At Last

At long last,

I had the chance to get out for a more longer walk.

I managed to get to Shapwick Heath,

located close to  Street & Glastonbury.

Instantly, the weather produced showers,

which seem to appear from nowhere.

But, it was still enjoyable,

 & I was still able to appreciate

some peaceful & tranquil surroundings

Signs of the Autumu season were much in evidence,

from fungi, acorns, to the changing colour of the bracken.

Even so, insect activity was still rife.

Butterflies were still fluttering around,

& I even stumbled on a small toad in the undergrowth.

Eventually,

  later in the afternnon,

any glimmer of blue sky

suddenly turned very dark & grey!

There was definitely no escape from the gathering rain.

It was certainly a brisk return to the car.

Changeable

Photos taken on recent walks,

 the  weather elements

certainly create changes of mood,

 with the sky above!

Snowy Weather

Woke up on Saturday to a thick blanket of snow!

This was quite a significant amount for us,

 as the area is situated in a valley,

where mainly the surrounding hills capture the worse of any snowfall.

 

All images viewed around the garden.

I was also relieved it was the weekend,

meaning no work to go to!

The Exotics

Between Seasons

A bitterly chill still in the air yesterday, but glorious blue skies to admire.

Not quite Spring, & yet not quite the end of the Winter!

Headed to East Quantoxhead,

 a relatively short drive on the edge of the Quantock Hills,

 & a short walk from here to the beach.

Beautiful Camillas were flowering in the gardens of the large Estate of the village,

 which could partly be seen from the public footpaths.

A stream was in full flow, no doubt,

 heading towards the beach & into the sea.

Plenty of catkins blowed & swayed in the chilly breeze

Part of the large Estate was flanked by a long row of barns,

 housing farm equipment,

 which even included this really old tractor.

 I wonder if it still works?

We did visit the village to see its duck pond,

but to our surprise & dismay, this had been virtually drained.

A shame, as this is definitely a central focus of the village.

So Encouraging

The day started off with a very damp cloudy day,

but as the time progressed,

the skies turned lovely & blue.

Pottering in the garden to discover these Crocuses now fully in flower.

So encouraging, as there doesn't seem an end to the winter season.

Don't wish my time away,

but starting to miss a bit of colour in the nature calendar.

Shades of Colour

A range of brilliant muted shades emerge,

 as I've proceeded to  put these photos together as a collection.

All taken around mid afternoon as the sun was starting to go down.

while out walking during the Winter.

All of the photos came from two walks,

 one at Shapwick Heath, Somerset,

wetlands for birds wildfowl, &

 even a home to otters,

 although not lucky enough to see them yet.

The other walk was while at a recent visit to London's Wetland Centre, Barnes.

A very cold icy day,

 although I think some of the photos do reflected this,
The photos below, are looking out over the main lake at the centre,

 with one of the bird hides in the background,

with views looking towards central London.

Bareness & Blue Skies

Such vibrant Blue Skies,

 together with the leaveless silhouettes of magnificant trees,

with all photos taken just before Christmas or the New Year. . . .

Bitterly cold weather, appearances very mis-leading!

Viewing out towards the Bristol Channel

~   ~   ~

Location:   Quantock Hills, Somerset

Flooding on the Levels

Totally amazed to the extent of the flood water on the Somerset Levels. . . .

Definitely covering field after field. . . .

Although some preventive work was completed some years ago,

to help stop flooding,

 this was definitely apparent it hadn't worked in this corner of the Levels.

Fortunately, it didn't invade the road going to Street that was very closeby.

I just wonder how long this will linger. . . .