Today I reached the target of the Sands Charity “ Walk 100 km in March” However, you should all know that I intended from the start to walk at least 5 km every day – finishing on March 28 th , on what would have been my daughter Emma’s 39 th birthday . So I walk on to try and raise as much money as I can for this wonderful charity who support families at a desperately sad and tragic time . Although the charity set up before we lost Emma , we had no involvement with them at the time of her death. However I have met several families since, who have lost babies, care is very different now, and each are given a memory box to give comfort at a horrendously painful time . So please keep supporting me ! Of course each walk brings its daily blog which I hope brings a smile to your faces !!! For those of you who wish to donate please go to the blog site caminoromero.com, and under the title page there is a donate button ….thank you in advance and thank you to everyone who has already donated. It means a lot to me .

So down to business ….oh how I wish I either had longer arms , or really understood the act of taking a selfie !

Anyway it is a lovely day ( although I had a bit of a shock when I opened the curtains this morning) to find this ….

Anyway, it was dry and sunny when we set off – so off we trotted !

I decided to try and walk an interesting 5 km route , rather than a there and back effort involving ….you’ve guessed it , the TPT! We passed the “ Daddies” relaxing in a very large field …..

Now let me tell you a tale …. It is likely that the average person would walk past this field and think “ oh …harmless sheep” . Let me tell you Dear Reader, a ram is not harmless. Take care if you think you are in a field with one ( well unless he has a harness with a dye pack on and there are lots of other sheep around – his attention will very likely be elsewhere !) I know this because in my previous life we had sheep – beautiful Southdown sheep- and we had two rams with them . Now these are not large sheep – but one day, my then husband decided to let one of the rams have a treat , and enjoy the grass on our lawn ! All well and good – saved on the lawn mowing – however he was not to know that without other ladies around , Herod ( for that was his name..) decided he didn’t like either our Rottweiler or our youngest son . Both were tossed in the air like footballs …. needless to say he was soon wrestled out of the way ! A salutary tale at that!

Then look who I came upon ….

Poor daddy …all on his own …. now I know better than to go in and try and clean things up ( never mind he’s a bull with a ring in his nose and may not take lightly to any intervention I might offer !) I learnt my lesson from feeding a giant tortoise in Madeira

We were told he loved banana- so off I went and bought him ( well I assume it was a him, I mean how would you know? ) bananas! Time to eat said bananas …and it was true , he loved bananas, but oh what a mess he made round his face. Time for me to scoop my finger and clear all excess banana gubbins when……chomp, he thought it was more food , and my finger started crying red tears ( copiously ) Well the DB was beside himself as you can imagine , so I packed him off to get the first aid kit, whilst I kept my finger under running water….Anyway eventually the wound was tightly held together and all was well…. but I spent the next 48 hours looking and waiting for signs of rabies or any other disease relating to tortoises. None appeared…., but lesson learnt ! Never try and clean a tortoises mouth ! By the way , it isn’t a mouth it’s a very sharp beak !!!

I digress …….the bull….

On we go …

And we are nearly home ….

All in all a lovely walk, thoroughly enjoyed by both of us!

Before I detail today’s walk , I want to tell you about my Pilates class last night……As you know I am an avid fan now of Pilates and I have noticed changes as a result. My gluteal and abdominal muscles are certainly stronger than before – although the six pack still eludes me. At the end of the class last evening we had a relaxation session – problematic for me, for several reasons. Firstly switching off doesn’t come easy to me and secondly, whilst I have an imagination, it is not expansive enough to follow the relaxation path set. Let me explain. We are laid on the floor on mats – so far so good! Then the instruction comes –

Imagine you’re on a beautiful beach ……..which beach to choose ? Quick, think……that beach in the Caribbean from the television series you love … Saint Marie, that’s it ! So there I am on that beach enjoying the imaginary sun……..- wait , just a minute, someone gets murdered there every week …that’s no good ( imagine, woman from Pilates class in Barnsley found dead on beach in Saint Marie …even DI Neville Parker would struggle with that one!) Quick think of another beach …you’re being told to imagine the sun shining and feeling the sand…okay , let’s go Cornwall and hope the weather’s nice ( I think by now you can see why relaxation for me is problematic 😉😉) ….

