The season continues! The leaves are falling steadily now – soon the trees will be bare, and we’ll be well on the way to winter. There will still be plenty of fungi, I imagine, though not the ones we’ve met today – they’ll be long gone! Their above-ground lives are mostly short. The colours of the leaves and the variety of toadstools have certainly brightened up this cold afternoon in Comer Woods

Comer Woods NT

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It’s cold, too. The clocks have gone back to GMT (or winter time, in effect) – is it anything to do with that? It’s a good morning to be out though, whatever time it really is, especially as rain is likely later. Plenty of seasonal colour, and some splendid toadstools – an enjoyable little outing.

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… to familiar territory. Familiar it may be, but it’s different every time. This morning, the lanes around Willey are decorated with autumn colours, and there’s a very fine crop of toadstools half-way along Britons Lane, well-hidden in the undergrowth…

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Perhaps Chestnut Coppice should be renamed Toadstool Wood? There are certainly lots of chestnuts – we left with our pockets full – but there’s also a fine crop of all kinds of fungi. Mushrooms? Toadstools? I’m no judge, I just enjoy finding them, in all their different shapes and sizes, ranging from single isolated specimens to large family groups. And I’d much rather leave them for everyone else to enjoy.
The fallen chestnuts are in a different category. We’ll roast them and enjoy eating them – and rest assured, there are plenty left for the squirrels and other nibblers of nuts…

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There ought to be! There’s colour on the way there – in the haws, sloes and bright pink mallow. Less to catch the eye in Red Lane itself, apart from the blue of the sky on this pleasant afternoon

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Who needs sunshine? We all do, of course, but even on a dull afternoon (the sun’s trying to break through) the season provides rich colours in the lanes and hedgerows around Willey

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Monday 6 October: What a beautiful afternoon! It would be a crime not to be out on the hills, though we can hardly call this Long Mynd wander a hill walk. We’ve parked the car at about 1530′, and the highest point, Pole Bank, is 1680′. A good leg stretch though, through the rich colours of the autumnal moorland. Returning to the start, we realise we’ve had the best of the sunshine – clouds are starting to gather – but it’s been really pleasant out on these hills

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Hadn’t realised until I looked at the map! There’s a certain symmetry about an out-and-back route in any case. Not that it has anything to do with the feel of the walk – a real “blow the cobwebs away” struggle against storm Amy, while the few clouds fly past, taking me from light to shade and back in seconds. No great height here, but there are sweeping views to the south – and it really catches the wind. I’m not hanging around!

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It’s truly autumn on the Edge at Much Wenlock – fruits and berries, colours, skies… The days are rapidly getting shorter, but it’s not cold – very pleasant for an afternoon wander.

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