A TASTE OF COUNTRY LIFE IN RURAL NORTHUMBERLAND
This is Harbottle Show which is held in the Oak Tree field 300 yards from my home..it is a shepherds show and brings together the locality...We get to meet up with friends from the rural farms and crofts in the outlying hills of Coquetdale which we haven't seen all summer..It starts with the tents going up on the Wednesday and the committee work really hard to prepare the field for visitors and they build the sheep pens to accommodate the well washed and trimmed sheep for the up and coming competitions
A pic of Hayley in her kit..She is my niece and a drummer in the local pipe-band..
Everyone entering produce or artwork for the competitions have their exhibits placed in the main tent and the judging starts..This goes on for a couple of hours so the show gets underway with the ever popular terrier dog races..This is so much fun for the dogs and audience watching..
The childrens races start soon after and the competitors are all out to win..(you can see the Drakestone in the top left of the pic..an ancient healing stone)
The judging in the main tent is over and we go to see how well we have done..The boys worked extremely hard on there exhibits this year..Finley got a 1st in the craft piece..He was lethal with the glue gun mind LOL..well done..
He took another 1st in the decorated cup cakes category..Excellent..
Elliot took a 2nd place..Good boy..They sure did make a mess with the icing and piping bag but that's all part of the fun I think..
I entered a couple of my prims and scooped a 1st and 2nd..I was real pleased as the competition is tough..
Back out on the field is the Cumberland Wrestling Championships..The younger boys start first and then this moves right up the ages to the men..we have wrestlers who come from all over..Aberdeenshire, Cumberland and every year we have a group of young lads and lasses from France.. The day ends with the presentations of the various cups and the auction sale of the produce..Always a good day had by all..
I hope you have enjoyed a peep into my life in a rural village in the U.K..*~*Blessings*~*