Tour de Fleece 2026 prep and chat

 I know that it is only June but its less than a month until the start of the 2026 TDF and I really don't have  a lot of fleece prepped at all !

I have some washed ready for combing, I have lots that needs a wash including this large bag that I found on my doorstep last week. Nearly 5 kilos of what I suspect ( from previous fleece from the same source) is going to be texel. I am waiting for a dry day to make a start on washing and maybe even dyeing it ready to spin. Seriously, its rained pretty much everyday since it turned up

My plans for TDF are the same as ever, work on spinning down the stash, make use of my wheels and maybe finish a couple of half spun projects before it starts.

I could just use the texel as my challenge but I may get bored spinning the same breed for three weeks. I do plan to take my wheel to as many local destinations as possible, we won't be going away as Ian will probably be doing his bike thing down south and the van will be back at the dealers for annual service, mot etc but I will be getting my bus pass halfway through so I might see where else I can get with it.

later

between showers today I popped 300gm or so of raw fleece into a net bag and started to wash it.

Surprisingly its really not that dirty and not looking to bad considering the fact that someone who knows absolutely nothing about fleece volunteered to grab me a bag full just after the sheep were sheared.

Once washed and rinsed I'm left with this which will go in the dye pot for a change.

It looks like I am going to busy over the next couple of weeks or so prepping ready for the big spin. Also I'm hoping to get out and about most days with a wheel of some kind or maybe even just a spindle.

Now out of the dye pot weighing in at 250gm 

Soed Idee Jubileum week twenty two

Week 22 finished and I need to get around to hemming the next piece of material very soon.

Exploring the Cumbria coast - Maryport street art

 

Exploring the Cumbria coast - Maryport

 Maryport, an eighteenth centaury town with a Roman fort and that is really all we knew about it. We try and choose places that are not so much on the beaten track for part of our tours and since neither of us had really ever heard of Maryport other than in connection with Hadrian's wall we thought that we would give it a shot.

The first intriguing thing was the location of the campsite, this is the first time that we have stayed on a harbour complete with grass, electric, water, toilet block and even washing machine and dryer.

As you can probably imagine, inspite of the blue skies it was cold and windy most of the time, In fact we didn't really warm up until the late May bank holiday when suddenly the temperature rose into the 30's but more about that later, At this point I was still wearing jumpers and gloves.

The view from the campsite, that is Scotland in the distance.

For a small town I found a good choice of coffee shops/cafes within 10 minutes walk or so from the site . Hiding in one of these from time to time gave me chance to warm up although I suspect the real reason for feeling cold is more to do with my recent weight loss than anything else.

The walk to town took us through the harbour ( we had the commercial harbour on one side and the marina on the other) past the aquarium and up the hill. I would have stopped at the Maritime museum but it was closed, We visited the Roman museum but failed to take any photos.

Past the monument to lives lost on the Aquilia, piles of nets, statues and mosaics

and onwards up into town where the old cinema is being converted into an arts centre (looking very good)

    An abandoned hotel appears to be growing its own garden

 There's always something that reminds me of my former life, I suspect this one is more decorative that practical these days.

at night we settled down to the sound of the boats swaying in the wind

Soed Idee Jubileum week twenty one

 And the final place name for this trip has been added along with the name of the boat that Ian was sailing on at the weekend.

Exploring the Cumbria coast - Messing about on the Railway

 One of the reasons for ending up at Ravenglass was the theRavenglass and Eskdale Railway running between Ravenglass and Boot.

I have a soft spot for these small railways and we have visited several over the last few years. this time it  was just a short walk from the campsite to the railway so the railway cafe became a bit of a base for me whenever I found myself craving a coffee and some alone time with my spinning wheel.

We travelled the line from end to end, explore the mill and the museum and generally got our fix of steam.

One thing I hadn't realised was that the railway is celebrating its 150 years anniversary this year.

The last time I was here was for the 100th Anniversary !! now I'm giving my age away :-)

                                      Retro Filter, Something I rarely use but I think it fits here.

                                     

               I had to stop for lunch, who knew that clotted cream comes in a little glass jar, tasted good.

I was a little surprised to find needlework in the museum  but small cross stitch kits were sold in the 1990's to raise funds for the railway.

Finally we spotted that one of the engines that had been on the railway for the Gala the previous weekend was now making its way home.

Exploring the Cumbria coast - Eskdale Mill

Nestled into the edge of the lake district is Eskdale mill dating back to at least 1578, I arrived by train although that is a whole other post. Any chance to visit a working water mill is grabbed by both hands, I find anything mechanical fascinating regardless of what the end product.

Eskdale Mill is run by Eskdale Mill and Heritage Trust, and I would recommend following this link to their website to find out more about this wonderful place. The volunteers I spoke to were lovely and very knowledgeable about the ins and outs of this wonderful building. With a shop and picnic grounds it proved to be excellent value for money.

                                                                   Drying rack for grain

I find this type of technology fascinating :-)

and I always find an excuse for some weird photos

The wheels are the stars of the show, there are few double wheel mills still in existence, the last one I visited was at Dunster in Somerset.

looking at the floor inside the mill I noticed some interesting recycling going on.

spot the grinding stones

Speaking to the volunteers it appear s that although this mill is recorded as a corn mill and was last used commercially for grinding animal food it is thought that there is a possibility that it was also used as a fulling mill. This is based on the uncovering of a bath along with the space on the shaft to accommodate the equipment needed. There is also a carding mill along the river and the names of adjoining fields also relate to textile production.

I spotted another water mill from the railway which I assume is Muncaster mill