Kelston Roundhill and Roundhill Barn

Bath Quakers held a “day of quiet” in the Old Barn on Kelston Roundhill Saturday 3 Sept 2016.We used the new furniture acquired in the B&B Marquees liquidation.

The Meeting used the barn as a place to unwind, reflect in peaceful quiet, enjoy contemplative walks and reflect on pictures and objects in a carefully facilitated light-touch programme. We were pleased to be joined by a distinguished Tibetan guest from Dharamsala, Geshe Yeshi Gawa.

We considered the distant and more recent past of the place, including the change in purpose and the disruptive works necessary to get on that path, and the many memories held on the hill. It’s clear that the hill has many happy associations for people who have engaged with it over time: childhood memories, romantic engagement, the wonder at the view and the sense of place, the joy of a beautiful memorable walk, or the sense of homecoming. There are also more sombre memories of lost loved ones or episodes of self-harm.

We considered all of this, also our own busyness and concerns, and how powerfully the peace, quiet and beauty met our immediate and deeper needs.

For lunch we ate local cheese with wild mustard leaves from the abundant flowering plants that have self-seeded among the newly sown rye grass and clover. During the afternoon a large hare came and stopped outside the window and stood still while we admired its flecked colouring, its poised strength and its clear unblinking eyes giving nothing away.

Friends in the Old Barn, using pictures in a contemplative frame of mind.

The feelings shared as the rain beat down outside included that the barn was a place of safety, the well-tended farm suffused in caring compassion. Instead of the inevitable element of anxiety that comes with rebuilding and transition the Meeting shared a quiet confidence and joy.

It seems ideal to use the barn as a safe space for contemplation and reflection.

There’s serious Kelston fun brewing up over at our new project Kelston Records. Check it out, and mark 29 Sept in the diary for Gas Giants.

Just caught this from May 2016 on the not-to-be-mentioned social network 

Top photo by Andrew Stevens

A gorgeous sunset over #Bath last night from Bath Skyline Walk #photography

And another cracker below. Want to join Tim’s Kelston Flickr group?

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See this below from recent AWT bat survey.

Our plan is to work with Bath Spa University and reach out to schools and to get a series of conservation projects going. First of all we need to get a clearer grasp of the range of plant and wildlife on the site.

The survey last Thursday was the best I’ve been on for wildlife for some time – several Serotine bats were foraging around the ash tree and we also recorded common pipistrelle, noctule, brown long-eared and lesser horseshoe either commuting or foraging over the site. There was a little owl perched in the western gable end, which seems to be a regular visitor looking at the evidence in the main barn too. I think it probably roosts and may even have nested this year in the wall itself (accessible from the alcove in the western gable).

Life will fight to affirm itself, and new life will exist,
Bees wrestle mortality from the reddening hedgerows,
as sun escapes from downland rain to leave the stream banks kissed.
Jealous admirals run up flags where carmine Hawthorn grows,

Middle age wears the ancient steps to dream of summers past
Dead poets mute and grieving gather in the porch,
And old tides shift out beneath us, running hard and fast,
First frosts call out from Brecon, a fractured winter torch.

Still there is a hope beside these broken walls,
Faith requires sustenance as summer’s embrace fades,
Here now, where Autumn shadows find their early place to fall,

Thoughts of darkening evening light threaten and invade.
Faith is found in shifting cloud shape, old poetic form,
Faith is here where butterfly wing gives shelter from the storm.

by Jon Hamp

Photo by Tim Graham, 16 August 2016

We know we’ve got bats. We had a AWT bat report from Old Barn Kelston to protect bats during the barn preservation work. We applied for a Bat Mitigation licence under the CONSERVATION OF HABITATS AND SPECIES REGULATIONS 2010. The reference was WML-A13-1. The licence was granted, and verily its number is 2014-2807-EPS-MIT, valid until October 2019.

But we don’t yet really *know* our bats.

Now there’s a set of new resources from Avon Wildlife Trust which might help. We already built bat boxes to house bats. The wildflowers and weeds help support the insects they need. And as and when we do ponds it seems that will help more. But we’re going to need time and expertise to get our heads around this.

Thanks to Matt Prosser for pictures of the 2016 Lammastide picnic up at the Old Barn, Kelston.

We were blessed with perfect weather. There was a massive rounders game in Barrows Style. We danced to Marick’s ceilidh band to celebrate the cutting of the hay (thanks to Wes for calling).

Thanks to everyone who came, who brought fab picnics, organised stuff and cleared everything up afterwards.

Classic Roundhill panoramic pic from Matt. You can meet the man himself at the Kelston picnic from 1230 Saturday 6 August. Bring picnic and dancing shoes (ceilidh from 1400). No dogs plz.