A Christmas Gift from The National Trust

A Christmas Gift from The National Trust

If you know someone who would enjoy a year's membership of The National Trust for Christmas then this year you could gift this to them and throw in a a pair of free binoculars at the same time!

Even better, you'd only pay for 9 months due to the current "3 months free" promotion and you can postpone the start date for up to 2 months - perfect timing for Christmas.

So this year you can save money while appearing extra generous ;-)

Click on National Trust Special Offer to see all the reasons why this makes a fantastic gift this Christmas.


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www.NationalTrust.org.uk - Free Binoculars for New Members

www.NationalTrust.org.uk - Free Binoculars for New Members

Yes, that's right, The National Trust will give you a free pair of binoculars when you join online, plus 3 months free membership (12 months for the price of 9) when you pay by direct debit.

It's over 20 years since I joined The National Trust and I have gained real pleasure from the 700 miles of spectacular coastline, 600,000 acres of beautiful countryside and 300 historic houses that it protects. As a charity it receives no government support and works tirelessly to conserve these key elements of our national heritage.

So, apart from the free binoculars and free 3 months' membership, here are some other reasons why I recommend joining online today:

• FREE entry and parking at more than 300 historic houses and gardens.
• FREE parking at National Trust countryside and coastline locations.
• Your Members Handbook is a complete guide to all of the places you can visit.
• Regional Newsletters packed with details of special events at locations near you.
• Three editions of The National Trust Magazine, featuring news, views, gardening and letters, exclusively for members.
• Plus you can feel good about supporting all the great work The National Trust does to support our precious heritage.

To benefit from this special offer while it is still available or to simply find out more about the great work they do, click on National Trust Special Offer.

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Foot and Mouth Outbreak ... No-one to Blame?

Foot and Mouth Outbreak ... No-one to Blame?

It seems no-one is to be held accountable for the terrible outbreak of foot and mouth at Pirbright last year. Surrey County Council is rightly angry that no legal action can be taken against either of the laboratories at the centre of the outbreak.

The problem is that they share a common drainage system and three government-backed reports all failed to identify conclusively which laboratory had allowed the virus to escape. So the culprits escape punishment too... for more details click on foot and mouth.

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Open Farm Sunday - 1 June 2008

Open Farm Sunday - 1 June 2008

Time to dig out your wellies!

Open Farm Sunday has arrived again with 500 farms expected to open up their land to visitors on 1 June 2008. We owe so much of the beauty of our countryside to the farming community that this is the perfect opportunity to improve our understanding of how they find the balance between profit and protecting our heritage.

Open Farm Sunday is coordinated by LEAF (Linking Environment and Farming) and you can find out more about the event at Open Farm Sunday.

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Large Scale Sculptures in the Sussex Countryside

Large Scale Sculptures in the Sussex Countryside

This weekend represents the last chance this year to experience something quite wonderful in the Sussex countryside.

How about a 2 mile stroll around 26 acres of ancient woodland with a different sculpture at every turn? Each of the 70 large scale creations is set in its own glade and these dramatic monumental pieces take on a surreal feel in the natural surroundings.

This is a woodland walk like no other and as the open season ends 4 November this could be the perfect way to spend some time this weekend.

To find out more, take a look at the Goodwood Sculpture Park.

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Footpath Closures - Foot and Mouth Update

Footpath Closures - Foot and Mouth Update

Surrey County Council has created an excellent interactive map where you can zoom in and clearly locate footpath closures and identify alternative walking routes that remain open. To find out more, click on Foot and Mouth footpath closures.

There is an almost constantly changing Protection Zone around the infected premises so if you are walking in the area it is worth checking out this new interactive map.

There is some positive news as domestic markets for sheep and cattle re-opened at midnight last night (in the FMD Low Risk Area outside the Bluetongue Protection and Control zones). Despite these movement restrictions being eased, the situation remains dire for many farmers (see earlier post).

Currently, there are eight Foot and Mouth disease infected premises in the Surrey area. On Bluetongue, there are currently 24 infected premises in the Suffolk area.

For the latest information, click on Foot and Mouth footpath closures.

Today's pub walk: The Three Horseshoes in Cockfield, Suffolk.

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Farming Industry Devastated by New Foot and Mouth Outbreak

Farming Industry Devastated by New Foot and Mouth Outbreak

The diagnosis of a new outbreak of Foot and Mouth disease on a Surrey farm is a stunning blow for our farming community.

This comes just days after the Chief Medical Officer gave the all clear and lifted the Protection Zones put in place to control the August outbreak (see earlier post). It is a tragedy for British farmers just when meat prices were starting to recover.

According to this morning's Farming Today, the next 2 weeks are the busiest time of year for livestock farmers with most of the year's profit being made at the Autumn sales. It will also be very tough for them to cover the cost of winter feed for livestock that cannot be sold.

For the latest information on the outbreak and how it affects walkers, click on Foot and Mouth footpath closures.
See update...

Today's pub walk: The Dukes Head in Romsey, Hampshire.

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Planning Disasters - Have Your Say Before 17 August !

