Sunday June 29 cont'd

We weeded several hours in the upper garden, then Sara drove Pilar and I up the road a bit to the peat hill where Pete harvests peat. Pete drove his own car there so he could stay longer. We hiked over rich peat fields covered with heather. It was not easy walking there...very spongy (by nature) and stepping over the low heather and irregular ground proved to be a bit slow moving for me.

We arrived at the area where Pete does all his peat harvesting. He started years ago (1969) in this same area and just keeps making a slice back farther each year. He cuts through the turf first with a hand held tool with a curved sharp blade...cutting through the top layer of heather and peat. The next step is to cast the peat. For this he uses a long handled tool called a tushkar. This tool was built by a local blacksmith who has since retired. Here's a picture of Pete holding the tushkar:



Pete proceeded to show us how to cast peat. He had already cast one layer down and was in the processes of casting the next layer. He won't go anymore than the second layer. He slices the peat, which is like wet clay...only lighter in weight...but not that light...he slices them by hand into amazingly uniform slabs that are then set on top of the hill to dry out. He has been casting for several weeks. Depending on the day, he may work 6 or 8 hours in the field, casting. I'm going to show you some photos of the process, but keep in mind that all of his previous casting from the last several weeks is in the background of these photos. If you're like me, you won't be able to comprehend the amount of work he has done. I was speechless. Here are some photos:
Here's the heather covered hills we walked over to get to where he casts the peat.


This whole area is what he has harvested for the last 45 years. By the way, this open field is free game for anyone, but once someone has started harvesting an area, usually all others leave it alone, even though it's free space for anyone. A person just pays around 3 pounds in taxes for the right to harvest peat.

Here's a closer angle of the area:



A closer look at peat. The heather covers the rich peat, exposed below.





He uses the tool to angle down and make a slice:


Then he uses a quick motion to break off the brick that he has just sliced and hoists it to the top of the hill where it will dry out for several days to a week...depending on the weather.


There's a certain technique to laying them out at this point to maximize the drying. I can't remember if I've told you, they use the peat in their house for heating the house and for heating the water. Peat continually burns in their Rayburn stove for warmth and to keep the "eternal teapot" full of hot water at all times, ready for a cup of tea for whoever wants it any time of the day.



Here's a close up so you can get a feel for the texture of the peat. This has been drying for awhile:





You can see where he has cut 2 layers of cut slabs:





This is a close up of drying peat...from several days ago:





Here's a video of the process:

Yes, this is all done by hand:








Here is the view he has as he works:












All he brings to the peat field is a pair of gloves, a bottle of water, and a trusty companion:



Sara tried her hand at it:









Came back and worked in the charity shop which was very crowded today.Apparently we'll be having a tea for 10 ladies on Thursday inside the charity shop. Hopefully it will bring in nice money donations needed to run the sanctuary.

Location:Hillswick