Whilst dad was going to work this morning he spotted gliding in the sky, the unusual sight of a hot air balloon.

These are fairly common in south Cumbria but to see the Virgin hot air balloon over the streets of Carlisle was quite a sight, he said.

Virgin Hot Air balloon over Carlisle, coming into land

Although quite a distance away, the big red shape stood out against the clear blue early morning sky.

It must have been very big as he could still see the distinctive Virgin logo clearly on the side in bright white letters.

Balloon launch sites

Checking the Virgin balloon website, it appears that the nearest launch site to Carlisle in near to Penrith, at Dalemain.

If this was the start of the flight earlier today then the passengers and crew should have had a really good view from the basket  as they floated north.

Possibly they used the M6 as an aerial reference during the journey.

It appeared as if they came down to the west of the city, possibly near to the recently opened Dobbies store.

Maybe you know more about the flight? Let us know via the comments area below.

Dodging the rain showers earlier we have just returned from a quick walk around Bitts Park in Carlisle.

Wild garlic sends an onion smell across the area

What a change in the weather from a few weeks ago when mum was threatening to cut all our fur off due to the heat.

The heating and fire were even switched back on earlier in the week as temperatures dropped below zero and an overnight frost returned.

More stinky than Charlie

The warm weather does seem to have moved nature on quite a bit and just on our short walk we came upon stinky wild garlic flowers, tulips, bluebells and a whole host of flowering plants.

Bluebells are early this year

We could smell the garlic from a good way off as it spread a strong crushed onion smell across the path.

Thankfully only a few plants had flowered so the scent was not as bad as it could have been for our very sensitive noses.

Hidden under the tree canopy alongside the River Eden mum spotted a small collection of Bluebells.

Hyacinth flowers

Standing around 10cm tall the slightly purple bell shaped flowers contrasted against the rich green woodland floor.

Another strong flower we sniffed today included these hyacinths. Arranged in a small clump these half dozen or so flowers really packed a punch when it comes to a sweet perfume sniffable for quite some distance.

New noticeboards have been installed in Bitts Park

Insects, bees and birds also seemed to be making the most of the cooler daytime conditions as the buzzed and whizzed over our heads.

New notice boards

Yet more things have been installed in the park since our last visit.  You may remember that a project has been going on as part of a Roman Frontiers project.

The latest additions include new information boards clamped to carved wooded posts.

The trunk of this tree has been scratched off

Although a good idea in some ways we wondered if they could be read by someone in a wheelchair as they had quite small lettering and they seemed quite a bit off the ground.

Big rabbits – or a monster ?

Walking back over the grass back towards the Sheepmount area and the car we spotted a couple of trees that were damaged.

At least three, otherwise healthy trees, all in various locations from the river bank, had the bark scratched or eaten off and left on the surrounding grass.

There seemed to be some tooth or claw marks running horizontally around the trunk.

If we had been in a forest we could have possibly assumed this damage had been done possibly by deer but this was in the wide open area of a city.

Do you know what might have caused this damage? Let us know via the comments area below.

Until next time

Buster and Charlie

Walking out onto the flat grass covered of land at the head of the Solway Estuary our noses were filled with seaside smells.

Many sheep graze on the grass growing on the sand and mud

For our big walk this week we headed to Burgh (pron Bruff) Marsh about five or so miles from Carlisle.

The wide open space is populated by hundreds of sheep who keep the grass short and the occasional tourist visiting the nearby monument to King Edward I.

Today we were to venture way out to the sea in the search for a paddle.

Burgh Marsh

Walking out on to the wide open plain we soon became aware that the land had lots of ridges, deep crevasses and grass tuffets which could cause us some damage if we ran around too much.

The salt marsh grass stretches for miles around

It was great fun to try and pick our way across the almost featureless landscape, looking for makeshift bridges spanning drainage ditches.

Some of these were simply concrete reinforced drainage pipes dropped into the gaps and backfilled with rubble and debris to keep them in place.

Campsite

It is hard to believe that where we were walking camped an army in 1307 belonging to King Edward.

