The Sedbergh Sheepspotter: August 2009

Bolton Abbey: By the river Wharfe (Ari, Emma & Mili)

Dear friends,

It's Sheepspotter time again! We hope August has been a good month for you. This is what's been happening here:

The Arts

A couple of concerts: one folk, one classical.

Folk: We listened to these musicians:
http://www.myspace.com/lakelandfiddlers at this brewery:

http://www.hawksheadbrewery.co.uk/?The_Beer_Hall

Classical: Nigel Morgan is a contemporary composer who has been inspired to write a couple of pieces by the place I go on Sunday mornings, Brigflatts Quaker Meeting. One of these is called Le Jardin Pluvieux (Rainy Garden - very appropriate!). The premiere of the second, 'Improving Silence', (based on three Quaker texts):

http://www.nigel-morgan.co.uk/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=207
took place at the Meeting House on 1st August.

Food and drink
We visited the Wensleydale Creamery http://www.wensleydale.co.uk/ and tasted their range. Our top two varieties were Wensleydale and cranberry and Cheddar with caramelized onion.

We discovered, during a visit to the Black Bull in Coniston, that the Coniston Brewing Company's ales http://www.conistonbrewery.com/coniston-ales.htm include one called Oliver’s Light Ale. This is now Oli's favourite beer!

Sport/health and fitness

We watched the fellrunning (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fell_running) at the Dentdale show:

http://www.dentdale.com/Dent_Fell_Race/dentfellrace.htm . Our MP was among the runners in the men's race (Tim Farron -141)!

Nature

Also at the Dentdale show, we saw some of the birds of prey from Corio Raptor Care and Rehabilitation: http://www.raptor.org.uk/index.asp

Timone the barn owl http://www.raptor.org.uk/gallery_large.asp?picnum=4 was our favourite.

August’s walk
By the river Wharfe at Bolton Abbey:
http://www.boltonabbey.com/whattodo/walking.htm
(see photo above).

Hope all is well with you and yours.
More news at the end of September.
Love, Alison

Photos: Beauty Learning II

York 1: Central Tower, York Minster: http://www.yorkminster.org/ :

the largest Gothic Cathedral in Northern Europe. With my schoolfriend Sandie.

York 2: The city walls, with Sandie.

Near Sawrey: Emma reading the Tale of Benjamin Bunny:
http://www.childrensbooksonline.org/Tale_of_Benjamin_Bunny/index.htm
in the Tower Bank Arms: http://www.towerbankarms.co.uk/,
the pub next to Beatrix Potter's house, Hill Top.

Bolton Abbey:

http://www.boltonabbey.com/

Stepping stones across the river Wharfe (a bit scary in the middle!).

Carlisle: Inside the Castle

http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server.php?show=nav.13665

Lancaster: The Priory church
http://www.priory.lancs.ac.uk/

Morecambe: This statue is a memorial to Eric Morecambe (real name Eric Bartholomew - he took his stage name from this town where he was born), half of the comedy duo Morecambe and Wise. They were most popular comic act of their time - over half the population of the UK (28.8m) watched their 1977 Christmas Show. The lyrics of their signature tune 'Bring me sunshine' http://www.morecambeandwise.com/morecambeandwise_songlyrics.aspx?s=1
are inscribed in the steps below the statue.

Dent 1: Mili in Stone Close cafe

Dent 2: Ari in the Meditation Centre:

http://www.meditationcentre.co.uk/

Grasmere: As well as being the home of the poet William Wordsworth, Grasmere is also famous for its gingerbread!

http://www.grasmeregingerbread.co.uk/

Hadrian's Wall 1: The Northern limit of the Roman Empire. These days a world heritage site:

http://www.hadrians-wall.org/
(Emma and Ari)

Hadrian's Wall 2: Housesteads Roman Fort.

http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server.php?show=nav.13244

Looking South across the commandant's house.

Mili, Ari and Emma left last weekend

More photos soon,

from

Beatriz, Pilar and Alison

Photos: Beauty learning I

I asked Ari(adna) and Emma (from Igualada, near Barcelona, Spain) and Mili from Prague to think of a title for their photos whilst they were on the Ullswater Steamer. This was Ari's suggestion. Great concept, Ari!

Sedbergh 1: New arrivals

Sedbergh 2: The highlight of Oli's summer (with Emma & Ari).

Sedbergh 3: Ari in Westwood Books (http://www.westwoodbooks.co.uk/)
- the biggest of Sedberghs's 7 bookshops

Kendal 1: The market place.

One of Kendal's traditional industries was footwear.

'K' shoes were based here before they were bought out by Clarks.

The name survives in the K range: http://www.clarks.co.uk/womens/kshoes

Kendal 2: Sunday afternoon at the Brewery Arts Centre:

http://www.breweryarts.co.uk/

with The Fabulous Picasso Brothers

http://www.fabulouspicassobrothers.com/

Coniston: Brantwood, the home of John Ruskin.
http://www.brantwood.org.uk/

Hardraw Force 1: For those of you who have been here before, cross this bridge and you get...

Hardraw Force 2:...a slightly different view of the waterfall (Emma)!

Staveley, near Kendal: Mili at a traditional music session led by the Lakeland Fiddlers:

http://www.myspace.com/lakelandfiddlers

at Hawkshead Brewery: http://www.hawksheadbrewery.co.uk/?The_Beer_Hall

Ullswater: On the Steamer. The flag is the Red Ensign.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Ensign

Castlerigg Stone Circle:

http://www.visitcumbria.com/kes/casstone.htm

Keswick: Rowing on Derwentwater.

Hana and Šarka you started a trend....now there's competition!

Second series to follow....

A

Photos: Abracadabra!

Abrakadabra is the name of the theatre and dance group Anna belongs to in Witten, Germany.
This is Abrakadabra in action....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vDSZ879F34
This is Abracadabra! in Sedbergh.....

Sedbergh 1: Sedbergh welcomes Anna back....

Sedbergh 2: Oli is delighted to see her again....

Sedbergh 3: ...and so are the sheep!

Kendal: OK, so now we've got the sunglasses...where's the sun?

Bowness 1: Another rowing location....

Bowness 2: (In Fat Face: http://www.fatface.com/)

Calling all VW Campervan fans.....

Howgill, near Sedbergh 1: (At a camp organised for the children (and adults!) of Brigflatts Quaker meeting: http://www.brigflatts.org/). The campfire....

Howgill 2: ...and Liz, Andy, Daniel and Rachel's Spaniel, Sammy.

Liverpool: Stanley Street: Eleanor Rigby statue (Anna with Emma and Ariadne)

Manchester: Old Trafford: Anna and Ronaldo. Gone but not forgotten....

More photos next week,

from Emma, Ariadne, Miluska and Alison