landform sculpture | restlessjo

Viv, Northumberlandia and a hot chocolate

The head of Northumberlandia from the summit

A noble profile and a glimmer of sun

What a pleasure and a privilege it was to meet Viv Blake from Viv in France this week. When a blogger suggests a meet up I’m initially delighted, then I get to worrying. They will see the “real me” behind the Restlessjo personna. What if I’m a disappointment or we don’t “gel”? I was very much in awe of Viv’s literary ability, but knew that she had a sense of humour. Isn’t that always an enormous help?

I needn’t have worried. Viv was charming. My husband, Michael, drove us up to Stannington to meet at a local farm shop. Viv and her daughter, Sally, were just arriving as we drove in. Smiles and waves- “are you Jo?” Introductions all round, then into the coffee shop for a little fortification. We needed it! If you’ve seen my post on Northumberlandia you’ll know just what I mean.

The day was biting cold but that didn’t deter us. We were on a mission to see this astounding landform sculpture, with which Sally and her husband had been closely involved. Michael, as a garden and landscape designer, was interested too. Me, I just gaped and admired!

The climb to the summit was quite steep and I was a little worried that Viv wouldn’t make it, but there was no way she was being left behind! We battled the elements and, as ever, I snapped away. The photos and the full story are on my Welcome to Northumberlandia post. I simply wanted to use my Six word Saturday to pay tribute to a lovely lady and a lovely day.

The hot chocolate? That was hard earned but very welcome. Viv sat warming her hands on the cup, while I tucked into a very delicious apple and gooseberry crumble with custard. Well, you have to put the calories back somehow, don’t you?

That warming cup of hot chocolate afterwards

Happy Six word Saturday everybody! As usual, you can join in by visiting Cate at Show My Face. Click on the header or the links for more details.

A serene profile

Not a trip back to an ancient county, but a lady on a very grand scale, Northumberlandia is a very unique landform sculpture. My visit, on a harsh day in March, at least assured me that the site would not be crowded. I was in the company of a very grand lady myself, known to some of you as Viv in France. Viv has a daughter who lives in Northumberland, and it was with some excitement that I travelled north to meet them, despite the atrocious weather.

In fact, I was surprised to find anyone there at all

Introductions made, and warm clothing donned, we defied the weather to do its worst. And it did! But still, Northumberlandia was an impressive sight. 100 feet high and a quarter of a mile long, the female form is made from 1.5 million tonnes of rock, clay and soil. She resides in a community park with 4 miles of footpaths. Be warned- some of them are almost vertical!

The sun even peaked out for a moment!

A lake surrounds the sculpture to add interesting reflections

A lake surrounds the sculpture, for interesting reflections on a sunnier day

There are twin viewing mounds if you’re not up to the climb, but Viv was determined that she would make the most of her visit, and ascend we did. As we climbed higher, the wind was more than fresh, but the views to the Cheviot Hills and the distant sea were great compensation.

More of the sculpture becomes visible as you ascend

There’s a seat at the summit, if you’re prepared to linger

But it was a little damp

And did you see the snow?

From time to time the heavens opened, but still we were enthralled. The footpaths were a sea of mud and it was time to start our tricky descent. Just time for a few more shots.

The sculpture at the summit- proof we made it!

The mound provided good shelter for some photos

The mound provided good shelter for some of the photos

But the clouds were closing in again

And soon the umbrella came into its own

Time to head for a warm cuppa, and a sad farewell, but it was surely a day to remember. Do have a look at the link to the website, which will provide many more details than I can. Northumberlandia lies next to the Shotton Surface coal mine and was constructed in conjunction with the Blagdon Estate, who donated the land for this project. We agreed that an aerial view of the site would be pretty spectacular. Maybe in years to come it will be possible to take a helicopter flight or a balloon ride to see it from on high.

An aerial view

Meantime, Viv will be heading back to France on Friday. Safe journey, my dear! I’ll be joining up with you again on Six word Saturday.

Viv, Northumberlandia and a hot chocolate

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