What animal or bird left this behind?

We tried to imagine how windswept the camp must have been and how dangerous it must be to walk in the area after dark.

Although we did not spot any old coins or buckles left behind we did come across hundreds of unusual droppings.

Around 4cm long with a white end the poop was not the usual splat you get from a seagull.

Any birds we did spot or flew up from the ground as we approached, appeared to be very small so we did not think it came from any of them.

The sand and grass bank is collapsing into the sea

Mum wondered if the droppings had possibly come from geese resting on the salt marsh in recent days, but she was not sure as we found no large feathers or other signs.

Crumbling cliff

Arriving at the waters edge and eager for a paddle our hopes were dashed as we discovered that the soft sand bank edge was crumbling into the sea.

The unstable edge made it too dangerous to walk along and also  very dirty to walk through.

A haff net frame is weighted down with some big stones

Much of the damage appeared to have been done over the last few weeks given that the grass was still firmly attached to some debris.

Dad wondered if the recent dry weather had caused the bank to become brittle or if something else was going on which could be a lot more serious.

Haff net

Positioned at the outlet for the River Eden this area is possibly a good area for fishing and for salmon in particular.

Nearby we came across a Haff net frame weighted down with large stones to stop it moving in the tide or wind.

Haff netting used to be common in this area and involves standing in the water with the net filtering the water as it flows past and around the fisherman.

In the late afternoon sunshine we had the area to ourselves and the sheep.

This allowed us to take our time and stop to listen to the birds, to take in the lovely weather and to have regular drinks.

Our big bottle of water, that mum was carrying, was soon empty as we drank our way through a litre of water in just under 90 minutes.

Thankfully we made it back to the car soon after and could replenish from the bottles of water in the car.

Please take care if you are going for a walk in this heat. Many of us still have our winter coats and so will heat up quickly.

As the weather is set to continue warm, our mum is arranging for us to have a good clipping later this week. No doubt more on this soon.

Until next time

Big licks and a woof

Buster and Charlie

Spring was certainly in our paws as we headed to the park yesterday for a really big walk alongside the River Eden in Carlisle.

We had heard of some new musical instruments that had appeared in Bitts Park and were eager to try them out,  but first we had to  get there.

The daffodil bulbs are growing quickly

Recent rain, and there has been a lot of it, has made many cross country paths soggy and not really good to walk on. So we had to keep to the dryish paths avoiding any puddles alongside the river.

This was not an easy challenge at times, especially around the back of the Sheepmount athletics and football pitches.

Arriving in Bitts Park we noticed that the green shoots of the daffodils were a good leg length high.

Charlie had good fun running over the leaves as they tickled his tummy. Mum wondered if they were not a few weeks early and may get nipped by any overnight frosts.

Quick, whilst mum is not looking

The weather is such a contrast to that we reported on in January 2011 when we visited Linstock near Carlisle and the ice was just melting after many weeks of cold weather.

A red bracelet

The musical instruments we were in search of have been installed near to the children’s play area behind Carlisle Castle.

To get to them we had to quickly pass the monster infested swamp and cross the troll bridge. Well that was the story mum told us as we approached the Chinese garden and the nature pond.

Charlie sees if he can make music with his nose

Floating on the pond was a large round red ring. Mum said it was a wrist bracelet left behind by one of the trolls that lived under the nearby bridge.

Sadly it was just out of reach for us to check her story, so we quickly moved away from the area just in case one of the wart infested, wrinkly blue trolls appeared.

Musical instruments

Running over the bridge and into the gardens we soon found our first musical instruments.

Built with metal frames and bolted to some very big rocks we had a lot of fun woofing at the sounds they made.

Charlie soon worked out that if mum tapped a tube or wooden block with the provided hammer, he heard a noise. He even tried to tap one of the metal tubes with his paw to see if he could make a sound.

Sadly we were running out of time and the clouds were once more gathering around us as we made our way, this time on the pavement back home.

