Torquay weather and temp in Fahr.

MAIDENCOMBE.NET AUTHOR Jim Campbell

MAIDENCOMBE.NET AUTHOR Jim Campbell
Maidencombe resident since 1960. Local historian and author of the 'Coves of Maidencombe'.
Copyright © 2013 . All Rights Reserved.
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TIDES

KESTREL CALLING

BUZZARD IN MY GARDEN

RESERVE

NST

The bowl of the coombe as seen from Sladnor heights

The bowl of the coombe as seen from Sladnor heights

Maidencombe point

Maidencombe point
as seen above Maidencombe cove.

Blog Archive

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

SINGLE DECKER REVIVAL

Single decker at Maidencombe Cross

Thursday, April 23, 2015

A WALK THROUGH THE SMUGGLERS TUNNEL

The descent down to the Ness beach

POLICE HELICOPTER OVER THE COOMBE

From about 20:10 to 20:25 this evening a police helicopter was observed by numerous residents hovering over the lower coombe.  Eventually it moved off over Babbacombe Bay in the direction of Hope's Nose.  The reason for the activity of the helicopter and summoned coastguard was after a phone call was received regarding a man threatening to jump from cliffs near Babbacombe.

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

FIREBALL METEOR OVER MAIDENCOMBE

A little more information on the fireball meteor I witnessed in the early hours of this morning.  It appeared very low down in the sky and disappeared behind the ridge of fields on the top coast path (John Musgrove Heritage Trail).  As stated, it was searingly bright and could be compared to the landing headlights of an aircraft.  The relatively slow descent could be attributed to the shallow angle of the meteor's incoming approach.  No sound was heard.

FIREBALL METEOR SIGHTED

Due south of the Village Green at 12:31 am today.  An intensely bright white meteor of about double the brightness of the planet Venus (apparent magnitude -4.6).  Duration of transit approximately 1.5 seconds.  All the criteria to justify a rare celestial event - a fireball meteor.
As a keen amateur astronomer, I have never witnessed anything of this brightness before.  I would liken it to a slow motion meteor.  The gif image below is about the same elapsed time of my sighting.
The brightness of this fireball meteor gives it the potential of attaining meteorite status.

These extracts courtesy of the American Meteor Society (founded 1911):

Generally speaking, a fireball must be greater than about magnitude -8 to -10 in order to potentially produce a meteorite fall. Two important additional requirements are that (1) the parent meteoroid must be of asteroidal origin, composed of sufficiently sturdy material for the trip through the atmosphere, and (2) the meteoroid must enter the atmosphere as a relatively slow meteor. Meteoroids of asteroid origin make up only a small percentage (about 5%) of the overall meteoroid population, which is primarily cometary in nature.


An example of a fireball meteor (courtesy of NASA/George Varros)


FREQUENCY OF FIREBALLS 
Several thousand meteors of fireball magnitude occur in the Earth’s atmosphere each day. The vast majority of these, however, occur over the oceans and uninhabited regions, and a good many are masked by daylight. Those that occur at night also stand little chance of being detected due to the relatively low numbers of persons out to notice them.
Additionally, the brighter the fireball, the more rare is the event. As a general thumb rule, there are only about 1/3 as many fireballs present for each successively brighter magnitude class, following an exponential decrease. Experienced observers can expect to see only about 1 fireball of magnitude -6 or better for every 200 hours of meteor observing, while a fireball of magnitude -4 can be expected about once every 20 hours or so.

The next two nights will see the onset of the Lyrid meteor showers which may be spectacular this year.

Sunday, April 19, 2015

FOXES IN DAYLIGHT

Left:  Squinting in the afternoon sun  Right: Emerging to hunt at dusk
If you're observant, foxes can be caught on camera in daylight.  These two were snapped today.

ABOVE WHITSAND COVE

I took the opportunity to photo shoot Whitsand Cove and adjoining Watcombe Cove this afternoon.  These are two 'aerial' shots of Whitsand taken from Watcombe woods above.

Sunday, April 12, 2015

A FOX CAME A VISITING

The first cautious step inside
The first time one of my foxes (probably a vixen) ventures inside our kitchen to snatch a chicken thigh.  I treat injured or afflicted animals but this fox has cottoned on to the fact that I'm a 'safe' human and is one of my sociable visitors to the garden.  In case you're wondering about the state of the floor, I'm in the process of planing and sanding the back door which has been sticking.  The open door had attracted the attention of the fox.