…….now you are aware of the water lapping on the sea shore …..yes I’ve got that now, beginning to feel calmer ……….and you hear the seagulls calling …….SEAGULLS …NO , they might get my chips, my ice cream or worse still, answer a call of nature whilst swooping over me . Despite then trying desperately hard to move on from that, I fail. I can’t possibly imagine my feet and legs sinking into the sand now, I’ve spent so much time choosing an appropriate beach, then worrying about a seagull attack …..there’s no way my shoulder blades are going anywhere in the sand let alone sinking into it! The instruction continues ……let your head feel heavy, feel the warmth of the sun on your body ( my hands are on the cold floor of the Pilates studio and no matter how much I imagine the warm sun they remain like two blocks of ice) Then imagine that clouds appear in the lovely blue sky and pass in front of the lovely warm sun…..( oh no ,it’s either going to tip it down or a seagull will swoop……stop it Jane, you’ve nearly finished…) Now I slept like a log last night , not because I was deeply relaxed at the end of class, rather all the worry is exhausting!!!

To the business in hand – today’s walk……I thought I might walk behind the river today, but there again it would be very muddy. So we settled for …you’ve guessed it , the trail. Well you’ll have heard the saying if Mohammed can’t go to the mountain, the mountain will come to Mohammed …..look at this …

It was a beautiful morning, not the warmest but dry , sunny and plenty of Dutch trouser material! Millie was in her element ..

Mission accomplished ……let’s see what tomorrow brings 😉😉

Today’s walk started at Cannon Hall in Cawthorne – a country house museum that used to be the home of the Spencer-Stanhope family. It is surrounded by extensive parklands and houses Cannon Hall farm which is a large family run farm packed with animals, playgrounds , a shop and several restaurants.

The weather forecast was dubious to say the least and, as my Scottish neighbours would say, it was already blowing a hooley! I met up with Lucy, our daughter in law, in a fairly empty car park ( only the hardiest of hardies would be walking on a day like today!)

The lakes were full – not just of water but also of water fowl

The ground was sodden but so much easier to walk on than the icy slush of previous days. However the parkland has been well restored with man made paths and the majority of the walk in the park, was just that!

We walked round the back of the house and out of the main farm entrance ….the Dutchmen still have plenty of blue sky for their trousers, and because it had been raining , look what we found 🌈🌈🌈

We’re heading for Deffer Woods now and hooray, we’re in the right direction for our pot of gold….not sure the farmer will want us to trespass on his field though ..

So into the woods ! I have to say I wasn’t sure this was a good move . Snow melt plus already muddy paths was not necessarily a good idea – but since I last visited the woods a lot of work has taken place on improving the paths and walking was easy!

Then it started to rain – so we made haste to a shelter in the woods ….

However I use the term loosely – the wind and rain were howling around from the wrong direction driving straight into our faces…..

Time to set off before we really get drenched …….too late was the cry! We arrived back at Cannon Hall like two drowned rats …well three actually !!!

After a welcome bite to eat and hot drink we set off back to the car park …..

I’ll leave you with this thought ….

“Rainbow in the morning gives you fair warning” …apparently a rainbow in the morning indicates that a shower is in your near future – what a pity we were so fixed on our pot of gold. A shower was indeed in our near future and we got caught in it !!!

Until tomorrow Dear Reader … when hopefully I will have dried out 😉😉

Since I have been writing this blog during the snow – as is my way, I have been looking at quotes and sayings about snowflakes. They really are a most beautiful things – described as “ snow angels blowing kisses from heaven” , “ a winter’s butterfly”. Each is considered unique because a snowflake’s shape evolves as it journeys through the air , meaning no two are ever the same.

