Yesterday, cabin fever overtook me after too many days staring at the computer screen, and I thought "blow this for a game of soldiers". I took the day off, and we went to Dartmoor on a gloriously sunny day. I chose a new place to visit, near Meldon.
Meldon Woods are a glorious sight just now - acres of bluebells in a hazel and beech wood on the valley slopes. Quite magical. (But you cannot hear the 40 ton stone lorries rumbling along the road from Meldon Quarry!)
Black-a-Tor Copse is a rare relict upland oakwood, which could easily be inhabited by hobbits. As well as the subtle ochre of new oakleaves, there are lots of mossy boulders to admire. These brought a Zen garden to mind, and I chose a subdued colour palette to draw attention to the shapes. Perfect peace here - only the distant sound of a cuckoo,
bleating sheep, and the wind in the trees.
A perfect end to a perfect day: old-fashioned tea in the courtyard, at the Victorian tearooms in the Okehampton Museum of Rural Life. A soft-boiled egg with white bread and butter, a slice of home made jam sponge, and lashings of strong tea.
03/05/07 @ 16:24