Dan Cattermole
Dan Down - The Steampunk Womble
........There lays a forgotten house, but this is not just an ordinary house.
This is otherwise known as the 'Hobbit House'
I took a visit to this place with a long lost member here in the name of Curt Worton.
We didn't know what to expect, or if this place was even accessible. To begin with, it didn't look promising.
Just for reference, there is no information on the internet available for the location of this place. Where the majority of people read books, I don't, I read maps (which may be seen as strange....... And even for myself this took a frustrating week to find scrolling google maps/earth and ordnance survey maps. I deem myself as a pro map reader who detests the use of these so called satellite navigation..... thingys.
This is not a registered place with any council/authorisation or has planning permission. It is, literally a secret for the benefit of its protection more than anything.
The genius responsible for this magnificence is a guy called Colin Stokes, now 68, who was a sheep farmer. He bought 10 acres of land back in 1980's when a compensation claim was paid to him following an accident. He collected stones left on his land before starting work on a hay store using dry stone walling techniques (and pouring concrete between the gaps).
Rather than building a modest barn, he then started building turrets and dovecots - which were inhabited by lots of birds, including one owl that lived there the whole time he owned the land. He also had a room at the top where he would sleep during lambing season.
Mr stokes took a total of 11 years to build this on his own before selling his land and moving to Scotland after a near by quarry and transport feared disruption. Mr Stokes sold the land in 2000 and has been left in its current status ever since.
Me and Turkish had a close call with the current land owner who drove passed us on the track we were walking adjacent to.
Hope you enjoy the photos as much as we enjoyed the visit.
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
Inside .......
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
And now...... For the usual
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
A stick...........
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
Who's comin shag!?!?
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
The guard of the house
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
Thank you all very much for looking
This is otherwise known as the 'Hobbit House'
I took a visit to this place with a long lost member here in the name of Curt Worton.
We didn't know what to expect, or if this place was even accessible. To begin with, it didn't look promising.
Just for reference, there is no information on the internet available for the location of this place. Where the majority of people read books, I don't, I read maps (which may be seen as strange....... And even for myself this took a frustrating week to find scrolling google maps/earth and ordnance survey maps. I deem myself as a pro map reader who detests the use of these so called satellite navigation..... thingys.
This is not a registered place with any council/authorisation or has planning permission. It is, literally a secret for the benefit of its protection more than anything.
The genius responsible for this magnificence is a guy called Colin Stokes, now 68, who was a sheep farmer. He bought 10 acres of land back in 1980's when a compensation claim was paid to him following an accident. He collected stones left on his land before starting work on a hay store using dry stone walling techniques (and pouring concrete between the gaps).
Rather than building a modest barn, he then started building turrets and dovecots - which were inhabited by lots of birds, including one owl that lived there the whole time he owned the land. He also had a room at the top where he would sleep during lambing season.
Mr stokes took a total of 11 years to build this on his own before selling his land and moving to Scotland after a near by quarry and transport feared disruption. Mr Stokes sold the land in 2000 and has been left in its current status ever since.
Me and Turkish had a close call with the current land owner who drove passed us on the track we were walking adjacent to.
Hope you enjoy the photos as much as we enjoyed the visit.
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
Inside .......
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
And now...... For the usual
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
A stick...........
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
Who's comin shag!?!?
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
The guard of the house
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
image by dajoolzcat, on Flickr
Thank you all very much for looking
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