Until next time

Buster and Charlie

With the ground frozen after cold overnight temperatures, it was decided that we could return to Rickerby Park in Carlisle and not get too muddy.  This was good news as we were keen to investigate the new stone circle.

The willow is growing up really tall on the riverbank

The park makes up part of the Carlisle flood plain and as such can be very soft under our paws.  For this reason we avoid the area during much of the winter.

It would appear that many other people thought just like us yesterday, as the park was very busy.

The late morning sunshine combined with the near cloudless sky, to produce some very long shadows. As we walked along we often saw our shadows creep out in front of us making us jump.

Just beyond the metal bridge to the golf club, the Willow trees planted into the crumbling River Eden riverbank are growing fast.  Some must stand 4m or so tall.

We saw these as little saplings back in June 2009 and reported on them in this post

The thin wooden wands spear into the sky, almost invisible against the glare from the bright sunshine.

Sand Martins

Concerns are being raised about the local sand martin colonies who reportedly nest within the riverbanks in this area.

The Friends of Rickerby Park, who oversee the park, are to see if the sand martins are being affected by the new trees and what can be done to limit the impact of the willow tree growth.

The new stone circle in Carlisle

According to the RSPB these small birds have Amber Status, indicating that their numbers are in decline or that the species is of concern to conservation organisations.

Eden river rock

With Charlie constantly pulling to our right, as he wanted a paddle in the River Eden, it was a relief when we finally we arrived at the Linstock end of the park and the new stone circle.

Set about 40m from the river bank and not far from the much improved car park at this end of the site the six upright stones make a bold, hard statement in contrast to the soft living trees nearby.

Looking at the muddy ring around the flattened stone at the centre of the circle, it would appear that the site is well visited.

Each rock can be found in the catchment area of the River Eden.

Kirkstone Slate, Penrith Red Sandstone, Millstone Grit, two different types of Shap Granite and two pieces of Shap Fell Limestone make up the artwork.

Each of the pieces of stone has a history of its geology engraved into it.

The diameter of the circle is about 7m.

The idea behind the stone information henge came from a study done in 2004 by the Eden Rivers Trust. They found that more needed to be done to explain the local heritage and environment.

Photographs taken and sniffs investigated we continued on our walk around the park and back towards the car.  You can see some of out images in the gallery below.

Until next time

Buster and Charlie.

Carlisle Stone circle Gallery – click a picture for a larger image

We start 2012 with our 201st blog post and a sighting of our first snowdrops of the season.

Mum and dad stayed out late last night, to celebrate the new year,  so today we made them pay with our demands for a long walk and no breakfast for them until they came back.

Snowdrops - first of the year

With dark clouds all around and reasonable warm temperatures of 10 deg C, a walk in the big world was the least they could do, after leaving us to fend off the firework monsters last night.

We headed for Dalston, to the west of Carlisle, where we know we can have a good walk without getting too muddy and dirty.

Many of the soil and grass paths in the county are just soaked through and have plenty of standing puddles of water. This sort of rules them out, unless we are allowed to get really mucky.

Snowdrops flower 

A sure sign of the warm winter this year is the arrival of the snowdrops.  These are the first we have seen for this season and brought a smile to the two leggers faces.

Huddled behind a wall at the side of Dalston Church quite a few clumps of the small white flowers were to be found.

Path repaired with new wall and fence

Our walk took us through the churchyard, were we were on our best behaviours, and onto the path which leads behind Caldew School and the Nestle milk factory.

This path is well used and was especially busy today with a lot of cyclists, walkers, children and friendly pooches.

Paths repaired

Way back in November 2010 we mentioned that some of the paths on this walk had started to crumble and were at risk of collapse.

Following our walk today we are please to report that it would appear that a lot of money has been spent to underpin and repair one stretch.

A slight detour, maybe?

Looking over towards the river, work seems to have been done to install cages full of rocks into the river bank to prevent further damage. A new fence and tarmac path have then been installed on top.

Well done to all of those involved as the finished path looks really good and in character with the area.

Machines take a detour

Further on towards Carlisle we spot a new, very muddy path curving off to our right. This gives a bit of an insight possibly into the work needed to repair the path earlier.

