Seeing Tolkiens World in todays landscapes...

[Numenorean]

Hi all & Greetings from the Old Country!
Now every year for as long as I can remember (26yrs or so), usually about the time Frodo and the gang set off from the Shire (nowish), I get this massive yearning to go travelling myself. I don't know if thats because we in Britain have such lame bleak weather in the winter or what, but I can only ease this thirst for adventure by hiking and riding my trusty steed (ok its a Mountain Bike) around the countryside with like-minded friends.
Now we've covered alot of the UK over the years and I see places and 'scapes which deeply remind me of ME.
The following links are from a place called Ham Hill in Somerset England, and it is strangely if not beautifully Shire-like, (roughly the West Farthing of the Shire if Tolkien placed Hobbiton near present day Oxfordshire):
Balham Hill
Ham Hill east
Quarry Hill
Ham Hill overlook
So anyway I just wondered what you good people thought about reflections of ME in our world, and if any of you have pics of any other places that totally remind you of anywhere in ME?
Peace,
Nu

[ September 17, 2003: Message edited by: Numenorean ]

[Meela]

Haven't got any pictures, but the area in which I live I have renamed Eriador. There is so much of the Shire in the landscape, and if I were to trek to the moors it would be similar to taking the wild road from Bree to Amon Sul. There is an old fortress on the moors which is pretty similar to the old watchtower.
I do a lot of trekking through the woods as well, and they are pretty much as elvish as you can get. You can practically feel the magic and ancient spirit in the air.

A lot of Middle-earth appears in my landscape. I live in an area connected with a great deal of mythology which has a few similarities to Tolkien, so it's not surprising that these legends that they share are reflected in the landscape, helping to create Middle-earth.

[Numenorean]

Hi there Meela, hows it (life!) goin by the by?

and if I were to trek to the moors it would be similar to taking the wild road from Bree to Amon Sul... I do a lot of trekking through the woods as well, and they are pretty much as elvish as you can get.You can practically feel the magic and ancient spirit in the air.

That sounds like some beautifully magical countryside you do your treking through Meela! I know what you mean about that feeling of sensing something ancient and spiritual in the Wild,where abouts are your 'scapes to be found?
I'm just in the middle of planning a fine old hike, treking down the banks of the
River Findhorn (Scottish Highlands) from source to the sea, should take about 6 days or so, and apart from the awesome scenery it travels through we chose the Findhorn because the name is so, well, Tolkienish!

[Anne S]

Funny you should bring up this topic, I was just thinking something similar the other day. I live on Exmoor in the UK and sometimes wonder if Tolkien had visited this area because many of the Shire names are similar. For instance there are several Coombes and Stocks, a Brockhole, and a village called Withiel Florey (OK that name isn't in Tolkien but it sounds elvish). The area is also criss-crossed with small rivers, and there is also heather-clad moorland and forested areas... the only thing we don't have are tall mountains, but then these do not appear in the Shire either. Exmoor is also a land of gently rolling, orderly, well-tended countryside as Tolkien describes the Shire, and dotted with old cottages and farmhouses, although I'm not aware of anyone living in holes!

Also we have lots of barrows (Exmoor is full of history): Aldermans Barrow, Elworthy Barrows, Brightworthy Barrow, Black Barrow... (sounds like names that could appear in Tolkien). I have walked over many barrows and they do not have the sinister feel of the Barrow Downs nor have I seen a barrow wight, which is a shame, it would be great to have a really spooky barrow nearby.

[Numenorean]

Hallo Anne & Welcome to the Downs!
I really love the (small) area of Devon I've seen, mainly around Exeter,Bovey,Dartmoor etc.. But after what you said about them Barrows I'm gonna have to get back and check out Exmoor! Those are some seriously Tolkienesque names and places you've listed, Withiel Florey does sound very Elvish!(Have you ever seen Withypool stone circle?)
Apparently Edward II ordered a local Lord to rob many of the Exmoor Barrows for treasure in the early 1300's, until then they were still kindof revered (and probably feared [img]smilies/eek.gif[/img] ) After that it was more or less open season on all of Englands Barrows and all the treasure hordes got sacked.

I have walked over many barrows and they do not have the sinister feel of the Barrow Downs nor have I seen a barrow wight,

Heh heh, I'm not suggesting this, but have you walked amongst them in fog and twilight, cos I'll bet they'll seem a fair bit spookier then!?

