Year End

I always seem to open my posts with the same sort of line... It’s been extremely busy and I can’t believe it’s taken me so long to get around to adding to my blog, time’s been flying! Well, this post is no different and I can’t quite understand how a large chunk of March went by so fast. This month has seen the completion of the scripts, the narration for both tours has been recorded and Neil is now mid-way through the awe-inspiring task of putting the multimedia side of things together in time with the script (by which I mean images, video, (both modern and archive) sound clips, etc. It’s been an eye-opening task for me and at certain times I couldn’t see how it was going to end up, but Neil’s magic has transformed the various ‘clippings’ into a very watchable tour, I just can’t wait to see the whole finished article. All being well, once Node have had a chance to upload all the content we’ll have the Explorers for testing during May. That will be our opportunity to iron out any teething problems before the official launch in early June, it’s all very exciting.

Recent filming requirements have resulted in some lovely days out, I could get quite into this film-making idea! This week Neil and I had a jolly good excuse to visit the West Somerset Railway, where a steam locomotive named Braunton is being restored. It seemed silly to miss the opportunity to travel on the line so we took the 10.30 from Minehead to the restoration sheds at Williton, where we were shown Braunton in her semi-complete glory, the axle which has caused set-backs by showing a crack during her first steaming, a tender that’s been borrowed for her and also a tender that’s being built from scratch and should hopefully be ready when she is. We also saw the nameplate and crest that will adorn Braunton when she’s ready and we very much hope to go back for a ride on her when she begins working the line, which might hopefully be this summer – coinciding nicely with the start of the Explorers in Braunton. We’ll keep our ears open too for her first mainline excursion – can’t miss that!

This week saw another special day, when we captured Reg Ashton and his tractor on film. Reg is a Braunton farmer, now in his 80’s, whose family has farmed the Great Field for generations. He kindly got his tractor and roller out and demonstrated on a part of the field, then gave a wonderful interview from the cab full of useful anecdotes. He really is an enigmatic character and that works fantastically on film, I’ve no doubt that he’ll develop a fan base when these things go live!

Similarly fascinating people are Sam Mitchell and Len Baglole, who we were fortunate enough to capture on camera last week. After a quick trip to Velator Quay, which now looks nothing like it used to, we returned to Sam’s house for coffee and cake and a chat about the old days. The tales they tell are amazing and it was great to have them told in the nautical shrine that is Sam’s cosy house.

Last weekend was that of the eagerly anticipated Discovery Day. Held at the Milky Way Adventure Park near Clovelly, the event caused quite a stir; the estimated visitor figure was around 4000 - a vast improvement on the attraction’s popularity the day before when a mere 500 attended. It was a vibrant day with many interesting exhibitors, everything from local poets, artists (ice sculptors) and singers to food producers, landscape and conservation organisations and of course our own Biosphere Reserve, North Devon AONB and North Devon Coast and Countryside Service. David Kennard featured with a highly entertaining sheep dog display, where two of his loyal canines rounded up some Aylesbury ducks, even encouraging them up a ramp and into a paddling pool! It really proved the exceptional skill David has with his dogs. This combined with all the other entertainment ensured it was a fun day out for the whole family and congratulations from all quarters have been sent to event organiser Nickie Moore. The Explore Braunton stand attracted much attention and thanks to Neil’s efforts the night before we were able to show off a taste of what’s to come on the Explorers. One of the best received parts was the archive military film and it will be great to see the reactions of people who do the tour in the summer.

Talking of military, local historian and battlefield guide Richard Bass is leading a guided walk on the Burrows on Easter Monday, which promises to be good. What he doesn’t know about World War II activity on the Burrows isn’t worth knowing and I’m sure that despite whatever the weather does his walk will be very well attended.

I am looking forward to a long weekend, a bit of rest and relaxation, before concentrating on ‘year end’ next week and making sure all my i’s are dotted and my t’s crossed! I’ll be helping Neil to finalise the tours and then I will embark on a serious drive to gather material for the web-site. No matter how impressive the site will look (and I’m very confident that it’ll look better than any other!) it will rely on a variety of interesting information and therefore, if you have anything Braunton related that you could donate I would be extremely grateful. If you have pictures or film about Braunton that would be marvellous, if you have a tale to tell or a particular interest in Braunton, please write it down and send it to me. If you can recommend walks around Braunton, have insider knowledge of anything special to Braunton or simply like going there on holiday I need to know! I am looking for contributions by mid-April so please, if you’re considering helping in any way now is the time!

I hope you have a very enjoyable Easter and manage to resist having too much chocolate. My sincere thanks to those who have sponsored David too, he really is amazed and touched by the response. Until the next time,

Katie