The small, narrow path appears to be too narrow for any machinery to cross so they have been forced to take a detour across a small stream and across the very soggy grassland.

We so wanted to investigate, but mum stopped us before we could get really dirty.

Until next time. Have a safe, happy 2012.

Buster and Charlie

With the Northern Development Route road due to open in the very near future we thought we would take a quick look whilst it is still quiet and a pleasure to walk along.

Parking as near as we could to the Moorhouse Road roundabout we realised that the path had not been installed yet

The building of this road has been in planning for what seems hundreds of years and is designed to link the west of the city to the north and remove a lot of through traffic from the city centre.

Although much of the building work is now complete, the road is still not officially open and as such we needed to keep our ears open and our eyes wide observing for possible dangers.

A number of walkers and cyclists are taking advantage of the new river crossing to get to and from the Kingstown area of the city and with the warm sunny conditions we thought we should take a look.

Getting to the new road

Sadly the path does not link between the new road and Moorhouse Road

Parking the car as near to the new Moorhouse Road roundabout as we could we soon realised that we could not safely get to our starting position.

Currently about 500m of road needs to be walked along before you get to the new paths, which all look very impressive with the cycle and road markings all painted on.

So here starts our grand adventure and we have a good wide path to explore.

Buster inspects one of the recently planted holly trees

As the road is not open to traffic we were able to explore in reasonable safety.  In the quiet early morning we were able to hear the birds singing in the hedgerows and the sound of our own paws on the tarmac.

Sadly in a few weeks time, when the road opens, you will possibly not be able to hear anything except the thunder of traffic.

Trees planted

Stretching alongside the path was a river of black plastic stretched along the ground between green tubes.

Possible sensor to monitor bikes using the path maybe?

Overnight rain had collected in puddles on the plastic and, in the sunshine, created a river of twinkling water droplets as if flowing in a stream.

We wasted no time in going for a paddle and soon realised that we could get our paws really soggy as we ran between the natural puddles.

The new bridge is a very impressive installation

Peering down the green tubes, mum told us that they contained holly plants and a number of saplings including oak, ash and I think she said birch.

The new River Eden Bridge

As we approached the highlight of our walk, the River Eden Bridge, is sympathetically installed to get people across the river.

On the Scotland side of the bridge large ducts have been installed to clear flood waters

Peering down over the edge of the road we could see what a big operation it must have been to install this structure.

At this point we moved towards the middle of the road to stay away from the path edge.

The bridge appears not to be finished, as metal safety netting still needs to be installed to avoid things, and us, going under the lower part of the safety fencing and dropping to the water below.

Flood culverts

Giant culverts have been constructed under the northern end of the bridge to allow river water to escape in the event of flood.

One of the thousands of bolts used to hold the safety barriers in place

Without these giant pipes, water could possibly build up on the city side of the bridge and cause damage and undue pressure on the bridge and other structures upstream.

As we walked along the path we noticed that thousands of bolts had been installed on the assorted safety barriers and rails.

Closer inspection showed that many of them had all sorts of code numbers and details.

We were not sure about these ponds. Could they be overflow lagoons for the road drains?

Dad tried to work out how many bolts may have been used, but gave up once he had used up all of his fingers.

Ponds

Situated just a little off the main carriageway we spotted this recently created pond.

All full of muddy water and looking a bit lifeless we wondered what it could be used for.

A number of ideas were suggested including a reed bed to clear any pollution from the road drains to a wildlife and duck pond.

Long sweeping bends - How long before the speed cameras take root?

Maybe you know what it is for, as it did look as if quite a bit of work had gone into its construction?

Long sweeping bends

Looking down from the hill, overlooking the western end of Carlisle, we have to say that we were very impressed with the way the road has snaked its way through the countryside and not really made much impact beyond the grass verges.

Currently, streetlights have not been installed, so the road could be quite dark at night and, with the long sweeping bends vehicle speeds could become a problem.

