Little Gaerfields, Ross on Wye

04/09/2024

You must be wondering what these photos I am showing you are about !!! It’s because it was book club night at the Royal Arms. I asked 2 neighbours to walk with us. It’s only 1.6 miles.
Sensible shoes and torches. It’s a beautiful night .
The 4 of us left Upperfields at 6.30 . Had a great evening in pub and started for home. Unbeknown to us one of the ladies had bad knees and went down in the field. !!!
Just crumpled !! , like an old cow , down in a proper heap !!
No no , I tell you bad knees , bad knees 🤭
We hauled her back up and set off again .
We rang son in law and asked him if he would fetch us across the fields in the farm truck.
Bless him he did.
Fran and I sat in the back. She was so excited. She had never walked to the pub 🤨 and never rode shotgun in back of truck. 😁🤭
I just kept shining the torch all round the fields hoping to catch eyes !!
You know , foxes , deer etc.
we saw owls and bats .
Both ladies were delivered safely home .
Hope they come next month.

04/09/2024

This is our lovely friend Berni bringing a smile to all the locals as she shares her first day back at school . She posted this photo and said “ obligatory first day photo back at school”
She is the much loved bus driver.
🤣🤣
You can imagine all the comments she got such as “ tuck your shirt in , pull yer socks up. “ and much more .
She brings a smile to our faces on so many occasions .
Well done Berni. ###
Bernie Evans.

30/08/2024

Today’s online shopping has arrived . 3 deliveries and all work related !!!
But I am excited .
Just over a thousand bulbs to plant of native flowers , blackboards which I need to cut and frame in my own better picture frames and a massive washing machine .
Yeahh 😏😬😟😁🤣😬
The sun is shining. What a lovely day .
Happy weekend everyone xx

29/08/2024

Hats off to all those folks who can knit or crochet. I have 2 left hands but having a go at making a string of popcorn to decorate the Christmas tree with . Not saying which Christmas 🤣🤣 I am USELESS!!!
I am enjoying more that I am sat by bog garden while I do it and Skooker and Digger are having a moot about in the water and gravel 👌🫶
decorations

25/08/2024

25/08/2024

Love the Forest of Dean 👌💕

25/08/2024

I have been a guided tour over Symonds Yat with the Herefordshire archaeologist . It was a fascinating tour .

23/08/2024

Thank you Eat Sleep Live Herefordshire another great story . We can see St Weonards church from Upperfields. The Mound is just out of site as there houses and the school by it now.

**FOLKLORE FRIDAY**

Our tale this week comes from the village of St Weonards which lies within the area known to the Saxons (and later English) as Archenfield. Now before we get ahead of ourselves we need to head way back in time. To a time when most of Herefordshire was covered in forest. There once was a local woodcutter, who lived a lonely life out in the woods. Some thought he was a little strange, others were wary of him but all knew him to be a good man. He appeared wise, measured and gentle. His name was Weonard.

There was something about Weonard that whenever he went into the local village, people would be drawn to him and would pour out their woes. Most of the time he said nothing in return, he just listened and nodded. But this seemed to do the trick, everyone appeared to go away a little less burdened. Word soon spread and before long villagers would make their way into the forest to find Weonard and offload their problems. As the years passed and Weonard aged he moved into the village. There was always a steady stream of visitors to his home, trading gifts of food and treats just to have his ear for a while. He was no longer lonely that's for sure.

But when Weonard passed away a strange thing happened. The villagers would go and sit by his graveside and talk to him. Some would still bring gifts as they always had done when he was alive and got comfort from their one sided conversations. Such was their believe in Weonard some of his most ardent visitors began spreading the word that he was a saint. But they knew the only way that Weonard would receive a sainthood was to laud up his good deeds and convince the bishop he was worthy of the title. Having said that the bishop didn't need too much persuading, it was good business to have a saint or two in the county. Therefore Weonard was duly proclaimed a saint, promptly dug up and buried in front of the high altar in the church.

