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Bibury Trout Farm

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Bibury Trout Farm

Bibury Trout Farm in the Cotswolds, founded in 1902, is one of Britain’s oldest Trout Farms. It is beautifully landscaped and makes a wonderful addition to any trip to the picturesque town of Bibury. It covers an area of 15 acres in the beautiful Coln Valley. The hatchery, which spawns up to 6 million trout ova every year, is fed by the crystal clear water of the Bibury Spring.

Visitors are able to throw food for the trout and watch them leaping out of the water. The on site shop sells delicious fresh and smoked trout. A great outing for all the family.

For more information visit http://www.biburytroutfarm.co.uk

 

     

 

 

Sunday Sunrise…turn the volume up!

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Sunday Sunrise…turn the volume up!

A video for you this morning so that you can hear the dawn chorus. The forecast was for a grey start to the day on Friday, so when I peeked through the curtains at Daisy Chain just to check that there wasn’t a sunrise I was very excited to find this! When I opened the window the full sound of the dawn chorus was revealed! Enjoy 10 seconds of the magic of Daisy Chain.

 

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Rare Roman Cockerel on display

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Rare Roman Cockerel on display

New Roman finds have just gone on display at Cirencester’s Corinium Museum. In 2011 an enamelled cockerel was found during excavations of the western cemetery of Corinium (Roman Cirencester). The cockerel is one of only 9 known cockerel figurines from the Roman world, and is the only one with its tail intact. The cockerel is 12.5cm tall and the breast, wings, eyes and comb are inlaid with enamel, which is now blue and green.

Visitors will also be able to see a selection of beads and bracelets, which would have been high status objects and give a real insight into the people who lived in Corinium. The Tetbury Coin Hoard is also on display – it contains 1437 silver and copper-alloy 3rd Century Roman coins. The remarkably intact pottery vessel which contained them is also on display.

More information and photo credit: http://coriniummuseum.org

Cerney Cheese

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Cerney Cheese

Lady Angus developed a love of French cheeses while she was holidaying and living in France. When she returned to England she set out on her journey to produce goats cheese (using the knowledge she had gained from a French farmer’s wife). After much experimentation, aided by two trusty goats, Cerney Cheese was born. The herd soon grew and production moved from the butlers’ pantry at Cerney House to Chapel Farm in North Cerney. The production remains true to the original hand made recipe and process. Every process is carried out by hand, from ladling and pressing the curd into moulds, to gently patting oak ash on the pyramid, or tying rafia around the vine.

Cerney pyramid is a pyramid shaped cheese dusted with oak ash and salt. The cheese has a mild, citrus taste, with a delicate goaty finish, thanks to the unpasturised milk. In fact the cheese is very similar to fromage frais. Cerney Cheese products can be round in a number of Waitrose stores across the Cotswolds.

For more information http://www.cerneycheese.com/

Cerney Cheese

 

Looking for a special gift?

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Looking for a special gift?

The centre for contemporary craft in the Cotswolds
New Brewery Arts is Gloucestershire’s hub of visual and performing arts and crafts. A converted Victorian brewery housing a contemporary art gallery, craft shop and cafe, a theatre and twelve on-site maker studios, New Brewery Arts offers visitors a unique arts and crafts shopping experience.

A centre of excellence that stocks the best of British craft, the gallery shop won a coveted Silver Award in the Retail Tourism category of the very first Cotswold Tourism Awards 2010. On-site makers in world-class studios include glass blowers, textile artists, ceramicist, upholsterer, bookbinder, stained glass maker and jeweller. The weaver is one of only a handful in the country using a traditional eight-shaft loom.

Visitors have the opportunity to watch craftspeople at work and to buy directly from them or browse an array of their work on show in the New Brewery Arts café and shop. All the pieces are for sale, and makers are happy to discuss individual requirements to create unique commissioned pieces.

Its central location makes New Brewery Arts a must for visitors to Cirencester, the Cotswolds, and the South West. Open seven days a week, you can drop in any day for lunch, visit the gallery, studios and craft shop – and select that very special gift.

