Not really a walk – just a wander (making the most of the first dry afternoon for a little while) beside the pools to the east of the main road at Dudmaston, Shropshire. Apart from the traffic noise, at the western end of Brim Pool, it’s a quiet spot. Quiet, that is, in the sense of few other people around. The woodpecker wasn’t quiet, hammering away at the trees, nor were the ducks and coots in the pools, and the smaller birds – great tits, chiff chaffs et al. – in the trees. And it didn’t rain – until we were nearly home in the car.