0:00:28 > 0:00:32High above the waves, stretching miles out into the Irish Sea,
0:00:32 > 0:00:37is the Llyn Peninsula, a rugged land of rocky peaks and distant horizons
0:00:37 > 0:00:40on the very edge of North Wales.
0:00:40 > 0:00:45The countryside around here is remote and empty, and in days gone by,
0:00:45 > 0:00:49the best way of getting around the peninsula was like this, by boat.
0:00:49 > 0:00:54These days, if you're very lucky, you might just see some of these guys.
0:00:57 > 0:01:01Just a couple of miles offshore sits a legendary island,
0:01:01 > 0:01:03a place of pilgrimage.
0:01:03 > 0:01:07Helen's hoping to find out what it's like living in the shadow of 20,000 saints.
0:01:07 > 0:01:10But getting there might not be plain sailing.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13Bardsey Island is surrounded by
0:01:13 > 0:01:16some of the most dangerous riptides in Europe,
0:01:16 > 0:01:20and the island's Welsh name, Ynys Enlli, means "island of currents".
0:01:20 > 0:01:26Boats regularly have to turn back because of bad weather, so I'm hoping the sun keeps on shining.
0:01:26 > 0:01:31And Tom's been investigating the mounting pressure on our countryside.
0:01:31 > 0:01:33With our rapidly growing population,
0:01:33 > 0:01:37British land is turning into one of our most precious commodities.
0:01:37 > 0:01:40So is there enough of it to go around?
0:01:40 > 0:01:44I'll be asking, what should we be using our land for?
0:01:44 > 0:01:46Also on tonight's programme,
0:01:46 > 0:01:50what does it mean when sheep come labelled "easy care"?
0:01:50 > 0:01:52Adam's got the answer.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54This is how the wool just falls off.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57Naturally moulting. So you don't have to worry about shearing.
0:02:00 > 0:02:03And with scores of shipwrecks along this coast, what happened
0:02:03 > 0:02:06when one vessel loaded with whisky ran aground?
0:02:06 > 0:02:10There's one account of the customs man stopping one woman
0:02:10 > 0:02:14to frisk her, and when she went like that, her bloomers fell down!
0:02:27 > 0:02:30The Llyn Peninsula.
0:02:31 > 0:02:33A jewel in the Welsh crown,
0:02:33 > 0:02:36a granite outcrop unlike anything else in Britain.
0:02:38 > 0:02:42This area of outstanding natural beauty
0:02:42 > 0:02:45stretches for 30 miles in the north-west of Wales.
0:02:48 > 0:02:51Wherever you are on the peninsula, you're never more than five miles
0:02:51 > 0:02:55from the sea, which gives this place its own unique micro-climate.
0:02:55 > 0:02:57The weather here keeps changing rapidly.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00And on the uplands, there's lots of sheep,
0:03:00 > 0:03:02but not much sign of human activity.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06'That is, apart from here, high in the hills,
0:03:06 > 0:03:09'where an archaeological dig is going on.
0:03:09 > 0:03:12'Relatively little is known about the early history of this area,
0:03:12 > 0:03:16'but Professor Raimund Karl from Austria is leading a team
0:03:16 > 0:03:20'mainly from Bangor University that's trying to change that.'
0:03:20 > 0:03:24Raimund, what exactly is going on here?
0:03:24 > 0:03:29Well, we're digging a late Bronze Age and Iron Age settlement here.
0:03:29 > 0:03:33Roughly 800 BC to 400 BC.
0:03:33 > 0:03:35While you're here, don't you want to join us?
0:03:35 > 0:03:39- You've got to work on this site, have you?- You've got to work if you're visiting us.
0:03:39 > 0:03:42- This was a house, was it? - Yes, this was a house.
0:03:42 > 0:03:47We're almost in the middle of a relatively sizable roundhouse.
0:03:47 > 0:03:50Well-built. Built from stone.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53In total, we assume that there were probably
0:03:53 > 0:03:56something like 10 to 12 roundhouses on this site,
0:03:56 > 0:04:01so a nice place for a community of, say, 40, 50, 60 people
0:04:01 > 0:04:03inhabiting this little hill.
0:04:03 > 0:04:08- It looks to me as though there's a double wall.- Yes, indeed.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12The stone walls here are built pretty much like a cavity wall.
0:04:12 > 0:04:14You have an inner facing, built from stone layers.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17You have an outer facing built from stone layers,
0:04:17 > 0:04:21and the material in between is filled in with turf, stones...
0:04:21 > 0:04:23Cavity wall insulation.
0:04:23 > 0:04:28Yes, effectively. You've got cavity wall insulation in those days, yes.
0:04:28 > 0:04:31And were they a kind of status symbol, these houses?
0:04:31 > 0:04:34Well, yes. Quite certainly, they were a status symbol.
0:04:34 > 0:04:40It's very visible and a very good place to demonstrate "We are important people".
0:04:40 > 0:04:43They're basically saying, "We are the big men here."
0:04:43 > 0:04:45Right. Well, let's get on with a bit more scraping.
0:04:45 > 0:04:49'As well as unearthing walls, we're looking for evidence
0:04:49 > 0:04:51'of charcoal from one of the communal fires.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55'That'll help the team date exactly when this roundhouse was being used.'
0:04:57 > 0:05:01On another of these round houses they've found on the same site,
0:05:01 > 0:05:04they've come across these great holes, which is where the poles
0:05:04 > 0:05:07that held up the roof would have been seated.
0:05:07 > 0:05:11Now, it's difficult for us non-archaeologists to imagine
0:05:11 > 0:05:13what one of these roundhouses looked like,
0:05:13 > 0:05:18so across the hill, down in the valley, they've reconstructed a village of them,
0:05:18 > 0:05:22using exactly the same techniques as these Iron Age builders.
0:05:25 > 0:05:31'Dafydd Davies-Hughes runs the Felin Uchaf project, which aims to
0:05:31 > 0:05:35'connect people with their past to better understand their present.'
0:05:35 > 0:05:39It's all very impressive, Dafydd, but what's the philosophy behind it?
0:05:39 > 0:05:42We get young people here hungry to learn about the past,
0:05:42 > 0:05:44what they did, how they did it.
0:05:44 > 0:05:49And what better place to explore it than doing it near one of those sites?
0:05:49 > 0:05:54- So you're using this village as a kind of focal point?- That's right.
0:05:54 > 0:05:58We're gathering local materials, local styles and techniques.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01And through doing it ourselves, we can explore some of
0:06:01 > 0:06:04those problems and challenges they must have faced.
0:06:04 > 0:06:09We face the same weather, same elemental conditions here, to create shelter.
0:06:09 > 0:06:13What's been the reaction of local people to this idea?
0:06:13 > 0:06:16Do they want to know more about their ancestors?
0:06:16 > 0:06:19We get schools here pretty well every other day,
0:06:19 > 0:06:21and they just muck in. They love it here.
0:06:22 > 0:06:25'Today, Dafydd is showing this group of local lads
0:06:25 > 0:06:28'how their distant ancestors lined their homes with mud.'
0:06:28 > 0:06:30You each need to choose a place.
0:06:35 > 0:06:41- It looks like great fun, doesn't it, Iron Age daubing?- It is.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45But what relevance do you think it has to life in the 21st century?
0:06:45 > 0:06:48Well, people begin to think "You know, this is such simple material.
0:06:48 > 0:06:53"Why isn't everybody using it? Why aren't we using it to make bricks these days?
0:06:53 > 0:06:58"Why do we have to go to concrete and materials that are high in energy content
0:06:58 > 0:07:02"that create a huge carbon footprint when it's there beneath our soil?"
0:07:02 > 0:07:04These things died out for a good reason,
0:07:04 > 0:07:08but we must evaluate whether they've still got a future.
0:07:08 > 0:07:09What are you learning from it?
0:07:09 > 0:07:15I'm learning how they did it hundreds of years ago, how they built their shelter.
0:07:15 > 0:07:18It's great fun. It's outdoorsy. Better than a classroom.
0:07:18 > 0:07:20And is it fun getting dirty as well?
0:07:20 > 0:07:23- Yeah.- Getting mud on your hands. - Yeah.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30But it's not just practical skills that are being encouraged
0:07:30 > 0:07:32in this brand new ancient village.
0:07:32 > 0:07:36It's also rapidly becoming a centre for local culture.
