Puzzle on Hergest Ridge

The puzzle on Hergest Ridge is this: why is there a 3X3 grid of monkey puzzle trees (Araucaria araucana) on top of the upland hill? It is unusual to find this tree, also known as the Chilean Pine, outside of gardens, and its presence on this exposed, wind-swept summit on the border of Herefordshire and Wales is a conundrum. They are likely to be there on a landowner's whim, and are perhaps associated with the former horse racetrack whose oval can still be seen. The tree was not widely known in Britain until around the 1850s, and I remember reading that one of the Victorian houses below the Ridge had a driveway flanked by them. Perhaps that is the connection. 

photo © T. Boughen     Camera:iPhone

Views from Hergest Ridge

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A road closure involving us in a detour down muddy, single-track roads, followed by a bank of cloud that appeared over Kington and Hergest Ridge, nearly caused us to look for a different destination than our planned walk on the famous hill. But we overcame and accepted the impediments and were rewarded with an interesting (if very windy) walk and some reasonable views. Here are two taken when the clouds admitted pools of light. They show the cultivation of the lower valleys and the uncultivated steep slopes and tops of the outcrops.

 photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2

On Hergest Ridge

We recently made our first visit to Hergest Ridge. This 1394 feet (425m) hill is on the Herefordshire-Wales border. Its summit is notable for piles of local rock, gorse, small pools of water, semi-wild Welsh Mountain Ponies, an odd stand of trees (see later post) and quite good views. People of a certain age, or with a relatively deep interest in popular music, will recognise "Hergest Ridge" as the title of Mike Oldfield's second album of 1974, following his very popular "Tubular Bells (1973). The composer/performer bought a house near the Ridge where he composed his music.

photos © T. Boughen     Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2