Mid-life gap year Tanya and Craig

Heligan Estate is a large property with magnificent gardens that was owned by the Tremayne Family for 400 years. Prior to WWI it was a thriving almost self-sufficient community. At least 13 of the staff served in the war and nine tragically did not return. Unable to live with the daily reminder of the ghosts of his staff and friends Jack Tremayne left and rented out the property. The gardens became over grown and in the passing generations they became lost.  In 1990 a descendant of the family uncovered garden building remains whilst cutting back undergrowth. Since then, Heligan has become the largest garden restoration project in Europe.  The 200 acres of gardens consists of a jungle with southern hemisphere plants; a sculpture garden that uses the plants as part of the sculpture; woodlands of rhododendron some 10m high; 1.8 acres of productive garden for use in the café and sold in the shop; wildlife hides and a rare, heritage breed farm. So...

We had heard from many UK residents that Cornwall is their favourite holiday destination and that it has beautiful sandy beaches like those in Australia. Therefore we had to see what the praise was about. The most south western area of England, Cornwall has miles of varied coast and all of it is stunning. Sennen Cove, St Ives and St Agnes all have golden sand surf beaches; while Boscastle, Charlestown and Port Isaac are little fishing/former mining villages set in steep coves between rugged headlands. There is also miles of rugged sheer cliff dropping into the sea.   Praa Sands We spent two nights at Praa Sands where the UK surf championships are held. At low tide it has a mile of golden sand. At high tide the beach disappears and the waves crash against the break-wall and cliffs. There is a bar with a sundeck. At high tide it is right on the water. It was a great place to pass an afternoon watching the surfers and the sunset.     Boscastle We ...

How do you find out how cider is authentically made? One method is you go to Somerset visit a cider pub ie one that has a license to only sell cider. No beer or spirits here, thank you very much. Then you settle in for a few pints. Once the patrons have become accustomed to you and you can understand their west-country accents you ask them where and how to make this happen.  We were at the Tuckers Grave Cider House when a cidery name was thrown out to us by a local. “Go and see Roger Wilkins he makes good cider and he makes it the old way” we were told with a toothless grin “but he lives in a back lane and you will ne’er find him”. Nothing like a challenge for Tanya (navigator). Other patrons said that the Wilkins Farmhouse Cidery was the most authentic in all of Somerset. The next day we phoned Roger and were given directions.     Driving down tiny laneways with mirrors on both sides of the van hitting the overgrown hedgeways we found the farm. On the...

When talking to cyclists about their preferred cycling locations, Yorkshire is never mentioned but maybe it should be.   The Yorkshire area is always included in the Tour of Britain; it hosted the opening stages of the 2014 Tour de France and a few weeks ago it was where the 2019 UCI world championships were held. It obviously has something going for it. Yorkshire has no really tall mountains like the Alps, Pyrenees or the Dolomites but what it does have is beautiful rolling hills, very steep pinches and miles of secondary lanes through beautiful country side. In September I was lucky enough to experience a variety of these. We overnighted at Kettlewell and in the morning I rode up the steep 1 in 4 climb (25%) to the undulating plateau across paddocks. It was a beautiful serene place to ride. My return was blocked by a stubborn highland cow which would not move off the road and I was not game to get too close. Luckily I was rescued by a farmer who scared the cow...

Having good friends in Yorkshire who are both proud of the area in which they live and generous with their time gifted us with fantastic local insights including some hidden natural wonders. Some of the natural highlights included: Plumpton Rocks   Plumpton Rocks is a cluster of gritstone (much like Sydney Sandstone) boulders that in the 1750’s were transformed into a celebrated landscape garden with a man made lake. Now the garden has largely been allowed to return to its natural state and is a mixture of forest, natural rock formations and moss covered crumbling architecture. We visited on a day when it was technically closed so we had the rocks all to ourselves and took our time to wander around the lake and enjoy the scenery. Brimham Rocks Brimham Rocks is on one of the highest hills of the Yorkshire moors and provides views almost to the east coast, the lakes district and beyond Sheffield. Many millions of years of erosion and weathering has created rock ...

This trip has provided us with an opportunity to learn and enhance our understanding of a number of public figures; Charles Darwin is one of these. Darwin was born and educated in Shrewsbury, a medieval market town filled with historic buildings. These include the old school house that Darwin attended which is now the city library.  The wood panelled interior walls still bear the graffiti from students of his era. A statue of Darwin is in the garden at the entrance to the library.  Darwin studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh where amongst other things he learnt the art of taxidermy. He didn't finish his medical studies, but leveraged and used what he learnt during his expeditions. His interest in natural science and in particular marine invertebrates and geology was fostered at Cambridge University.  Further along the River Severn in Shrewsbury there is a 12m high and 17m long concrete sculpture based on a double heli...

We had parked the car on the edge of the village in northern Provence. It was summer time, the cicadas were noisy, there wasn't a cloud in the sky and the little laneways laden with plump sweet blackberries invited us in. That was five years ago and I remember it vividly: the abundance of sweet ripe fruit.  Blackberry foraging is one of life's most enjoyable pleasures.  For blackberries to be sweet, like all fruit they need to get adequate sun and not too much rain when fruiting.  In north Wales, near the town of Hope there is a park with spectacular views across to Snowdonia, Liverpool, Manchester and the Peak District.  The park was formerly silica quarry workings and after many decades has regenerated with native vegetation and animals. Blackberry brambles were in abundance with ripe sweet fruit. Some of the largest and sweetest blackberries I've eaten. Eating as many as we picked, with juice stained fingers we filled a container, thou...

Having seen TV programs and films set at Fountains Abbey and the Studley Royal near Ripon in Yorkshire we were keen to see the 650 acres of water garden, abbey ruins and deer park first-hand.  The abbey is vast in scale, having formerly housed more than 500 monks. Founded in 1132, the abbey became very rich and prosperous. So much so, it became the wealthiest monastery in the UK owning vast areas of land across western Yorkshire.  Much of its wealth was based on the trading of wool and lead, two of the Yorkshire Dales’ most abundant resources. The abbey operated for 400+ years before i ts dissolution in 1539 under the order of Henry VIII.  Studley Royal Water Garden was one of the leaders in the ‘English’ formal garden style that swept across Europe during the eighteenth century. It was created by father and son John and William Aislabie. Eye catchers and follies were a common feature within ‘English’ gardens. Elegant ponds and cascades en...