0:07:36 > 0:07:40I think I can hear something going on right now. MUSIC PLAYS
0:07:40 > 0:07:44'Apart from traditional music, these roundhouses now echo to the sound of storytelling,
0:07:44 > 0:07:49'and Dafydd is coaching me for a small part in an old Welsh legend.'
0:07:49 > 0:07:52You could introduce the watchman,
0:07:52 > 0:07:56whose work it was to stand in a tower much like this.
0:07:58 > 0:08:01Welcome once again to the Felin Uchaf round house.
0:08:01 > 0:08:06This would have been a gathering place familiar to people
0:08:06 > 0:08:081,000, 2,000, 3,000 years ago.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11People would have gathered in spaces like this,
0:08:11 > 0:08:15lit with candles and fires, and filled with smoke.
0:08:15 > 0:08:17I'm going to share a story with you today
0:08:17 > 0:08:22that would have been known in all of those Celtic roundhouses
0:08:22 > 0:08:25that ring this place.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28'Teaching people about the lives of their ancestors
0:08:28 > 0:08:30'is just one way in which these roundhouses
0:08:30 > 0:08:33'bring the modern-day community together.'
0:08:33 > 0:08:35And within that tower,
0:08:35 > 0:08:37within that tower, John...
0:08:37 > 0:08:40'Now it's time for my cameo.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42'Thank goodness it's not in Welsh.'
0:08:42 > 0:08:48And the watchman's job was, when he saw a great tide coming in,
0:08:48 > 0:08:52he grabbed hold of a huge oaken staff,
0:08:52 > 0:08:57and he thrust it against a huge brass bell,
0:08:57 > 0:09:01and the noise of that bell would reverberate right across the countryside.
0:09:01 > 0:09:04And it would summon 20 strong men.
0:09:04 > 0:09:09'The story actually lasted for half an hour, and seemed just as popular
0:09:09 > 0:09:13'as the original would have been 2,500 years ago.'
0:09:13 > 0:09:16What a story. Still alive after thousands of years.
0:09:16 > 0:09:18Thank you, Dafydd.
0:09:20 > 0:09:23'Later, I'll be exploring another Welsh legend,
0:09:23 > 0:09:26'but I'll have to head for the high seas to do it'.
0:09:26 > 0:09:30Over the next month, we'll be looking at one of the biggest issues
0:09:30 > 0:09:34facing the countryside, the future of farming and food production.
0:09:34 > 0:09:40To start the ball rolling, Tom Heap asks the simple question, what is our land for?
0:09:42 > 0:09:45This is Britain's green and pleasant land.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49But down there, a quiet revolution is happening
0:09:49 > 0:09:51which is shaping all our lives.
0:09:53 > 0:09:55Most of the UK is countryside,
0:09:55 > 0:09:59and though the economic importance of farming has fallen,
0:09:59 > 0:10:04rural Britain is still a key part of our national identity.
0:10:04 > 0:10:09So over the next few weeks, we'll be addressing the big questions
0:10:09 > 0:10:12of land use, food security, farm subsidies
0:10:12 > 0:10:15and why we often waste what we could eat.
0:10:15 > 0:10:17And we'll be asking what you think.
0:10:17 > 0:10:20Farmers need supporting, because the consumer
0:10:20 > 0:10:22will not pay the right price for farm products.
0:10:22 > 0:10:26I don't think it should be used for renewable energy.
0:10:24 > 0:10:26I see no point
0:10:26 > 0:10:30in transporting food from abroad.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33The biggest problem for this country at this stage is,
0:10:33 > 0:10:35there's too many people in it for the size of it.
0:10:36 > 0:10:40Countryfile has commissioned an exclusive national survey
0:10:40 > 0:10:41to find out what you think about
0:10:41 > 0:10:44some of the biggest issues facing the countryside.
0:10:44 > 0:10:49We'll be revealing your responses over the coming weeks.
0:10:49 > 0:10:51But today, I'm going to tackle the fundamental issue -
0:10:51 > 0:10:56what exactly is our land for?
0:10:56 > 0:11:01These days, every last acre of our small island seems to have potential.
0:11:01 > 0:11:05With new pressures from rising food prices,
0:11:05 > 0:11:09green energy and housing, everybody now seems to want a piece of it.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13We currently farm more than two-thirds of the land in the UK.
0:11:13 > 0:11:15What's left covers everything else,
0:11:15 > 0:11:19from busy cities to desolate mountaintops.
0:11:19 > 0:11:21But what does that all look like?
0:11:21 > 0:11:23To get a bird's-eye view of what's happening on the ground,
0:11:23 > 0:11:28I'm going to join the Ordnance Survey team, the people who do our maps. Fun!
0:11:36 > 0:11:37From up here,
0:11:37 > 0:11:41you really do get a great picture of our patchwork landscape,
0:11:41 > 0:11:47the towns and cities, forestry, fields, roads, rivers.
0:11:47 > 0:11:50Fascinating and beautiful.
0:11:50 > 0:11:54We're flying over Lancashire, from Preston to the north of Manchester,
0:11:54 > 0:12:00with Ron Cole, who's been recording changes in the landscape for 23 years.
0:12:00 > 0:12:01You've been up here for a generation.
0:12:01 > 0:12:04What changes have you seen in that time?
0:12:04 > 0:12:08Lately, with renewable energy, wind farms
0:12:08 > 0:12:11have sprouted up all over the place.
0:12:11 > 0:12:16But the urban areas have expanded quite dramatically.
0:12:16 > 0:12:20We're just over Blackburn. The industrial area's right next to the motorway,
0:12:20 > 0:12:24and next to the industrial estate is the residential areas.
0:12:24 > 0:12:28There's one or two green fields still hanging on in there.
0:12:28 > 0:12:32I expect over the next 20 or 30 years, that nice green patch
0:12:32 > 0:12:34that's left will get built on.
0:12:34 > 0:12:39Swindon is a prime example where to the south of Swindon is the M4.
0:12:39 > 0:12:42Then they've got bypasses on both sides.
0:12:42 > 0:12:47And they've filled in with urban sprawl within that limit.
0:12:52 > 0:12:57So what impact are these competing demands having on the countryside?
0:12:57 > 0:13:00One claim is that we're sacrificing food production
0:13:00 > 0:13:03in favour of creating more natural habitats for wildlife.
0:13:03 > 0:13:06We're seeing increasing pressures
0:13:06 > 0:13:11on farmers to actually reduce the level of intensity of land use.
0:13:11 > 0:13:16'John Welbank is an expert in the development of rural areas.'
0:13:16 > 0:13:18The subsidy system has,
0:13:18 > 0:13:22particularly in the upland areas, driven stocking numbers down.
0:13:22 > 0:13:25That was what the policy objective was, and it's been met.
0:13:25 > 0:13:29Now, whether you agree with that in the present climate,
0:13:29 > 0:13:31with food prices going through the roof...
0:13:31 > 0:13:34should we be farming for the environment?
0:13:34 > 0:13:35Should we be farming for food?
0:13:35 > 0:13:39That's the real question we'll face over the next couple of years.
0:13:39 > 0:13:41'And that's a big question for many of you.'
0:13:41 > 0:13:47When it comes to how we should use our countryside, a lot of you had one thing at the top of the menu.
0:13:48 > 0:13:54Food. In this case, beef, which once grazed right outside this building.
0:13:54 > 0:14:00In our survey, nearly half of you said more of our land should be used to produce what we eat.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06And with some experts predicting a 50% rise in world population
0:14:06 > 0:14:09over 40 years, we'll need more food.
0:14:09 > 0:14:11Lancashire farmer Malcolm Handley
0:14:11 > 0:14:15has recently bought this belted Galloway herd.
0:14:15 > 0:14:18It's increased his food production and helps the environment.
0:14:18 > 0:14:22But with British farming overall producing less of what we eat,
0:14:22 > 0:14:27can we really look after wildlife AND produce food? Malcolm thinks we can.
0:14:27 > 0:14:33Do you see yourself overall as a food producer or a custodian of the land?
0:14:33 > 0:14:36I see myself as both. These cattle are doing the job
0:14:36 > 0:14:42for both parties. They're producing great-tasting beef,
0:14:42 > 0:14:44and yet at the same time,
0:14:44 > 0:14:48they're achieving everything that the environmental boys want.
0:14:48 > 0:14:52- In what way? - Well, previously it was just this
0:14:52 > 0:14:56rank Purple Moor Grass, a deciduous grass that dies off in winter
0:14:56 > 0:14:58and just kills everything else out.
0:14:58 > 0:15:00They're grazing that off.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03So when people say it's either farming or environment, do you buy that?
