The village of Tosside, originally known as Tosside-with-Houghton, is halfway between the farming village of Slaidburn and the market-town of Settle and split halfway between the counties of Lancashire and Yorkshire (in the current, administrative sense that is). The name Tosside, pronounced locally as ‘Tossit’, comes from the Saxon words ‘tod’ for fox, a termContinue reading “Tosside”
Category Archives: Forest of Bowland
The Spotted Flycatcher
The Spotted Flycatcher, Muscicapa striata, is found throughout the British isles and is a summer visitor to these shores, arriving in May and departing for Southern Africa around September. Although it is a small bird, only reaching up to 15cm in length at the most, which is about the same size as a sparrow, itContinue reading “The Spotted Flycatcher”
Round-leaved Sundew
The Round-leaved Sundew, Drosera rotundifolia, (Drosera meaning ‘dewy’ in latin) is a small carnivorous plant found in bogs, it is locally common but hard to find, in England its strongholds are on our acid uplands, in particular those of the Northwest. A small plant, with reddish coloured ‘leaves’ covered in sticky hairs the Round-leaved sundewContinue reading “Round-leaved Sundew”
Haytime
In the cold depths of a northern winter farmers will go through a lot of hay, it’s good, nutritious winter fodder for store lambs, hill sheep overwintering in the valleys, dairy cows, beef cattle, and horses. It’s also portable, there are 3 types of bale which can be easily transported in winter time when feedingContinue reading “Haytime”
Bashall Eaves
Bashall Eaves is a small village about 5 miles from Clitheroe on the road to Whitewell and a mile away from Browsholme estate. It’s a very small and cosy place, composed of a handful of pretty cottages, a post-office which is only open from 10 til 2 on a Tuesday, the village hall and, justContinue reading “Bashall Eaves”
The Green Hairstreak
As some of you might know I’m on Twitter quite a lot, mainly following other people who post about nature and history here in the north of England. Today I saw the following video of a kaleidoscope of Green Hairstreak butterflies filmed by Dinesh Patel (@lancsgp) and was inspired to write about this beautiful species,Continue reading “The Green Hairstreak”
Slaidburn Silver Band and the march over Waddington Fell
Slaidburn Silver Band were established over 100 years ago in the Hodder valley and have played for many events since their creation, around the world and at home, perhaps most famously when they were honoured by an invitation to play for Her Majesty The Queen during her visit to the Hodder Valley in 1989. TheyContinue reading “Slaidburn Silver Band and the march over Waddington Fell”