Monthly Archives: September 2014

Mary Tavy’s friendly stores

Posted on 27/09/2014 by campaignerkate

Readers of this blog will know that I am keen to support local stores.  Last month I told of my visit to Coombe Bissett in Wiltshire.  This month I popped into the revamped post office and stores at Mary Tavy.  They … Continue reading →

Posted in Dartmoor | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

High-rise demise

Posted on 26/09/2014 by campaignerkate

A high-rise in the wood above Turville in the Bucks Chilterns, has fallen to the ground. It was no ordinary high-rise.  It was a tree in which jackdaws nested, one above the other, their sticks protruding from the holes.   … Continue reading →

Posted in Birds, Bucks, Chilterns, Turville | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Ten years of roaming free

Posted on 19/09/2014 by campaignerkate

On 19 September 2004  I set foot on Parkhouse Hill in Derbyshire’s Peak District for the first time by right.   It was the day that the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 took effect in the first two regions … Continue reading →

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Birch-tree town

Posted on 18/09/2014 by campaignerkate

Umeå in Sweden is known as Björkarnas Stad, the City of Birches.  In June 1888 the eastern part of the city was devastated by fire and in the restoration which followed, silver birch trees were planted along the avenues, apparently … Continue reading →

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Finding the fruit

Posted on 16/09/2014 by campaignerkate

Do not be afraid to go out on a limb.  That’s where the fruit is. With these perceptive words, Camilla Widmark opened the third European conference of the International Association for the Study of Commons (IASC) today in Umeå, Sweden. Camilla, … Continue reading →

Posted in campaigns, common land, Elinor Ostrom, International Association for the Study of the Commons, Sweden | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Guardian’s inconsistencies

Posted on 15/09/2014 by campaignerkate

Last night we heard that the former Swedish prime minister, Frederik Reinfeldt, had conceded election defeat.  The news came through at about 10pm.  This morning The Guardian newspaper doesn’t mention it. On 9 July, rather later in the evening, Sergio Romero … Continue reading →

Posted in common land, International Association for the Study of the Commons, Sweden | Tagged | Leave a comment

Wally’s centenary

Posted on 13/09/2014 by campaignerkate

Today Wally Smith, who died in 2001, would have been 100, a special friend of the Ramblers and of mine.   Here’s what I said at his memorial event in May 2001. Tribute to Wally Smith, 13 September 1914 – 29 April … Continue reading →

Posted in Access, campaigns, Ramblers, walking | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

For one and all, a true Cornishman remembered

Posted on 12/09/2014 by campaignerkate

I was sad to learn that Anthony Hawkey had died.  He was 96 and had lived in Egloshayle Road, Wadebridge, north Cornwall for all his life except for a year up Gonvena Hill (also in Wadebridge).  He was a true Cornishman. … Continue reading →

Posted in Obituary, Public paths, Ramblers, walking | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

A shepherd’s life no more

Posted on 10/09/2014 by campaignerkate

The splendid Martin Down lies in Hampshire, close to the Wiltshire and Dorset boundaries.  It’s the scene of W H Hudson’s book, A Shepherd’s Life, where Caleb Bawcombe roamed day and night.  Regrettably there are no shepherds there today, but … Continue reading →

Posted in Access, AONB, common land, Natural England, Open Spaces Society, riding, walking | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Isle of Wight does the right thing

Posted on 09/09/2014 by campaignerkate

I have great news this evening from County Hall, Isle of Wight.  The executive has agreed to commit £200,000 to repair the collapsed sea-wall between Totland Bay and Colwall Bay which I highlighted on this blog last month. Although this is not a … Continue reading →

Posted in Access, campaigns, Coastal access, Public paths, Ramblers, Ramblers' president, walking | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments