Pottering along through July into August

Trying to prove to myself that I'm not yet an old lady, I ran a 10 km race on a stupidly hot day mid July.  I look remarkably fresh beforehand and very beat after 1 hr 11 mins trotting in the heat.  Very grateful for St John's Ambulance start who were misting us with water at the water station!

JC finished building a raised bed in our garden.  I wasn't much help as my back isn't strong enough to lift more than ~20 kg of soil so he very much did the heavy lifting.

Our new sofa arrived so the old one went to sofa heaven, courtesy of the council kerbside pick up service.

JC went to Luxembourg for 10 days but whilst there his aunt died, so he stayed on for 2 weeks in total.  I am often not great when he's away.  I get lonely very quickly, and even though I keep myself busy I feel terribly sad and it takes quite an effort to 'choose happiness'.  Of course, I still function: I work, I feed myself, I do some exercise - but it's just under a more grey cloud than usual.

I went to see my nearest neighbour, TP5329, who is looking somewhat buried beneath vegetation.  I might take secateurs next time.

Talking of vegetation, our climbing rose in the house in Ottery St Mary fell off the wall.  So I spent a Sunday morning when JC was away trying to make headway on that.  I cleared off two bags of vegetation.

I moved offices at work and my new one has a deaf person who is accompanied by Eden, his guide dog for the deaf.  Eden is very cute and off putting in the nicest possible way.  She has a penchant for lying in the corridor in the middle of the room.

I finally discovered the benchmark on the local church, St Andrew's.  How I missed that for the last few months is bugging me.

JC arrived home last Friday and on Saturday he had his belated birthday present, a sea kayaking trip.  We paddled from Budleigh Salterton to Ladram Bay and back and it was glorious.  The Jurassic coastline is incredibly dry and the cliffs look as if they may crumble to dust at any moment - some huge cracks are very visible.

On Sunday we once again tackled the Ottery garden.  Our neighbour leant us a ladder and a saw which helped immensely.  You can now see the yard again.  He also served us fresh coffee which was much appreciated.  

This weekend has again been lovely.  It started with breakfast with Caitlin and Roger.  Caitlin had come to Exeter as she and Rog were off to France/Spain yesterday lunchtime, so I snuck in a coffee and catch up.  I also took her Christmas present sheep down to say 'hi' to her.  Sheep is too heavy, bulky and breakable to have yet made it back to London with Caitlin.

My aunt and uncle visited yesterday.  It is always a delight to see them and we had lunch al fresco, then a decent walk around all of Cullompton's sites. Of course, the first highlight for them was the trig.  The building works on the hill have just re-opened the access to the east side of the trig so I was able to bag the flush bracket number.

Linda and Rob are really interesting to walk with as they point out all sorts of features I march straight past.  For example, there was this marvellous fungi growing on the oak.  I also learnt about the hornbeam tree which I'd never heard of (I know, you're all shocked) and how identify it vs beech by its toothed leaves.  And elm trees with their asymmetric leaves.  The more I learn the more I realise I know very little.  

And today, our friends from Ottery trekked north for lunch with us.  Lovely to show Emma and Richard our new des res.  They are very taken by our wonky upstairs floors and Emma couldn't stop pruning our lavender.  I need all the input I can get on our garden - thanks!

 

Party time and a surprise extra visit

Sunday 05 July 2026

We celebrated Caitlin's 30th this Sunday with a braai - I much prefer the South African word for it.  Caitlin and Riona arrived fresh from camping, Mark trained down from Cardiff and Rog drove up the B3181.  JC and I had purchased a bbq for the occasion and Rog christened it with its first usage.

I made the birthday pavlova, and Riona and I discovered that sparkly candles light more easily if they have an 'end', so the 3 lit and burnt down before we'd even got the 0 up and running!   Honoured that Caitlin chose to spend her special day with the old parents ;-)

Caitlin had lots of presents, but the garden sheep was too heavy to carry back this time, so it's temporarily keeping penguin company in the fern corner.  They are having a ball.