So how on earth have these beautiful things become associated with another definition I found

Now I know there are many people who fit the above definition but please couldn’t we have found a more appropriate name for them. When I wrote my blog a couple of days ago , I told you of some of my experiences as a student and newly qualified physiotherapist. Whilst I’ve been walking I’ve been giving thought to the “ snowflakes” and their reactions to some situations I’ve found myself in . One stands out. When I started working at St Bartholomew’s Hospital ( known as Bart’s in our family as it was where my father trained) , my first ward was male urology ( of all places !) I was expected to join the weekly ward round with the Consultant and all his minions. You have to picture the scene – if all else fails, look at the ward rounds in Carry on Doctor , and you’ll have a very good idea of what they are like . This particular day the Consultant asked my patient if he had seen the physiotherapist – “Yes” replied the patient “Who did you see?” was the next question . “The blonde one with the child bearing hips.” came the reply. ( ironic when you think why I’m doing the walk and this blog – child carrying hips yes, but not child bearing without medical and surgical assistance I’m afraid) Did I take offence Dear Reader ? Of course not ….I don’t deny it was embarrassing, and it would have been better had he said “Jane” but hey he didn’t and everyone knew which physio had seen him! That just wouldn’t happen now – but sometimes I think we have gone to far. People are now afraid to say anything lest they offend. Let me make it perfectly clear , I will never intentionally offend anyone. However, there are occasions where I feel concerned I may cause offence because I’ve used incorrect terminology – and I know I’m not alone in this. It is inexcusable to intentionally offend someone in my view – and it is correct in that situation, that action is taken against the offender. My plea to those who are overly sensitive is to please distinguish between intent to cause offence and complete innocence.

Needless to say I cannot be categorised as someone from the “ snowflake” generation!!

So to today’s walk ….the temperature has risen slightly, so the beautiful snow has turned to slush though is still icy and very difficult to walk on.

I had intended to walk on my own with Millie , but as I got onto the trail I met a neighbour and his daughter so we started our walk together. Then as we progressed our direct neighbours caught us up ….

We finally reached Penistone where Millie and I met the DB , who had come to take Millie home. Whilst she manages the walks very well, I know we have a long one tomorrow, so didn’t want her to overdo it today! Not so for me though … I returned initially on the very wet, slippery TPT…

After a while I took a detour off the trail onto the road – there is a limit to how much slipping and sliding one can take on a Sunday!

Back on the main road and much easier walking on snow free pavements…….

Back home at last ….

Time to make our meal …….so I’ll leave you with this thought !

Discombobulated Dear Reader, that’s how I feel today ! I don’t like you to miss anything so I have decided to use yesterday’s photos to describe the walk and then I’ll write up today’s effort 😉😉

A whistle stop tour of yesterday’s walk – I hope you’ve enjoyed it ! I shall have a short break and then back for today !!!

Yes Dear Reader, the lights have gone out ! I am sitting here in our non too warm kitchen, writing this blog with a storm lantern candle for light! So you must excuse the brevity of the blog. ……how we rely on electricity ! Charging phones and iPads – can’t do ! We have a portable charger, but of course unless you are lucky, or forewarned of said power cut, there is no guarantee that will be sufficiently charged 🙄🙄🙄 Then of course there is no service on the phones and no internet either 🥴🥴🥴 So it is that I must write something for you with limited power – the I pad, not me! Unfortunately, I am at the moment unable to download any photos for you – probably something to do with lack of internet . So I am just going to say that Millie and I walked this morning twice in fact – first thing we went to collect our bread from the post office and then later we walked a further 7.6 km along the good old TPT, round Huthwaite and home ( along the TPT) So daily goal accomplished!

I do have lots of photos to share with you so will do so tomorrow ( or maybe later who knows) – one thing I will share with you is that despite daily writing as I have done when walking the Caminos in Spain, this blogging feels different . Well of course it is, you’ll say, you’re in England , the weather is different, the food is different …and you’re not speaking any Spanish ! Surprisingly, no I’m not – folk round here find it hard enough to gather the Barnsley tongue , never mind Manuel from Barcelona……No Dear Reader, the difference is more noticeable and very clear to me – there is a complete lack of Albariño anywhere ……….but it wouldn’t be the same even with said wine, here I am more suited to a mug of coffee !!

So as the light fades I thought I’d introduce you to another Barnsleyism- no idea when you may use it but hey , you must always be prepared…so here goes –

TINTINTIN …….

meaning , it isn’t in the tin!…..

I’ll bid you all goodnight because the light has all but gone!

Hasta Mañana……..

After all I said about amounts of snow yesterday !- still no match for Canada but a fair deposit for us here – and it was still snowing….

