were timbered and painted with lime wash at regular intervals to preserve the timber frame and seal the gaps between the timbers ...