Fairy magic comes to Avonbridge

Two sisters have helped bring a touch of magic to Avonbridge during lockdown.

Holly and Heidi Wilson started creating a fairy trail at the former open cast site on the outskirts of the village where they live, and now it’s proving a huge hit with locals.

What started as simply writing a few messages on stones and making little fairy doors and other small trinkets as a way to help keep themselves entertained during their daily walks, has grown into a proper fairy trail with others adding their own things too.

Holly (8) and Heidi’s (5) mum, Jade Wilson said: “During the lockdown we didn’t want to be walking round where everyone else was, so we started going for walks at the open cast people used to go to years ago.

“It was as if someone had made a path through the site, and we spoke about it perhaps being fairies that live there.

“So the girls started leaving messages written on stones and someone was replying to the messages.

“That went on for a couple of weeks and we were wondering who it was replying to us.

“The girls said it might be real fairies.

“We’ve still not found out who was writing back to us.

“Every day when we came home from our walk they would do something arts and crafty – writing messages, making little fairy doors and other little trinkets to add the next day.

“It grew from there with my dad making some wooden arrows and signs for the girls.

“We posted on the Avonbridge news Facebook page that the girls had been making a fairy trail at the old open cast and we hoped everyone enjoys it and adds to it – and that’s what’s happened.

“Lots of people have been going up there to have a look and some are adding to the trail.

“People have been posting their pictures on Facebook of their kids enjoying the trail and it’s been helping to keep them entertained.

“The girls are delighted that everyone is adding their own things.

“They get excited to see what people are adding to it.

“They are loving it.”

But the fairy trail is not the only thing bringing the Avonbridge community together during the pandemic, with a number of initiatives currently taking place.

Jade, a member of the community hall committee, explained: “To keep spirits up in the community, there is a lot going on.

“There’s the Avonbridge Rocks page with families painting stones and hiding them for others to find and they have created a rock snake.

“The community hall committee and a few volunteers have made lovely bags for the children.

“They have filled over 75 fabric bags with things like chalks and water pistols, for each child to help keep them entertained during the school holidays.

“It was funded by the EDF windfarm and the community hall.

“The team behind the community hall would usually organise a bus trip for the over 60s, but obviously that can’t go ahead so we’re proposing to deliver a high tea, hand sanitiser and face masks instead.

“There are a lot of things happening here at the moment.”

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