Wednesday, April 08, 2015

FERRO CONCRETE BOAT 'SURFACES'

Left:  seaweed covered FCB August 2013 Right:  scoured FCB April 2015
A good example of varying tidal currents was the apparent disappearance of the ribs of the WWII FCB (Ferro Concrete Barge) off Smugglers Cove near Shaldon.
As can be seen from the photos above, the ribs of the FCB were clearly visible at low tide, covered with weed but over the winter were scoured clean by an inundation of sand and hidden from view.
The ribs have now partly 'surfaced' with no seaweed cover.
Further up the beach, the bow section of the FCB is still 'submerged' under three or four  feet of sand.


MACKEREL COVE AT LOW TIDE

Mackerel Cove from the shelfway.

Tuesday, April 07, 2015

THE WEEPING ROCK AT MACKEREL COVE

The Weeping Rock at Mackerel Cove

THE 'FINGERS' NORTH OF MACKEREL COVE

With  a 1.0 metre low tide and clear blue skies, I set out for a mini expedition (90 minutes) and photo shoot for the first three coves,  Maidencombe, Blackaller's and Mackerel.  I have now sold all the initial print run of 'Coves of Maidencombe' and will be entertaining a second revision. 

With such a low tide, I was able to walk around the formidable and taxing shelfway north of Mackerel Cove and take a photo of the fully exposed Fingers (above).

Friday, April 03, 2015

APRIL FOOL SPOOF?

Header photo displayed on April 1st.

This was the header photo for April 1st, traditionally the day that practical jokes and hoaxes are widely perpetrated by all parts of society, including television and media outlets. 

However, this year, the accompanying text outlining  possible proposals for reed beds and even a mini-lake to alleviate long-standing problems of flooding in Brim Hill and Rockhouse Lane was essentially accurate.
All the facts and extracts were actually taken from a meeting regarding Sladnor Park at Torquay Town Hall in 1997.
The outlined proposals still hold good to this day and may yet, in some form, come to fruition.


BLOG CONTENT

BLOG CONTENT
The twinning of Maidencombe with Comeinbemad reflects the light-hearted nature of this gentle blog. The articles posted are written by the author alone and have no connection with any official body or association.

SLADNOR PARK CHALETS

SLADNOR PARK CHALETS
Eerily shrouded in mist, two of the lower chalets of Sladnor Park.

BURNING OF THE BAMBOO MAN JUNE 5 2016

AN ODE TO SLADNOR PARK

(sung to the tune of 'Home on the Range')

Oh give me a park where the badgers can roam
Where the deer and the wildlife reside
There never is heard the developer's word
To disturb where the denizens abide

Oh give me a park where the diggers are banned
And the architect can't earn his fee
Where the noise of the town
Is a far distant sound
And conservation is all it can be

For when houses are built
The council covered in guilt
And all the animals forlorn
Now the only sounds to be heard
Are vehicles absurd
And the cries of a motherless fawn

Jim Campbell

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OUR MAIN LINK - CLICK ON IMAGE TO REDIRECT

OUR MAIN LINK - CLICK ON IMAGE TO REDIRECT
THE ENDANGERED CIRL BUNTING - SYMBOL OF THE MAIDENCOMBE COMMUNITY GROUP

PUTTING MAIDENCOMBE ON THE MAP

PUTTING MAIDENCOMBE ON THE MAP
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MOST VIEWED POST ON THIS SITE

MOST VIEWED POST ON THIS SITE
The old Toll House on the west side of the A379 Teignmouth Road, stands at the junction of Claddon Lane with the A379 about 50 yards from Ridge Road and the former position of the black and white Solomons Post sign (see side panel right). This early photo shows the open porch (lower left) - now blocked off and the blanked out toll-board recess (top right). Under the angled roof on the right, there is a small shop and working post office. The building probably dates from 1827 when the new road was built. Originally named Solomon's Post Gate when there was a gate across the road for the toll collector to open upon payment.

