A hidden treasure on the beautiful river Blackwater

Tommy Barker says you’ll need lots of cash for Ileclash, but it’s worth it.

FINE country houses dot the River Blackwater, like pearls on a flowing necklace. But, too often the only way to spy them is from the sky, or more strenuously by boat.

A canoe paddle up or down a river (yep, down is easier) is a perspective-changer, a real-eye opener; fabulous houses that you never even knew existed face the river, and shun the road, packing in the privileges of wealth, removed from the busier world beyond.