News travelled fast about this new saint and hoards of people arrived to visit the altar and divulge their troubles, rich and poor alike. With the rich leaving gifts of gold, silver and jewels. Within no time the altar sparkled and glistened in the dim lights of the candles. But as with everything time marches on and lives change. A thousand years later no-one came to worship Saint Weonard anymore, their attentions were drawn to other things. Before long the riches lying on altars like the one of St Weonard were on a list to be pillaged by the King's Commissioners. The King required them to pay for his wars and lavish lifestyle. However the villagers had long memories and other plans. Before the King's men arrived they took all the gifts and buried them in an old mound next to the church and denied all knowledge they existed when they were quizzed. And so the treasure remained in the mound. More time passed, memories faded and tales were told.

You may think that the story ends here but you would be wrong. Onto the scene comes a drover by the name of Ivor Williams. Ivor was a trusted successful chap and had made his money moving sheep and cows to London. But like every entrepreneur his sights were set on bigger things. Ivor came up with a plan to drive a load of pigs to London instead and invested his fortune in this venture. Such was his confidence that he even went so far as putting a saddle on the biggest pig so that he could ride it on the way. The drive however did not go to plan, the pigs had other ideas and he lost both them and his fortune.

On his return home he stopped off to drown his sorrows at an inn in Treago. He soon perked up though when he heard one of the locals regaling the story about St Weonard and his buried treasure. You know where this is going don't you? In the dead of night Ivor took a spade and began to dig the mound. After hours and hours of shovelling he finally hit the treasure. He was elated! A gold cup, jewels and rings. Just one of those items was enough to replace the fortune he had lost. But Ivor was greedy he wanted to take as much as he could carry. What he needed were some sacks, something he did not have. Worried that if he left the treasure both uncovered and unattended it might be discovered by another he covered it over again with soil and headed off to Hereford to do some odd jobs in order that he could buy some sacks.

At last after a few weeks he returned excited and ready to take his haul home, but there was a problem. He couldn't find the spot were he had dug up the treasure. The grass had grown over and there were no clues as to where he should start digging. Villagers found him still at the mound the following morning scratching at the earth in an almost demented way. Sadly he was taken away to St Mary's Asylum at Burghill and never seen or heard of again.

And what of the large pig with the saddle we hear you say? What happened to him? Well folklore tells that you may well see him again. If you happen to be on St Weonards mound when the clock strikes midnight the phantom pig with a saddle on his back will appear from the bushes and make his acquaintance with you. Another good reason not to be loitering around graveyards late at night we say!

There are more great tales and stories over on our dedicated Herefordshire History and Folklore page, why not take a look:

www.eatsleepliveherefordshire.co.uk/information/history-and-folklore



These stories are curated from many sources where accuracy cannot be guaranteed and retold in our fun ESL style, in the true spirit of Folklore magic.

Image: John Kenn Mortensen

21/08/2024

Today Lindy and Angela from sewiopaths joined me on an 8 mile walk for the charity Dementia Adventure.
I drove down to Monmouth to pick up rucksacks and camping gear for Harriet who is walking for the charity from lands end to John o groats . She is walking 900 miles in 90 days and hopes to raise £25,000.
Later at 1 we three ladies joined her and Peter to walk from Hogs head at Llantillo Crossenny to Pandy .
Who is Peter ?
Harriet met Peter in Spain on the Santiago pilgrim walk. He asked her where her next walk was . When she told him he said he would join her for a few days !!!
It was a fabulous day , kept dry and we made lovely friends .
Tomorrow they walk from Pandy right over the top of the Black Mountain to Hay on Wye. What a climb that will be with those heavy bags .

