Dorset: Touristy Travelling

As I mentioned yesterday, Dorset is stunning. It is right next door to Devon, so they are quite similar. There are so many touristy things to do! Here are a few of the things I saw and did:

West Bay

This was about 15 min from where I was staying. It is a little coastal village along the English Channel and is home to the Jurassic Coast. As England`s first world heritage site, I would say that it`s a "can't miss." Of course, my love for rocks and the sea do make me a tad bit biased ;)

I went here with the Helen and Lucy on my first night in Dorset. It was a little overcast, but the waves were powerful and the wind was strong. I really enjoyed it! We walked up and down the boardwalk. In the summer there is a little ice cream stand along the dock, I'm told it's been there for ages. Stop and have an ice cream while visiting. Ice cream makes everything even more enjoyable.


Beaminster and Bridport

I visited both of these towns on different days. Beaminster is smaller, but the town square boasts a couple cute little shops. I especially love the Cilla and Camilla store- be sure to stop in. We were there because H and L had hair appointments, so I had some time to kill. I headed to a local coffee shop for a cuppa (cup of tea). It was so nice and made me feel like a natural woman local.

We then headed down the road to a little craft centre outside of town. Mom, you would have LOVED this place. There are about 5 or 6 shops, but some are bigger than others. The first one we went into was full of glass beads and glass goodies. I was terrified to break everything. The next place had a lot of nic-nacs that you could personalize. This shop would be great for birthdays, but alas, it is in Dorset. There was also an art gallery and a stone/feng shui/karma type shop.

Finally, we hit the motherload. I don't know what its called, but it is the original shop that started the centre. And it is fabulous. Scarves and teapots and gardening stuff and home decor and stationary and fascinators. OH the fascinators. I wanted to buy all of them, but settled with a peach one. Just wait until you see it- it is brilliant.

Now, Bridport. We went in for an eye appointment and to run some errands (to get things for L's prom! eek!). They have a local museum though, so we stopped in for a gander.

It is down a little side street and is free to the public. Be sure to stop. There is a vast array of information on Bridport. You see, Bridport used to be a huge rope-making town. They have crazy wide roads because they would stretch the rope across the streets to dry. But back to the museum- there is this video that you can watch that explains so much about the 'old way of life' and about the rope making. It is narrated by locals that were part of it. I was interested the entire time. I learned so much. You see, there used to be hooks outside of everyone's front door to make fish nets. The moms would weave the nets as the children would make sure that needles stayed threaded. They were paid about a penny for every 20 needles- a fortune back then. It really was a family affair.


Weymouth
I went to Weymouth with Josie, the lovely Dorset County organizer. She picked me up at the Wallbridge's to move house on the Friday I was there. On our way in to Dorchester, where she works, we stopped at Weymouth.

You may have heard the name before because it's where Aaron lives the Olympic sailing will be taking place! They had just opened a viewing tower when I was there:

The town was so nice! We drove along a main drag that was right on the beach. There were army guys on the beach doing training exercises and the water was so blue! I wish I could have gone for a swim.

We then made our way past the people and full marinas to Portland. We saw Chesil Beach which was quite neat!


Dorchester

Dorchester was a stop-over of sorts. I was on my way to Stalbridge to stay with my second host family and I got the chance to explore the city a bit.

I mostly did some window shopping down a street that is closed to traffic. Sadly, I don't know the name BUT I do know that shopping in Dorchester is very nice! I went to Thorntons Chocolate and purchased the most delicious chocolate I have ever had. Ever. I went back and bought three more to take home ;)

You see friends, I wish I could go into detail about all the fabulous shops, but let's be honest here. I'm more of a window shopper :) I did, however, make my way into this one shop, Medusa Apothecary. It was all SO expensive. Nice, but Expensive. I left empty handed.

But I did find a little gem- The Dorchester Wildlife Garden:

And while it was overcast and wet, the garden was lovely. I was the only person there- my own secret garden!

Now, there is TONS to do in Dorchester, but I only had about an hour or so to explore. If you go, make your way to the nearest visitor information centre and get some pamphlets. There is so much to do- including a King Tut museum!

Some other things that you should do in Dorset(and surrounding areas):

Stonehenge: I cannot even tell you how much I loved seeing Stonehenge. I didn't think I was going to see it. The first night that I was at Tom and Louise's, they asked if I wanted to see it. It was only 45mins away. It was the day after the Solstice so there was tons of security and it was locked up. BUT it was sunset, and I LOVED it.

