Another Trip to Herefordshire - Part 3: Croft Castle - Fishpool Valley Walk and Ghost Tree Exhibition

 

On the Saturday we went to Croft Castle although with hindsight we probably should have gone on Friday when it might have been quieter! The car park was heaving with cars but we decided to walk along the Fish Pool Valley first which was very quiet - we only saw a few other people. We really do enjoy our visits to Croft Castle as there is so much to see and do from the Fishpool Valley walk to the house and walled garden together with the church of St Michael and All Angels and even an Ancient Tree Trail.  You can also walk to Croft Ambrey fort - something we will do one day!

Croft Castle (now in the care of the National Trust) has been lived in by the Croft family since the Norman Conquest, apart from a period of around 177 years. The estate covers 644 hectares (1591 acres).

The original castle was a motte and bailey located to the west of the house we see today.  The castle was rebuilt as a walled stone manor and was transformed by Sir James Croft in Tudor times.  It was badly damaged during the Civil War.  In 1746,  due to bankruptcy in the Croft family, the castle was taken over by the Knight family who turned the castle into the Gothic Castle we see today.

Fishpool Valley is a wooded deeply incised combe and a small stream has been dammed to provide a series of small pools.  The valley was originally landscaped by Thomas Johnes II in the late C18th/early C19th.  

There is a history of light industry in the valley - wood fired lime kilns, quarries and charcoal burners.  The site is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and the ponds are home to the native protected White Clawed Crayfish. 

In 2017 the National Trust restored the valley back to its "Picturesque" origin.

Meadow Sweet and Water Mint by one of the pools.

Hogweed

Thistle Seedheads and Willowherb

The Gothic Pumphouse which has recently been restored. It was built to feed water back up to the castle and was in advance of its time.

After the walk we ate our sandwiches in the car and then went to the castle as there was a Ghost Tree Art Exhibition I wanted to see.

 

Interestingly there is now a Ghost Tree Art Trail which takes in part of the Ancient Tree walk that we have done in the past.

The exhibition and artwork displayed shows the beauty of the dead and decaying trees at Croft Castle.  They celebrate the past of the ancient trees.  Work has been created by artists Richard Gilbert (fine artist), Sara-Jane Arbury (poet) and Paul Ligas (photographer). Ghost Trees are relics of lost past woodlands and the National Trust at Croft has left the dead trees to provide important habitat for wildlife.

First Ghost "The Silurian"

2nd Ghost "The William Croft Oak"

3rd Ghost "The Lightening Tree (Sweet Chestnut)

4th Ghost "The Cauldron" Sweet Chestnut

5th Ghost "The Tree that Swallowed Itself"

The 6th Ghost "The Sentinels

7th Ghost - "The Dryad" - Oak

Hopefully, you can read the poems but it might be easier to click on the photo to enlarge the image.

After viewing the exhibition we visited the walled garden and I had a quick look around the church of St Michael and All Angels and house interior. I'll write about those in the next post(s).

All photos taken by me with the Panasonic Lumix FZ330 bridge camera. (I don't particularly rate my photos but if anyone wishes to use one of mine or my son's I would be grateful for an email first - thanks).

Reference: National Trust Guide Book to Croft Castle and Information Boards on the site.

Another Herefordshire Visit - Part 2: Hatfield

 

On the Friday we stayed at the caravan site doing a bit of cleaning, gardening and in my case a lot of reading!

There is still no change in the three Herefordshire trees.

Herefordshire Oak

The Constable Tree

The Octopus Tree - well hidden among the other trees!

There is a row of Aspen trees which I can see when I sit at the table and I love watching the way the leaves quiver, shake and tremble in the slightest breeze.

There are even more chilli peppers forming on this plant of D's.

Mini alliums are now flowering.

I love watching all the different cloud formations in the skies there.

Here is the pot of house leeks/sempervirens I bought from Burford House Garden Centre.  I will try and transfer them to a larger pot on a future visit.

A juvenile Green Woodpecker spotted on the grass outside the caravan.

I didn't see any sign of hedgehogs this visit but on several nights I watched the bats and listened to their echolocation calls on the bat detector.

There is still a lot of anxiety and concern among caravan owners as to what changes may happen to the site in the future.  I won't say too much but the siting of a new caravan there has caused a lot of upset and anger as it has been placed facing in the opposite direction to all the other caravans in the row!  

On the Saturday we decided to visit Croft Castle as we hadn't been this year and I'll write about that in the next one or two posts.

All photos taken by me with the Panasonic Lumix FZ330 bridge camera. (I don't particularly rate my photos but if anyone wishes to use one of mine or my son's I would be grateful for an email first - thanks).