[Anne S]

Thanks for the warm welcome Numenorean! And yes, I expect the barrows suddenly take on a sinister feel on a cold foggy night, maybe I'll try it one night when I'm feeling brave. I too have read that many of the barrows were robbed, although I expect there are some still intact. Some don't look like any type of ancient monument, rather more like a part of the natural landscape so it is very likely that they were overlooked by robbers and were only discovered recently. It is unlikely that the barrows contained anything of great value now except to archeologists and historians. However if they were all brimming with gold and jewels like the one Frodo & Co. nearly copped it in, I'd be out there with a spade doing some digging myself!

Edited to add: I have not been to the Withypool Stone Circle, but have seen lots of places where there are ancient stones used as markers or to signify something of importance. Have you heard of the Inscribed Stone at the top of Porlock Hill? That's got an ancient cross carved on it, supposedly put there when Christianity was in its infancy.

[ September 18, 2003: Message edited by: Anne S ]

[Ophelia]

Well if to be honest I do not have a picture of any of those places that remind me of ME but I know some . One reflected in my mind right after reading this topic . The place is some miles away from the city and it is a walley . Two hills green as the greenest grass and a shallow walley in between . And when I see it at early mornings (even though only through the window of a car) the walley is full of mist and it really looks like the Barrow Downs . That place changes very radically in the day light or night fall or misty mornings . It is really beautyfull . It even feels spooky to pass it by if it is full of mist but when the sun shines down the walley it looks like the green hills of Shire . It is impossible to describe it but it is something from ME . [img]smilies/rolleyes.gif[/img]

I live very close to Ham Hill, and years ago i lived right next to it (one of the pubs in the nearest village). I go mountain biking there sometimes aswell.. I do agree that it has the Shire - esque feel about when your there, like being so refreshingly cut off from the polluted areas we live in.

[Mooncalf]

Wow, that's amazing. I wonder if the Shire was inspired by these places. I've also heard that in Scotland there are lots of Shirelike green rolling hills... I've never been there though.

I live near a creek called Willowbrook, but I call it the Withywindle because it means basically the same thing.

And I know exactly what you mean by the wanderlust, Numenorean... I feel that way right now, as it's starting to get cold. You go out and feel the wind on your face and suddenly you want to wander off into he woods...

[Numenorean]

Just back from a weekend in the North Yorks Moors,even warm enough to camp out on Saturday night, so thanks for the feedback! Mooncalf:

You go out and feel the wind on your face and suddenly you want to wander off into he woods...

Hey Moon, you know it! Yeah, the leaves, trees and all of it is totally magical at this time of year, I get going in the Wild and dont want to come back...
Hi Benbo, sounds like you live in a fine old place there too, I used to spend a lot of time in Somerset as my Cousins live in/near Yeovil, and ever since I can remember Ham Hill just leaves this Shire-like wonder in my mind.
Hi again Anne, I havn't been to or seen Porlock Hill, but am continually amazed by how many stone circles there actually are in the British Isles, they seem to be everywhere. Just seeing them kindof leaves me in awe and makes me think just how small and brief our lives are, maybe even Tolkien felt something from the Barrows, Stones and Landscape that stirred his soul?

[ September 22, 2003: Message edited by: Numenorean ]

[Mooncalf]

Hey Moon, you know it! Yeah, the leaves, trees and all of it is totally magical at this time of year, I get going in the Wild and dont want to come back...

::grin:: yeah, I think Tolkien knew the feeling too...

He found himself wandering at times, especially in the autumn, about the wild lands, and strange visions of mountains that he had never seen came into his dreams.

One of my favorite quotes from FOTR. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

[elf-girl-63]

I live in Lancashire and Tolkien is meant to have taken a lot of the landscape from round here and used it in his books. I can see why, on an autumn day (when its not raining) its just lovely! I think the Shire is a mixture of a lot of English counties and insteaf of choosing a specific name, it is just the Shire- it could be anywhere in Britain.

I think you can also relate Britian more to Middle Earth than America to Middle Earth (or is that to be expected?). Also, the landscape is similar to that in The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. Again, is this to be expected, especially as C.S. Lewis and him were friends?

Sorry if I went a bit off-topic there!!!

[Arien]

I live in England too, Hertfordshire actually. There are woods in my town which are amazing, the tree are ancient and tower high above you and there are several brooks running through and the odd small waterfall; it’s very tranquil. In the autumn it is awesome though, so many colours, but they are subtle. Kind of reminds me of Rivendell.