Millie is a reasonable sized golden retriever so you can see how deep the snow is . She was actually at this point spending a penny ( or pound now as it appears to be with inflation – just doesn’t have the same ring to it) Anyway poor dog had to squat to squat so to speak – it reminded me of going to the public conveniences as a child and being told by my mother not to sit on the seat, squat above it, because you didn’t know what you might catch…You were then in fear of your life in case you did accidentally sit down and caught some mysterious thing …. and the whole process was extremely stress inducing. I appreciate this will only apply to women of a certain age ( ie my age or older ) Public toilets on the whole have improved their image ( and their fee…) although I still avoid to this day if at all possible!

Well there’s an interesting start to today’s blog…..and I haven’t even ventured outside yet! Some people wondered if I’d be walking today on account of the snow and as I have completed more than 70 km of my 100 km. Of course I’m walking today Dear Reader – remember my addition to the challenge , to walk at least 5 km every day for the 28 days I’m doing it ….no slacking here!

Besides I have to go out …so will kill the proverbial birds with a stone and incorporate at least 5 km into my travels – despite being faced with this….

So off I set ….I wonder if you can guess where to? I’ll give you a clue . When I get there I will remove my clothes , I will be contorted into some bizarre positions, then endure 30 minutes of pain, before getting dressed , paying for the service and leaving. I do hope you all got it right …of course, I went to see my physiotherapist! It was exactly as I imagined and as I was enduring the pain inflicted I did tell her she would feature in my blog later ! She is a brilliant physio ,I don’t know what I’d do without her – and what’s that saying “ No pain, no gain!” – you’d think I was a fool if I’d paid money for nothing now wouldn’t you ?

Her clinic is 1.5 miles away and I had decided to walk. The most direct route is via the now famous Trans Penine Trail or TPT for short . However these photos appeared on Facebook this morning so I decided against it !

So I chose the main road to walk along , to reach my torture session ( sorry , my physio!) Despite it being the main road , there is still plenty of beauty to see

I should perhaps explain why I am visiting a physio anyway – since I have been doing the regular walks, I have noticed some discomfort in my right hip ( I would previously have described it as pain , but then Mel got her fingers working and I felt real pain🥴🥴🥴🥴🥴) Now this could be described as Karma because in my time as a physio I too have inflicted pain ( for the patient’s gain you understand…) However as she was treating my hip area I started chuckling at a memory of my physio training. I remember as a student in the out patient department treating patients ( typically men ) with groin strain. Without going into too much anatomical detail , treatment for said strain involved deep friction of the main tendon that attaches to the pubic bone and friction is applied with the physiotherapist’s index and third fingers. However the blot on the landscape was the garment ( if you can call it that…) given to the men to wear during treatment – they were known as Jesus pants . I wish I could find a photo to show you but they are clearly so antiquated there is no evidence now . Basically imagine a tea towel folded in half lengthwise with long tabs at each corner …..and there you have it! We used to do whatever we could to avoid “ the groin strain” as you might imagine.

It’s funny what you remember from times long gone. The majority of patients are incredibly grateful for what you do for them as a health professional and put you on a pedestal – the ball has been on the other foot for me on several occasions . Despite the tragic outcome of my Caesarian section with Emma – the consultant Willy Porter and Anaesthetist Alan Caunt , who were suddenly called upon to operate will forever be angels to me ,and even now ( and they too may now have departed this mortal world) I hold each in the highest esteem. The same goes for the health professionals involved in my breast cancer care …..people are very quick to complain , less so to give praise .

It is funny what you do remember. I clearly remember an elderly couple (can picture them now) – he had a chronic chest condition for which he was receiving treatment ( I should at this point explain that the wards at St Bartholomew’s Hospital were Florence Nightingale wards ie rows of beds down either side of one large space. They were a delightful couple , she came in every day for visiting – then one day as I was administering his physio , he had a cardiac arrest and therefore died. Buttons were pressed , teams were summoned, chest compressions were administered along with a whole load of other medication …. and we were successful , he pulled through. I remember to this day his description to me of what he had seen – he clearly described looking down on us from above as we worked on him, giving details that only someone who was present could give . Amazing ….needless to say he recovered and left hospital and not long after I received a lovely letter from them both 😘

Enough of the old times – if I keep on in this vein we’ll never get to the pub tonight !!! Surprisingly ( or not) I was able to skip away from the physio on my way home …The sun is out and the snow starting to melt as I enter our village …

I arrived home safe and sound to be met by a snowman built by the girls next door and guarding their garden ….

