Parkham in May

We were pleased to be back in Parkham after a gap of four weeks and could

see that spring had properly arrived. Daffodils had all gone and primroses were

only be found in the shadiest of places. There was an abundance of colour in the

hedgerows with a few bluebells still around and campion, buttercups and  cow

parsley out in force.

Valerian was now in flower in our small courtyard garden and seedlings of a

range of plants were also appearing in all our gravelled areas - after several

hours weeding the garden and frontage were looking much better.

The grasses we planted in the gravel last summer to replace the lavender plants

that had come to the end of their life are now well established and some are

coming into flower.

It was good to see that COVID was not so prevalent in the village as on our last

visit although I am sure some people were still suffering as back in our home

town.  

We had delayed our visit to Parkham for a few days in order to be in Knutsford

for the Annual ‘Royal’ May Day Procession on 7th May.  This was our first

opportunity to see the procession which is a highlight of the town’s year.  Around

600 children including the May Queen and her attendants take part, all provided

with costumes which are repaired and stored away each year.  The streets are

closed for 3 hours (including the busy A50) and the procession led by several

bands travels through the town, ending in an area of parkland where the

maypole is erected for dancing and there is a huge funfair.  The first procession

was in 1864 and it has taken place every year except for a few years in war-time

and during the COVID lockdown.

As Knutsford is our main home we feel it is important to be around for these

major events in the town and we are also planning to be there for the Jubilee

celebrations at the beginning of June.  However, to date we have not seen

much planning going on, probably because of the focus on the May Day

procession. Things in Parkham are much more advanced with your plans for

activities from the 2nd June through to the 5th.  It looks like a great opportunity for

villagers to come together to celebrate.

On this visit we have done all our usual activities.  We visited Rosemoor late in

the afternoon for the special session where dogs are allowed. 

The sun shone and it was lovely to wander around the gardens without

worrying about the need to get back to let the dog out.  Whilst there were lots of

other dogs, all well behaved, the gardens were quiet and very peaceful and we

had the opportunity to explore corners we had not visited before.

We have also had our usual beach walks and particularly enjoyed a walk along

the coast path at Greencliff.   We had to wait while an American took a photo of

our dog to send to his wife back home as she has never seen a cocker spaniel

with a tail, they are all docked in the U.S. apparently.

We hope to be back in the village in a few week’s time when summer will be just

around the corner with the promise of long warm days to enjoy North Devon at

its very best.

It is so good to be able to plan these regular visits to Parkham again, it is easy

to forget that last year we could not get down for our first visit until June and in

2020 we were only in the village twice! 

COVID Hits Parkham

 Our visit to Parkham in March turned out to be very well-timed in terms of the weather although unfortunately COVID was rife in the village.

We saw our first bank of primroses as we drove along the A39, prior to turning off at the flag tree towards the village. It was so good to be back in Parkham in the spring for the first time since 2019. 

We made the most of the good weather by getting out and about as much as possible.  Our first trip was to Sandymouth, one of our favourite beaches when the tide is out.  Whilst the journey takes around 30 minutes it is certainly worth it for the wide expanse of sand and the rock formations in the cliffs. There were only a few cars in the car park and we had most of the beach to ourselves. 

 

Much nearer to home we parked near Greencliff farm and walked down the path to the coast path.  The views are again spectacular and we saw no-one else there despite the sunny weather.

We regularly drive down to the car park at Bucks Mills and then on to the coast path or beach.  On this occasion the drive down was even more beautiful with the Devon banks covered in primroses and daffodils. 

Our walks from The Granary around Boccombe were also much more enjoyable in the sunshine after the wet and windy conditions of January.

After having owned The Granary for 8 years some of the items we purchased at that time have reached the end of their life.  This included the garden furniture which has had to stand up to the cold and damp of seven Parkham winters.  For the last few years we have tried to clean off the algae in the spring and make it usable again but this year we decided enough was enough.  New furniture was ordered and the old furniture along with other waste from garden tidying was taken to the tip in Bideford.

Some of the paintwork inside the cottage is also beginning to look a bit shabby so we began to touch it up in the worst places but we do need to plan for decorating some of the rooms within the next 12 months.

We were limited in the friends that we could catch up with because a  number had COVID, some we were able to talk to on the phone others we chatted with at the garden gate, but keeping a healthy distance.  We did also see a few friends when we called in at The Bell a couple of times, although numbers at the bar were depleted.

For the last couple of days of our visit the weather turned decidedly cooler although it did remain dry for the most part.  As we drove over Exmoor on our return journey there was a very light covering of snow in places and the temperature dropped further.  

Family members are staying at the Granary in April and our next visit to Parkham will be in early May. By then we will be properly into spring with hopefully warmer, drier weather to look forward to.