The fields near my town remind me of the Shire, they are rolling hills covered with corn and hedges in-between, it is quiet picturesque until you look to the right and see a dirty great electricity pylon towering over you; or the A 1(M) running through it. Shame really.

[Ainaserkewen]

Funny, your pictures remind me so much of my homeland. I live in South-West Canada and some of those pictures, especially the first one, look just like the little town I live in. I call the area ouside my window(looking west) Ithilien because it's a beautiful arrangement of greens, grasses, trees, rivers, the like of which I havn't found comparsend, unless you count New Zealand. It's right up against our mountain side to, sometimes I imagine that over those mountains I could find Mordor, but actually it's just Long Beach, another boring baren waist land. Oh well, I can still dream.

[Arwen Eruantale]

I must be the only Yank in this topic. [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

Those pictures are lovely, Numenorean...*sigh* (Welcome to the Downs, by the way. [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img] Enjoying being dead?)
There's nothing like that here. Arizona is my home, and I've only ever dreamt of seeing something like that. Something in my mind won't let me believe it's real. Sad, maybe even pathetic, isn't it?
I just wanted to thank you, for the pictures I mean. Because although I do love my home, and my country (which is quite lovely in some places), sometimes you just get tired of all the desert. The colour here is dry and bland, and could never be compared with places like those in your pictures, or to NZ, where LotR was filmed. And it's nice to know that something that beautiful actually exists... [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

[Oliphaunts_Rule]

I live in a beautiful woods. It sometimes remimdes me of the place where the Hobbits were hidding under the log from the black ridder.
Wet and green and stuff like that there. Very beautiful [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

[Numenorean]

Hi all,
Mooncalf:

quote:
-----------------------------------
He found himself wandering at times, especially in the autumn, about the wild lands, and strange visions of mountains that he had never seen came into his dreams.
---------------------------------------------
One of my favorite quotes from FOTR.

Wow, that is a brilliant quote mate!(One of those places in Tolkiens writings which makes me stop reading so fast and start daydreaming and looking over the maps). Heres another from the FOTR, not nearly as fine as yours Moon, but it wakes my wanderlust all the same:

He sat down on the bank at the side of the road and looked away east into the haze, beyond which lay the Brandywine River, and the end of the Shire in which he had spent all his life. Sam stood by him. His round eyes were wide open-for he was looking across lands he had never seen to a new horizon.

In the tale of 'Aldarion and Erendis' U.Tales, the whole story (and destiny of Númenór) kindof revolves around Aldarions phases of wanderlust, written with such brilliant insight by Tolkien that I for one found it disturbingly easy to empathise with Aldarion, despite his obvious flaws.
Greetins Ainaserkewen

Funny, your pictures remind me so much of my homeland. I live in South-West Canada

I think that parts of Britain (Geologists please correct me if I'm talkin' crazy) were actually attached to Canada a long long time back, before the plates drifted apart and whatknot? Bit of a tangent, but Long Beach looks pretty damn fine to me Aina, reminiscent of Lindon or Beleriands western coastline?
Hello to you too Arwen Eruantale ! Thanks for the welcome BTW, and hey Arizona is just a different kind of beautiful, sure its a bit Tatooine/Harad in places, but you're dead lucky that the U.S has such a massive variation of landscapes!
elf-girl-63 I agree that the Shire is a bit of many counties (and a bit of somewhere else besides!)and Arien, your corner of Herts. does sound a bit Rivendelly, always a good thing, do you have any pics or links?

[Ainaserkewen]

I think that parts of Britain (Geologists please correct me if I'm talkin' crazy) were actually attached to Canada a long long time back, before the plates drifted apart and whatknot? Bit of a tangent, but Long Beach looks pretty damn fine to me Aina, reminiscent of Lindon or Beleriands western coastline?

Mmmm, I agree. You go there often? I live on the other side of the island, which as I said before, looks more like Ithilien.

I also think that the Rocky Mountains at most points look like the misty mountains.
I've only been through them once driving, but that's what I thought when I first whnt through them.

[Finwe]

Well, Arwen, you're not the only one who's a Yank! I live in Texas, and the area that I live in right now looks like a much sparser version of Ithilien. Perhaps it could look something like a cross between Rohan and Eregion, with a lot of grasslands and shrub-covered land.