The white lines are quite slippy and mask the actual curb edge

Another thing we noticed is the lack of controlled crossing points for pedestrians.

It will be interesting to see if you can actually cross this road, safely, when it opens.

Sadly the peace and quite we have experienced on our walk will soon disappear. However, it may make the streets of the inner city a little more quiet and in turn safer.

In summary, we have been amazed with how quickly this road has been built, but have grave concerns about many safety aspects, which should have been built out at the design stages, still exist, especially as it is a new road on a green field site.

No doubt some wise sage will say it is all down to money!

Until next time

Buster and Charlie

Building work has started on the 2011 Bitts Park bonfire in Carlisle.

The annual event attracts thousands of spectators annually and is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.

The community event will be based on an ‘Olympics 2012’ theme.

Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service is giving their support for the 2011 City Council Fireshow which is to take place Saturday, 5 November.

A giant 40-foot bonfire will be centre stage  and more than 2,000 spectacular fireworks will also make sure the event goes with a ‘bang’.

The community event will be based on an ‘Olympics 2012’ theme, in celebration of Carlisle being chosen as one of the host cities for the London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay Route next June.

At Bitts Park, pre-entertainment, provided by Carlisle Leisure Limited, will start at 6.30pm and the bonfire lit at 7pm.

The whole event is likely to last for around an hour.

Admission is free, although collections will be made for the Mayor’s Charity Fund and Rotary Club Carlisle (South).

Following our visit to Brampton earlier this week, we have been told of another monument not officially on the tourist trail and only really known by locals.

Earl of Carlisle monument overlooking Brampton

Perched high on a hill, on the other side of the town to the CaponTree monument, is a rather ornate sculpture to the 7th Earl of Carlisle, George William Fredrick Howard.

Our walk begins at the edge of an area known as The Sands.  This is on the eastern approach to the town of Brampton and is sort of a triangular area of grass with a road on each side.

Parking the car in front of the Brampton Fairtrade flower bed we headed up the hill following the public footpath sign direction.

The path was constructed out of worn out tarmac and loads of little stones, some were quite sharp and stuck in our paws.

After around 500m we came upon a few houses and a choice of path. To our right and in front of the houses a very sandy path led past a crab apple tree and away out of sight.

Set on one of the highest points in the town is the Earl of Carlisle monument

To our left was a woodland area, with quite a well worn path and what looked like a better adventure.

Decision easily made, we headed into the forest to find out what we could see and sniff.

Fallen leaves littered our path and after the recent rain we were very surprised as to the condition of the paths being well drained, with just the occasional patch of splodgy mud.

Our path curved and twisted for a few hundred metres, until we came upon a clearing to our right where, perched high on a sandstone pedestal was our quarry, The 7th Earl of Carlisle.

Surrounding the monument was well mown grass which made the whole area feel a little strange.  Here was a monument hidden by the surrounding trees, set in a clearing with manicured grass.

Drinks from a fountain flowing fresh water

The sculpture was made by John Foley, an Irish sculpture based in London at the time of the commission.

Pictures taken and information recorded, as mum will need to write all about it over on gravestonepix, we follow the path down a zig-zag path and the open sky.

To our right, Charlie hears water and makes straight for a drinking fountain with fresh clean water cascading from it.

Given the size and arrangement we can only assume it was put here to water horses and possibly hounds. It had a big basin above with a small channel below, ideal for us to have a good drink.

Must be the oldest public footpath sign in the county

Nearby was the first interpretation board we had spotted and it told the humans a little bit about the area and what it may have looked like in the good old days.

The area through which we had just walked is called the Mote. It is thought that an old castle stood on the top of the hill.

On the subject of signs we discovered this old green sign later in our walk and wondered how old it actually was, do you know?

Heading down the path and into the edge of Brampton, we decide to keep away from the main roads and head up many of the side lanes.

Dad has a very good on board compass and he had sort of worked out that if we followed a road to our right then right again we may meet up with the path where we entered into the wood earlier.

Looking out across the fields and towards Scotland

Travelling up Union Lane, then past the school on Sawmill Lane, we exited on to a grass path which, after the climb up the hill brought us out at the top of the sandy path we saw earlier.