Countryside Planning Disasters - Have Your Say Before 17 August !

Time is running out to object to government proposals to limit public enquiries into major developments affecting our countryside. Under these proposals, nuclear power stations, wind farms, airport runways and the like will be built whether the public supports the project or not.

We must all make it clear that this is totally unacceptable in a democracy and we have until tomorrow to have our say as public consultation ends 17th August.

For more information on how to object visit Countryside News - Planning Disaster or www.planningdisaster.co.uk.

Today's pub walk: The Blue Ball in Grantchester, Cambridgeshire.

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Foot and Mouth - Which Footpaths are Closed?

Foot and Mouth - Which Footpaths are Closed?

The Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) appear to have learnt some of the lessons of the Foot and Mouth outbreak in 2001. This time they are stressing that the countryside will generally remain open for business whilst footpaths and bridleways will only be closed if they present a real threat of spreading the disease.

Keeping up to date with this situation is important for walkers in affected areas but the position can change at short notice as press releases are being issued almost daily. For the latest news regarding footpath restrictions and countryside access, click on Foot and Mouth footpath closures.

Today's pub walk: The Mason's Arms in Marylebone, London.

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Natural England Welcomes Return of Goss Moor to the Wild

Natural England welcomes return of Goss Moor to the wild

Last week saw the first occasion when a major trunk road was diverted around a conservation area. It was great news for all those interested in preserving our countryside and natural habitats.

The A30 has been redirected away from Goss Moor, a European Special Area of Conservation and one of the largest areas of wetlands on the south west peninsula. Goss Moor National Nature Reserve in Cornwall has an abundance of rare wildlife such as dormice and adders with this time of year also being an excellent time to visit and see the dragonflies, flowers and heathland.

For more information , click on Goss Moor.

Today's pub walk: The Filly Inn (Walk 2) in the New Forest, Hants.

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Promoting our Countryside as Part of our National Identity

Promoting our Countryside as Part of our National Identity

The Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) has come up with a list of what defines our National Identity and it is interesting that many of these represent traditional values that will lie close to the hearts of most pub walkers.

The charity has created its "National List of Shared Treasures" as it wants to lobby Gordon Brown to promote them in his environmental policies. The list comprises:

• Classic countryside
• High quality food production
• Our finest landscapes
• A rich historic heritage
• World renowned cities towns and villages
• Access to local shops

For each one, the CPRE has defined the factors that make each item important to the nation, as well as key tests that will help us all to judge whether Mr Brown is serious in any stated intent to promote environmental policies. For example it cites the long-awaited formal confirmation of National Park status for the South Downs as a key test for "Our Finest Landscapes".

To read more about each of these "national icons", visit Countryside as part of our National Identity.

Today's pub walk: The King & Queen in Hamble, Hampshire.

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Rural Pubs to offer Postal Services

Rural Pubs to offer Postal Services

We've all seen it. Alistair Darling, Trade and Industry Secretary, trying to convince us all that the planned closure of 2,500 post offices is actually a good thing and that we'll all reap the benefits. Well, I'm not so sure of that. Readers of my blog will know what I feel about the loss of services in rural communities.

But this time, there could be a few winners. The organisation Pub is the Hub champions the rural pub and is looking to open up post offices in rural pubs across the country. It has already done this successfully in 100 pubs over the past 5 years as it helps pubs expand their businesses into wider community services.

Today's pub walk: The Boringdon Arms near Plymouth, Devon.

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Countryside Communities Under Threat - Cornish Village fights back

Well you have to hand it to them. Many people complain about the impact on their village of the loss of their post office, pub, school or other focus of the community. But the residents of Lanreath in Cornwall did much more than complain, they took concerted actions.

In Monday's BBC2 "Power to the People" series, we saw the invasion of Islington Green by a small Cornish village protesting at the closure of its treasured school. This was the final straw following the demise of their post office, pub, shop and dairy farm. So they transported a cross section of the village to the centre of London, including a few cows, sheep and the morris dancers, all coordinated by the WI with help from the BBC reporter.

Sadly their protest fell on deaf government ears but the effort mobilised the community of Lanreath to the extent that they then successfully re-opened their local pub and post office as community projects. There was a strong message in here to any villager feeling they are powerless to perpetuate the village way of life.

For anyone interested in fighting to rescue their local pub from the threat of closure, see this earlier post How to Save Your Community Pub.

Today's pub walk: The Beaulieu Road Inn in The New Forest, Hants.

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Pollen Count is not Linked to Rapeseed

The swathe of brilliant yellow across the countryside has for more years than I care to recount been one of the heralders of Spring. For some people, however, rapeseed has also marked the start of the Hay Fever Season, accompanied by the suggestion that the pollen of the rapeseed iteslf is a sigificant irritant to sufferers.

According to this morning's Farming Today, rapeseed is not the "yellow peril" of its reputation and in fact very few people have an allergic reaction to it. The pollen is heavier than air and therefore is hardly airborne compared to grasses and tree pollen. So we can enjoy our fields of oil seed rape now without any legitimate concers.

Today's pub walk: The Ship Inn, in Saxmundham, Suffolk.

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