Sentinels Along The Way

Sentinels Along The Way – The Countryman

They stand, like two rows of regimented soldiers, lining the long ridge of Shropshire’s Linley Hill. It was once thought these sentinels were planted by Napoleonic prisoners of war, but tree-dating technology proves that these beech trees were planted circa 1740, long before there was even a Napoleonic prisoner-of-war camp at nearby Bishop’s Castle.

Read more

Meandering Along The Mortimer Trail

Meandering Along The Mortimer Trail - The Countryman - March 2016
Meandering Along The Mortimer Trail – The Countryman – March 2016

“We need more kangaroos,” the manageress said to her assistant as I stepped into the shop. Puzzled why a card shop in Ludlow would have any need for Antipodean animals, I paid for my postcard and left. I’d read the Mortimer Trail was a good walk for wildlife, but I didn’t think it included large marsupials.

Read more