A Walk through the Good Old Days

A request came into our photo club. Did anyone fancy coming along to a local farm open day to make a record of the day in pictures? Three of us did. And we had the best Sunday out.

Rock House Farm is near Bedale: a member of LEAF, an organisation promoting sustainable farming. As modern farms go, it’s small. Just some cows, sheep and pigs, hens (for eggs) and turkeys (for Christmas). And an allotment, which supplies the family as well as providing fruit for the (fresh and delicious) jams and chutneys they sell.

Our morning was spent with the animals – and visitors . We got photos of children’s delight at enjoying getting so close to them, at feeding the hens, and chatting to piglets . Although parents had given permission for them to be photographed, it doesn’t seem fair to display them on the internet, so I won’t show you this special part of the day.

There was a woman fashioning wooden spoons, a wood turner, local heather honey on sale.

There was lunch, made using their own-produced meats and sausages, served with salads then home-made cakes, eaten with views of flower-meadows and long-ranging views of the Yorkshire countryside. I was too busy enjoying it all to remember about taking photos.

What I can share with you is what for us was the highlight of the day. We’re old enough to remember when meadows full of wild flowers were quite normal in the countryside. Now the ones on this farm are sufficiently unusual that they’re Sites of Special Scientific Interest, rich in colour and buzzing with insect life. We spend a happy hour following the meandering mown path which wandered through these riches.

We’ll be back for sure. We eat little meat, but the animals raised here have good lives, mainly in the open, and we’d have confidence in buying here. As well as their fresh eggs, and tasty produce.

This farm had been obliged to hold their open day on the Wrong Day for family reasons. The real LEAF Open Farm Day event this year is this Sunday, 11th June, so if you live in the UK, you can find out if there’s a farm open near you, here. Highly recommended.

For Jo’s Monday Walk

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Author: margaret21

I'm retired and live in North Yorkshire, where I walk , write, volunteer and travel as often as I can.

34 thoughts on “A Walk through the Good Old Days”

  1. It’s a shame but I won’t be there, Margaret. We’re of an age but I don’t really remember flower meadows like these, probably because I was brought up in a town and outings to the countryside were rare. It’s a very different life for me these days, but I appreciate what you’re saying, and the kind link to mine.

    While I’m here, can I just ask if you’ve heard from Drake at all? As someone who posted daily and more, I find it strange that there’s nothing on his site since the end of April. I can’t find an email or any other way to contact him.

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    1. Oh no! I don’t regularly follow Drake, but you’re right, he’s not been around. I appreciate you were a townie, but I thought we were a similar age, so I thought you’d probably have the odd memory. Ah well …

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  3. Great day for you! The children with the animals must have been food for the camera…. But my favourite would have been the wildflower meadow

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  4. Seemed like a ‘right’ day to me, any day spent in the open air in the company of animals is right day to me. That means that you’ll get to experience this twice!

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  5. Being a country boy, long ago now, I will always love farms and farmland. I’ve shovelled a fair bit of muck in my youth! Lovely to see meadows being reintroduced. Thanks for all the lovely photos, and isn’t it delightful to see children interact with animals!

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    1. I wish I could have shown you some quite charming photos. Those children had the very best of days out. And like Sue, despite all that, the meadow walk was our best experience that day.

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  8. A great idea to invite you all to document the day! Like you I would have enjoyed the wild flowers the most – it’s good to know those meadows are protected 🙂

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  10. What an enjoyable day, Margaret! Thank you for taking us there. Love these animal photos. These handmade wooden spoons are beautiful and very special.
    These wildflowers, wow… Love to be there. 🙂

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    1. Oh, goodness, I can’t remember. I’d send a photo, but I can’t for the life of me find out how to paste it into comments here. If anyone knows how, please shout up, and I’ll do it.

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  13. Flower filled meadows are something we’re not familiar with here in Oz, but gee they do look beautiful. Reminds me of rolling in the flowers when the (South African I presume) Cape Weed came into bloom with a sea of yellow daisies.

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