I waved everyone off, saying to Riona "not sure when I'll see you next, but I'm not coming to Cardiff as I've been lots this year".  

Monday 06 July 2026

15 hours later I was on the phone to Riona asking if I could stay the night.  It turned out that one of my colleagues was unexpectedly unable to attend an event in Cardiff on the Tuesday, so I gallantly offered to attend.  I drove home from the office after lunch, packed and took the train up to Cardiff, spending a lovely evening chez Riona and Mark munching melon and wedding planning.

 

Tuesday 07 July 2026

I attended a coastal group meeting in the morning, then enjoyed a tour of the Cardiff Barrage in the afternoon.  I hadn't realised the lagoon was freshwater and that the scheme had to be approved by an Act of Parliament, such was the opposition to it.  Environmentally, it was moving from a tidal bay to a freshwater lagoon, a massive switch.  There were also complaints from marine traffic about having to use locks rather than coming and going as they pleased (which they never actually did as they could only navigate a few hours either side of high tide, but anyway...).  

Aesthetically, Senedd Cymru, the Welsh Parliament, is more appealing with permanent water in front, rather than a mud frontage at low tide.  And the redevelopment of the frontage has bought much business/tourism to the area: whether this is a good thing depends on your view on commercial regeneration.  I learnt that the minimum water level is 4 m above Ordnance Datum and when there is a large storm, bringing vast volumes of run off down the Rivers Taff and Ely, the tide gates are locked preventing the marine tide from exacerbating the water levels.  

I also discovered that the slipway/slope in front of the concert hall is a flood plain, and designed to be flooded/store water in extreme weather events.  Sorry, no photo, so probably only those who've been to Cardiff Bay know what I'm talking about.

It was very hot but super geeky stroll, crocodile included.  

Such a lovely weekend, with a little cherry on the cake of 22 hours in Cardiff.

 

Newcastle and south

Friday 12 June 2026

We arrived in Newcastle Friday night, checked in and had magnificent views of the Tyne from our hotel.  It was worth the spendy penny.

We travelled by metro to Jesmond that evening.  We were amused by the metro advert - which only makes sense if you knew where we used to live. 

We ate in the amazing Dosa Kitchen.  You enter around the back yard and you wouldn't know it was there, however the food was super lovely.  

I lived in Jesmond for my last year at university, Flat L in Eskdale Terrace.  For my first two years at uni I lived in Castle Leazes, on Leazes Moor, which have been knocked down (the student establishments, not the moor) so this was the last standing memory of my accommodation.  It gets worse tomorrow...

Saturday 13 June 2026

Today was the BIG trip down memory lane.  JC and I strolled up Grey Street and then I disappeared into the bowels of the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.  Oh my goodness, the students union, the red brick arches where most people read their degree results, it was great to be back.  

We met in the current Geospatial Sciences building and then went on tour of the campus. The equipment store of the geospatial sciences course was mighty fancy, but I wasn't able to distract anyone to nick a bit for my team.

This is where I graduated. 

The Old Brewery Building, where I had lived and breathed surveying sciences for my 3 years, was no more.  In its hey day, the door code had been set by a professor to 206265.  For the uninitiated, it is the number of seconds in a radian (rounded up).  It was the most amazing place I inhabited for 3 years, with the most awesome door code I've ever known.  But it was flattened for student accommodation.  Memories swiped.

In an interlude, I met with JC and Libby, my friend's daughter, for Indian street food in the Grainger Market.  

That evening I met up with fellow colleagues near Byker.  Much reminiscing, but a little sad that none of my graduation year had turned up.  However, I knew plenty of other surveyors, as many of us are still circulating in the industry.  

Sunday 14 June 2026

Time to head home, but not without one more wander around the quayside.  So many memories!

We drove south and visited Fountains Abbey.  It was well worth a visit to discover how the Cistercian monks ran the community until it was closed down by Henry VII.  

It was then incorporated into Studley Royal in the 18th Century and now is a UNESCO site, 

Monday 15 June 2026

This morning, I met one of my best friends from university for coffee which was supremely lovely.  Then JC and I headed south, with a pit stop at Hanbury Hall.  It was a summer retreat for Thomas Vernon (1654-1721) and celebrated for its wall and ceiling paintings by James Thornhill.

