Blink & You'll Miss It

I was bemoaning the fact that Christmas arrives far too early in the year these days with cards on sale in August and shops decorated by October. Now in mid November although some of the trees are still hanging onto their autumn colours, others have already drifted into their winter appearance and two weeks from now we will be in Advent, the Christian period of preparation for the celebration of the birth of Jesus.

Festive lights are being switched on up and down the country - Derby's ceremony took place on Saturday and those in Ilkeston are due to be lit on November 30th. In another six weeks, Christmas will have passed and we'll be on the verge of 2013. Hard to believe I know but that's the truth of it.

It's Closer Than You Think

Whilst we were in Derby last week I stopped at an information point in the bus station to see if there were any new leaflets that I hadn't seen before. I picked up a couple concerning Denby Pottery and Haddon Hall. Both were advertising events in December and "Christmas" was a common word on both leaflets. I know I've often said that I think Christmas starts far too early but as I write this, two of my grandsons are making Christmas cakes. They have to be done in October so that they can mature and brandy be added at intervals during November ready for the icing and decorating just before Christmas.
   The weather last week was anything but Christmas-like being dull and mild with a hint of drizzle in the air. Saturday was the exception as a cold blast straight from the Arctic blew away the clouds and sent a shiver down the spine before returning to damp and dreary weather today. It did mean though that the trees showed up really well on Saturday (see picture) in their autumn colours but looking at those leaflets again that I picked up in Derby, I've just noticed a line on the one for Haddon Hall. It says "Christmas is closer than you think" - how true! And I'll tell you something else, with the cakes now baking in the oven and the aroma emanating from the kitchen, it's even beginning to smell like Christmas.

Lighting Up The Town

   Cards have been on sale since August; the leaves on the trees are just starting to turn; there's a nip in the air as Autumn makes its presence felt; Ilkeston's Charter Fair is still a couple of weeks away; Hallowe'en and Bonfire night later still and adverts for never-ending sales of furniture and beds have reappeared on TV. To top it all men were working on Bath Street last week stringing coloured lights from building to building.

    It can only mean one thing - Christmas is coming and before you know it, there'll be Easter Eggs in the shops!

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The Stanton Wagon

    The Stanton Wagon has always divided opinion among the townsfolk and now after extensive restoration work it has been returned to its position on the island at the northern end of Chalons Way. Regarded by some as an iconic Ilkeston landmark denoting the town's industrial heritage it was the subject of some criticism when first placed there as visitors to the town may have mistakenly thought the word "Stanton" was the name of the town. The wagon received little or no maintenance and deteriorated badly so the restoration work was costed at over £15000. This project again divided opinion with one section of the community saying the money could be better spent elsewhere but a majority seemed to be in favour of the work and the wagon was removed in February 2012.

    Now that it is back the project has restored it to pristine condition with new parts being added to replace old ones. A fresh coat of paint and treated with sealant to protect it against the weather it looks as though it has just rolled off an assembly line but again it has attracted some negative comments. Basically I think the argument is just how much work has to be done before "restoration" becomes "replica"? Whichever side you come down on, I think most people will agree that it is good to see it back in its rightful place as a reminder of the area's past.

The Launch

Sorry about the late upload - forgot all about it last week!

   The Erewash and Amber Valley Autumn Footprints Walking Festival was launched at the Shipley Country Park Visitor Centre with representatives of both councils in attendance together with many of the Walk Leaders and the Festival Walk Co-ordinator Marion Farrell (centre) of Groundwork Derby and Derbyshire. We hope to participate in several of the walks over the next two weeks.

   Whilst at the launch on Saturday, I picked up another leaflet (as usual) and this one was for the Derwent Valley Discovery Days for 2012. This is another festival that begins later in October and runs for nine days. This festival also includes a number of walks and there are many other activities as well in the World Heritage Site. I've had a quick scan through the programme and there's an on-line version too (linked below) but don't think Morris Dancing for Beginners will be on my agenda. Could be tempted by some of the other events though - we'll see what shape we're in after Autumn Footprints

Walking Festival

   The Erewash and Amber Valley Autumn Footprints Walking Festival begins on the 8th September and we've already booked to take part in many of the guided walks on offer. This year marks the tenth anniversary of the annual event so we're looking forward to meeting up with some old acquaintances and enjoying their company again as we trek across a mixture of country lanes and open landscapes. Some of the walks we have done before, others will take us to new territory whilst others will be variations of previous routes.

   With over forty walks to choose from during the sixteen days of the festival, there really is something to suit everyone so all we are hoping for is some fine weather and plenty of photo opportunities such as the one above taken last year at the old lock-up in Alfreton. For details of this year's programme click here.