20/08/2024

Tomorrow is a walking day for myself , friends and a stranger . We hope the stranger Harriet Thomas will enjoy our company . Harriet is walking for the charity Dementia Adventure from Lands End to John o’Groats . 900 miles in 90 days and hopes to raise £25,000.
Some of the ladies from our Sewiopath group are joining her walking from Llantillo Crossenny to Pandy which is 8miles or 12.8 k
That will be enough for me. 😬🥹
Harriet will start in Monmouth early morning and walk to meet us .
If you can donate a small amount that would be lovely , to send her on her way and support her wonderful achievement and the charity .
She has a blog is it a blog ? You can listen to her on your phone !!! 🤔
If you are out and about tomorrow and see us please give us a toot or wave .
Dementia Adventure Dementia UK www.dementiaadventure.co.uk

https://dementiaadventure.org/dtour/
Is the place you can donate . Thank you 🙏 💕🫶

19/08/2024

Skooter would like you to meet his new flat mate Digger. 👍🫶 Digger was born last Monday by Raglan , the only one of his hatch . We picked him up Friday and I fully intended to let you choose his name but as I was cuddling him on the way home the name Digby came to me which in the next nano second changed to Digger . 😊😬
I know - my brain -😬.
As my daughter says “ not very feminine if they turn out to be girls “ I think there is 2 weeks between them in age . I know “ ducks grow like mushrooms” this is a swim on the bog garden . Last week Skooter could swim , this week he walks around . Yesterday he jumped up on the seat which I sit on by the bog garden . Vernon came and walked towards us and Skooter came running over to cwtch up against my leg glaring at Vern . It was so funny .

15/08/2024

Skooter must be coming up 3 weeks old now .
Still a baby as he can be sat on side of pool preening and topple backwards into pool !!.
I hope he grows into his beak and feet as they are huge for his little body .
He’s also quite a chicken as a few minutes in pond and he’s clambering out as his nether regions are cold .
I am still trying to find another local baby duck or two to keep him company . .
He’s a darling isn’t he. ?
Good luck to all the young people today getting their results. Not least my grandchildren 🫶

13/08/2024

Well done Wye Valley. The walking and activities in the Forest of Dean are superb.

13/08/2024

It’s the turn of the county of Herefordshire to be mentioned by Farm Stay UK. Well done Farm Stay , a great organisation that offers everyone the chance to book direct with the owners.
👌💕👍

13/08/2024

I love going that extra step for our business meeting groups . 👌💕They asked me to put bedroom names on papers in a hat on the table as they couldn’t agree on who was having which bedrooms .
Keys in a pot works well 👍👌😁
Collingwood Group Limited

11/08/2024

I have heard of this walk with the tunnel and been looking forward to doing it. Just need some company . Hhmm who can ask !!🤔 family friends !!! Who’s coming for a walk ?

Visiting Access to the pathThe path to the north and south of Tidenham tunnel is open for use 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Tidenham Tunnel will be open in daytime from 1st April to 30th September. From the 1st October to the 31st March the tunnel is closed to protect the bat population. For alte...

09/08/2024

Not sure if the page from the website Dementia Adventure will load properly but what a wonderful charity to support . They have been coming to stay at Upperfields 3 times a year for quite a while. First in Little Gaerfields and now this year have moved over to Tre-Vern.
I am going to join in the walk one day . I am nervous though 😬 I might be a bit slow 😬 😊
Please look out for Harriet if she’s in your area and perhaps join her on the walk .

in for living with dementia across the U.K. Goal = £25,000 3% £731.95 in donations + £110.43 of gift aid We’re keeping track of our progress with our fundraising totaliser. Help us fill the totaliser and reach our goal, meaning more families living with dementia will able to enjoy life-enhancin...

08/08/2024

Say hello to Skooter the duckling. 💕Just over a week old and loves the bog garden . Mostly lives under a heat lamp in the house with us , but has a few trips out to swim and eat duck w**d every day .

08/08/2024

Love a walking fest

07/08/2024

You can tell the nights are drawing in . 😏
Keri and I walked to book club at The Royal Arms tonight . It was getting quite dark by the time we got home . 😬
Definitely take the torches in September.

