Chilly at Church Preen

On By geoffspagesIn Photography, Shropshire hills, WalksLeave a comment

3C – a cold afternoon (and that’s celsius, of course. 3F would have been seriously icy!). At least there’s no wind. Walking keeps us warm, though gloved fingers are suffering slightly by the time we’re back to the car. There’s a thin cover of snow on the Wenlock Edge, and patches here and there on the high ground around Church Preen – but there’s none down by the school.

A red kite takes off from a nearby tree, and drifts slowly away from us. Photo? No chance. In the hedge near Parkstyle – is that a wren? No, too colourful. We think it’s a goldcrest, though it still seems too colourful. Could it be a firecrest? Photo? Again, no chance! Too far away for a clear view, and he’s hopping around in the bare hedge, never still for a second. The dunnock is the mud was much easier but far less colourful (and too far away for a really good photo)…

View OS map on Streetmap http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=354860&Y=298485&A=Y&Z=120

 

Sunshine? What sunshine?

On By geoffspagesIn Photography, Shropshire hills, WalksLeave a comment

Yesterday’s forecast suggested wall-to-wall sun for today. This morning’s forecast: cloudy from 10am… At least it would stay dry. It’s cold, but there’s no wind – the track beyond Hurst Farm pools to the ridge will provide us with an enjoyable walk. The views are hazy: the real interest is in the foreground…

View on Google Earth https://maps.app.goo.gl/L59mxGG9KrzkchoJ9

Snowdrops and raindrops

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Much rain has fallen! With luck there will be no raindrops this morning, but there are plenty of snowdrops beside the Willey lanes. There’s a little watery (appropriately!) sunshine at first: with little or no breeze, it feels like spring could be around the corner (if only!). There are plenty of hints of the oncoming season in the hedgerows.

View on Google Earth https://maps.app.goo.gl/bJ7NwHZ6eFrA4jg46

Grrrr!

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There’s a really annoying bug in WordPress, which they (WordPress) seem unable or unwilling to fix! I have tried!
If I forget to insert a ‘Read More tag’ (which happened with my previous post), the email that subscribers receive shows large and very blurred versions of my photos (instead of thumbnails) in some, but not all email clients. Most subscribers will know to click the page title, but some will wonder why I’m posting such appalling photos!
If anyone knows a good way around this, please let me know! If you’ve had the same problem with your own blog, please tell WordPress!

Happy accident

On By geoffspagesIn Photography, Shropshire hills, WalksLeave a comment

I’d intended to drive down through Harley and beyond – but the Kenley road was flooded (a not uncommon occurence – I should have guessed). So, back to Wenlock, for a walk on the Edge – where I found some yellow brain fungus (aka witches’ butter). Not something I’ve ever seen before. Then (after persevering through sticky mud), what’s that in front? A fox, and he hasn’t seen me (he looked in my direction once or twice, but the sun was bright, low and directly behind me). As I watched, he pounced on some small creature – lunchtime for fox! If I’d been able to follow my plan, my walk might have been much less exciting…

View on Google Earth https://maps.app.goo.gl/HVpGDYJ3MTCp4LwNA

Will I get wet?

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There was a lot of rain during the night, rattling at the windows, and the wind was whistling. This afternoon, there’s a good (is that the right word?) chance  of a shower, but it’s bright – and there are patches of blue sky. Let’s go for it! I’ll stay on surfaced ways – there’s no shortage of water running down them, but the fields are sodden. Well worth avoiding!

View on Google Earth https://maps.app.goo.gl/XMrbQLGfnUTXmfPN7