Frosty Mornings

An overnight frost and a misty morning was the prelude to a fresh bright autumn day that is so much more preferable to those dark dank dismal days that are also a feature of November. The fallen leaves on the lawn might prove to be an interesting picture but they also highlight the length of the grass and tell me that I perhaps should have given the grass one more mowing before putting the mower away for the year. It's too late to worry about it now though!

Suck & Blow

Anyone walking through the Market Place this afternoon may have thought that the overnight gales had blown away all the leaves that had settled in and around St Mary's churchyard but I know different. Earlier this morning two council workmen were hard at work. One of them had a machine strapped to his back and was blowing the fallen leaves into piles whilst the other one was operating a super vacuum cleaner to suck them into a vehicle to be transported away.

Long Shadows

A much better day today and the wind has dropped temporarily but it is still cold. On what is expected to be the best day of the week a low sun in a cloudless sky produced some long shadows and this was early in the afternoon. Many of the trees are now leafless and although they are still lying on the ground, there's a distinct winter feeling all around. Strange to think that a fortnight ago we were still on British Summer Time while in just six weeks from now we'll have passed the shortest day.

Dancing Leaves

Well it dried for for a while after yesterday's downpour but the cold wind was still with us this morning and caused the leaves on the Market Place (and elsewhere) to swirl around eddying back and forth. It's obviously very difficult to catch the movement in a still image but I think this shot gives some impression of how they were dancing around.

Soggy Leaves

Well yesterday's fine weather did indeed prove to be a brief respite from the rain as the downpour since turned this morning's journey to church quite hazardous in part where the precipitation had turned the fallen autumnal  leaves into a distinctly wetter shade of soggy!

First Day

Depending where you look or who you listen to, autumn in the northern hemisphere officially starts anywhere between September 21st and 23rd but as it was the autumnal equinox sometime yesterday, I reckon that makes today the first FULL day of autumn. Not that we need the date to go by as the spiders in the garden and the ripe quince growing through the fence from next door are more than enough to convince anyone of the season.

More Of The Same

Yes today it's more of the same as we see more examples of the onset of autumn. Ever lengthening shadows as the suns drops lower in the sky and fallen leaves point to the inevitable change of season which will become more and more apparent in the coming weeks. For the moment most of the trees are still green and full of leaf but you only have to look down to see they won't be like that for much longer.

Another Sign

The title "Another Sign" is actually twofold. First of all it refers to an additional sign - the yellow one - that has been fixed to the pole at the entrance to the car park off South Street. Secondly it means the seasons are changing.

The sign is about Fair equipment arriving and that there will be no parking available from Monday 19th October and the annual Charter fair can only mean one thing - it's autumn!

A Sure Sign

There's a sure sign of the changing seasons in our garden. It's difficult to walk anywhere without disturbing a spider and more than once I've already face full of web. This spider pictured though seemed content to sit in the middle of a damaged web and wait for some unsuspecting prey much smaller than me to become entangled.

To Chop Or Not To Chop

I am so pleased I still have this photo taken nearly two years ago of some of the trees on Chaucer Old Park ('Illy 'Oleys") as it shows a splendid example of a Horse Chestnut almost in the centre of the picture.


Since then it has been chopped right back - I think the correct word is pollarded although mutilated is another word that springs to mind - and only the main trunk is still standing. I actually saw the men working on it one day earlier this year and thought they were just pruning it but was shocked to see how severe the cut back was the following day. I guess they know what they are doing as Horse Chestnuts throughout Britain are suffering from attack by insects and bacteria but it will be a long time before this one will be able to put on such a fine display again in autumn even though there are already signs of new growth. There is hope for Horse Chestnut trees though and there is a potential cure which actually treats the symptoms without the need for cropping but sad to say, it has come too late for this particular tree.

Trees, though they are cut and lopped, grow up again quickly, but if men are destroyed, it is not easy to get them again. - Pericles (490 BC - 429 BC)

Bean Feast

Well the end of the Autumn Footprints Walking Festival has meant we have been able to switch our attention to the garden and this morning we decided to take the bean row down. It's not been a bad season and as well as enjoying freshly picked produce, we've also stacked up for the winter by freezing much of the crop but still had sufficient to give some away to family, friends and neighbours. Now though the growing season is almost over but we were still able to salvage enough for a few more bags for the freezer and get plenty of seed for next year.


It seems strange now though when walking down the garden path. The garden seems a whole lot longer now that there is an uninterrupted view to the bottom and it also seems much lighter. During the growing season a combination of strong winds and a heavy crop had caused the bean row to list to starboard and overhang the path so much so that it was impossible to walk past it without stepping off the path onto the lawn. Also with the neighbour's apricot tree overhanging the lawn it was almost like passing through a tunnel. The tree was pruned a little while ago so there are no obstructions now to keep the light out! We can now see that there are still lots more jobs to do in the garden but we thought we'd save some for another day ....