Today, we went to Lynmouth, which is the village by the sea that was devastated by a huge flood in 1952. We walked up through the river valley, through a place called the Glen Lynn Gorge.
It is a fascinating place because it is a source of considerable renewable hydro electricity. There are loads of places to play with water pumps and obviously to squirt dad with water!!
You can see the levels of water in the 1952 flood. They reckon that more water came down that gorge in one night in 1952, than flows down the Thames normally in 3 months.
We walked up to Hydro electric pump which currently produces around 1500 kw/h of electricity per year- enough for over 200 homes or to power a small factory for a year.
During the flood of 1952 there was so much water that it came over the top of the hill in the background. This is the current hydro-electric pump.
There was also loads of stuff about water power in their museum as well as a replica of the sister lifeboat of the Louisa, which was taken by road over 20 miles in 1899 to launch from Porlock.
Lynton and Lynmouth are so full of History that you could easily spend hours here.
Lynmouth is also an excellent place to study renewable energy because they also have a wave-power machine in the Bristol Channel which also generates a lot of electricity.
Both the wave-power generator and the Glen Lyn Gorge are connected to the National Grid and supply constant electricity.
We also found some money trees. Yes, money really does grow on trees! We put some coins in the tree and gave it a good RUB for plenty of abundance and prosperity.
Wednesday 4th April
This was a bit of a peculiar day for me because it was a year ago today when our business was shut down and we set off down the financial slippery slope, which eventually brought us to the point of considering home schooling.
We met up with my Mum and her husband today and went to explore some of the fascinating little coves and beaches along the North Devon Atlantic Coast.
From a geological point of view, North Devon is very interesting because some of the rock formations are incredibly ancient. You can still see how the land moved thousands of years ago and to some extent how it is still moving today.
We went to Speke’s Mill beach, which has one of the longest waterfalls in the area. It was OK walking down to the beach, but going back up made me realise just how unfit I am. Hopefully we will start to get a bit fitter with more hill climbing.
After lunch we went to Hartland Abbey, which was the last of the Abbeys dissolved by Henry VIII in the 16th century. The house has been extensively rebuilt and there is fascinating local history across many centuries. From that time, it has never been sold and has just been passed down through the families.
It was also very interesting for Mum because she works at Grenville College school in Bideford and the Stucley family, who own Harland Abbey, also had a lot to do with the Grenville family, who owned the buildings making up Grenville College.
There is huge amounts of History here, as the Grenville family were also part of the war against the Spanish Armada under the Reign of Elizabeth 1.
Thursday 5th April
Today we went to Barnstaple, which is a thriving local market town. Barnstaple has a huge amount of history. It has 2 museums and we went in one last time we were here and the other one today. The history of Barnstaple goes right back to the Celts and Saxons and was a thriving silver minting centre.
Trade thrived here until the battles between the cavaliers and roundheads in the late 1600s when everyone was so busy fighting each other, that trade got neglected and the river then silted up so much that the ships could no longer get to the harbour.
The other museum was just as interesting, as there are relics going back to the time of the dinosaurs.
After that we had our usual trip to the local bookshop and Jacqueline emerged with 3 new books and Stephanie with 2 books. I fall for that every time!
In the afternoon, we went to the chocolate museum, theatre and shop in Ilfracombe. This was a fascinating place, with loads of posters all round the walls telling you why chocolate is most definitely VERY GOOD for you.
The kids have decided that CHOCOLATE would be a good project to do. It covers History, Geography, Manufacturing , Business, Fairtrade, Testing (Science) and Maths – working out how much chocolate you can eat before you are sick!!
On Thursday evening we went to the Valley of Rocks to take pictures of the Sunset. This is also a fascinating place, as it was believed to be formed during the Ice Age. It is probably one of the most southerly examples of Ice age formation that there is.
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There is also a lot of history and legends around the area. The goats have also been there since anyone can remember.
Jacqueline’s picture of the Sunset was definitely one of the best. Greg has got some serious competition coming along now!
Sunset in the Valley of Rocks, taken by Jacqueline
Friday 6th April
Today we met up with Mum again and went to the swimming pool at Bude on the North Cornwall coast.. Greg went in the water with the girls. Afterwards we walked along the beach at Bude and had an ice cream.
Easter weekend
On Saturday we came home, Sunday we pottered about and on Monday Greg took the girls to see Grandma and Grandad in Manchester. They have got a semblance of a timetable ready to begin proper schooling tomorrow.
See you soon
With love and abundant blessings
Amanda Goldston
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