Introduction

Hi, Welcome to the website of Gary Tacagni, a passionate explorer of historical and natural sites in the U.K and beyond. You will find the photographs and stories of his adventures such as visiting Anchor Church, a cave carved out of sandstone by the river Trent that was once home to an ancient Monk, or exploring Ludchurch, a hidden chasm in the Staffordshire Moorlands that was once a Victorian tourist attraction. Gary Tacagni invites you to join him on his journeys and discover the beauty and the mystery of these places. Whether you are a history buff, a nature lover or just curious, you will find something to interest you on this website. Enjoy!

Debbie B debkbev@gmail.com 90.217.30.42	Submitted on 2015/01/21 at 7:17 pm What a fascinating website. We came here a decade ago and thought that we’d visited a lot of the area but you’ve inspired us withall the places we haven’t visited and how little we have actually seen. We shall be out and about a lot more come Spring.
Andrew M Hine amhine2@gmail.com 192.28.0.15	Submitted on 2013/12/05 at 9:15 pm Wow! Very interesting, thanks, Gary! I’m going to The Roaches for the Winter Solstice this month, to visit Dad’s grave at Rushton Spencer, Lud’s Church, Hanging Stone, Flash, Tunnicliffe country, etc.. Will be reading your posts for insight! A M Hine (Naden, Goodfellow, Cotterill, Eardley, Belfield, et al) Minnesota amhine2(at)gmail(dot)com
blakemere ludchurchmyblog.wordpress.com garytacagni@btinternet.com 86.168.202.171	Submitted on 2013/09/21 at 10:26 am | In reply to CC. Thanks for your comments, I hope you enjoy the rest of the website. Its nice to know that someone appreciates what I am doing. Regards Gary
CC Cathyerick@hotmaol.com 99.23.24.108	Submitted on 2013/09/21 at 6:26 am Gary, I discovered your blog doing research on the Coombes Rocks. I enjoyed reading about your experience and seeing your photos very much! I’m part of the Coombs family in the USA who has an interest in genealogy. I was aware of this area, but I always look for more information. I think your blog is fantastic and will be exploring your other posts too. I love the computer age, because it allows people to connect across great distances. I wanted to comment to let you know I appreciate and enjoyed my visit to your blog. Sincerely, CC
blakemere ludchurchmyblog.wordpress.com garytacagni@btinternet.com 86.161.190.191	Submitted on 2013/01/29 at 11:14 am | In reply to Andressa. Hi Andressa, Its nice to know that someone out there enjoys reading about the places I discover and write about. When the weather improves here I will start getting out and about again and look for other places of interest. Regards Gary
Andressa thenorthernrealms.blogspot.com.br/ kalidresden@gmail.com 164.41.201.143	Submitted on 2013/01/29 at 11:03 am Hi, Gary. I´ve just found your blog and I just loved it! That´s exactly what I was looking for, a site which I could know such incredible British places by their natural and historical aspects. Thanks for sharing your expeditions and keep them on! Greetings from Brazil.
Buena Swiggett adaaabada.org Knabe823@gmail.com 173.234.175.252	Submitted on 2011/08/27 at 11:59 pm A lot of thanks for your entire work on this web page. My mother takes pleasure in doing investigations and it is easy to understand why. All of us hear all relating to the lively medium you offer great tips by means of this web blog and as well as attract contribution from other individuals on the area while our favorite princess is without question becoming educated a lot of things. Take advantage of the remaining portion of the new year. Your carrying out a really good job.

R.I.P. Doug Moller.

It is with deep regret to learn that one of the Staffordshire Moorlands great characters has sadly passed away on the 5th August 2022. The following account appeared in the Guardian newspaper and tells of the life and times of a Moorland legend.

Doug Moller obituary

John BeattyFri 26 Aug 2022 17.44 BSTLast modified on Fri 11 Nov 2022 19.41 GMT

Few people are mythologised in their own lifetime, but Doug Moller, the self-styled King and Lord of the Roaches, who has died aged 89, became so among the townsfolk of Leek and the neighbouring districts.

Beneath a wooded ridge of millstone grit called the Roaches in the Staffordshire moorlands is a tiny and primitive castellated dwelling, Rock Hall, built in 1862 as the gamekeeper’s cottage on Swythamley estate. Doug lived there with his wife, Anne, in frugal simplicity for more than a decade.

Both were lovers of nature. They talked to passing birds and fed the feral wallabies that had escaped decades earlier from the estate and survived on the moors. But far from the country idyll imagined by the pair when they moved in, they found themselves in a busy outdoor recreational beauty spot. Doug was initially frustrated at the close proximity of weekend climbers and walkers, and on one occasion brandished his felling axe as a warning gesture.

After this he wrote to the Leek Post and Times, and to Downing Street and Buckingham Palace, to enlist understanding and support, eventually writing a book, The Wars of the Roaches, which was published in 1991. Thus, hearsay and legend took root.

Doug was born in Liverpool. He had four brothers and two sisters but, after his father’s death, they were split up and Doug lived in an orphanage in Durham with his brother Fred throughout his early childhood. By the late 1940s Doug was employed as a labourer on local farms, coalmines and in a shipyard, before enlisting with the Royal Engineers to serve in Kenya. When his tour was complete he stayed in Africa for several years working on railway construction gangs in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa.

In July 1969 Doug, back in the UK, married Anne, and they moved from Liverpool to the Clwyd valley. They purchased Rock Hall in 1978, expecting to refurbish its interior, but soon realised the cost was beyond their means, which left them to dwell within its cold rock walls, bare earth floor and cave-like cavities without sanitation or power. They took spring water in buckets from beneath a nearby boulder and shopped for food in Leek market, with help from the local postman.

Without the money to refurbish Rock Hall, Doug and Anne Moller lived within cold rock walls with a bare earth floor and no sanitation. Photograph: John Beatty

As time went on Doug transformed into a friend of the rock-climbing community, which is how I got to know him. He gave advice on the technical skills required to ascend the cliffs safely, and collected up tourists’ litter to “keep his garden clean”.

However, one winter, Doug began gathering wood from surrounding trees and fell into dispute with the estate owners, the Peak District National Park Authority. Michael Dower, the visionary director and chief executive of the authority in the early 90s, invited Doug for lunch to discuss his plight. At Doug’s request, beans on toast was served and an amicable solution was secured.

Rock Hall was turned into simple bunkhouse accommodation under the management of the British Mountaineering Council. Doug and Anne were given tenancy of a refurbished remote cottage at Knotbury End for a peppercorn rent. As a gesture to Doug’s style, the couple made their final departure from Rock Hall in a white Rolls-Royce.

They lived at peace with the surrounding nature, within sound of the snipe and the tumbling River Dane, at Knotbury Farm Cottage from 1989. Anne died in 2003. Doug remained at the cottage for the rest of his life, journeying once a week by bus to Leek to visit the market and to meet friends, who numbered in their hundreds.