0:15:03 > 0:15:07No, I don't. Because I think we can work the two together.
0:15:07 > 0:15:09We've fledged...
0:15:09 > 0:15:11COW MOOS
0:15:11 > 0:15:13..19 young barn owl, we've fledged.
0:15:13 > 0:15:17We've over 60 different species of nesting bird on the farm.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20You know, we're doing an awful lot to feed that,
0:15:20 > 0:15:22but at the same time producing food.
0:15:23 > 0:15:26'But with a predicted global food crisis looming,
0:15:26 > 0:15:30'is this kind of farming really the best use of our land?
0:15:30 > 0:15:34'After all, it's not just the pressure to make space for wildlife
0:15:34 > 0:15:37'that's eating up farmland.
0:15:37 > 0:15:41'Later on, I'll be looking at two other areas where there's an appetite for more -
0:15:41 > 0:15:44'renewable energy production and housing.'
0:15:49 > 0:15:51The waters around the Llyn Peninsula
0:15:51 > 0:15:54have supported fishing families for generations.
0:15:54 > 0:15:56But as Helen's been finding out,
0:15:56 > 0:16:00more and more people are taking to the waves these days in search of fun.
0:16:01 > 0:16:05That's hardly surprising, with backdrops like this.
0:16:05 > 0:16:09Porthdinllaen is a magnet for pleasure boats of all types.
0:16:09 > 0:16:12On a calm day, there's nowhere more idyllic than this.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15But don't be fooled - things can change in minutes.
0:16:17 > 0:16:19And if you get into trouble,
0:16:19 > 0:16:25then chances are it's the Royal National Lifeboat Institution that'll get you out of it.
0:16:25 > 0:16:29A couple of weeks ago, three o'clock in the morning, pagers went off.
0:16:29 > 0:16:32We got down there and the weather was a bit scuffy.
0:16:32 > 0:16:35The boat was on her side and she was getting battered by the waves.
0:16:37 > 0:16:39We actually couldn't see the crew
0:16:39 > 0:16:42because they must have been down below, battened down.
0:16:42 > 0:16:47You can imagine those guys there, feeling that boat being crunched on the bank.
0:16:47 > 0:16:50We were getting quite concerned she'd just go straight on her side
0:16:50 > 0:16:52with five people aboard.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55I just wanted to get them off quickly because we knew something
0:16:55 > 0:17:00was going to happen to them and time was very precious that morning.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03It could have been a bad night. There could have been casualties.
0:17:06 > 0:17:08It's the kind of thing Mike Davies
0:17:08 > 0:17:12and the crew of the Porthdinllaen Lifeboat are seeing more of.
0:17:12 > 0:17:15They're used to dealing with fishing boats but with summer upon us,
0:17:15 > 0:17:18it's pleasure craft that are keeping them busy,
0:17:18 > 0:17:21and they're as likely to be dealing with burns from cookers
0:17:21 > 0:17:24as they are with accidents on fishing boats.
0:17:24 > 0:17:27So, just how do you deal with a much wider range of injuries?
0:17:27 > 0:17:29Well, it helps to get the make-up out.
0:17:29 > 0:17:32Yes, make-up. And it's not just here.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36Crews all over the UK are breaking out the fake blood and greasepaint
0:17:36 > 0:17:39to make their training that little bit more realistic.
0:17:39 > 0:17:41PHONE RINGS
0:17:41 > 0:17:43Porthdinllaen Lifeboat Station.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46This is an exercise so Mike is going to know what's going on
0:17:46 > 0:17:49but the rest of the crew won't have a clue.
0:17:49 > 0:17:53The point is that it's as close to real life as possible, so what we'll see might be pretty full-on.
0:17:55 > 0:17:57Thank you.
0:17:57 > 0:18:01'I'm joining the lads as they're tasked with rescuing a burns victim.
0:18:01 > 0:18:05'All that follows is exactly what would happen in real life.'
0:18:08 > 0:18:12Even though this is only an exercise, it's quite tense, isn't it?
0:18:15 > 0:18:17Getting to a mayday quickly is important
0:18:17 > 0:18:20but knowing to know what to do when you get there is vital, too.
0:18:22 > 0:18:24'This is the boat they're heading for.
0:18:24 > 0:18:29'In the exercise, there's supposed to have been an explosion. Gas could still be leaking.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32'The crew has split seconds to work out what to do.'
0:18:32 > 0:18:35They know there's a casualty on board but they've got to
0:18:35 > 0:18:39check the boat's safe before they can look for him or her.
0:18:39 > 0:18:44Otherwise, they're putting themselves in danger, aren't they, and other members of the crew.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47This is difficult enough. Imagine pulling up alongside a yacht
0:18:47 > 0:18:50when it's wet, windy and wild whirring gale.
0:18:50 > 0:18:52The guys are getting on to check the boat.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56And then they're going to look for the casualty.
0:18:57 > 0:19:00'First, the lads make sure there's no further risk of explosion.
0:19:00 > 0:19:03'Then it's time to sort out the casualty.
0:19:03 > 0:19:07'The blusher on the victim's arm and face doubles up for bad burns.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10'Using this brand new ready-reckoner checklist,
0:19:10 > 0:19:13'the lads can work out exactly what first aid is needed.'
0:19:14 > 0:19:17- You all right, guys? - Fine, thank you.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19I'm just going to put some dressing on.
0:19:19 > 0:19:21How do you feel? Are you comfortable?
0:19:21 > 0:19:26He's putting a bandage on her head, given her basic first aid.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32- Generally making her feel a bit better.- She's responsive.
0:19:32 > 0:19:34- Still responsive?- Yes.
0:19:34 > 0:19:39Her breathing's a bit shallow so we want to get her off the boat now.
0:19:39 > 0:19:40OK?
0:19:40 > 0:19:44'OK, so this is fiction, not fact.
0:19:44 > 0:19:45'Our victim can walk away,
0:19:45 > 0:19:50'but being able to give valuable first aid straight away can make all the difference.'
0:19:50 > 0:19:56Why is it important, do you think, to have a real person involved in the exercise?
0:19:56 > 0:19:58It's much more realistic.
0:19:58 > 0:20:02And with a mannequin, it's more... you can chuck it around,
0:20:02 > 0:20:04- do anything to it. - We've got to be careful.
0:20:04 > 0:20:08With a real person, you can't. You have to do things properly.
0:20:08 > 0:20:12You know, it's somebody's life you're dealing with. You've got that at the back of your mind.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21'The lads are all volunteers, who receive no payment for what they do.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24'And what they do is save lives.
0:20:24 > 0:20:28'But I've got to say, they were a dab hand at the make-up, too.'
0:20:31 > 0:20:37Later on, how a bit of alfresco science can help improve the welfare of Adam's sheep.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40I've never looked at sheep poo under a microscope before.
0:20:40 > 0:20:42I'm excited about trying to find worm eggs.
0:20:42 > 0:20:46Helen's following in the path of pilgrims on a journey to Bardsey Island.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49And if you're relying on the weather in the week ahead,
0:20:49 > 0:20:51we'll have the Countryfile forecast.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05The sea is a constant presence on the Llyn Peninsula.
0:21:05 > 0:21:09It helps create the climate and dominates the way of life here.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11Although they may not look it today,
0:21:11 > 0:21:16these waters can be some of the most treacherous on our coastline.
0:21:16 > 0:21:20To discover more, I've arranged a date with a bit of a stunner
0:21:20 > 0:21:21by the name of Vilma.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25And there she is. She looks beautiful.
0:21:25 > 0:21:27I can't wait to get aboard.
0:21:32 > 0:21:37Conditions don't get more perfect than on a day like this.
0:21:37 > 0:21:41I'm joining Scott Metcalf and his crew to get a real sense
0:21:41 > 0:21:43of what it's like to sail this coast.
0:21:46 > 0:21:50- Well, you don't see boats like this every day, Scott, do you?- You don't.
0:21:50 > 0:21:51You must be very proud of her.
0:21:51 > 0:21:54Tell me a little bit about the history of this boat.
0:21:54 > 0:21:57She was built in 1934 in Denmark as a fishing boat.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00And what have you sort of transformed her into?
0:22:00 > 0:22:04- Because she doesn't look much like a fishing boat now.- No, no.
0:22:04 > 0:22:07The whole form is very much like the old British sailing coasters,
0:22:07 > 0:22:11so we've based her on a trading schooner and we've rigged her as such.
