It has been a little while since the last walk, a combination of bad weather and commitments! However, today was a treat for Jenny and I, as Paula Cuthbert joined us. Paula is an alternative therapist extraordinaire! She operates out of Jenny's Beauty Salon and keeps me fit and healthy! It was a grey morning, but not cold. The first part of our walk took us to Kilver Court to see what Christmas decorations they had up - see above.
We then went on muddy footpaths through farmland. There were cows with horns in one of the fields that had a footpath going through it, so we quickly chose another route! We were concerned with one cow, that seemed to have a problem with its leg, so we had a quick word with the farmer and he said that one of them was disabled from birth. We also went through a field full of sheep, and had a friendly greeting from a small dog! The Charlton Viaduct provided a stunning backdrop...
Jenny is on the lookout for interesting branches that she can use for natural looking Christmas decorations. There were loads of wood just lying by the pathway, so she picked up a couple of suitable ones. She thought one branch would make a good pair of antlers - see middle photo above! Anyway, she insisted on carrying them back with her, although they will need some drying out before being sprayed...
Paula graced us with her burst of energy again today. Another great spring morning, brought to life with all the wildlife you could wish for! There was the most beautiful sight of three young dear playing and bouncing around. Their white tails clear, as they chased around carefree... Almost in seconds, they sensed us, and disappeared - a fantastic sight!
Soon after we saw a huge rabbit and I mean huge! Not like the sweet little spring bunnies we are used to... Further along we met two huge gorgeous long horned Highland cows - their large wet noses under their huge heavy fringes of ginger hair - made for some great pictures...
We stopped and petted some sheep, that seem to throughly enjoy a mini Bowen treatment that Paula managed to administer over the gate!
We talked and walked miles today - great fun. Seems like the weather might change from today and rain is coming... But that's fine as a nice restful Easter plan is in place for me...
What a beautiful day for an early morning walk - Spring is really here! A surprise waited for me when I went to pick up Jenny - Paula, the holistic therapist at Skin and Tonic, was there to join us. She had already been on a run! She is always a bundle of energy and gives us a boost...
At the start I passed on a walking tip, that I had gleaned from Nina Barough, the founder of Walk the Walk, a breast cancer charity raising money and awareness through power walks. She suggests, "Imagine that you are holding on to a lottery ticket between your bottom cheeks! It makes you more aware of your posture and of keeping your hips tilted slightly forward - and will give you a toned bottom." Well, we all tried it and set out with good intentions but, as soon the conversation got interesting, I know I forgot all about it!!
We took Paula on one of our favourite walks, which takes us over farmland, through footpaths, bridle ways and has the Charlton Viaduct as a dramatic backdrop. We searched for some dandelion leaves to feed to Paula's rabbit - not so easy to find when they aren't in flower! She told us about her latest clients, the ones with four legs, who were racing at Cheltenham last week! She loves treating horses and in many cases, she sees to the owners and riders too... She says that if there is something out of balance in the rider's body this will transmit to the horse!
Another tip from Nina Barough - "if you have a walking buddy, do as the professional athletes do; take it in turns to be the pace setter, so that one of you is always pushing things forward." Whenever we are with Paula, she is always the one in front... As you can see, we tried a selfie but didn't get the camera down low enough to get the whole of Paula's head in!!
Tonight is Shepton Carnival, which is on the circuit of the world famous Bridgwater Guy Fawkes Carnival. This originally started in 1605 in celebration of the gunpowder plot! All the floats are parked up around our estate so at the start of our walk we had a good look and admired the amount of work that goes into their production. The Carnival Clubs work all year, raising money and making these wonderful creations - some cost in excess of £40,000! Local charities benefit from the proceeds raised from donations on the evening. Later, when it is dark, they will look unrecognisable as they will be illuminated by all those bulbs - magical!! The other treat today was Paula, the holistic therapist, joined us again!
Our walk today was very pleasant - the sun came out and once we eventually got off the road, which was busy as the carnival closes off routes, we went over some muddy footpaths and fields. A kindly farmer directed us onto a footpath through a gateway but neglected to tell us that we had to walk through a load of cow sh*t!! The next part of the walk was taken with trying to clean our boots on the long grass!
Paula wanted to large branch to decorate her therapy room for Christmas. We found something suitable at the side of the road quite early in our trip, so it was handed from one to the other as we climbed stiles etc.!! We were nearly home when Jenny found a smaller twig that she fancied for her decorations or did she really want a pair of antlers...
Lots of fun and games this morning!!
Paula (Cuthbert) our holistic therapist at Skin & Tonic, was invited as a guest .. She brought her wonderful energy and zest with her!
Given that it was 7am, it seem to rub off on Helen and myself, as you can see! The zip wire has recently been restored in Collett Park so we couldn't resist...
We headed up a steep lane from Bowlish that we have named 'cardiac hill', in the hope she would soon get out of breath, and hopefully quieten down - it didn't work!
She does amazing things from the Garden Room situated at the rear of the salon. Kinesiology being the huge success story, with a growing clientele. It involves muscle testing for food intolerances, amongst other things. I am very lucky to have her at the salon. It's great to have a session regularly to see what I might be lacking in my nutrition and lifestyle! She also does V.H.T., Reflexology and treats racehorses!
We revisited the old Windsor Hill railway tunnels today, finding a second one - not sure what Helen thought as I grasped her arm quite tight as we went through...
We showed Paula parts of Shepton she hadn't seen before and ended up in the Market Place as the market stalls were setting up. She was most impressed! All in all a great start to our day...