06/08/2024

To all my lovely regular all girl groups like Anne A , Amy S etc . I did my best ladies to get Alex and Sam to pose with their shirts off 😊😊😁. They both declined 😏😉
They have been working on the new entrance to Tre-Vern .
Looks fab doesn’t it. They have done a great job .
Thank you both . Xx
Now to get the wild bulbs in (when they arrive )and wild flower seed mixture .
Can’t wait till next year to see the show .

24/07/2024

Fancy winning a £1,000 voucher towards a holiday in the beautiful British countryside? Enter the Back British Farming summer photo competition and you could win a holiday with Farm Stay UK.

19/07/2024

Pride comes before a fall !!!
Earlier today I was telling you about my marvellous on line shopping for business cards.
I needed an oil cloth for our own table and chose one. “Olives “ it was in the basket and Vern came in and asked what I was buying. So I told him and he said he wanted one with a map of the world on.
Really Vern !!! 🤔😏. This is the man who thinks he needs a passport to leave Herefordshire .
We looked together and he chose one . In the basket it goes !!
Today they turned up and his is fabric 😬😟
Oh dear. 😬
Never mind I have told him it’s going on the table and I am happy to wash it as needed. 💕🫶
Don’t tell him I said this , but I actually like it. 😉
🤣🤣
. .

19/07/2024

How exciting the new business cards have arrived - yeeeaaahhh
They are double sided with Little Gaerfields on one side and Tre-Vern on the other.
I have always tried to support local and went into Ross to see the print shop I had used last time . It was gone !!!😟
I used a well known online company 😏
Uploaded the pictures and decided on the writing and where to place it and bobs your uncle it’s done !!!😏
So quick and easy but not supporting local business is it 😬😟
Despite all this wet weather when the sunshine’s we have blue skies to rival the Mediterranean. 👌
Business woman Eat Sleep Live Herefordshire

17/07/2024

Hi Honey we’re home !!! Yep 12 o’clock and about to start work as I’ve been out on the razzel all morning 🤣😁😊
Daughter Steph dragged us down to Woods of Whitchurch to have breakfast . 😏😉😁
It was lovely as the 4 of us sat in the sunshine and had a bit of family time. Thank you Steph it was a lovely treat .
Back about 10 minutes and our neighbour Frances who for 10 years has hosted stone carving glasses in her shed invited us up for tea and cake and to look at the book they made to celebrate the 10 years .
So off Keri and I duly trot up the road .
The book is fabulous with beautifully presented carvings .
If you fancy a class in glass while you stay here then get in touch with Frances as her glass work is also beautiful.
Stonecarving Association. # glassart . .
Ok Sheila stop dilly dallying and get on with work 😏😁

15/07/2024

Are we going to have a summer ?😬🤨😟😏
I am fed up of this weather , are you ?
Today we have a lovely group in who come 3 times a year . I just want the sun to shine for them 🤨, is that too much to ask ? Hopefully between the rain they will get out and about and make wonderful memories. 💕🫶.
Dementia Adventure Dementia Support For You UK Dementia Awareness Dementia Friends Dementia Awareness. Every Day
Update :- I have just realised it’s St Swithans day 🥲🥲😟

12/07/2024

I grew with the stories of Jack O Kent. 🫶 Robin Hood was another. What local stories do children hear now days 🤔. I fear they spend too much time on their phones 😬😟 I loved my Granny telling me stories as a child. 🫶💕👌

**FOLKLORE FRIDAY**

As you know we love researching our folklore tales but what we have noticed is that one name keeps popping up. That of Jackie Kent or as some others refer to him as Jack O'Kent. Known as the local trickster, he would manage to get himself out of any trouble and always come out on top or so it would seem. He was a man who could barter with and outwit the devil on more occasions than you would have thought possible. His true identity is not known but many point in the direction of Owen Glendower. Others refer to him as the powerful medieval wizard who came from the village of Kentchurch. First stories about him emerge around 1595 but it is thought that he lived a century or so earlier.