0:22:11 > 0:22:15So she looks now much like a lot of coastal sailing boats
0:22:15 > 0:22:18popping into harbours around the coast hundred or so years ago?
0:22:18 > 0:22:22100, 200 years ago, yes. This sort of rig would have been very familiar on this coast.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25And just how dangerous are the dangerous around here?
0:22:25 > 0:22:29They are particularly bad around this part of the coast. It's a very rocky shore.
0:22:29 > 0:22:33'Navigating this hazardous peninsula is no mean feat,
0:22:33 > 0:22:35'especially in a boat like this.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38'Scott's showing me a chart of the worst currents.'
0:22:38 > 0:22:42You can see here that the tides run at up to 3.5 knots, which is...
0:22:42 > 0:22:44A very strong tide?
0:22:44 > 0:22:47It is a particularly strong tide there, and in Bardsey Sound,
0:22:47 > 0:22:50there's even more. There's up to six knots.
0:22:50 > 0:22:53- It can be a bit dodgy getting across to Bardsey?- Yes.
0:22:53 > 0:22:56Because that's where Helen's going later. Hope she makes it OK.
0:22:56 > 0:22:59- So you've got to be really careful? - You have, yes.
0:22:59 > 0:23:01There's not many lights on this coast.
0:23:01 > 0:23:03There's Bardsey Lighthouse
0:23:03 > 0:23:06and then the next major light is on the north of Anglesey,
0:23:06 > 0:23:09so that's a long way away, so it's virtually an unlit coast.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12Well, to show you just how perilous it can be,
0:23:12 > 0:23:15in the past 180 years, no less than 142 ships
0:23:15 > 0:23:18have been wrecked around the peninsula
0:23:18 > 0:23:21and one in particular has become something of a legend.
0:23:21 > 0:23:24It came to grief...just over there.
0:23:28 > 0:23:30'To learn more, I'm heading for dry land
0:23:30 > 0:23:34'and I've got my own personal escorts to take me back to shore.'
0:23:36 > 0:23:39It's 110 years since the Stuart,
0:23:39 > 0:23:42a cargo ship a lot larger than this vessel, set sail from Liverpool,
0:23:42 > 0:23:46heading for New Zealand, but it didn't get very far.
0:23:49 > 0:23:52Local historian Tony Jones has studied the story.
0:23:52 > 0:23:55Tony, tell me exactly what happened.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57Well, it was Easter Sunday
0:23:57 > 0:23:59and early hours of the morning,
0:23:59 > 0:24:05and it was thick fog, and pretty calm, like today, actually.
0:24:05 > 0:24:07And she got lost, did she?
0:24:07 > 0:24:10She got completely lost because of the dense fog.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13- So where did she come ashore? - Just the other side of that big rock there.
0:24:13 > 0:24:16She sailed right up the rocks
0:24:16 > 0:24:20and came crashing onto the rocks with the thundering roar, I imagine.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22And what happened to the crew? Were they injured?
0:24:22 > 0:24:24They were very fortunate.
0:24:24 > 0:24:27They got into a lifeboat and came ashore to the bay there.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29The plan was to come back at dawn
0:24:29 > 0:24:32and get back on board and sail away.
0:24:32 > 0:24:35But when they did come back in the morning,
0:24:35 > 0:24:37they could see straight away she'd broken her keel,
0:24:37 > 0:24:41she'd more or less broken in half, so it was a lost cause.
0:24:41 > 0:24:43- No way were they going to New Zealand?- No way!
0:24:43 > 0:24:45What about the cargo?
0:24:45 > 0:24:49Well, she carried a mixed cargo of porcelain, cotton.
0:24:49 > 0:24:53- There was even six grand pianos in her.- Really?- Yes!
0:24:53 > 0:24:54And one of the local guys,
0:24:54 > 0:24:57he injured his back trying to carry one up the path here.
0:24:57 > 0:25:00- Oh, so people helped themselves? - Oh, yes.
0:25:00 > 0:25:04- But the star prize was the whisky. - Whisky? Whisky galore?
0:25:04 > 0:25:06There was what they called at the time,
0:25:06 > 0:25:09there was a large consignment of whisky in her,
0:25:09 > 0:25:11and being a Sunday, no-one was in a hurry to
0:25:11 > 0:25:15let the Customs know about the wreck.
0:25:15 > 0:25:21And by the time Mr Mason Cumberland, the Chief Customs Officer,
0:25:21 > 0:25:25arrived from Caernarfon, there was literally hundreds of people here.
0:25:25 > 0:25:31Some said they were like a swarm of locusts, all over the wreck.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33And lots of the stuff had gone.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37- Well, all the good stuff anyway. - And did they have to hide it?
0:25:37 > 0:25:40Yes, they used to hide them in rabbit holes,
0:25:40 > 0:25:43but they used to get so drunk, they couldn't remember where they were.
0:25:43 > 0:25:47They were still finding the odd bottle here only 30 years ago.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50- Down a rabbit hole? - Down rabbit holes, yes.
0:25:50 > 0:25:53They carried on even underneath Customs' eyes.
0:25:53 > 0:25:55One way of getting the whisky up the path
0:25:55 > 0:25:58was women used to have bottles of whisky in their bloomers.
0:25:58 > 0:26:02And there's one account of the Customs man stopping one woman
0:26:02 > 0:26:04and she had her hands in her pockets.
0:26:04 > 0:26:07He said, "Put your hands up," to frisk her.
0:26:07 > 0:26:08As soon as she went like that,
0:26:08 > 0:26:11her bloomers fell down with bottles of whisky.
0:26:11 > 0:26:15- Yes.- And was anybody ever arrested for all of this?
0:26:15 > 0:26:18Well, there's no account of anybody at all being arrested,
0:26:18 > 0:26:22which I find that quite strange, but I think who could they arrest?
0:26:22 > 0:26:25They'd have had to arrest the whole peninsula.
0:26:25 > 0:26:27And interrupt a great party!
0:26:27 > 0:26:30The party went on for months, apparently.
0:26:30 > 0:26:34They said it was the best Easter egg this village ever had. Yes.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39Now all that's left, apart from the folklore,
0:26:39 > 0:26:41are a few battered remains of the wreck.
0:26:41 > 0:26:45A warning to modern-day sailors to respect this stretch of coast.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48Later, Helen will be braving these waters
0:26:48 > 0:26:50as she heads for the island of Bardsey.
0:26:50 > 0:26:52But, first, here's Tom again.
0:26:54 > 0:26:57I've been talking to people about one of the biggest issues
0:26:57 > 0:26:59facing the future of our countryside.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01What our land is for.
0:27:01 > 0:27:05It's a question we put to you as part of the Countryfile survey.
0:27:05 > 0:27:07We asked 1,000 people
0:27:07 > 0:27:10what they thought more of our farmland should be used for.
0:27:10 > 0:27:1211% thought housing,
0:27:12 > 0:27:1514% favoured wildlife habitats,
0:27:15 > 0:27:18and a quarter of you wanted more used for renewable energy.
0:27:18 > 0:27:22But, as we said earlier, by far the biggest response was food.
0:27:22 > 0:27:26In fact, our survey showed that a greater proportion of you
0:27:26 > 0:27:31would like to see more farmland used for growing food than any other purpose.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34But don't be fooled by what you see here.
0:27:34 > 0:27:38None of this grass is going to see the inside of a cow,
0:27:38 > 0:27:40or any other animal for that matter.
0:27:42 > 0:27:44Instead, it'll make renewable energy.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47It's one way of meeting the UK's goal for sustainable fuels.
0:27:47 > 0:27:50Our target is that by 2020,
0:27:50 > 0:27:5415% of our energy should come from renewable sources.
0:27:54 > 0:27:56And we're not even halfway there.
0:27:57 > 0:28:01But increasingly, we're using land to produce it.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04Once a semi run-down maize farm, this site in Lancashire
0:28:04 > 0:28:08has been converted into a fully-fledged energy plant.
0:28:10 > 0:28:13This is grass silage that was done last year,
0:28:13 > 0:28:16and this was the maize that was harvested last October.
0:28:16 > 0:28:19It's now been in storage for six, eight months,
0:28:19 > 0:28:22and it's still in excellent condition.
0:28:22 > 0:28:26You can see all the little ears of corn there, just like corn on the cob, but this isn't for eating?
0:28:26 > 0:28:29No, this is for feeding into an anaerobic digester,
0:28:29 > 0:28:32which is going to produce energy.
0:28:36 > 0:28:40This will eat 50 tonnes a day of fresh material.
