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New Blackmore Vale, 10 June 2022
blackmorevale.net
Health & Wellbeing
Meditations in nature: Splendid just to be amidst the flowers by Susie Curtin It is now early June, the most abundant month of our calendar. I am out walking today with no particular agenda or destination, just following where my whims and imagination take me. Sometimes, these are the best journeys in nature. The sun is high and casting an iridescent light through the fresh green leaves, chiff chaffs are still ringing their repetitive songs, occasionally accompanied by the more joyous, complex trills of blackcaps. Walking down the lane, the last of the cow parsley decorates the verge in a white haze and, above me, elderflower trees are in full bloom. As I breathe in their sweet honey-scented fragrance, I recall my friend’s wedding in Denmark, where on the
morning of her special day we collected armfuls of these exquisite flower heads to decorate the venue. It was the perfect choice for a wedding, as in Danish mythology, the Elder Mother or ‘Hylde Moer’, enables the tree to provide natural gifts and blessings which in turn, proffer good health and prosperity. Reaching the end of the lane, I decide to take the footpath towards the river down through the meadows. Here, the ground beneath me is soft and yielding, and tall buttercups grace my
by Chris Slade This is an interesting walk of about four miles but, being in mostly sunken or hollow ways, there are few wide views. Be warned that it can be a bit soggy in places, so wear waterproof walking boots or
wellies. Nether Compton is a fairly small parish a little to the west of Sherborne. You may notice that most of the houses are built of the local sandstone, as is the church. Park by the village green
fingertips. Buttercups get their intensity from yellow pigments on the surface of their petals. Just beneath this surface there is a minute layer of air that reflects the light like mirrors, giving buttercups their unique shine. In the language of flowers, they symbolise joy, new beginnings, and happiness. It is certainly hard to feel sad when walking among their swaying blooms. I follow the river until I get to a field boundary and contemplate my map. Where to now? It really doesn’t matter. Whatever route I choose, there will be something interesting to behold. After all, there is nowhere more beautiful than Britain in June. There is rarely a situation in our busy lives when we
are without purpose. Modern life is rife with goals. There are lists of things to do and outcomes to be assured. Beyond the immediate satisfaction of achievement, there is sometimes little joy. Mostly, the joy comes from the journey rather than the success. One of my favourite books is the Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd. In it she relates how, over time, she learned to walk in the Cairngorms aimlessly, just to be with the mountain, rather than conquer it. That is how I feel today, my only desire is to be with nature as I would a friend, with no intention but to be with them. Dr Susanna Curtin is a nature writer and qualitative researcher (rewildingjourneys.com)
and visit the nearby church. Then head south-east, uphill, along the road for a furlong where you’ll see a smartly timbered house. Here you turn right, then left, and enter the unpaved byway, Gore Lane, which curves round to the southeast, going down to a ford, then up a sunken, soggy, hollow way, often with water flowing down it. The sides of the way get very steep towards the top where it crosses another track. You might spot a cave on the right. Carry on, east-south-east until you meet the road at Stallen where you turn left, north-east, winding through the hamlet until, just round a
bend, you come to another byway, Hart’s Lane. That winds its way uphill for over half a mile to the north-east until, at Tucker’s Cross, it becomes a bridleway, Oatcroft Lane, continuing north-east along the high ground. At the parish boundary there’s a T-junction. Turn left along the bridleway which takes you north-west down a combe until, on your left, you join another bridleway leading south, later wending south-west along a byway to the outskirts of the village where you can join the road and make your way southwest back to your car. Chris Slade is a retired Dorset rights of way officer.
A walk around...Silton
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