Fortunately he didn’t have a carrot for a nose this year. Last time they built a snowmen with a carrot nose was most embarrassing- Millie went to sniff said Snowman and promptly stole and ate his nose! All in full view of their video doorbell 🙄🙄🙄 Thank goodness we’re friends 🥰🥰

We should count our blessings here with only one foot of snow. Apparently in Pontefract they’ve got two feet of snow ….

Until tomorrow Dear Reader …….

However, our friends in Canada would laugh at us …..” snow?” they’d say. We struggle with 3 inches – their snow starts at 3 feet !

However, I remember winters here when we had Canadian measures of snow – 1979 springs to mind …Forgive a digression here , I can’t remember if I’ve told you that I’m an adopted Northerner, not born and bred here. I’ll explain ….I was originally truly wafted in from paradise ( for those of you too young to remember the Lorraine Chase advert for Campari, do look it up ) born not far from Luton Airport! So I was born a Southerner. However, as I explained yesterday, I moved from London to Sheffield in 1980. I remember the journey up here – just me and my Citroen Dianne , Tigger ( named according to its motion , a bouncy trounce car ….) – and I remember to this day, feeling as if I was coming home . I had only been to Sheffield once before ( in fact I hadn’t been north of Watford Gap before – of course there is the joke that you have to show your passport at Watford Gap to pass into the northern part of the UK) – and that was in the Winter of 1979. My friend Sue (who I met at Bart’s Hospital in 1978 where we both started our real working life!!!) came from Leeds , and we were both going up there together, stopping for lunch with my cousin who was working in Sheffield at the time ….

He lived just down the road from here and I remember having to park the car far down the road from his house and walk , rather trudge, up to his house. Life went on, even when there were walls of snow taller than people . I know we don’t get such severe winters on a regular basis in the UK , but now even with a few centimetres of snow , schools close, buses stop running and people are advised to stay indoors 🥴🥴🥴

I remember as a six year old in 1963 – yes my memory does reach that far back – going out with my father and grandmother in the car and the snow was so high , rather than walking through a gate we just climbed over it ! Remarkably I recall his Rover 200 getting us there too , so the roads must have been passable….

I do apologise- look where that digression took me!

Due to the weather conditions…. Pathetic really isn’t it ? Anyway it is what it is, and we are where we are , so the weather conditions will dictate today ……..and we will walk into Penistone again! That is my friend Julia , Millie and I . No chance of getting lost then if 3 feet of snow should fall as we perambulate…so once again we walk along the TPT

Surprisingly not too many cyclists today and the one rude jogger who passed us got his comeuppance as he turned the corner to the train station and measured his length! Clearly embarrassed, he was up and off before we could proffer our first aid support!

Clearly at the time it was the right kind of snow on the line so the trains could run ……not so sure now 😜

Our passage to Penistone was uneventful- called at the butcher’s , the doctor’s ( the baker and candlestick maker were shut due to snow ….) and then to the market …….What? No market …also because of the snow 🥴🥴🥴Only one thing for it – a coffee and possibly a toasted tea cake ( bang go the calories I’ve used to walk here …) Another digression if you’ll permit it ……when you look at the time taken for my walks, please understand that it is not pure walking time . It includes chats , conversations and coffees along the way – I may not be an Olympic walker but I walk faster than the times indicate , I just talk a lot 😉😉😉

So in we go to the dog friendly cafe where we order 2 americano coffees with 2 toasted tea cakes …..the coffees arrive, and the waitress asks if Millie would like a “ Puppaccino” . True! – and of course Miss Millie would love a Puppaccino! It arrived with our tea cakes ……

What is a Puppaccino you ask – rightly so, you wouldn’t want to get confused with a cappuccino, frappaccino, macchiato and the rest now, would you? A puppaccino is an expresso sized takeaway cup, filled with squirty cream and adorned delicately with two gravy bones. Important to know the difference I feel!

