Porch Watch 3

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This morning the blackbird briefly left the nest (weekly shop?) and with the help of a tall son on a kitchen chair we were able to grab a quick picture of the six eggs.

One month later . . .

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. . . . or that's what we thought when we started this project in November 2007 when we started to look for water. I didn't publicise the whole process (maybe because of the non-scientific side to it). But the drill went deeper and deeper and found nothing.

So we investigated a more left field approach and called on a Water Diviner/dowser. His equipment was a bit smaller and simpler that the drilling rig and he started in the Teapot Field where we had been drilling (in hope that the source would be near the buildings)

Definitely no. So having looked at the terrain and maps he suggested the most likely place would be on top of a hill and we tramped up to watch him at work

He walked backwards and forwards and moved his pegs as he homed in on the source.

He could tell us not only the best place, but details of the flow etc and how deep we should drill. James duly noted all of this.

When the exact location was established he marked the spot with a stick and spray. (Watched with varying degrees of incredulity by James and Colin the driller)

In due course we had a written report (and bill).

So we sat back and waited for the drill to return "in about a month". Thirty months on the marker pole is still in place (despite silaging/muck spreading/cows/snow) and today there rolled into the yard the same big dusty drilling rig.

It's up on the hill next to the marker (faint line on the right of the photo) and next week the work starts in earnest! So watch this space (again)

How Green Is My Valley(Hill)

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As you know we are investigating the possibility of a installing a wind turbine sometime in the future. As well as the necessary funding and planning approval, what is need most is of course wind! So we have made a small investment in a Power Predictor. The anemometer measures the speed and direction of the wind and stores the data in an SD card, which is later used to upload to a dedicated website that gives us the results.

To get the best results the Predictor should be in more or less the same position that the turbine might be - so for us that means by the hedge at the top of "Field at back o' barn" - and as high as possible.

So we started by building a 15 metre pole

We took it up the field and attached the stays that would hold it in place

Laid it out ready for lifting

This is the bit that creates the data

And this bit records it

Ready to raise up

In position and gathering data (we hope)

The longer we leave it, the more accurate the results will be. The controls are lower down the pole and in about a month we'll check the SD card to see that it's actually working, then leave it for at least 6 months.

Porch Watch 2

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On the nest

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No contest

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Yesterday I had an email from Tesco's asking me to complete a survey as to why I had not shopped online with them for over 3 months. I've never shopped frequently, prolifically or exclusively with them - but did find it handy at Christmas (mainly for bulky and heavy essentials - ie drink).

I ticked the relevant boxes in the survey - mainly the ones a the bottom of each page called "other" and tried to explain in the small space allowed my reasons for not using them.

This morning my reasoning was perfectly illustrated. The fridge was exceedingly bare (partly as I've just done a 5 day shift at work) so I needed to fill it with something. For real food shopping, rather than drive 2 miles into Kendal to Asda (parking miles from the door, overwhelmed by crowded aisles and too much choice of food I don't want anyway), I go to a smaller northern supermarket at Kirkby Lonsdale. It might be 8 miles away, but it's 8 miles of quiet road (no traffic, just pheasants) with views to miles of glorious countryside. My kind of driving. I had no idea what I was going to buy (apart from staples like bananas for Henry's early morning snack). But the first thing I saw when I went in the door was English asparagus. The rest followed on from there - Jersey Royals, local tomatoes. local rhubarb, Scottish salmon, an enormous joint of local ham, Waberthaite bacon and pancetta, Lancashire cheese. The cheese was cut to the size I wanted (while I discussed the many different Lancashire cheeses with the assistant). I could buy the exact amount of mince etc and know it hadn't travelled far. And the "boy" on the till was even older than me!

I didn't mean this to sound like an endorsement of a particular store - it's just to say there are alternatives out there to the faceless multinationals.

Now all I have to do, is unpack my bags and decide what to cook first.
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Porch Watch

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Where's Kate Humble when we need her? Or even Bill Oddie.
After much toing and froing with nest materials, a blackbird has taken up residence in the porch. She's practiced sitting in the nest but we don't know if there's anything yet to sit on.

Watch this space for more news - and hopefully better photos.
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It's Good News Week

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At last, after much delay, we have got our 2009 SFP!

Defra/RPA have been saying for several months that most farms had been paid - but a small (but significant) number of farms, mainly in the South Lakes, have been delayed because of "Remote sensing" of the mapping data.

Now all we have to do is fill in the forms for 2010