0:28:40 > 0:28:44We are breaking down the material to produce methane
0:28:44 > 0:28:47and we're taking that methane and burning it in an engine
0:28:47 > 0:28:49to make electricity and make energy.
0:28:49 > 0:28:50That's enough energy
0:28:50 > 0:28:53to continually supply about 1,000 homes in the UK.
0:28:53 > 0:28:57But you have fields here that will be for fuel rather than for food.
0:28:57 > 0:28:59Do you think that's a good use of our land?
0:28:59 > 0:29:02There is thousands of acres all throughout the UK,
0:29:02 > 0:29:05for different reasons, that are totally under-utilised.
0:29:05 > 0:29:09Are we not short of land? Is land is not scarce?
0:29:09 > 0:29:12Land is not scarce. Let's take the Northwest.
0:29:12 > 0:29:14The Northwest has a lot of small farms
0:29:14 > 0:29:16and a lot of them are dairy farms.
0:29:16 > 0:29:20They all have 50 or 100 acres that they don't do anything with.
0:29:20 > 0:29:21All we're asking them to do
0:29:21 > 0:29:24is supply us with grass silage from that under-utilised land,
0:29:24 > 0:29:27we produce energy and he gets an increase in income.
0:29:27 > 0:29:30It's actually going to make, over the next 10 years,
0:29:30 > 0:29:33a lot better utilisation of the available land in the UK
0:29:33 > 0:29:37that currently isn't being developed as well as it should be.
0:29:37 > 0:29:38Ed's plan has the potential
0:29:38 > 0:29:42to make farming and fuel production mutually beneficial,
0:29:42 > 0:29:44but it doesn't solve our land problem.
0:29:44 > 0:29:49Other than food and energy here, there are lots of other modern pressures on our countryside,
0:29:49 > 0:29:53like leisure, transport, water management
0:29:53 > 0:29:57and, of course, the need for more housing.
0:29:57 > 0:29:59New national planning proposals
0:29:59 > 0:30:02could mean more building on farmland.
0:30:02 > 0:30:05And here in the in the picturesque Ribble Valley in rural Lancashire
0:30:05 > 0:30:10the demand for housing has already led to development on greenfield sites.
0:30:10 > 0:30:12The particular issue we're faced with
0:30:12 > 0:30:15is the demand for affordable housing.
0:30:15 > 0:30:17The waiting list is well over 1,000
0:30:17 > 0:30:20and it will take from two to eight years
0:30:20 > 0:30:22for people to find suitable accommodation.
0:30:22 > 0:30:26'But meeting demand for new housing
0:30:26 > 0:30:29'doesn't always mean using up the countryside.'
0:30:29 > 0:30:31This was an old petrol station,
0:30:31 > 0:30:34so you didn't gobble up any greenfield land for this.
0:30:34 > 0:30:36But how much farmland are you using for building?
0:30:36 > 0:30:39We try to use none.
0:30:39 > 0:30:41There has been, in the past of course,
0:30:41 > 0:30:44development on what we call greenfield site.
0:30:44 > 0:30:47But as far as the council's present policy is concerned,
0:30:47 > 0:30:49we don't wish to do that.
0:30:49 > 0:30:53There is land available that is suitable for development
0:30:53 > 0:30:55and, of course, it uses land
0:30:55 > 0:30:57which is otherwise unattractive and unused.
0:31:00 > 0:31:02'There are many others who feel
0:31:02 > 0:31:04'that if we put the right things in the right place
0:31:04 > 0:31:08'then there really is enough land to go around.'
0:31:08 > 0:31:10We've got hedges, we've got trees
0:31:10 > 0:31:12and a permanent pasture here,
0:31:12 > 0:31:15which is really important for carbon storage in the future.
0:31:15 > 0:31:18The National Trust has developed a system
0:31:18 > 0:31:20that allows land to do a bit of everything.
0:31:20 > 0:31:23This farmland near Kendal produces food,
0:31:23 > 0:31:25as well as maintaining the environment
0:31:25 > 0:31:27and allowing public access.
0:31:27 > 0:31:30Isn't that mixture a luxury of the past?
0:31:30 > 0:31:33In the future we'll have to be much more defined -
0:31:33 > 0:31:35best productivity here, environment there?
0:31:35 > 0:31:38I think quite the contrary.
0:31:38 > 0:31:41The most important thing I think we need to recognise is
0:31:41 > 0:31:45that if we want to produce food, energy, fuel or whatever in the long term,
0:31:45 > 0:31:48we have to make sure that the land continues to produce.
0:31:48 > 0:31:51Looking after the soils, the water and the biodiversity.
0:31:51 > 0:31:56All these are important as a whole. We can't have environment in some places and production in others.
0:31:56 > 0:31:58They're two sides of the same coin.
0:31:58 > 0:32:01So, in 2050, with a world of nine billion people,
0:32:01 > 0:32:03how different will the British landscape be?
0:32:03 > 0:32:06I would hope it wouldn't be dramatically different,
0:32:06 > 0:32:11because that's the only way that we're going to keep that mix of the natural resources we need
0:32:11 > 0:32:13to carry on producing the food that will be needed.
0:32:18 > 0:32:20It all sounds ideal.
0:32:20 > 0:32:23But does such emphasis on the environment
0:32:23 > 0:32:26mean cutting food production,
0:32:26 > 0:32:32resulting in less home-grown food on British dinner plates?
0:32:32 > 0:32:35That's something we'll be looking at next week
0:32:35 > 0:32:40when John investigates another big farming issue, food security.
0:32:40 > 0:32:43And if you want to find out more about the way we use our land,
0:32:43 > 0:32:44tune in to Farming Today
0:32:44 > 0:32:48on Radio 4 every morning next week at quarter to six.
0:32:56 > 0:33:00The Llyn Peninsula is a beautiful place,
0:33:00 > 0:33:02a patchwork of fields and hills,
0:33:02 > 0:33:05of sandy beaches and hidden coves.
0:33:05 > 0:33:08It's also a place of deep religious significance.
0:33:08 > 0:33:12Christian pilgrims have been walking the cliffs and coastline here
0:33:12 > 0:33:14for over 1,000 years.
0:33:15 > 0:33:17And they're all headed for Bardsey Island.
0:33:17 > 0:33:21A small place with huge significance for worshippers down the millennia.
0:33:25 > 0:33:27It's said that three trips to Bardsey
0:33:27 > 0:33:29is equal to one pilgrimage to Rome
0:33:29 > 0:33:34and thousands have walked this very path to get there.
0:33:34 > 0:33:38And along their way, they'll come to ancient churches
0:33:38 > 0:33:40like this one, St Beuno's at Pistyll,
0:33:40 > 0:33:42on the peninsula's north coast.
0:33:42 > 0:33:46This church is absolutely vital.
0:33:46 > 0:33:48It was one of the major stopping places.
0:33:48 > 0:33:52Up on the fields around us, there was the hospice field.
0:33:52 > 0:33:55Many of the people who came on the pilgrimage were very ill
0:33:55 > 0:33:59and they was they were brought along by relatives, hoping that they'd either have a cure,
0:33:59 > 0:34:01or that they could be buried on Bardsey.
0:34:01 > 0:34:06Bardsey today is more than just a place of pilgrimage,
0:34:06 > 0:34:09it's a working island with a small community of farmers and fishermen.
0:34:09 > 0:34:15Later, I'm hoping to make that crossing to taste a bit of island life.
0:34:16 > 0:34:21Also, details on how you can enter this year's Countryfile photographic competition.
0:34:21 > 0:34:23The closing date is nearly upon us,
0:34:23 > 0:34:26so if you're hoping to get out snapping in the week ahead,
0:34:26 > 0:34:29the Countryfile weather forecast might just help.
0:34:40 > 0:34:42Now, Adam's got over 2,000 animals on his farm.
0:34:42 > 0:34:48Today, he's looking at more scientific ways to help him improve the welfare of his livestock.
0:34:52 > 0:34:57Midsummer, all those freezing cold winter days are long gone
0:34:57 > 0:34:59and there's no better place to be
0:34:59 > 0:35:02than outside with my animals on a day like this.
0:35:02 > 0:35:04The first job, though, is far from glamorous.
0:35:04 > 0:35:08One of the most difficult things about keeping livestock are parasites.
0:35:08 > 0:35:11They can cost a lot of money to treat too.
0:35:11 > 0:35:12So if you can identify how many,
0:35:12 > 0:35:15and what sort of stomach worms the animals have got,
0:35:15 > 0:35:17you can treat them accordingly.
