This was a day that was full of uncertainty. Would the weather hold or dump rain? Would we manage to visit all of the villages on this southern stretch of the Black and White Trail? Would any village come up to the standard of Eardisland?

Almost, yes and not quite.

Unlike our usual practice, we began with the closest village to us and worked our way away from home, culminating in Cheese Dairy.

A miracle did happen. Sheila followed my instructions and actually led us down a country lane right to ….. a 900 year old hollowed out Oak tree. It's still flourishing, even though the trunk and some huge limbs are in fact hollow.

The Eardisley Oak, also called "Great Oak", this huge tree has a girth at chest height of 9m 17cm. Like all very old oaks, it's becoming 'stag-headed' and has a hollow trunk. A forest in this area was recorded in the Domesday Book (1086), and this may be its last surviving tree. The oak itself was a landmark on maps dated 1650.

The hollow interior is caused by fungi, the most invasive of which is called the "poor man's Beefsteak" (Fistulina hepatica) whose fruiting bodies are sometimes seen growing on the bark of the tree during the Autumn.

Ches asked the question, "how do the home owners of the two houses beside the tree get house insurance?"

Back in Eardisley, we parked in what is known as Tram Square outside the Tram Square Inn. Why do you think they have a name like Tram out here in the countryside? Well, I'm glad you asked. The Kington Tramway was an early narrow-gauge horse-drawn tramway that linked limestone quarries at Burlinjobb near New Radnor in Radnorshire, Wales, to Eardisley.

The tramway received parliamentary authorisation on 23 May 1818. Construction started immediately and was completed in two sections. The tramway was built to a gauge of 3 ft 6 in (1,067 mm). The tramway adopted the use of cast iron 'L'-shaped tramroad plates in its construction. The vertical portions of the two plates were positioned inside the wheels of the tramway wagons and the plates were spiked to stone blocks for stability. The first section from Eardisley to Kington was opened on 1 May 1820. The western section from Kington to quarries at Burlingjobb, 3 miles (4.8 km) east of New Radnor opened on 7 August 1820..

The Hay Railway was an early narrow gauge horse tramway that connected Eardisley with Watton Wharf on the Brecknock and Abergavenny Canal in Brecon. From 1 May 1820, the Hay Railway was joined at its Eardisley terminus, in an end-on junction, by the Kington Tramway. Together, the two lines totalled 36 miles (58 km) in length, comprising the longest continuous plateway to be completed in the United Kingdom. The Hay railway operated through rural areas on the borders of England and Wales and was built to transport goods and freight. Passengers were not carried on any official basis. The Hay Railway was absorbed into the Hereford, Hay and Brecon Railway in 1860 and the line was converted to standard gauge for operation by steam locomotives.

Ches and I walked a section of the canal with Jenny around 15 years ago. I new we were on the Welsh border but not that close

The Kington Tramway was acquired by the Kington and Eardisley Railway in 1862. The new company used much of the line of the tramway to build its standard-gauge railway, utilising normal rails and steam locomotives, between Eardisley and Kington.

Sadly, I can't find any photographs or drawings of a horse drawn freight railway. There are plenty of passenger railways, and in Australia, Victor Harbour had one built in the late 18900's and it still operates as a tourist attraction. All I can confirm is that they were drawn by large Draught horses.

Ches deliberately didn't remind me that yesterday, I had confused Eardisley with Eardisland. I had blamed her for not telling me about the famous Norman font in the church. It's not at Eardisland but at Eardisley. So, in Eardisley, Ches is excited to see the great oak but not the font, so she doesn't remind me that it is there. Having now seen photos of it, I'll return tomorrow; even if by myself.

At the time of Doomsday the name of the village was 'Herdeslege', meaning a manor containing a 'defended house' in the middle of a wood. The first record of an actual castle was in the 12th century. For 500 years, that castle was held by the Baskerville family who came to England with William the Conqueror in 1066. Eardisley was granted a market and fair in about 1225, and it became a thriving medieval settlement based around the Castle and the Church. Now, a motte and bailey are all that remain of the castle.

The character and shape of the village were set in the l3th century when long narrow tenement plots were laid out at right angles to the road running from the castle in the south to a large farm complex at the north end - almost the full extent of the present village.