After we were all refreshed we set off home …..

Now I’m sure you’ll think I have inserted a rogue photograph here . I do hope you recognise this to be a spring onion. When I posted the photo of the daffodils I remembered a warning put out recently ( seriously) for shoppers to beware that when buying spring onions , not to buy daffodils by mistake because eating the latter can make you very ill. Once again I ask the question – is it me? Does the above resemble in any shape or form , a daffodil. Do people not know that a daffodil has either a bud or yellow flower at the top… if they don’t what hope do we have ? Another risk assessment required 🙄🙄🙄

Perhaps not an action packed walk but my daily goal achieved ….

We’ll see what tomorrow brings – the snow continues to fall here, but don’t worry , I will be out walking regardless! Keep safe and warm everyone …

What a beautiful day for a walk ! I opened our back door to this…

Today I was walking with an old friend – by that I don’t mean she’s old, I mean we’ve known each other for forty years or more……oh dear, that’s quite a long time isn’t it? So seeing as we met after we were twenty one 🙈🙈 ….stop it , we’re young at heart and age is just a number , albeit larger than I would like. I digress…so I went walking with my friend Claire who lives in Sheffield . Now I don’t know how many of you know Sheffield? Let me tell you, it is said to be the city of seven hills ( apparently there is dispute about that but I’m not going there) All you need to know Dear Reader, is there is at least one hill and we went down it to get to the Rivelin Valley. Who is paying attention here ?- you have heard that name before – well done! indeed I was walking with Kathleen last week by the Rivelin Reservoir a little further out of Sheffield.

We set off down to the valley along well marked footpaths ….I’d like to say we passed some interesting wildlife but the first thing that caught my eye amongst the allotments was this …

No further comment needed until we passed the name of the path…

First things first – we called at the Rivelin Valley Cafe and paused a while for a hot drink in the beautiful sunshine – a good start! Then we set off eastwards along the River Rivelin out of Sheffield – to my surprise we found a statue of a wooden chair in the middle of the river.

Certainly walking by moving water is relaxing,if not a little noisy, and the smooth passage of water is interrupted at times with man made weirs.

We just kept on going !

It is clear seeing the flow of the river and the power of the water that it played a very big part in Sheffield’s industrial past . Sadly evident by it’s absence now. I remember as a rooky physio ( two years qualified) having decided to move to Sheffield (to follow my dream of becoming a cardiothoracic specialist physiotherapist – and before you ask, I got to Sheffield but no further!!!), talking about it to one of the Doctors who was born and raised there. He said “ Why are you going there, Jane? It’s all coal mines and steel works!” Well not any more but it was the best move I could have made!

We certainly had plenty to test our balance and coordination skills and I’m pleased to report there were no wet feet!

Now I suppose you know the saying “ What goes up must come down?” Well surprisingly the same is true in reverse and what or who goes down , must also come up! And that was us! A long slow climb ( but better than doing our decent via Lover’s Lane in reverse I can assure you !) began….

No more inclines ….but hey underwear seemed the common theme …

Back to Claire’s for a delicious home made vegetable soup with toast and even more delicious home made cream cheese! Spoilt !! Then back home to the DB and Millie …….

Another walk and lovely time spent with a good friend – you can’t beat it ! I leave you with this thought….

Firstly some customer service information ! I have been asked how people donate on this blog . For those of you who receive email reminders of my latest effort , you will be taken straight to my blog page. If you wish to donate you have to go onto my site page by entering caminoromero.com into whichever search engine you use and you will be taken to the site page …..

This is what will pop up – although for you I think the button says “donate“ – click on that button and you can then make a donation. Thank you in advance for that 🙏🏼

Now back to the business of seeking …. and actually finding ! What? I hear you say …don’t you remember, I promised you photos of lambs, and other such things. Well you’ll have to be patient and see what I found!

Our walk this morning started with our usual friends..