0:35:23 > 0:35:26To help me do this, Eirian Thomas is going to show me
0:35:26 > 0:35:30how to study something I have in abundance on the farm...
0:35:30 > 0:35:31Dung.
0:35:31 > 0:35:33This is usually a job for my vets,
0:35:33 > 0:35:36but they're encouragingly me and other farmers
0:35:36 > 0:35:38to learn how to do it for ourselves.
0:35:41 > 0:35:44How do you best collect the dung.
0:35:44 > 0:35:47Do you have to get behind the lamb that's doing droppings?
0:35:47 > 0:35:49Ideally, you pick some that are fresh.
0:35:49 > 0:35:53Something on the floor that's obviously from a lamb... Keep your eyes down.
0:35:53 > 0:35:57We've got one here. That's nice and fresh, still glistening in the sun.
0:35:57 > 0:36:01A good test is if it's warm in your hand you know it's nice and fresh.
0:36:01 > 0:36:03- OK.- I'll give you some gloves and a scoop.
0:36:03 > 0:36:08I just press it against my boot to get a good level scoopful. That's it!
0:36:08 > 0:36:13- I just scoop it into my fist and we go and look for the next one. - OK. Great!
0:36:13 > 0:36:18Let's see if we can see a lamb... Ah, there's one with its tail up.
0:36:18 > 0:36:22- It looks like he's about to go. - He is! Sometimes they tease you as well. That's it, beautiful!
0:36:22 > 0:36:25'All this muck we're picking up could be full of parasites
0:36:25 > 0:36:27'which could really harm my flock.'
0:36:27 > 0:36:30They wreck the gut lining of the sheep.
0:36:30 > 0:36:32As well as that, they make lambs feel sick.
0:36:32 > 0:36:34It is just like us when we feel sick -
0:36:34 > 0:36:37we feel sick, we don't eat, we lose our appetite.
0:36:37 > 0:36:40So, if these lambs are losing their appetite, not eating,
0:36:40 > 0:36:43they're not growing and they're not going to make you any money.
0:36:43 > 0:36:45That's why it's really important.
0:36:45 > 0:36:50- OK, there's one here.- We've probably got enough now, haven't we?
0:36:50 > 0:36:52We probably have. We've got a good 10% there.
0:36:52 > 0:36:55It should give us a good indication of what's happening.
0:36:57 > 0:37:01Back in the yard, it's time for a bit of science.
0:37:01 > 0:37:04I'm not a techie guy and this all looks a bit complicated.
0:37:04 > 0:37:07- This is something my vet usually does.- Yeah.
0:37:07 > 0:37:09So, I've got the poo. What next?
0:37:09 > 0:37:12- The first thing we do is weigh the sample.- 36.- 36 grams.
0:37:12 > 0:37:15And now we add water, depending on what the weight is.
0:37:15 > 0:37:17Next, we crush and mix that.
0:37:17 > 0:37:20This is the enjoyable part of the test,
0:37:20 > 0:37:23where you hope you have a nice, strong sandwich bag!
0:37:23 > 0:37:25I wouldn't use it for your sandwiches afterwards!
0:37:25 > 0:37:29- Looking pretty good! - Absolutely, yeah.
0:37:29 > 0:37:32So that will give you a random mix of worms
0:37:32 > 0:37:35- from the guts of the lambs that we sampled?- Absolutely.
0:37:35 > 0:37:37So we add this to the cylinder...
0:37:37 > 0:37:39and then I bring the pipette to the corner.
0:37:39 > 0:37:41I just gently fill it.
0:37:41 > 0:37:44I've never looked at sheep poo under a microscope before
0:37:44 > 0:37:47- and I don't think I've ever been so excited about finding worm eggs! - I know!
0:37:47 > 0:37:50Farmers do get excited when they see one,
0:37:50 > 0:37:51but then realise it's not a good sign.
0:37:51 > 0:37:56- We actually don't want them, do we? - You don't want them, no.- Go on then!
0:37:56 > 0:37:59Right, we've got one. We've actually got something quite good.
0:37:59 > 0:38:02I'll change to the high power to show you.
0:38:02 > 0:38:06We've got two kinds of eggs together. A tapeworm egg and a strongyle egg.
0:38:06 > 0:38:09They're right next to each other at the end of the pointer.
0:38:09 > 0:38:14If you looked down there, you can see this nice oval strongyle egg.
0:38:14 > 0:38:15- Oh, yeah, yeah.- OK.
0:38:15 > 0:38:17And below it is a different kind of egg,
0:38:17 > 0:38:21- there's a bit more of a corner to it.- Yes.- Those are tapeworm.- Ah!
0:38:21 > 0:38:25We don't actually count tapeworm, and contrary to farmers' belief,
0:38:25 > 0:38:28tapeworm don't do that much damage to sheep.
0:38:28 > 0:38:32'Although there are harmful eggs, there aren't enough to cause concern.'
0:38:32 > 0:38:35I would avoid at this point blanket-treating everything,
0:38:35 > 0:38:37like most farmers would have done historically.
0:38:37 > 0:38:41And maybe in 10 days or two weeks' time, take another test and see.
0:38:41 > 0:38:44Before we started getting the vets to do this for us,
0:38:44 > 0:38:47every four weeks, I used to blanket-treat the lambs with a wormer,
0:38:47 > 0:38:51which was a waste of money, put chemicals into sheep that didn't need it,
0:38:51 > 0:38:52and actually doing no good at all.
0:38:52 > 0:38:56These lambs haven't been wormed since they were born, first week of April.
0:38:56 > 0:38:59- We're saving quite a lot of money. - A lot of money.
0:38:59 > 0:39:02- Excellent. Now I'm an expert on sheep poo and worms.- Brilliant.
0:39:02 > 0:39:05- I need to get myself a little kit. - Absolutely, and join the club!
0:39:05 > 0:39:07It's an exciting club to be in.
0:39:07 > 0:39:09I'll test again in a couple of weeks
0:39:09 > 0:39:12to decide if I do need to worm my flock.
0:39:12 > 0:39:14I've been farming all my life
0:39:14 > 0:39:17and science is playing a bigger and bigger part in it.
0:39:17 > 0:39:19If it can help keep my animals healthier,
0:39:19 > 0:39:20that's got to be a good thing.
0:39:22 > 0:39:25'Something that's been taking up a lot of my time is the health of one of my lambs.
0:39:25 > 0:39:31'She got separated from her mother due to blindness a few weeks back.
0:39:31 > 0:39:34'I wasn't holding out much hope for her,
0:39:34 > 0:39:36'but with a bit of TLC from me and my boy Alfie,
0:39:36 > 0:39:38'she's now a strong little thing.'
0:39:38 > 0:39:43- They're great, aren't they? So what have you called this lamb? - Laurel.- Laurel.
0:39:43 > 0:39:46When I first brought this little lamb in,
0:39:46 > 0:39:48I thought it was going to die.
0:39:48 > 0:39:52So you've done very well, with your bottle feeding, to keep it alive.
0:39:53 > 0:39:56Lovely as they are,
0:39:56 > 0:39:59they say that 10% of your flock causes 90% of your hassle.
0:39:59 > 0:40:02And this one has certainly caused me a lot of hassle.
0:40:03 > 0:40:05Oh, Honey's finished!
0:40:05 > 0:40:09'Even my healthy sheep require a lot of care and attention.
0:40:09 > 0:40:10'But just down the road from me,
0:40:10 > 0:40:14'a farmer has a flock of the ultimate in low-maintenance sheep.
0:40:14 > 0:40:16'I'm popping over to take a closer look.'
0:40:19 > 0:40:24Mark Steele has been rearing the Easy Care breed for six years.
0:40:24 > 0:40:26Hi, Mark!
0:40:26 > 0:40:28- Hi, how are you doing? - All right. Great to see you.
0:40:28 > 0:40:31- Good to see you. - Don't let us stop you working.
0:40:31 > 0:40:33We are just sorting out the lambs,
0:40:33 > 0:40:35weaning them off the ewes for the first time.
0:40:35 > 0:40:38- It's an important day for us. - I'll give you a hand,
0:40:38 > 0:40:42- and then have a chat with you about them.- Brilliant, lovely! Thanks very much.
0:40:45 > 0:40:48The unique selling point of these Easy Care sheep
0:40:48 > 0:40:52is that they shed their fleece, which means one thing - no shearing.
0:40:52 > 0:40:56This is how the wool just falls off, you see, Adam. Look at this.
