An afternoon that improved! Dull and damp at first, the sun came out for the last hour or so: low, strong and golden, a spotlight creating at times unreal effects. Kites? Well, they keep moving around, making them difficult to count and photograph. Certainly five, probably six – maybe more. Twenty years ago, seeing just one kite in the Shropshire sky would have made it a red-letter day!

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There’s wet weather around – heavy showers are forecast, possibly with hail, for later this afternoon. We’ll have an early lunch and get out sooner than usual – perhaps we can beat the rain? We needn’t go far: Willey should be fine, in more ways than one.

Less than an hour after we’re home again, it’s started. Great timing!

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A mild and breezy afternoon in Comer Woods. As well as the usual sights, there’s a brief glimpse of a muntjac down by the pools. I’m struggling to get a decent view, and the light’s gone – then it’s gone too!

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Playing with a long lens… We’d intended to go to Attingham, but when we saw several hundred other cars parked there, with yellow-jacketed wardens waving us off to far-flung corners, we realised that it wasn’t going to be a quiet wander. Cound was busy too – five other cars in the Guild Hall car park…

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We last got out for a leg-stretch on Christmas Day – which of course was last year. Since then, weather and family commitments have kept us in – until today. The weather nearly defeated us – several rumbles of thunder around mid-day, and some heavy showers. It was raining as we set off in the car: ever-optimistic, we persevered and had a very pleasant short wander up to Plaish and back (the route we followed in November, but widdershins… See The Plaish triangle). Yes, we’ve started 2023 as we mean to go on – Happy New Year everyone!

 

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Eat early and get out for a leg stretch! The lanes around Willey are ideal – very quiet, exceptionally so on this still afternoon. Despite our intentions, the light is fading rapidly by the time we’re back to the car. Merry Christmas everyone!

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A short walk on a fine Christmas Eve afternoon – down Stanley Lane, along the riverbank footpath and back up through Chestnut Coppice

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A necessarily short walk on the afternoon of the shortest day, a walk whose quality – the light, the views – more than compensates for quantity. Sweet? Yes – Stollen, shortbread, Lebkuchen – perfect for a pre-Christmas cake stop on the Hope Bowdler ridge. We’ve paid for it though – the light has gone! Just one last glimpse of the sun before it disappears altogether…

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Tomorrow is the solstice – not that it makes much difference a day or so either way. I’m walking by 1.30; by the time I’m back at the car, a little over two hours later, the sun is setting (behind the triangular road sign in the last photo!). To the south-west of Shirlett Lane lie the Clee hills, impressive against the December sky as I view them on the outward journey. Heading back, the sun is much lower in the sky, and the colours are now dramatic. There wouldn’t have been time for a longer walk though…

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Days like today, that is. It’s the third in a row with clear blue sky, sunshine and frost. The sky isn’t completely clear – there are some wispy clouds drifting about, and there’s a change coming from the south-west. The next few days will be warmer, wetter and windier, so I’d better try to make the most of it this afternoon, in the upland fields around Barrow

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