What makes a great hiking experience? For us, beautiful countryside and landscapes are a must, of course. But we also want our guests to connect with the culture, traditions, and people South West England. Which is why we encourage our guests to visit local events, village shops, churches and inns – all places where you can learn about the history of the region and easily fall into conversation with people who live and work there.
Last week, David, Alison, and Emma from the Foot Trails team spent the day at one such event, a local agricultural show in Dorset.
Agricultural shows have a long tradition in the UK. Originally evolving from harvest festivals and country fairs, they have always been important dates in the agricultural calendar, giving farm workers and landowners a place to meet, trade, hire seasonal labor, and celebrate the season’s yield before winter. Agricultural shows remain important to this day and draw large crowds from near and far.
We arrived early in the day and made a beeline for the livestock pens to admire the sheep, cattle and heavy horses being prepared for show. After watching a number of judging and prize-giving ceremonies, we meandered over to the main ring, past lines of gleaming steam engines and mouth-watering food tents.
There was so much to see, do and experience that the main challenge of the day was to plan timings to make sure we didn’t miss anything. Alongside the livestock competitions, other highlights included the heavy horse parade and vintage tractor parade, the traditional sheep shearing demo, ferret racing and gun dog demos. We also loved perusing the horticulture and handicrafts tent, looking at people’s entries into the many different categories and seeing whose produce and/or work had been awarded a podium spot.
In an age where many of us are disconnected from agricultural practices and traditions, agricultural shows provide an important platform for us to see where our food comes from and appreciate the skill, hard work and dedication that goes into growing and harvesting our food.
When we create a bespoke Foot Trails itinerary for you, we love recommending local events like this so you can experience the authentic side of the South West and explore like a local.
If you’d like to explore the best of rural South West England, simply send us an email. We’d love to create the perfect itinerary for you.
