Autumnal beech wood delights

Well, enough of fireworks.
How about some natural spectacle......
in an autumnal beechwood.



where the paths are paved with gold....

and fungi bear fruit...












....and here's just a little colour contrast....

Oh, and should you require reminding...a hint
of the next season's events.....
Holly and Ivy for decking the halls....

....and(leaves on the left of this shot)
sweet chestnuts, for .........

Ok, OK. You got the picture...
Hope you enjoyed the show too!

Another weekend, more fireworks!

This weekend I was away again, this time in
Milton Keynes. This weeks firework display
was a more homely, back garden affair....


Roman candles.....







Katherine wheels....



....and sparklers!






...that sort of thing.

Well, there were
also some bigger showy ones but
they were near impossible to photograph.

Lesson learnt: if you want to take photos
of fireworks that go "whoooosh..............
..................bang! (ie high flying ones)
stand well back, like half a mile or so.
Its no use standing underneath them unless
you are very quick on the draw and have perfect
timing!

Remember, remember........now, what was it I had to remember?

Oh yes! Fireworks....................

A big finale........

...to the display at Loughborough University

(actually on the 4th Nov.) which I enjoyed from an upstairs

window of my weekend hosts....John, Helen, Grace and Rhiann!

Autumn Watch gets Local: The Bewick Swans are back!

Do birds suffer jet lag??
Well, if not, then they are entitled to, in my view.
Here, in the peaceful haven of Slimbridge
the first Bewick swans have now returned from
something like 3000 miles away in the Russian tundra

Beautifully white plumage, and elegant yellow and black
markings on their bills (the later feature which
enables individulas to be recognised by Slimbridge staff
from one year to the next!)

Home, at Slimbidge. A chance to rest, preen,


...to sleep even....

sharing this special place with multicultural neighbours..
local mallards, coots and black-headed gulls...

..and tufted duck....

or (red headed, red eyed) Pochards, also refugees from the
north and east.....

clouds of green plovers swoop or strut about..

amongst elegant Pintailed ducks....more foreign exiles.

and Widgeon too, whose 4000 mile trek to
humble Gloucestershire maybe overflew
Ulambatur, Mongolia

The world, on my doorstep.

There now follows a short film, introducing Slimbridge's new guest
"Dumbles" (hee hee)...... watch out for his first night nervey stage
exit towards the end of the film (Ah! Bless!)


Slimbridge Wild Swans
Uploaded by agracarter2

The Severn Bore

I went to watch the Severn Bore on Sunday. The following is a link to
the video that I created of the event.
I'm not sure what's wrong with Dailymotion at the moment but I couldn't get
the normal way of linking my videos and blogs to work
I trust this link works instead!

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xhm3o_the-severn-bore

Locks on up, Looks on Downs

Today I began a new walking project.
I took up the walk on a point along
the Kennet and Avon canal near Trowbridge
that I had reached on another project:
walking down the Avon from Tetbury to Bristol.

This time I was heading away from the Avon, towards
the Kennet.

But a particular feature was part of the objective
for today. Approaching Devizes the canal climbs
upwards and the frequency of locks increases

..until a quite dramatic "staircase" of..... well...
I don't know how many locks one after another.

Quite a sight.





Once passed this interesting spot I headed away
from the canal. Hedgerows were ladden
with autumn fruits......
Blackberry..

Blackthorn (Sloes)

Hawthorn.....and more.

..as I approached my days target endpoint, the chalky hilltops
of the Marlborough Downs.
So here beginneth my walk along the Ridgeway Path
to Ivinghoe Beacon in Bedfordshire
(well, perhaps I'll go a little further too!)

I shall revisit Avebury and pass some other ancient
landmarks I have not yet seen, cross the Thames once
again at Goring (as I did in 2002 walking the Thames path)
and then touch on bits of Chiltern slopes that I explored
when living in Hertfordshire.
I look forward to all that! (Time scale: uncertain!)