Monday 3rd October 2011

Well here it is October and I am sitting here in shorts and a tee shirt with the window open to cool down!!  What weird but wonderful  weather???  However our garden has never looked better at this time of the year.  Last week I was able to spend some time in the garden and have really whipped it into shape.  This equated to lots of steps walking backward and forward and a good topping up of my fading suntan.  David was with me on Saturday doing all the heavy jobs and we both feel really pleased.  But we cannot bear to pull up all the lovely bedding plants - they still look glorious - so a few more jobs still to do.

The Rutland Round

The quarry

Yesterday, Sunday, we left the garden and did another section of the Rutland Round.  I must admit, my legs and back were aching after all the gardening so it was only our fund raising that got me out there!  David of course was rearing to go.  But once we got started it was lovely.  We only did a short walk, about 4 miles, from Ketton to Normanton Car park on Rutland Water.  It was a strange walk.  One minute we were walking along lovely leafy lanes then we came on the HUGE quarry for Ketton cement.  Many times I have driven within half a mile of it but never realised just how big it is (see pictures).  Is it a blot on the landscape or a great source of business and employment for the county? We could not agree as you could argue either way.  The walk finished at Rutland Water and we were looking forward to a bacon roll in our favorite snack bar.  But catastrophe - by the time we got there at 1.00pm they had not only  run out of bacon but virtually everything because they had been so busy....we had to make do with two of the last few Cornish pasties.   We have never seen the car park so full, but it was lovely to see so many families there.

Rutland Water

 Anyway the money for our two charities is now up to £895 for Marie Curie and £845 for Water Aid and we have recorded just a few steps short of 1,700,000! Our aim of 2 million is not so far away........

More next week

Jean (and David)