Dénia
December 14
Hello, I now live in Dénia, but used to live in Ayagarth in the Yorkshire Dales. I read your article on the scarcity of skilled Dry Stone Wallers and, if you are still looking for someone, may I suggest you try getting in touch with the Yorkshire Dales National Park, Aysgarth, North Yorkshire. There are many miles of dry stone walls in the Yorkshire Dales, and I am sure they will still have skilled men who may like to come to Dénia for a while.
I know all about the ancient remains of walled fields and houses as I lived in an (almost) 200-year-old house that had a walled garden, dry stone of course! It also had a double outside wooden loo, and a stone barn with 4 ‘rooms’ – one cobbled to house a horse and a cow, the next with a stone chute to throw the kitchen scraps for the pigs, and upstairs a room with an old metal fireplace, possible accommodation for a servant, and one more with an outside entrance for pigeons.
My late husband turned the barn into a picture-framing workshop, which I later made good use of. Some people turned these barns into granny flats or holiday accommodation.
Whoever you get to do the job at the Castle, it will be a worthwhile project. I love living in Dénia!
Yours sincerely,
Margaret Hairsine