There are 42 listed buildings in the village including 14 mediaeval hall houses built before the early 1500s, at intervals along the road. A typical medieval hall house would probably have had the hall parallel to the road with one or two wings at the back. It was built with timber frame and wattle and daub or later, brick fill. Several of the original mediaeval halls are now divided into small houses, like 1-4 Church Road.

I'll post a separate photo album of this village.

We blinked and missed Kinnersley and Sarnesfield. The only things of interest about Kinnersley is that there is an Elizabethan Castle off in the countryside and that the name is based upon the Old English personal name Cynheard, with the Old English word leah, which meant forest clearing, as a suffix. The place-name as a whole meant forest clearing belonging to Cynheard.

As for Sarnesfield, an early lord of the manor was Nicholas de Sarnesfield, a member of the retinue of the Black Prince and created a Knight of the Garter in 1386 by King Richard II to whom he was standard bearer and an eminent diplomat.

On to Weobley … there has to be something there. The name possibly derives from 'Wibba's Ley', a ley being a woodland glade and Wibba being a local Saxon landowner. It is still pronounced as "Web-ley" (the spelling being similar to nearby Leominster which also does not pronounce the letter 'o' in its name).

The entry into town is bright. It's a traditional timber framed house, HOWEVER, it's frames are black and the walls pink. I do remember someone saying that way, way back in the day, they sometimes painted them with blood.

As with all of the Black and White Trail villages, they offer something unique in British Tourism …. Free carparks. The first carpark we come to is opposite a 16thc Hall house. Hall Houses consist of four bays, parallel with the street. The two central bays are open to create a large "Hall". The two outside bays were extend back from the street to form two wings. Apparently in this one, there is a hidden window from which the owner could check on people approaching. We couldn't find it.

We were a tad peckish, so we walked up the street, which then joins the "high street" at a T intersection. On the corner an old pub has been converted into a Tea room. A couple of locals were reading the papers over morning tea and in conversation with the hostess about the state of British politics. I made the mistake of saying to her, we might have two different cakes with our tea and share them. Ches overrode me and said no, just the one; the blackberry cake.

While she was off preparing our morning tea, two of the elder residents came in; one joining the other at the third and last table. Conversation was desultory. Service. Two huge slices of the blackberry cake. Dense and moist. Excellent. Ches figured that she hadn't made it clear that we would share the one slice. When she came to pay the bill, she made a point of saying just that. The response; "that was one slice. I cut it in half. I don't believe in small slices". OMG. Ches had to aske her to "doggy bag" 2/3 of her slice.

We loved Woebley. It's the one we could live in. Full of black and white timbered houses, however a number of cafes, a restaurant, a small supermarket and a place where the local community was evident. We adored Eardisland, however couldn't see much evidence of the locals. It's likely home to people who work in Leominster, just down the road. During the day, there doesn't seem to be a local community.

There was very little through traffic in Woebley. Rather than a town square, it's a long wedge shaped open space with gardens in the middle. We spent a good hour or so walking the streets which were well sign posted; small plaques everywhere giving the history of the buildings. As with most of these villages, the industrial Revolution passed them by. That's what now makes them unique. Because their economies stalled, the villages atrophied. No one came to modernise the village and now ….. wonderful period pieces.

Loved it, loved it, loved it.

Ches had been hanging out all day for our visit to Monkford Cheese Dairy. She's seen the sign on the way to Leominster on Tuesday. The owners had reached the end of the line. No energy to continue with the rigours of cheese making. They had a café and were selling off their stock (they have many years of these cheeses as they continue to age. The also advertised that they were looking for younger people to take over. CELEBRATION …. They found a couple of guys in their 50s.

We decided to have the carrot and coriander soup with a breadroot and a couple of thick slices of "Little Hereford" cheddar. While we were ordering, she sliced cheese for three cheeses for us to taste. One was this "Little Hereford". I took one bite and exclaimed "This is dad's Welsh Rarebit" The taste took me back 60 years to when dad would cook cheese on toast on Saturday mornings.

After paying the bill, we continued to discuss this and that with the two women running the café. I made the mistake of saying "So, how's Brexit working out for you?". Turns out they are both on each end of the scales. Sue voted for it and thinks it was the right decision "The common market was fine but the EU was screwing Britain…. We weren't getting our fair share of the money" The myth persists. Her colleague thinks it's a disaster. As we left, we saw their two cars in the carpark. One owns a BMW the other a little car. Guess who owns which?

Home again, home again, jiggedy jig.