Posted by Naomi at http://www.cotswoldfamilyholidays.com/

 

Surfing down a River

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Surfing down a River

Have you seen one of Britain’s spectacular natural phenomena, the Severn Bore? It is a large surge wave that occurs in the estuary of the River Severn, where the tidal range can be as much as 15 metres. The estuary is shaped in such a way that the water is funnelled into an increasingly narrow channel as the tide rises, thus forming a large wave. As the width of the river rapidly decreases, so does its depth, thus forming a funnel shape. As the incoming tide travels up the estuary it is squeezed into an ever decreasing channel and the surge wave, or bore, is formed. The wave travels upstream for roughly 22 miles until it reaches Gloucester.

The Severn bore has become very popular with surfers, with the largest biggest 4 and 5 star bores occuring in conjunction with large spring and autumn tides. The bore is best surfed on a nine to ten foot longboard – the extra buoyancy and length are necessary when attempting to surf a tidal wave. If surfing is not for you, the bore also attracts a lot of spectators, eager to watch the spectacle as the bore travels past.

For Severn bore times and more information visit http://bit.ly/severnbore

Severn Bore

Photo credit: cc-by-sa/2.0 – Surfing the Severn bore by Jim Nicholls geograph.co.uk/p/379254

 
 

 

Cotswold Lions

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Cotswold Lions

‘In Europe the best wool is English and in England the best wool is Cotswold’ (12th century saying). In the Middle Ages, the Cotswolds was well known as the source of some of the best wool. Abbeys and Monastries would keep large flocks of ‘Cotswold Lion’ sheep with their long, golden fleeces. (The breed had originally been introdued to this part of Britain by the Romans) The riches the Cotswold wool brought to the region helped to build many of the great houses and churches that we see today. At that time as much as 50% of England’s economy was due to wool. To this day, the Lord Chancellor sits on a sack stuffed with wool in the House of Lords – a sign of how important the humble sheep has been to our nation.

 

A birds eye view

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A birds eye view

Visitors to Gloucester Cathedral can have amazing views out across the city and surrounding countryside. On a clear day you can see up to 40 miles. The catch…you have to climb up 269 steps…and down again! (and you’ll need to be over 6 years old). On the way up the tower you stop off at the ringing chamber and the bell chamber. Make the most of the beautiful September weather we are having and treat yourself to amazing views…with a bit of exercise thrown in!

For opening times and more information http://bit.ly/glostower

Photo credit William Avery (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5)], via Wikimedia Commons

 
 

 

Watching Beavers in the Cotswolds

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In 2005 six European beavers were released to Flagham Fen on the Lower Mill Estate in the Cotswolds. Since their arrival they have thrived, building beaver lodges, felling trees, digging a network of mini canals for easy transportation of logs and generally being as busy as, well, beavers!

It is a real treat to see the beavers – they are nocturnal so just before dawn or just after dusk are the most likely times of day to see them. The lake where they live is a 10 minute walk from Daisy Chain. As they glide through the water you spot the characteristic ‘v’ wave coming from the front of their head. Sometimes they turn and face you, staring into your eyes before arching their backs and diving silently under the water, where they can remain for up to 15 minutes at a time. It is a magical sight.

The linked video is a compilation of some of our sightings.

 

Ready to explore Cirencester?

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Ready to explore Cirencester?

A walk around Cirencester, following the recently launched ‘Whereat Trail’ will introduce you to many historically significant parts of the town. The trail was set up in commemoration of Norman Whereat, the first person to be awarded the ‘Freeman of Cirencester. He was a long time town councillor and twice mayor. The trail begins at Corinium Museum (the multi award winning museum which has a large collection of locally found Roman artefacts) and continues past the gates of the Bathurst Estate, the west gate of Roman Corinium and the Roman amphitheatre.

To download the trail visit https://aqiva.co.uk/2021/10/23/the-whereat-trail-cirencester/

Photo credit Brian Robert Marshall cc-by-sa/2.0 geograph.org.uk/p/1930978

Cirencester Amphitheatre