When Jack was a boy he was adventurous and curious and happened upon the Devil while out one day exploring. Rumours have it that Jack sold his soul to the Devil and in return he was gifted a demon that would do his bidding until the day he died. At which point the demon would happily carry his soul off to hell. Now don't go thinking that this demon was one of those ghastly things you see in horror movies. No, he was said to be no bigger than a fly and Jack kept him inside a stick which he hid in his coat.

Jack was unsurprisingly an unusual child. Strange in many ways. Ways which could not be ignored and some which could not be explained. When Jack was nine years old the farmer who he worked for asked him to guard some newly sown fields. The farmer was having trouble with the crows pinching his grain and Jack was tasked with keeping them away. But that day Jack had other ideas. It was the day of the Hereford fair and he was desperate to go and have fun with his friends, so left the field unguarded much to the farmer's annoyance. As the day grew into the evening the angry farmer waited for Jack to return from Hereford so that he could confront him over his dereliction of duty and give him a beating. But cool as a cucumber Jack appeared without a care in the world, grinning at the farmer telling him not to fret because all the crows were safely locked up in the barn so his grain would be safe. To the farmer's surprise Jack was right. As he opened the barn door there they all were neatly lined up in rows waiting for sunset when the spell cast by Jack would be broken and they would fly free again.

It was rumoured too that Jack had a spare set of clothes that could do the work of ten men. So when Jack was tasked with threshing or bailing he would order his suit of clothes to do the work while he rested nearby playing his fiddle.

Jack's talents didn't end there. He was said to be able to conjure up the Devil at will. On one occasion Jack got the Devil to plough all of the fields across Kentchurch. As the Devil ploughed Jack followed behind sowing his seeds. With the hard work done he asked the Devil what he would like in payment, the top of the crop or the bottom. Unbeknown to the Devil Jack had sown gravel and not seed. So when the Devil answered the bottom, Jack just grinned. When the Devil left Jack sowed some grain so when it came to harvest time the Devil got the straw and Jack got the grain. Not willing to fall for a trick like that again the following year the same thing happened. But this time the Devil was ready for Jack when he asked the question and picked the top of the crop, but again he was duped. Jack had planted turnips this time, so the Devil was only left with the leaves.

One day Jack asked the Devil to build him a bridge over the River Monnow. The Devil agreed to do it but wanted in return the soul of the first person to cross it when it was built. The Devil worked hard and the bridge was built in a night but before anyone could walk over it Jack threw a loaf of bread onto the bridge and a dog chased after it. So the only soul the Devil took that night was that of a poor unsuspecting hungry pooch.

Jack always seemed to be able to outwit the Devil but could Jack trick the Devil into not taking his soul when he died? Some people say that he did. Before he died Jack left a letter regarding his wishes for his funeral. He detailed how he was to be buried, in a cavity hollowed out of the wall in Kentchurch Church. Stories tell that when the time came for Jack's demon to carry his soul to hell, he found that Jack had been buried neither inside or outside of the church. Unable to take his soul he returned to hell empty handed. A medieval painting of Jack hangs in Kentchurch Church which is said to be mounted on the site of his unusual burial.

We'll never know exactly who Jackie Kent was but his stories have stood the test of time and we've really enjoyed reading about his antics. Keep a look out as there are a few more stories yet to be told about this ardent trickster!

There are more great tales and stories over on our dedicated Herefordshire History and Folklore page, why not take a look:

www.eatsleepliveherefordshire.co.uk/information/history-and-folklore



These stories are curated from many sources where accuracy cannot be guaranteed and retold in our fun ESL style, in the true spirit of Folklore magic.

28/06/2024

Are you looking for a weekend or week away ?

We have just had well I don’t know what to call it but a sort of “almost cancellation “. August 23rd .
Guests have booked a while and paid deposit. It seems they had booked another place before they booked Tre-Vern . This other place which I think was in Devon turned out to be a scam 😡😡
They were supposed to get their money back but so far it’s not arrived. 😡
Oh dear these scams are horrible.

