Oh, Island in the sun ....

Almost a year ago I took you for a walk on the wild side to the wonderful Piel Island.  To be honest, I really didn't think it was that long ago, and as it was such a grey, miserable day, I thought it was last October, but no, it was actually in August!

Yesterday ... not last year!

My lifelong friend Anne who lives in Dorset, is visiting my little town on her annual jolly to see family and friends, and  over a nice meal out the other night, mentioned that she was going on a nostalgic boat trip to Piel Island with friends, so Millie and I invited ourselves along ...

This time we were going on the Ferry, not by foot, and the day dawned wild and windy with heavy showers, but as I always say, if we waited for sunshine we'd never get anything done. Armed with our pac-a-macs and picnics, we met up on Roa Island, and while we stood around idly chatting, missed the first ferry over!

Harry, ready for action

It only takes 10 minutes or so to do the return trip, so we didn't have long to wait before we boarded.  The sea was quite choppy, so it was a boisterous journey, but the sun was shining brightly and shimmering on the waves ... a bit different from the last time I showed you the island.

 

We approached the island after being gaily thrown about for five minutes or so, and although I have said it before, I still think that Piel Island would make a great setting for an Enid Blyton feature film as it has all the essentials ... a rugged, desolate beach; dark, brooding castle, a secretive huddle of smuggler's cottages, and an old sea dog's inn, all steeped in ancient, salty history ...

Millie, hugely excited!

We disembarked without falling in the sea, and went for a quick look around the island, as it is well over 30 years since Anne last camped here, and she needed to reacquaint herself with the landmarks.  She got a bit emotional which is very unlike her, as we looked at the little cottage that is still for sale, and had a little dream about living there, and then found a sunny spot to lay the blanket on the ground.

Replete with a Tesco meal deal (I left it too late to decide whether or not to go, so there was no time to make up the usual hamper) and several Fondant Fancies, we ambled along to the pub for a swift half of shandy ...

who needs to go abroad? 

By now the sun was really blazing it's socks off, so we all rolled up our jeans, fiddled around with tee shirts to avoid tan lines and joined in with the kids playing on the sand.  These are the best kind of days, and cost practically nothing ... the children get to play together, team build, use their imagination and are out in the fresh air, communing with nature.  Much better than trawling around a gaudy theme park eating vast amounts of chemical laden 'food' while their parents apply for a further advance on their mortgage.

This unfiltered image of the beach, sea and sky, wouldn't have looked out of place in a brochure advertising select 'off-the-beaten-track' holidays in the Aegean sea ...

eeeh! It's grim up north ...

All too soon it was time to leave, and we walked around the island, passing the castle ...

following the time-worn path beside the cliffs, eroded by the vicious tide, which will one day bring down this magnificent building and take it for its own ...

and boarded the ferry tired but happy, full of plans for next year!

Definitely A Grand Day Out of the highest order!

Sale of the Century

I know I promised to tell you all about my Vintage Sale which took place last week, BUT ...  I didn't take any photos ...  I started setting up at 6.30, and it took until 9 before I was satisfied with how it looked.  I took a little breather, had some breakfast, and made myself presentable, then everyone started arriving and didn't stop until lunchtime! By then it looked a little picked through and tatty, so I didn't bother with photographic evidence.  It was a fabulous day, the sun shone, was very well supported, I sold lots of stock, made some money to contribute to buying more of said stock, and decided that I will definitely be making Fabulous Vintage Sale an annual event! Thank you all for your support and kind words.

I'd just like to say that I was completely overwhelmed with the volume of comments for my last post. Thank you so much, they mean the world to me, and I was glad to be able to share my news with you.

Have a fabulous weekend, and hope the sun shines for you

Love, Claire xxx

A Walk on the Wild Side ....

In my last post, I showed you Piel Island from a distance, so when my little sis suggested we go on a guided walk last Saturday, I jumped at the chance! I had walked to Piel over the sands as a child, when I used to go cockling with my Dad, but that was many moons ago.