RAMBLING GROUP WRITE-UP OF WATCOMBE TO MAIDENCOMBE WALK

Found this interesting little site with a rambling group's write up of walks. CLICK HERE FOR MAIDENCOMBE WALK ARTICLE

MAIDENCOMBER SLADNOR VIDEO AND WRITE-UP

YOUR LOCAL WEB APPROVES DREAMINCOMBES

YOUR LOCAL WEB APPROVES DREAMINCOMBES
After scrutiny by a panel, this site has been added as a reputable source of information about Maidencombe.

ARCHIVE: MAIDENCOMBE TIMELINE EVENING AT THE THATCHED TAVERN

The first Timeline evening took place Wednesday evening March 20th at the Thatched Tavern. Local lad Ziggy Austin's brainchild, it was an endeavour to map out the history of Maidencombe on a ten metre paper scroll. The initiative was first mooted and widely supported on Ziggy's Maidencombe Residents Facebook page. Residents and non residents were asked if they could research local history on the area and bring along any material such as postcards or text to place on the scroll.
The first evening was well attended and as can be seen in the photos on the left, a great deal was achieved.
Longest residing villager, Alan Hunt attended to add his considerable knowledge and was supported by his 'young' student Jim Campbell with a mere 53 years of residence under his belt.
The pub opened up the restaurant area for the occasion and were most generous in providing sandwiches for the studious throng.


SOLOMONS POST AT THE JUNCTION OF TEIGNMOUTH ROAD & RIDGE ROAD

SOLOMONS POST AT THE JUNCTION OF TEIGNMOUTH ROAD & RIDGE ROAD
No known images of this iconic Maidencombe landmark exist. Post war and up to the late 1960's, sign posts were wooden posts painted black and white. This is a close reconstruction of the sign where buses would actually pull in to for passengers to alight or board.

A UNIQUE VIDEO

A video of one of my foxes being treated for Sarcoptic mange - taking the medication on the food by hand. She recovered completely and my thanks go out to the Derbyshire Fox Rescue who supplied the medication.

DRAMATIC EROSION OF THE SOUTHWEST COASTAL FOOTPATH

Worth a look as Maidencombe's section of the SWCP is also very much under threat.

From myfoxesandbadgers site

ARCHIVE: DANGEROUS STATE OF CLIFF FACE

ARCHIVE: DANGEROUS STATE OF CLIFF FACE
Photo taken from the beach cafe above Maidencombe cove and the arrows indicate the cause for concern. A minor land slip has already taken place and the Environment Agency had a look Christmas eve in case the cove had to be closed.

ARCHIVE: Entrance to Crossways at Maidencombe Cross

ARCHIVE: Entrance to Crossways at Maidencombe Cross
After a catalogue of antisocial behaviour displayed by motorists illegally entering a private area, the police recommended that the entrance be made narrower. A sad indictment of society.

THE FOLLY AT SLADNOR PARK

THE FOLLY AT SLADNOR PARK
Constructed between 1830-1833 by Mrs Groves who inhabited Sladnor Manor House at the time. The hexagonal tower and accompanying arched outbuilding were built of Devon red sandstone. A projecting castellated cornice crowned the gothic apertures and single faux crossbow slit at ground level. A most interesting aspect of the folly is the purpose-built pony and trap winding carriage-way which Mrs Groves carved through the north western woods of the estate to facilitate her passage to and from the folly. The structure is now in poor condition and it is earnestly hoped that Richmond Villages, the new owners of Sladnor, will be able to make safe the folly to enable residents to enjoy in years to come.

FEATURES OF MAIDENCOMBE

Some of the features we will be mentioning:

ROCK HOUSE GAZEBO
THE CASCADE
THE IRON STILE
THE CASTELLATED FOLLY
THE BAT RETREAT
THE PUMP HOUSE
THE PILL BOX
THE 190 OAK
SMUGGLER'S LANE

GRADE 2 LISTED ROCK HOUSE GAZEBO

GRADE 2 LISTED ROCK HOUSE GAZEBO
Circa 1850. Constructed of Devon red sandstone with unfortunately, as is the case with the Sladnor Folly, some cement patching. Sited at the eastern end of the garden, overlooking the sea. A single storey structure with faux castellated parapet. It has a one-window front incorporating a gabled porch on the front to left with a segmental headed and arched doorway. There is a matching arched window to the right. Reportedly, the structure had a flight of external steps for access to the flat roof with commanding views of Lyme Bay. The interior is clay-tiled laid.