Cerne Abbas Giant:

Yup, it's quite...large. The chalk drawing is 180 ft tall. It's supposed to help fertility. Read more.

Gold Hill: It's the site of the famous Hovis Bread Commercial. The hill is in Shaftsbury and is SO STEEP.

I also visited Sherbourne Abbey (SO PRETTY) and King Alfred's tower, just to name a few. The thing about England is that every little town has something to see and to do. You need to make friends with a local and just explore. You will not be disappointed by what you find :)

Dorset

Dorset is along the West border of Devon. Known for their apple cakes, Dorset is a smaller county with mega charm and beauty.

It is similar in landscape to Devon- hedges and fields. But according to Jonathan, the hills are higher and the valleys are deeper. Let's just take a moment to appreciate it:

Yeah, it's beautiful- I know ;)

While in Dorset, I stayed with two of the nicest families I have ever met. For my first bit, I stayed with the Wallbridge family:

Kevin, Helen, Lucy and I (James, Lucy's brother is missing from the photo)

They live in Hooke on a dairy/beef farm with a few chickens and five sheep. Oh, and a dog and three cats. They were amazing. The entire family was so kind and hospitable. Lucy is just 16 and my first day in Dorset was her first day of summer. She was so sweet and we hit it off right away- I miss her already and I really hope that she comes to visit me in Canada. She is a very wise gal and will do some great things in life (perhaps it will include her own flock: Lucy's Lambs).

The farm is Holstein/Fresian crosses with some beef blood thrown in there for luck. They milk about 100 head and have about 300 acres.

Oh, and Helen? Yeah, she is a FABULOUS cook. I'm pretty sure that every pound I lost in London was found in Hooke ;)

And then I stayed two nights with Tom and Louise:

These two were a hoot! Honestly, I will be staying in touch. I can see us remaining good friends. If they lived in Canada, or I in Dorset, we would have some ridiculously funny stories and good times.

Tom is the county chairmen and Louise, his girlfriend, is a former Young Farmer. They were fantastic. Tom basically runs his own company fitting milking parlors and Louise works for a cheese company, Wyke Farms. They live in Stalbridge.

I really lucked out with my Dorset families. Both were fabulous. I could have spent the entire five weeks with either of them and I would have had just as much fun!

I cannot wait to tell you about my Dorset adventures- check back often to hear about all my fun stories :)

Goodbye to Devon

Dear Devon,

I am oh-so-sad to say goodbye. It's too bad we couldn't have spent more time together.

You are beautiful. SO beautiful. You introduced me to:

Hedges

Sheep and beef farming

driving the quad bike

Elderflower cordial (a special thanks for this one!)

Shandi

Ashton's luxury hot chocolate

Gemma and Jonathan

Cider

Landrovers

Cream tea

And so much more

Trust me, I will be back. And when I return, I will spend every waking moment in the fields, loving the views, hugging the hedges, drinking cordial, and just reminding myself why I love it in Devon.

Goodbye dear Devon, see you soon :)

Happy 80th!

To Devon Young Farmers!

80 years is a big achievement. Especially for a rural-based youth organization that is trying to make it in a world where agriculture is on the decline.

Devon, however, has made it! As one of the largest counties, they have a good reputation and I am beyond happy that I was able to celebrate with them.

The weather was dreary, but spirits were high as the celebrations commenced. There was an afternoon high tea with some entertainment followed by a hog roast and disco (dance).

I soon discovered how different the music is. Can you even believe that they don't know You Shook Me All Night Long?! Tragedy.

Some new friends:

Devon Eggs

I met a remarkable gal today. At just 21, she already has her own (extremely successful) business, Devon Eggs. Essentially, she provides farm fresh eggs to businesses. She has between 75- 100 customers. WOW.

This gal is called Lucy and she is so very sweet. I was able to spend an entire day with her whilst in Devon. We started the day bright and early- first thing on the list:

Ducks!

We had to put her ducks out of their hut and collect the eggs. Lucy collected while my clumsy self supervised ;)

Afterwards, it was time to prepare the orders. We headed into her Dad's shed, which he will point out that she has taken over little by little, where there is an egg sorting machine:

This machine sizes all of Lucy's eggs (it is required, by law, that the eggs are sorted like this in the UK). There is a conveyor belt which feeds the eggs on to little holsters. These holsters are weight sensitive. This machine will drop the egg into certain ares based on its weight. Hence, XL, L, M, SM eggs.

