Long Itchington, Warwickshire

On Sunday I moved, via Tockwith show, from Edmundbyers down to Long Itchington to stay with Gavin Golby for a week.  It was a bit intimidating to leave the contest with the judge (especially when my shoes were particularly dreadful), but Gavin has been a very good teacher this week, helping me work out how to make heels on concave and to properly use a bob punch.  There have been no spectacularly aweful feet this week, nothing shocking, worrying or problematic.  Instead I've had a week of good, straightforward shoeing.  There was one horse he put into hunter heels, and it was nice too see that there has been no detriment to the foot for it.  Actually, they are probably improved because he stopped a vicious cycle of shoe pulling.

Dartmoor Pony

Tight fit in...

...but plenty of room once you're there!

Wednesday the van had to get new brakes, so I had a day to go off and see Warwick Castle.  It is an excellently maintained medieval castle on the river Avon (yes, Stratford-upon-Avon is only ten or so miles away) that has only very recently ceased to be a residence and been turned into a tourist trap.  Despite having to wade through crowds of children, there were some good finds.

Warwick Castle as seen across the Avon

A 1740 wooden copy of Rubens' Battle of the Amazons by Simon Cognoulles

I would like to point out how well all the horses were shod

I assume this is a medieval anvil, but there was no one to verify this with.  You can see the family crest three times across the base and it was certainly very well used in appearance.

Now that I am down in the Midlands the landscape has changed again.  It is even more gently rolling than Yorkshire and the buildings have changed back from stone to brick.  Some roofs are tiled, some thatched. And about half of them are what we would think of as "tudor," although I was surprised to see this in brick.