When we told people that we were going to visit the Hunter boot factory in Dumfries, the immediate response was, “I thought they went bust, what happened?” To be honest, we weren’t entirely sure but we knew they were still operating as they’d been kind enough to sponsor us with a few prizes over the… Continue reading Hunter Boots: Alive and Kicking
Tag: Muddy Marathon
Popping in to a Whisky Distillery
Much like the haggis making, we didn’t feel we could leave Scotland without having a quick trip to a whisky distillery. As we were still in East Lothian, we decided to pop into the Glenkinchie Distillery before heading into Edinburgh (not very rural we know) for the Scottish Countryside Alliance Christmas Drinks Party. Established in… Continue reading Popping in to a Whisky Distillery
Hedge Cutting
Whilst staying on a friend’s farm in East Lothian, we got the chance to have a go at a bit of hedge cutting. We must admit, it looked pretty easy so we thought it was going to be a doddle but, unfortunately, that wasn’t the case and there are probably some wonky hedges on a… Continue reading Hedge Cutting
The Graffiti Project
Some time ago we heard about the Graffiti Project at Kelburn Castle in Fairlie, Ayrshire, and decided that we had to stop off there on our Muddy Marathon. To put you in the picture, Kelburn Castle is home to the tenth Earl of Glasgow and is said to be the oldest castle in Scotland to… Continue reading The Graffiti Project
Haggis Making
Well we couldn’t go to Scotland without learning a bit more about the legendary haggis, could we? Some say that the haggis is a four-legged Highland creature, which has two short and two long legs to help it run around the hills. Now we don’t want to disappoint any American tourists by discussing whether that… Continue reading Haggis Making
Gundog Training in Worcestershire
The morning after the Winter Wonder Ball, we headed off to Tenbury – the mistletoe capital of the UK – to meet Pip Kendrick, who set up her own business, Sporting Saint, manufacturing and supplying gundog training equipment. She also introduced us to a local friend of hers, Jeremy Sharp, who runs a gundog training… Continue reading Gundog Training in Worcestershire
Worcestershire Young Farmers Winter Wonder Ball
Fellow Muddy Matcher, Christina, is from Worcestershire and got us involved with the Young Farmers’ Winter Wonder Ball at the Three Counties Showground, near Malvern. When we eventually found it – no thanks to SatNav, which nearly got thrown out the window on our fifth journey through Malvern rush hour – we were amazed by… Continue reading Worcestershire Young Farmers Winter Wonder Ball
Wiggly Podcasting
Our trip to Wiggly Wigglers, a Herefordshire natural gardening company, was a late addition to an already full itinerary but we had heard that its founder, Heather Gorringe, was a really interesting woman, and decided we could probably squeeze something else in before we collapsed of exhaustion. It was well worth the effort. After developing… Continue reading Wiggly Podcasting
A Day on a Mixed Farm
Exactly midway through our tour, we spent the day ‘helping’ Christina’s friend’s brother on his mixed farm in Priors Hardwick, Warwickshire. We’re not sure how much help we were, but it was damn good fun! At 23, Hugh Darbishire is back on the family farm after finishing college and bursting with ideas. But it’s not… Continue reading A Day on a Mixed Farm
Making Ice Cream at Red Lion Farm
We went along to Red Lion Farm, a family-run dairy farm in Haughton, Staffordshire, to find out how they make their delicious ice cream. We pulled up outside a very smart Scandinavian-looking log cabin (their shop and tea-room) and were met by Alison Hollinshead, who runs the business with her mother and father.