0:40:56 > 0:41:00- It's just going to come off. - Just naturally moulting?
0:41:00 > 0:41:05Just moults off. You get left with this tight little fleece,
0:41:05 > 0:41:08like this one here, it looks like God's shorn it, really. Beautiful.
0:41:08 > 0:41:11So they do grow a fleece in the winter, then?
0:41:11 > 0:41:15Yeah, in the wintertime they have a fleece to keep themselves warm.
0:41:15 > 0:41:18It's not a lot of fleece, and then this drops off in the field.
0:41:18 > 0:41:22It doesn't bother you that the sheep are looking moth-eaten?
0:41:22 > 0:41:23No, it's natural.
0:41:23 > 0:41:26I look moth-eaten most mornings, nobody kicks me out!
0:41:26 > 0:41:31For a man like me with Cotswold sheep, famous for their wool,
0:41:31 > 0:41:36it seems such a waste to have animals not growing wool to use for clothing.
0:41:36 > 0:41:40Yes, but we're in an economic situation where it costs more to get the wool off the sheep
0:41:40 > 0:41:41than the wool's worth.
0:41:41 > 0:41:44And, of course, we've also got all the health issues
0:41:44 > 0:41:46associated with wool,
0:41:46 > 0:41:48with the dirtiness and the maggots.
0:41:48 > 0:41:50We just don't have that as a problem.
0:41:50 > 0:41:52It's a bit of a win-win situation.
0:41:52 > 0:41:56It sounds like a dream! I'll send you some more.
0:41:56 > 0:41:59It still feels like a dream. THEY LAUGH
0:42:04 > 0:42:09'While the newly-weaned lambs experience their first taste of independence,
0:42:09 > 0:42:13'we're off to the fields to round up the next part of the flock.'
0:42:13 > 0:42:14They like a good jump!
0:42:40 > 0:42:43It's not just the fact that the sheep aren't shorn
0:42:43 > 0:42:45that makes them easy-care.
0:42:45 > 0:42:4890% of the time, they're left to their own devices.
0:42:48 > 0:42:50Mark's ethos is just to let them get on with it.
0:42:51 > 0:42:53So what was it like then, for you,
0:42:53 > 0:42:58changing from very conventional sheep farming, to this?
0:42:58 > 0:43:01To be honest, we were very concerned.
0:43:01 > 0:43:02Very concerned to start with.
0:43:02 > 0:43:04Big change.
0:43:04 > 0:43:06We'd done all the indoor lambing, like you'd do,
0:43:06 > 0:43:11we had three people, 24-hours a day, looking after them,
0:43:11 > 0:43:15and we thought, "No, we're going to have terrible trouble.
0:43:15 > 0:43:17"We'll be catching sheep everywhere."
0:43:17 > 0:43:21But it's been amazing, the weather has probably helped this year.
0:43:21 > 0:43:22But we've helped five.
0:43:22 > 0:43:24Amazing.
0:43:24 > 0:43:25Out of nearly 2,000 sheep.
0:43:25 > 0:43:29- And your labour bill must have dropped out the window.- Oh, yes.
0:43:29 > 0:43:34Zero labour. In fact, Mrs Steel has booked a holiday for next year's lambing!
0:43:34 > 0:43:36She says we're going away!
0:43:36 > 0:43:38Which is fantastic news.
0:43:38 > 0:43:39Come on, sheep. Hey!
0:43:47 > 0:43:50It's great what I've seen today with Easy Care sheep.
0:43:50 > 0:43:53But it's amazing. It almost seems like turning back the clock
0:43:53 > 0:43:57to the animals that can moult again, to our ancient, primitive breeds.
0:43:57 > 0:44:00I suppose, being a Cotswold boy, I'm a bit of a purist
0:44:00 > 0:44:02and I love sheep with lots of wool.
0:44:05 > 0:44:08Next week, I'll be weaning some of my own lambs
0:44:08 > 0:44:11and putting them out onto their summer pasture.
0:44:19 > 0:44:23Landscape is just one of the classes in our photographic competition
0:44:23 > 0:44:26and you've got less than two weeks to enter.
0:44:26 > 0:44:28The theme this year is Best In Show,
0:44:28 > 0:44:30and here's just a taster
0:44:30 > 0:44:33of some of the pictures that we've received so far.
0:44:33 > 0:44:38The very best will appear in the Countryfile calendar for 2012,
0:44:38 > 0:44:40which is sold in aid of Children In Need.
0:44:40 > 0:44:43We're absolutely delighted with the response so far,
0:44:43 > 0:44:47and if you still want to enter, well, you'd better move quickly.
0:45:03 > 0:45:08Let me remind you of the rules and how to enter.
0:45:10 > 0:45:13The best photo in each class will be put to the viewers' vote.
0:45:13 > 0:45:18The person who takes the winning photo will be declared Best In Show
0:45:18 > 0:45:23and gets to choose from a range of the latest photographic equipment, to the value of £1,000.
0:45:23 > 0:45:26Whoever takes the judges' favourite photo
0:45:26 > 0:45:29will get to choose equipment to the value of £500.
0:45:29 > 0:45:33Our competition isn't open to professionals,
0:45:33 > 0:45:36your entries mustn't have been offered for sale,
0:45:36 > 0:45:38or won other competitions.
0:45:38 > 0:45:40That's because we want something original.
0:45:40 > 0:45:46You can enter up to four photos, which must be taken in the UK.
0:45:46 > 0:45:48Please write your name, address,
0:45:48 > 0:45:50and daytime and evening phone number
0:45:50 > 0:45:51on the back of each photo,
0:45:51 > 0:45:54with a note of which class you want it to be judged in.
0:45:54 > 0:45:57Each photo can only be entered in one class.
0:45:59 > 0:46:05Then all you have to do is send your entries to -
0:46:10 > 0:46:13The full terms and conditions are on our website
0:46:13 > 0:46:17as well as details of the BBC's code of conduct for competitions.
0:46:17 > 0:46:20Please write to us enclosing a stamped addressed envelope
0:46:20 > 0:46:23if you want a copy of the rules.
0:46:23 > 0:46:26The closing date is a week on Friday, the 12th of August.
0:46:26 > 0:46:28And sorry, but we can't return any entries.
0:46:31 > 0:46:36In a few moments, Helen will be following in the footsteps of pilgrims throughout the ages,
0:46:36 > 0:46:41when she heads to Bardsey, known as The Island Of 20,000 Saints.
0:46:41 > 0:46:44Bit first, here's the Countryfile weather forecast for the week ahead.
0:48:50 > 0:48:57.
0:49:09 > 0:49:11Today we're on the Llyn Peninsula,
0:49:11 > 0:49:15one of Wales' most beautiful and unspoiled regions.
0:49:15 > 0:49:18Helen's following in the footsteps of pilgrims
0:49:18 > 0:49:23along this 30-mile peninsula, making the journey to a special island.
0:49:25 > 0:49:29Bardsey island lies a couple of miles from the tip of the peninsula.
0:49:29 > 0:49:31It only takes about 20 minutes to make the crossing,
0:49:31 > 0:49:35but getting there isn't all plain sailing.
0:49:35 > 0:49:39They say that three trips to Bardsey equals one trip to Rome.
0:49:39 > 0:49:42But the waters around here can be pretty choppy
0:49:42 > 0:49:45so many pilgrims find their journeys cut short.
0:49:45 > 0:49:48Fingers crossed it's going to be all right today.
0:49:50 > 0:49:53I'm catching a lift on the boat that supplies the island.
0:49:53 > 0:49:56There's plenty of day-trippers making the crossing too,
0:49:56 > 0:49:57and what a day for it!
0:50:02 > 0:50:04What types of people come to Bardsey?
0:50:04 > 0:50:07It tends to be people who are interested in wildlife,
0:50:07 > 0:50:10or have an interest in agriculture or conservation,
0:50:10 > 0:50:11or the heritage of the island.
0:50:11 > 0:50:15We still get quite a lot of people coming over on pilgrimage,
0:50:15 > 0:50:18a kind of modern-day pilgrimage, because of course,
0:50:18 > 0:50:20it has been a site of pilgrimage for many years.
0:50:20 > 0:50:23So how often do you have to say, "Can't go today"?
0:50:23 > 0:50:26I'd say about 35% of the time in the summer
0:50:26 > 0:50:29and about 80% of the time in the winter.
0:50:29 > 0:50:33- So do people often get stuck over there?- We...
0:50:33 > 0:50:35Yes.
0:50:35 > 0:50:38'Not a bad place to get stuck, though.
