Monday 26th June

Leaving the lakes

In the morning we went to say goodbye to Castlerigg.

Driving away from Castlerigg and the Lake District, I felt sad. Reflecting on conversations with locals about the effects of foot and mouth disease. Local farmers that held a responsibility and pride of their herd of animals which was the work of generations before them. To have their entire farm slaughtered in one morning completely devastated them and the local economy. A lot of farmers didn’t have the heart to re-stock and start again especially as farming has had its day in England. To them, farming was more than a meat industry; it was their livelihoods, their love and passion. It ran in their veins. They loved their animals and their way of life.

Now, there is only the tourist industry that brings them a livelihood. Out countryside has become a leisure park. No cottage industry, no farming.

We were shocked to see that the house prices are as expensive as Brighton and the South East. How is that possible? The young that grow up here have no job prospects. They have to leave for the cities. The same the World over. Living off the land, with the land, is near impossible in England unless you’re prepared to run huge farms and with that comes factory farming and mass production which is draining our land of fertility.

A famous Indian female activist, Vandana Shiva, says that Indian farmers don’t want big corporations and jobs, they want their land and their livelihood.

Connection with the earth is connection to the spirit.

Anyway, all that is in contrast to the awe-inspiring surroundings. I feel very blessed to have been able to spend so much time with the Castlerigg stones.



We arrived at Long Meg and she’s amazing more than I had imagined. A large circle, the sixth biggest of all stone circles! Long Meg stands in the South West and is in line with the mid-winter sunset. Apparently, the Sun’s shadow casts clockwise spirals on its Northward journey towards mid-summer, anti clockwise as it moves back towards mid-winter. Long Meg has two spirals carved into her side. All the stones are pink and porous, weathered and holey. They are noticeably warm to the touch. Their energy is distinctly feminine.

Such a shame that the road, even though only very small, runs through the circle. Not as invasive as Avebury, but still….

Went off to find Little Meg, but to no avail. We searched for ages. Never mind, I’m sure we’ll be back.

As we drove to Scotland, the weather improved until we reached our destination of Oban in the glorious sunshine (at 9.30pm!) It was really nice to be out in the Sun at last even though it’s nearly time for bed! We’ve stopped in an absolutely stunning place and watched the sun set making both the clouds and their reflections pink. We have now retreated into the van due to the midges.

We are getting the ferry over to Mull tomorrow morning at 10am and are really hoping the phone coverage is good enough to upload the website ….