Blackhall Mill Summer Fair

Yesterday, Saturday, I went to the Blackhall Mill Fair. Except that I had the wrong date and it was being held on Sunday. There are moment when I really feel like Homer. Not all was lost as I got some interesting shots of the river. Also there was a nice old chap, originally from Scotland who was asking about fishing in the river. I was able to show him a couple of good spots. While I don't fish myself, I have a reasonable understanding of the ecology to predict where the trout will be. Also I like talking to fishermen (and women) as they often know the river environment better than most naturalists and professionals.

Having not missed the Fair, I decided to go and get some shopping at my favourite market in Newcastle. Thus saving me a job on Monday. This is rare to get ahead as normally I have a backlog of tasks to do. I was pleased to be able to get some locally produced butter, and it was thirty pence cheaper than the supermarket. I also stocked up on cheese. While not planned that way, I had bought only Welsh Cheese, the lead to me joking that I will end up with a funny accent. Realising that to the people of the North East I already have a funny accent, I added well different from my funny accent. I just seem to be a master at digging myself into deep holes.

However, today I still wanted to get down to the Blackhall Mill Fair. I had heard that the Woodlands that border that village and where some of the Badgers are, is up for sale. There is a strong community association there and they are looking to see what can be done to protect the wood. I wanted to offer my assistance. I don't know if I can offer anything new, but even so another voice added can not do any harm.

This is the first time that I have been to the Fair at the Mill, last year I had already promised to assist with something else. Therefore I was not able to visit. But I was pleased with what I saw here. It is clear that there is a strong community in the village, and the fair was busy. There was plenty of activities for the children and young people, including learning circus skills.

Once I made contact with the local community association and left my details so that they can contact me and I got the details I need to contact them, I had a wander around. One of the first places I stopped at was the Environment Agency stall. Last year, as I reported here, the village suffered from flooding and while talking about that event, I mentioned that I had filmed it. The gentleman from the EA said that he had seen the film and he thought it was good. After checking with his psychiatrist that he was sane, I accepted the complement. But it still feels strange to have people tell me that they have seen my stuff on You Tube and other places. While I know that in part this is intended as a campaigning Web Log, it still surprises me when I encounter people who are influenced by it.

There was another group that are looking to oppose open cast mining in the area, and I exchanged information with the chap running that stand. I need to look further into this before I can comment on this, but I can see the potential damage that could cause. I sometimes wonder if we as humans will ever learn? Having just cleaned up the environment from one form of heavy industry we develop others that cause even more damage. However, there are many people that are passionate about the environment and who want to protect it, so who knows at the very least the worst damage could be avoided.

As for the Fair, I found it entertaining and fun place to visit. One highlight was some visiting Russian students that were here on an exchange with a local school. While on three of the singing group were at the fair, this international element added to the feeling of sharing that there is in the community. As Blackhall Mill is a smaller village than Chopwell, it was very well attended, and there must have been most if not all the residents there. I personally don't understand why Chopwell does not have its own Fair. No I am not volunteering for that either. Well I was like a kid in a sweet shop and stuffed myself on Coffee and Cake, An Organic Burger from the Barbecue, and an Ice Cream. All I can say is that it is a good job that it is only once a year or I will end up getting fat. What's that I hear you shout, getting? Okay Getting fatter.