The eggs are then packaged by six and labelled. This was my job. While I was nervous to break every single egg I laid my hands on, I ended up doing quite well. I am proud to boast that I didn't break a single egg! I know that all of you that have witnessed my clumsiness are amazed as well :)

So, as I packaged and labelled the eggs, Lucy sorted. I also put them into boxes for ease of delivery.

Today's deliveries were in the Dartmoor area. For any of you who saw the recent film, "War Horse," you would recognize Dartmoor as it is where the movie was filmed!

The moors were s.t.u.n.n.i.n.g. Overcast, yes, but oh so pretty. Where most of Devon would feature hedges, Dartmoor boasts stone walls. And sheep. And ponies. The sheep and ponies of the moor wander aimlessly. You see, there are not held in by fencing but are rather able to graze at their own leisure.

This brings me to my next point: watch out for them when you are driving along the road because they will often wander onto it. :)

Once all of the deliveries were done, Lucy and I picked up some more eggs from her neighbor/supplier and watched some telly with her Mom, Veronica, and her sister, Zoe.

Lucy is fabulous. I really enjoyed my day with her. She is so successful and makes me feel like perhaps I could start my own business? Hmmm, time will tell.

I have a new found love for Come Dine with Me. Perhaps we should do our own version, friends?

Farm Life: Swannaton

Jonathan’s family farm is called ‘Swannaton.’ Loosely translated, it means pig herd. The house was built hundreds upon hundreds of years ago. He says it was built around the 900s and his mum says it was in the 15th Century. Either way, it was like taking a step back in time. The farm is even listed in the Doomsday book!

Just wait until I post the photos of the inside on facebook!

They consider themselves grassland farmers, and they have a herd of 800 ewes (with over 1500 lambs!) and about 400 beef cattle. They farm about 400 acres. Their animals are grown off the grass. They do feed some barley, etc. But the primary source of food is the grass.

When I was there, I had the chance to help out with some of the chores:

Feed and Check on the cattle/sheep: Let`s be honest, J fed the animals, I took photos. Although I did help with a few bags- I promise ;)


Foot Bath: Essentially, we had to clean something like 1200 sheep’s feet (actually, probably more). Some of them had bad feet and the water that they walked through had special medicine in it to heal them. We did this on both days that I was at the farm- the first time we had to build a pen and all the fixings, but the second time everything was already set up for us.
After the pen and trough were in place, we had to herd the sheep. Yup, I’m basically a Sheppard.

This was our `built-from-scratch`contraption. Note: J is working hard as I take photos, typical haha


Deadstock: J would say: “The thing about farming is that where there is livestock, there is also deadstock.” Sad, but true.


Cider Run: We went to pick up some cider when we were foot bathing in Winkleigh from Sam’s Cider. Folks, this isn’t like our Canadian apple cider that is mulled in crock pots across the Great White North in the winter. You see, this cider is alcoholic. And quite good! You can also get a stronger cider called Scrumpy.

Sam’s was a family business that was sold to a large company and then run to the ground. It was reopened a few years later and has been providing Devonians with strong apple goodness ever since! The woman that worked there was so sweet. She gave us samples and was so happy to just sit and chat- a true resident of Devon :)


Quad: Yup, I got to DRIVE the quad bike. The first day, J drove. The second day- he let me!! I was even complimented on my gear shifting skills! He probably had second thoughts when I almost tipped the bike though ;)

ALSO- I have a funny story for you. It is a pure Victoria moment. So here we are, J and I, herding some sheep to drench them. The dog, Jack, was slacking and some of the sheep were getting away. J was driving and I was sitting on the back of the quad bike holding on to the rack. As he put the ‘pedal to the medal’ to go up a steep hill, I was thrown off balance and my feet went over my head and I almost fell off!

I think I was too amused at myself to even be scared. It was like something out of a movie. I paid more attention and held on for dear life afterwards :)


Drenching: Just like we need flinstone vitamins, so do sheep. Lambs get ‘drenched’ every six weeks to ensure that they are getting all the necessary vitamins. It requires the Sheppard (J in this case) to get suited up in a ghost busters-esque outfit. The liquid is held in a backpack and they stick a large application tube/gun thing in the lamb’s mouth and shoot the liquid in!
We did two batches. About 1200 sheep. Me= Sheppard.