I am so glad we have both houses inspected every year and can’t wait for all holiday houses to be registered.👌


Group Accommodation

28/06/2024

Another fabulous story from Eat Sleep Live Herefordshire. Thank you

**FOLKLORE FRIDAY**

In some of the best folklore tales there are always great characters, some more of this world than others but all interesting all the same. Even the much loved mermaid has made an appearance, although the one we're about to talk about is not your usual ray of happy sunshine, in fact she was rather grumpy and uncooperative. You may have heard of her before, she was the 'Mermaid of Marden'. Now you wouldn't necessarily expect to hear of a mermaid residing in one of our lovely villages, afterall we're landlocked and the nearest stretch of sea is quite a way away. But none the less who are we to determine the movements of mermaids, in the world of folklore almost anything is possible.

So our tale today involves a priest, some villagers, a church bell and a cantankerous mermaid.

It was a Sunday like many others that had gone before, the church was ready to welcome its parishioners and all the local priest needed to do was something he did every week, it was to ring the church bell. Except this week he was more enthusiastic than normal, and as he pulled the bell rope, the church bell dislodged and fell from its hold and subsequently rolled right into the River Lugg. Shocked at his own strength the priest took a moment to replay what had happened and think how on earth he was going to retrieve the bell. After numerous attempts and to no avail he stood back pondering his plight and while doing so he noticed a man peering into the lugg. He look rather bemused, understandably there was a church bell in the river not a usual occurrence on a Sunday but his face seemed to indicate something else was troubling him. As the priest moved closer to see what he was looking at he spotted the bell from the bank but to his surprise he saw a mermaid wrapped tightly around it.

A mermaid in Herefordshire he thought, that's quite unbelievable. The two men discussed the best way to retrieve the bell from the mermaid, neither having had experience in negotiating with mermaids the villager made the first attempt. He was courteous and calm, trying to catch her eye and drawing her attention to him and when she finally acknowledged him he was quite surprised at the response he received. This mermaid was sassy and she didn't like being disturbed one little bit. In fact she complained about the weekly ringing disturbing her peace and decided to claim the bell for herself. The priest started to panic, this would not do, what would his parishioners think! So he continued to try and lift the bell from its watery resting place and in doing so disturbed the mermaid once more. In response she grew even more angry and then cut the rope being used to hoist the bell to land, sending the bell back into the depths of the river. The priest and the villager looked on in despair, the bell was gone forever.

Now you may think the story ends here, but it does not. Many a villager and visitor attempted to locate the bell over the following years and the story went that the mermaid grew so tired of their meddling and poking around in the River Lugg that she hid the bell in a pond near to the church, where low and behold it was discovered again in 1848.

The moral of this story is let sleeping mermaids lie! For those who are interested 'The Marden Bell' can be viewed in the Herefordshire Museum.

There are more great tales and stories over on our dedicated Herefordshire History and Folklore page, why not take a look:

www.eatsleepliveherefordshire.co.uk/information/history-and-folklore



These stories are curated from many sources where accuracy cannot be guaranteed and retold in our fun ESL style, in the true spirit of Folklore magic.

25/06/2024

I have a religious nut holder. It’s holy , or rather has a little hole at the bottom . And let me tell you when your nuts drop they bounce and go everywhere!!!🥱😟😏
I was trying to weave wire through it at the dinner table today while Vern , Liam, Sam and Phil were having lunch .
I made such a mess of it as the wire was too thick. I took it out and was now left with a hole big enough for a walnut to fall through 😬😟🤨
Lots of advice from the boys at the table .
Liam - put a bit of gaffer tape on it
Vern - get some thinner wire
Liam - use gaffer tape
Phil - try string
Liam - I am telling you gaffer tape will work
Vern - turn it upside down and see if that works as hole at top then.
Liam - just try gaffer tape !!!!
Sam - I forgot what he said. !!!
I was trying to ignor Liam and his flipping gaffer tape. 😏🤨
Look what’s in the tree !! 🤣🤣🤣🤣💕💕👌🫶🫶
Thank you Liam ###
Eat Sleep Live Herefordshire Farm Stay UK