Not really my thing, but beautiful grounds.

 

In all, a super lovely, long weekend up north and must go back again soon ;-)

Northumbria

In the late 1980s, I had the most awesome 3 years studying Surveying Sciences at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne.  Over the decades, the popularity of this course peaked and dipped and, then sadly, as it failed to reach university targets for applications, the undergrad course closed.  However, rather than run a wake, the Geomatics team organised a celebratory reunion which explains why JC and I had a road trip north in June.

Tuesday 09/Wednesday 10 June 2026

We drove up to Northumberland in stages, staying on Tuesday night in a functional hotel off the M1 near Nottingham. On Wednesday we drove up past Newcastle, stopping first at Warkworth Castle.  This was a surprisingly interesting castle: I'm slack at history so hadn't high hopes for being entertained.  However, help was at hand with the audio guide, meaning JC was free to loiter and take pictures, whilst I ticked off the spoken tour.

The more I learnt of this site, and its 15th Century heyday, the more I felt blessed that I am a free woman of the 20th Century, able to work, have kids and create a home without feudal restrictions.  The audio tour focused on one of the ladies who lived there and had a son - absolutely no freedom and pretty much one job in life, to procreate.  It's also quite irksome that the history of the site by English Heritage only mentions men.  

Moving on, lovely views of Amble.  And lovely view of JC taking a snap for his parents - it's the rare time he uses his phone not his camera. ;-)

We drove on up to Craster and walked to Dunstanburgh Castle.  As a trustee of the South West Coast Path I was interested to see the England Coast Path sign.  I'll get onto that one day...

Dunstanburgh

 

Such wonderful, expansive coastline up here.

We dined at The Ship Inn at Low Newton (thanks for the recommendation team Granger) and loved the light over the beach after supper.  

Thursday 11 June 2026

We were staying at Seahouses and had a planned trip, including landing, to the Inner Farnes today.  Unfortunately, there was too much rain forecast so our trip was cancelled and we rescheduled to a 2 hour birds and seals trip.  Although it was disappointing that we couldn't land on the islands to see the puffins up close, it was wonderful to sail past both the inner and outer isles wondering at the amazing wildlife.  Lovely day for a sea trip.

The birds didn't mind the weather either and flew, squawked, soared and swooped as they should.

We saw numerous common guillemots, atlantic puffins, kittiwakes, arctic terns and shags (or were they cormorants?).

The grey seal were also bobbing around.  You can just seen a head appearing in the shot of the Longstone Lighthouse.

The rain passed and we headed to Bamburgh to explore/take photos. What a beautiful castle!

I loved the Black Rocks Point Lighthouse which I found very anthropomorphic with its eyes and nose.  

The rock pools were fantastic to explore.

I did get a tad bored waiting for the photographer to finish his photoshoot so I wandered to and fro to create a little message via Strava.

Friday 12 June 2026

Today was Lindisfarne/Holy Island Day.  We drove across the causeway promptly after breakfast, to have a full day there whilst we were cut off by the tide.  As expected, I got far more excited about this than most people would, as I love a tidal lock-down.

We parked up and went on a long(ish) explore of the island.  We walked up to the neck (west of the image below) and admired the long, windswept sands.

 

It was pretty breezy, but the rain held off and we had a lovely walk around the coastline before heading to Lindisfarne Castle.  

Lindisfarne Castle was a 16th Century fortress, that had served its purpose and became defunct, before being snapped up by Edward Hudson in 1902.  He had it remodelled assisted by the architect Edward Lutyens and gardener Gertrude Jekyll.  

We then visited Lindisfarne Priory, established in 634 AD. It was the home of Cuthbert and continued as a monastery, with the famous Lindisfarne Gospels dating from the early 8th Century. It was dissolved by Henry VII in 1536, became a naval store but fell into ruin. 

It was such a remote and peaceful place to explore, and the last spot on our Northumberland trip before heading south...