The day was a bit grey, with dark clouds overhead, but the guide, Walney local John Murphy, (last year's mayor of Barrow), told us it was perfect conditions for a walk over the sands ...

We made our way onto the sand, but first had to get through some grey, slimy mud ... John said there was always at least one person who fell in the mud ... no, not me ... Helen, my little sis! She leapt up like a startled gizelle got up rather quickly, before I had the chance to photograph her! Here you can see her muddy jeans ... nasty sister Claire! I dug out my ancient crocs, because didn't fancy sweltering all day in wellies and could take them off when it got slippery ...

It's about half a mile across the sands to the island, and it is advisable to go on a guided tour, as you would be taking your life into your hands going it alone, having to deal with dangerous riptides and treacherous quicksand ..

 we followed the tracks of landrovers for the most part ... these are from islanders and campers to the island ...

John gave us a running commentary all the way over, on vegetation growing on this bleak, north-westerly coast ... samphire, beloved by posh restarateurs, growing in abundance ...

tidemarks ...

and the island gets closer with each step ...

Believe it or not, this is one of several cars that didn't make it to the other side and got swallowed up in sinking sand!

Nearly there!

And a look back at the way we've come ... Walney Island in the distance ...

Now we're on the island, and this is the row of cottages, two of which are inhabited all year round ...

 And the view towards Roa Island, where me an Millie visited the lifeboat house last week ...

 and the rear view of the cottages.  These were built for the pilots who guided boats and ships onto the island ...

And Piel Castle, still maintaining a feeling of majesty and strength, despite falling into ruin ...

and the beach surrounding the island ...

Seaweed and driftwood ...

Multi-coloured pebbles, rocks and shells ...

Teasels, growing wild ... so called because they were used in the cotton industry, to 'tease' the knots from the cotton ...

A rare Yellow Horned Poppy, which can only grow on 'vegative shingle', or shingle which sustains growth of  plantlife ...

Sea kale or sea cabbage, immensely nutritious and delicious ...

Mussel shingle ...

And back to the castle.  I'm not going to tell you the history of Piel Castle because I can't be bothered  wikipedia does it so much better than I ever could!

What tales of derring-do ...

piracy ...

shipwreck ...

smuggling ...

murder, treachery and skullduggery ...

could these ancient walls tell?

The outer moat above, now overgrown with grass and brambles ...

 How the castle once looked ...

Another amazing view through an archway ...

And the castle ramparts, sadly now unaccessible to the public, though I distinctly remember climbing these as a child with my brother and cousin, oblivious to the shouts of our mothers, sitting on their picnic blanket far below! ...

Parts of the castle, fallen into the sea ...

Happy campers!

And the welcome sight of the pub, The Ship Inn, rest for weary travellers ...

Island wildlife ...

Nice day for ducks!

Could this trapdoor once have been a smuggler's secret?

And the 'throne' ... each year a knight is appointed by the King of Piel Island.  He sits on the throne, but in doing so, must be prepared to buy everyone present a drink!

The arrival of the ferry, linking Piel with Roa Island ...

and Helen sitting in the rain looking very wet (can't believe she ironed her jeans and straightened her hair before our trek!) ...

The journey back to civilisation ... by now it was absolutely throwing it down, but somehow this didn't spoil anything ...

Feet sinking in quicksand, so just threw caution to the wind and went barefoot in the rain! Very liberating ...

and back to dry land, absolutely drenched but exhilarated after having a great day out, communing with nature and learning lots about local history and heritage ...

Hope you're all enjoying August Bank Holiday ... it's abolutely freezing and tipping it down here ... typical August Bank Holiday weather! It's Millie's birthday today, the weather was lovely when she was born, but my eldest Oliver, was born on August Bank Holiday Monday 26 years ago and Hurricane Charlie made his presence known that day!

Whatever the weather, have fun!

Love Claire xxx