Welcome to the Rudloe and environs website.
Here you will find news, articles and photos of an area that straddles the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in north-west Wiltshire.
Contributions in the form of articles or photos are welcome. Even those with completely contrary views to mine!
Thanks to the website builder 1&1 and Rob Brown for the original idea.
Rudloescene now, in January 2014, has a sister, academic rather than anarchic, website about Box history here: http://www.boxpeopleandplaces.co.uk/
It contains thoroughly professional, well-researched articles about Box and its people.
Contact rudloescene through the 'Contact' page.
Maybe we're running out of steam as it's been more than a month since the last 'Walk in the Time of Covid' (on 6th/7th March). This walk is another short one around Rudloe Firs and Leafy Lane Wood on Sunday, 11th April 2021. This is the last day of the third Covid lockdown before the opening of retail shops, including tattoo and beauty parlours (doesn't beauty come from within?) and the partial opening (outdoors only) of pubs and restaurants. I shall be queueing at the local tattoo parlour from 6am to get that essential tattoo. Encountered a number of Rudloeites on the short walk along Leafy Lane (John, Gordon, Glenda, Wendy, Wayne (Fontana)) taking their required constitutionals. Title picture is of beeches at Rudloe Firs.
The numerous patches of three-cornered garlic, at the brow of Box Hill, are now in flower. There are further patches at Rudloe Firs (see earlier walk) and also a small clump in the Leafy Lane verge close to the north-eastern corner of Leafy Lane Wood.
'Gypsy' gates now blocking the western access to the old Brickers Barn Turnpike and the entrance to RAF Rudloe Manor No. 1 Site
Ivy is the principal ground cover at the western end of Rudloe Firs whereas ...
... the fresh, spring growth of dog's mercury predominates elsewhere ...
... but not here, where there are hundreds of maple saplings
And beyond Rudloe Firs, in the part of the field set aside for the new Hartham Quarry slope shaft, we find shelly limestone. When we arrived in Chippenham in 1959, this was the sight that greeted us in the garden of our new house.
And beyond the shelly limestone and the pylon, showers are falling to the north-east
Celandines at the brow of Box Hill
Taking in the view of the Village on the Hill but not of the preposterous speed limit signs which indicate that on moving from the 50 mph A4, the limit down the narrow, single-track Lower Rudloe Lane is 60 mph.
Emerging silver birch leaves at the northern end of Leafy Lane
The new owners of Leafy Lane Wood, adjacent meadow, line of trees and strip of playing field beyond have cleared undergrowth and some more substantial shrubs/trees, and installed fencing, in preparation for their 'woodland burials'.
Surprisingly, the land surrendered by LLPF to Bewleys includes a good 7-metre (or so) strip beyond the line of trees thereby considerably reducing LLPF's holdings. While this transaction took place some time ago, it is not recorded at the Land Registry.
What about the workers! A couple of lads doing a good job of installing gate posts at the southern entrance to right of way BOX107C.
Aaron Bewley, the new owner of Leafy Lane Wood, adjacent meadow etc arriving to announce "Red sky at night, get off my land"!
The first structure at the woodland burial site
Typical storm cloud (giving us showers) over Melksham by the looks of it
Substantial ash apparently felled by recent high winds in Leafy Lane Wood
Hawthorn hedge springing to life at the western edge of Leafy Lane Playing Fields
Red dead-nettle established in a fence post at the eastern edge of the old flat-roofed Boxfields prefab estate
Hawthorn at left (east), blackthorn at right (west) bordering right of way BOX107A
Cloud over Chippenham viewed from The Links at Rudloe Fiveways
From the roadway of Springfield Close, we see showers descending from that big cloud to the north
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