Thankfully a bench awaited us at the top of the hill so we could have a rest and take in the view.

In front of us in the far distance was Scotland, just ahead was Brampton and off to about 2 o’clock the small village of Walton.

Just around the corner to our right and about 2 miles away is Lanercost and the Priory.

Yipee we had not got lost and we had stayed very clean as we headed back down the hill and the car.

Walks complete and heads full of sniffs we settled down for the ride back home and shepherds pie for tea.  A perfect day.

Until next time

Buster and Charlie

Three days of cuddles, walks and chew finding are in store, as the humans have another one of those bank holiday weekends.

A bat house after a door conversion

Given that the usual weather for UK holiday times is rain, we take the first opportunity on Saturday morning to hassle dad into getting his coat and taking us out.

Our destination is the Finlandrigg nature reserve just outside of Carlisle.  The venue was chosen as it has been a while since we have been, we know that it should be reasonably clean and it should be full of sniffs.

As we head off along the path into the wood we come across a bit of a bodged building work.  Looking up towards the tree canopy, this bird box looks to have had a new front door installed, by a very dodgy builder.

Beware of the bull

It would appear that the old front door has been ripped away and a plank, not even cut to size, has been put in place with twisted wire.  The new door does not look as if it has even had a coat of paint .

Beware of the bull

Further down the track we came upon a bit of artwork nailed to a gate featuring the head of a beast.

Grass starting to grow through the boardwalk

With frightening horns and nose ring, the picture was a warning that big hairy scary things lay just beyond the fence.  Thankfully we did not have to travel through the field.

We have been to Finlandrigg on a number of occasions now and every time it is different.

It is now I suppose, nearing the end of summer and we did notice that all seemed very calm, with little  happening.  All the rush in the early part of spring to make flowers and new growth had stopped, and it was as if nature was taking a pause before winter.

Buster takes a moment for a rest

Taking a moment to look around, nothing seemed to be moving and the skies were clear of birds.

The air was silent except for the wind through the leaves and the occasional clang of a branch against another.

Mum noticed that even the hedgerows had been picked clean by the birds, leaving only a few elderberries and the occasional ripe bramble.

Beware of Adders

The two leggers wondered if nature was preparing for a really bad winter to follow our wet summer.

Mathematical humour

When a notice appears on a gate that reads ‘ Beware of Adders’ you know that dad is going to try and say something silly.

Sure enough within seconds out came the quip – “An ideal sign for the mathematics staff room door….”

The purple flowers of the heather

He does not get any better, but the sign does raise a serious issue of our safety when in open countryside.  Reports suggest that Adders, which are the only venomous snake in the UK, bite dogs more than any other animal.

For this reason we stay on short leads and on the open path, so we can see where we are walking.

This spoils our fun a little, but it is for our own safety as we do not want to get bitten.

The leaves of this very small oak are starting to turn ahead of autumn

Earlier we mentioned that all seemed unusually calm and this was also the case as we left the wooded area in to a wide open clearing.

Purple flowering heather stood about 30cm from the boggy ground whilst the first signs of autumn colours were starting to appear.

No taller than our noses was this small oak tree, complete with tiny acorn growing through the path.

Fine grasses wave in the late morning breeze

The rich green leaves were starting to fade to the browns and golden colours of autumn.  A sure sign that summer is almost over. A summer that has only provided a tiny bit of warm sunshine.

Heading back towards the car we passed through a field bordered by high golden grasses bending in the breeze.

Although we could not see over the tops of the grass, the many trails away from our path and into the meadow could clearly be seen.  Forest beasties had flattened the tall stems to the ground as they made their way way across the site, leaving clear paths and trails for us to investigate.

By this time Charlie had managed to find the obligatory swamp and went in half way up his legs….he turned back to face mummy with a proud look of achievement, so with the threat of rain in the air, and quite a bit of mud clinging to Charlies legs we headed back towards the car and the journey home.

Until next time

Buster and Charlie