Millie and I had intended to have a long walk but we walked part way with these two and their Mums – Helen and Claire. As we walked along a bridleway we bemoaned the fact that too many dog owners fail to pick up their dog’s mess, leaving it for some poor soul to step in. It really isn’t good enough but you can see why it happens. Nowadays we see people running with their dogs ( or should I say they are running and expecting their dogs to keep up with them), people walking the dogs but with earphones in and either deep in conversation with a mystery person on the other end of the phone, or listening to who knows what. Who cares, the one thing they are not doing is paying attention to their dog and it’s toilet habits!! Rant over …. I should say Millie wears a bell so that I know where she is at all times, and if I can’t hear the bell it is likely that she has stopped either to sniff or eat something or answer a call of nature. It was whilst we were ranting this morning I noticed Millie doing exactly that , so bag at the ready ….but then realised whilst she was in the process of this, her front legs were frantically digging in a molehill. Whoever knew dogs could multi task?

Now this was tricky, because completely hidden by Alfie’s Mum was Kath Kidson – not the real one of course, she’s actually called Carol but she carries dog biscuits in a Kath Kidson bag hence how she got her name. She happens to be one of Millie’s favourite people ( I wonder why?..🙄🙄🙄) – but this morning she had both her dogs on a lead which confused Millie , who eventually reluctantly followed me after clearly toying with the idea of following her friends!

We followed the bridle path on our chosen route and as we passed this wall I felt it important to demonstrate that dry stone walls are not all picture perfect round here. Dry stone walling is a skill and I suspect it is a costly ( in both time and money) business to keep walls in perfect shape – and farming financial constraints don’t allow for consideration of aesthetical appearance alone.

Round the corner we found a field full of a flock of sheep …..but not a single lamb to my disappointment. However these ewes are likely to lamb soon…….how do I know this? They have blue bottoms …. I can hear you musing as to how I jumped to that conclusion . Let me tell you , in the world of the ewe and the ram , there is no romance . Sorry to disappoint. The ram is either dressed in a harness with a block of dye inserted between his two front legs, or the farmer splurges a blob of waterproof paint/dye in the same place. Then he and several others like him are released into a flock of ewes. This tends to be October time depending on when the farmer wants the ewes to lamb. Also as the days become shorter the ewes go into season ( every 16 or 17 days poor things!) The rams have a field day ( probably even week or month or more who knows) but with his dye in place , the farmer knows which ewes have been served . Some farmers who have many sheep will change the ram’s dye colour to allow them an idea of which ewes will lamb first! These ewes had clearly been privy to a ram with blue dye!

Enough of the biology lesson ….onwards and upwards…….

Where on earth does she fit in to a blog documenting country walks not far from Barnsley? Well let me tell you , todays walk took me past a kennels who used to breed German Shepherds…. and, you may have guessed it, one of their puppies went to Claudia Schiffer…. a lady with excellent taste ! ( By the way I’ve no idea if she actually came to the kennels …. but a puppy went to her)

After that digression , I found what I was looking for ……just for you!

I have to say, nothing quite like lambs responding to their mother’s call epitomises the bond between a mother and her offspring . These two were right beside their Mum, but there were two others completely alone. Suddenly we heard the low pitched bleating sound of a ewe, their Mum , as she walked up the field to them . They immediately got up and bounded towards her pummelling headlong one either side onto her teats . As they started to suckle their little tails were going ninety to the dozen …..a wonderfully heartwarming site to see!

Then who should we see a few fields on …….

It is so lovely having access to such lovely countryside …a pity some others donot appreciate it as much……

Whatever happened to “take your rubbish home with you” How have we allowed the next and subsequent generations to become so uncaring of their surroundings. People throw Macdonalds ( other take away venues are available) wrappers, boxes, cups along with an alarming number of empty alcohol cans . I’ve no idea what the answer is but it is very upsetting to see!

At this point, the sun came out and as it was so lovely , we continued on our planned route ( it had been quite wet and I did consider curtailing the walk but…) Look what we would have missed had we not continued….

Then we were back onto the Trans Pennine Trail and home, but not before meeting Millie’s namesake, a black Labrador owned by a remarkable lady. I’ve no idea how old she is but would guess at late seventies even eighty, yet she walks her Millie miles every day – she to,d me she was out with her for a long walk at 03.45 this morning 🙄🙄

Wow, 9 km ! Good exercise for both of us . but not enough for me , I’m off to Pilates later …so I’ll leave you with this ….

Until tomorrow Dear Reader …thank you for reading this! 😘😘