All in all, I love Swannaton. They run a smooth operation and they really are great farmers. I really enjoyed being part of their operation and seeing how they operate. Even just being able to chat with J and his parents about farming, foot and mouth, the EU`s CAP, and so much else was rewarding and informative. J taught me that a farmer`s best friend is some twine and a knife.

They really included me in the chores and made me feel like part of the family! I would love to return someday because I am sure that the operation will only grow and improve over time.

Swannaton, thank you for making me realize how much I really do love agriculture and country life

Visiting Devon

The first thing that I must reiterate about Devon is that it is beautiful. It rained or was overcast almost all week, but I still fell in love with it. The hedges, hills, farms, and people were brilliant.

Exeter

I spent a day in Exeter and I would recommend a stop in. Be sure to check out the shopping centres- they have a Primark! Also, start at the RAMM and take an hour or so to explore the museum. They recently renovated and there are some fabulous displays.


Just down the road from the RAMM is Northenhay Gardens. You cannot miss them! They are stunning and the Roman Wall runs along the right hand side. Gemma and I walked through and enjoyed the views. We also lucked out because our day in Exeter was one of the rare sunny days that we had when I was in Devon.

This is me attempting to jump in front of the Roman Wall

If you are in Exeter for lunch, be sure to stop by the Tesco to grab a sandwich and make your way over to the Cathedral. Pop a squat on the lawn and enjoy the view. It’s a great spot to people watch and unwind.

The Cathedral is quite beautiful

Be sure to wander through town and stop in at the shops- especially the Cath Kidson shop. It has some great items, although most were out of my student budget. Also, get lost in the side streets. There are so many little pubs and shops that you will just stumble across. You cannot go wrong!


Dartmoor

As the setting for the recent film, War Horse, I would say that Dartmoor is a must-see area. Much more rocky than the rest of the county, you will see vast fields with stone walls in lieu of hedges. Fences are frowned upon and sheep and ponies are able to roam at their leisure.



If you are driving, take care of the animals as they tend to lay on the road. Make sure to stop often and take loads of photos.

I went on a rather rainy day, but I still enjoyed it. They tell me that it is not
unusual for the fog to roll in to Dartmoor so thick, that you cannot see your own hand in front of your face. I secretly wanted it to happen ;)

Exmouth

When in Devon, be sure to head to the coast to dip your toes into the English Channel. No need to bring a swimming suit, just dip your toes in ;)


Exmouth is a little tourist town. We walked the beach and G & J pointed out the beach huts along the road. You will find them in all British seaside towns. They are colorful and people own or rent them to keep their beach toys in. Some people will set up chairs and sit in the doorway.

If you look down the beach in Exmouth, you will see a massive building. Don’t be deceived, it is not a restaurant or a holiday let, but rather a lifeboat house! You can walk right up to it and check out the lifeboat. It’s pretty neat. They even do drills occasionally, so be sure to see if you can catch one. I imagine it would be quite interesting.

We finished off our Exmouth trip with Cream tea- my very first! We went to the Model Train Cafe, which I would recommend. G&J said it was a good price. You will get your tea, 2 scones, clotted cream, and jam. Slather on the clotted cream and THEN the jam- you will not be disappointed.



High Streets

Each little town will have a High Street- it’s the equivalent to our Main Street in Canada. Be sure to wander up and down them because they are loaded with little one-of-a-kind shops.

High St in Crediton

Pubs

There is a pub culture in Britain. It isn’t like the pubs at home though- no loud music, just the sound of the locals having a time.

Go to a pub- any pub- and order a lager shandi. I don’t drink beer, but this drink is a must have for anyone who wants the full pub experience! It is beer and lemonade (mostly lemonade) and is quite tasty! You can also get bitter shandis, but I prefer the lager. It is more similar to what we would call beer in Canada. Bitter is flater. I tried a bitter, too, but preferred the lager (if you are drinking more than one ;) ).

Also- most pubs are family friendly, so feel free to take children along!

Those are just some of the tourist-y things that I did in Devon. I must admit, though, that you need to just explore the countryside to get the full Devon experience. Country lanes and hedges, cows and sheep- they have it all!