Day 11 - Green Scythe Fair, Muchelney

I think this was the 13th annual Green Scythe Fair, but the MC's PA system worked only every second word so I may have got that wrong. Anyway, what a way to celebrate Day 11 of 30 Days Wild. There was certainly lots of wildness about today. We did the environmentally friendly thing and walked to the Fair, at least we walked from Kingsbury Episcopi a couple of miles away from the fair ground. This way we got some exercise and saved £5!

The walk takes you along the River Parrett where we saw Kingfisher, Small Tortoiseshell and Banded Demoiselle as well as lots of water lilies and the delightfully named Thorney Silent Mill.

The fair was apparently busier than ever with lots of colours, sounds, stalls, cakes, ciders and, of course, scythes! Close up you can hear that wonderful swooshing noise the scythes make, but from our distance with the general hubbub of the crowd, that sound was lost. It was wonderful to see children playing in the cut grass and building a hay lady and then the fun of building a haystack and deciding which was the most stable (yes, this is a genuine competition). We watched all sorts of traditional crafts - bodgering, leather making, music making, withy weaving, forging, sawyering, apple juice making, tool sharpening . . .

The scything competition was great fun. We watched from a distance and admired the almost dance-like movements of the scythers as they moved gracefully with the grass.

A wonderful day out celebrating crafts and trades which embrace wildness.

Banded Demoiselle, River Parrett

Creating electricity by pedalling - I made bubbles!