0:50:40 > 0:50:43'Bardsey is a tranquil, unspoiled island,
0:50:43 > 0:50:45'but it is still a working island.
0:50:45 > 0:50:49'Only ten people live here and when the boat comes in,
0:50:49 > 0:50:51'they're all down to greet it.'
0:50:51 > 0:50:53- Hello! Oh, hello, nice to meet you. - And you.
0:50:54 > 0:50:56'Emyr Roberts is the island warden.
0:50:56 > 0:51:00'He's the guy that keeps the holiday cottages supplied.
0:51:00 > 0:51:02'If you need it, Emyr's got it.'
0:51:02 > 0:51:06It's all basic good stuff, like fruit and veg and stuff like that.
0:51:06 > 0:51:08Do you not order goodies? Sweets and chocolates?
0:51:08 > 0:51:12Not too much, they are... You know, they're treats.
0:51:12 > 0:51:14What do you do in the winter for food, then?
0:51:14 > 0:51:17Well, I've got a pretty good store of it up there.
0:51:17 > 0:51:22I bottle it and freeze it and whatever you can do to preserve it.
0:51:24 > 0:51:27It can be quite an interesting diet!
0:51:27 > 0:51:28HE LAUGHS
0:51:28 > 0:51:31- One last thing.- We can't forget the vinegar.- That's very important.
0:51:31 > 0:51:34'And we'll find out why in a minute.'
0:51:38 > 0:51:41- OK, so this is your store? - This is the store.
0:51:44 > 0:51:47I thought this would be full of canned foods,
0:51:47 > 0:51:48but it's more supplies.
0:51:48 > 0:51:51I mean...you must have 300 sponge scourers in here!
0:51:51 > 0:51:55I guess you do need a poker, don't you! Bed sheets, bin...
0:51:55 > 0:51:59Teapot... Yeah, I can imagine if you smash your teapot, you're in trouble.
0:51:59 > 0:52:01Sticky-back plastic.
0:52:01 > 0:52:03These are very useful things.
0:52:03 > 0:52:05- Gloves?- Surgical gloves!
0:52:05 > 0:52:06HE LAUGHS
0:52:06 > 0:52:09I'm not even going to ask! I'm not even going to ask!
0:52:10 > 0:52:12Emyr, your garden is phenomenal.
0:52:13 > 0:52:15Well, it's coming now, it's coming.
0:52:15 > 0:52:17Is this because you like growing veg
0:52:17 > 0:52:19or because you need to grow all this veg?
0:52:19 > 0:52:23A bit of both, really. It'll all get eaten.
0:52:23 > 0:52:27And it's not easy to get veg here in the winter.
0:52:27 > 0:52:30I can't imagine you'd ever need to go to a shop again.
0:52:30 > 0:52:33Oh, my word, look at all the pickling!
0:52:33 > 0:52:35Pickled carrots, pickled beetroot!
0:52:37 > 0:52:39Are these pickled raspberries?!
0:52:39 > 0:52:41Yeah, yeah. They're lovely.
0:52:41 > 0:52:44'So this is where all the vinegar goes!'
0:52:44 > 0:52:48Wow, that's a lot of pickled items.
0:52:48 > 0:52:51Pickled beans, pickled cherries...!
0:52:52 > 0:52:54It's a pickling factory!
0:52:55 > 0:52:58Self-sufficiency has been the name for the game here
0:52:58 > 0:53:00for islanders down the years.
0:53:02 > 0:53:08"There's a green track, lined with meadowsweet, stone houses,
0:53:08 > 0:53:14"ramparts to the weather, small fields that run all one way.
0:53:14 > 0:53:17"West, to the sea.
0:53:17 > 0:53:22"Inviting feet to make new paths to their own discovered places."
0:53:28 > 0:53:31'Those words were written by Christine Evans,
0:53:31 > 0:53:34'Colin the boatman's mum and celebrated poet.'
0:53:34 > 0:53:37- Hello, Christine!- Oh, hello.
0:53:37 > 0:53:39'The island has been inspirational to her
0:53:39 > 0:53:42'since she set up home here in the 1970s.'
0:53:42 > 0:53:45How does this landscape, then, affect your poems?
0:53:47 > 0:53:50I think it started me writing,
0:53:50 > 0:53:52because of the sense of inclusiveness,
0:53:52 > 0:53:54a sense of everything in balance
0:53:54 > 0:53:58and the way in which your senses are made more alert,
0:53:58 > 0:54:00Because you spend so much time out of doors.
0:54:00 > 0:54:03And this is still a place of pilgrimage, isn't it?
0:54:03 > 0:54:07Yes. For 1,000 years, we had the monastery and we had monks.
0:54:07 > 0:54:11There was a tradition that if you were buried here,
0:54:11 > 0:54:14or you died on your way here, your soul wouldn't go to hell.
0:54:17 > 0:54:20It's said that 20,000 saints are buried on Bardsey,
0:54:20 > 0:54:23it's certainly true that a good many pilgrims
0:54:23 > 0:54:26lay at rest in the ruins of the abbey.
0:54:27 > 0:54:31But Bardsey's story is not just about the past.
0:54:31 > 0:54:33New arrivals are looking to the future.
0:54:35 > 0:54:39The Porter family came here from England four years ago,
0:54:39 > 0:54:41to live a different life.
0:54:41 > 0:54:45Ben and Rachel are taught from home, which means lessons happen outside.
0:54:45 > 0:54:47Pretty good, eh?
0:54:51 > 0:54:53They're all kept busy running the island farm.
0:54:53 > 0:54:57There are 400 sheep, 25 Welsh Black cattle
0:54:57 > 0:54:59and a couple of goats for milk.
0:55:02 > 0:55:06Dad Steve is on his own today, and being a farmer's daughter,
0:55:06 > 0:55:09I've been roped in to lend a hand and let off a little steam.
0:55:10 > 0:55:15SHE CALLS
0:55:15 > 0:55:18CATTLE RESPOND
0:55:19 > 0:55:23'We're moving them onto rare maritime pasture.
0:55:23 > 0:55:29'It's found in few places and it provides vital habitat for the island's sea bird populations.
0:55:29 > 0:55:32'The cattle really do their bit to keep it in tip-top condition.'
0:55:32 > 0:55:34Part of them being on here
0:55:34 > 0:55:37is so that their hooves can create a bit of open soil,
0:55:37 > 0:55:40so the heath can spread into new areas.
0:55:40 > 0:55:43So that's one of the reasons the cows are useful.
0:55:43 > 0:55:46That, and the fact that when they're grazing, they are quite rough,
0:55:46 > 0:55:48and again, by pulling out some of the heath,
0:55:48 > 0:55:53they actually create areas for new habitat to develop in.
0:55:53 > 0:55:54How do you rate life here?
0:55:54 > 0:55:57Unbeatable. Unbeatable.
0:55:57 > 0:56:03The combination of the environment that we live in,
0:56:03 > 0:56:07the great challenges of farming on a nature reserve
0:56:07 > 0:56:10and the wildlife that comes through here,
0:56:10 > 0:56:14the migrating birds. It's a tremendous place to live.
0:56:14 > 0:56:16- Is there anything you'd swap it for?- No.
0:56:22 > 0:56:26My time on Bardsey is nearly up, but I reckon one day I'll be back,
0:56:26 > 0:56:29making another pilgrimage to this very special place.
0:56:35 > 0:56:38So, safely back home from over there.
0:56:38 > 0:56:40Yeah, it was smooth waters there and back
0:56:40 > 0:56:44- and I hope you like your raspberries pickled, I've brought you a present. - Pickled raspberries!- Yes.
0:56:44 > 0:56:48I met a chap who pickles pretty much anything that's not moving
0:56:48 > 0:56:50and I'm not sure it's always out of necessity.
0:56:50 > 0:56:52Well, I'm sure I'm going to enjoy those.
0:56:52 > 0:56:54That's all from Countryfile today
0:56:54 > 0:56:56from the Llyn Peninsula in North Wales.
0:56:56 > 0:56:58Next week we'll be in Worcestershire,
0:56:58 > 0:57:00where we'll be tracing the rural roots
0:57:00 > 0:57:04of a sport that you don't normally associate with the countryside.
0:57:04 > 0:57:06- Rural sports? I want to get involved.- Right.
0:57:06 > 0:57:08All will be revealed.
0:57:08 > 0:57:09- Until then, goodbye.- See you!
0:57:30 > 0:57:33Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:57:33 > 0:57:36E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk