Blots on the Landscape

The trouble with those ugly scars in the countryside is that however much you want to concentrate on the beauties of the surrounding spaces your eye keeps on being drawn to the bits that spoil the view; so they become utterly disproportionate. Planners never seem to get this. Fairthorn was a disaster for the view from Blacka to the east.

Another sight that catches the eye is at Whitelow. The buildings here are fine in themselves but the owner has decided to fill the surrounding land with white caravans and HGVs. To this observer at least it's an appalling mess, and situated as it is, on a prominent hillside in a sensitive area cries out for some urgent screening measures.

Some controversy looms also about Hallfield Farm. The renovation of this site has been going on for more than a year and many things have drawn favourable comment, including the rebuilding of stone walls. But more recently lighting has been installed, security lights and lights on posts lining the landscaped drive. There's obviously a considerable amount of money being spent here and it's to be expected that sooner or later something becomes intrusive. The only recourse is to complain.

On top of Blacka Hill SWT's sadly unattractive fence has been even more sadly vandalised. Somebody has gone further than compaining and decided to wreck it completely.

In the Blacka pastures the grazier's intrusive metal hurdles are still there despite objections made over two years. News suggests SWT are thinking of asking him to move them to another part where they will be less prominent. But the whole site looks more like a farm each day. Certainly the amount of manure on the land is not typical of a mere conservation grazing regime. Memo: must remember to bring along my wheelbarrow.