By: Blonde One
Our visit to Cranmere Pool a couple of weeks ago had an extra dimension that we didn’t share with you at the time as we didn’t want to spoil a potential surprise for Little Miss Blonde and Numbers. The letterbox used to be known for leaving mail for the next visitor to take to their destination and post, so I though I’d see if this still worked.
I was very prepared and bought a postcard, I wrote the address for Little Miss Blonde and Numbers on the right hand side and I made sure I had a pen with me to write the card in situ. The one crucial thing that I forgot was to out a stamp on it!!! Blonde Two will tell you that I was quite cross with myself but we both laughed at the typically ‘Blonde’ error! I decided to leave the card anyway and wrote a little note in the visitor book admitting to my error. I then kept my fingers crossed that someone extremely lovely would be kind enough to post the card anyway.
I was in luck! About 10 days after our visit the card arrived on the Isles of Scilly on the doormat of Little Miss Blonde and Numbers ( well, I say ‘on the doormat’ what actually happened is that it got left, along with all the other post, between the plant pot and spare staircase in the garage/conservatory!). As you can see from the picture it was John from Ohio and Harriet from Tiverton who were the very kind posties. They clearly arrived at Cranmere Pool with wet feet like we did!
The surprise was lovely and made even better because I was there when they received it.
So John and Harriet, I really hope you are reading this … Thank you so much for buying a stamp and posting my postcard!
I had a variation on that one. Used to leave an addressed stamped card there with humorous messages to a friend from an imaginary fellow of the “ripping yarns” explorer variety, name of Carruthers or something like that. Idea was he was hopelessly lost and in dire straits most of the time, as he reported to Her Ladyship with stoic determination to continue his exploration of the moor. The postmarks of wherever some kind soul posted a card to the addressee from showed how lost he was and she received quite a collection from a wide area over time, much to the amusement of friends and neighbours in Australia who read them and as a result seemed to think that she and all other English people were genuine eccentrics with an urge to explore the wild places of the world in any manner that is somewhat bonkers. Seems fair enough 😎
That’s brilliant, I love it. Well done, Carruthers, for remembering the stamps!
Well, I didn’t think anyone was going to buy a costly airmail stamp on my behalf! Informing of this habit also reminds me I showed a young and impressionable Kiwi explorer the place many years back. He was quite amazed by my explanation that an Official GPO Postman with suitable attire parked his van at Okement Hill and walked out to Cranmere once a week to pick up any mail that had been left by travellers, and as long as it had a suitable postage stamp on it a card could be addressed to anywhere in the world and posted at this remote place, being delivered thanks to the efforts of this GPO stalwart (name of Johnnie Gumby popped up from somewhere, just to make the tale more interesting). Quite incredulous about the dedication of this British Postal Worker, the Kiwi of course wished he had brought a stamped card with him to send a message to the folks back home from this remote place. “No problem”, sez I without batting an eyelid, and pulled from my pack a couple of blank cards with airmail stamps already on them. Did I always carry stamped postcards ready for posting from Cranmere Pool, the Kiwi asked? Why of course – every Englishman on Dartmoor did – they all knew Johnnie Gumby wouldn’t have a job if no-one used Cranmere Pool Letterbox. Thing is, I may have forgotten to correct one or two errors in my explanation before this Kiwi went home… Thus, if any Kiwi ever asks you celebrities if you have heard of Johnnie Gumby on Dartmoor, remember this tale, perpetuate it just for a lark, and try not to choke on yer jellybabies 😎
Hahaha that’s so funny! We will certainly share this story often! Poor old Johnnie Gumby, he would be soaked today.