Should I go or should I stay ...

Orange Tip on Greater Stitchwort

After the recent so wonderfully warm weekend, the temperatures have plummeted again and are hovering around 10 degrees daytime. There had been the odd bit of sunshine although mostly accompanied by a breeze making conditions a little tricky for insect photography (too dark and too much movement).

With the easter weekend being upon us, I was anticipating all the walk paths to be busy with walkers. I prefer to do my photography in private; I like to pick as spot and just sit ... quietly, no thought. It always takes a little while for the mind to go silent. When it does go silent, all the sounds, the scents and any  movement is registered by the bodily sensors. It also seems that the insects at that stage don't mind me at all being there. 

Yesterday started with a beautiful sunny early morning which I used to go and take my trusty steed for a walk. I then had to attend some other errands and by the time I was 'free' to go explore with my camera, the sky had mostly clouded over and the wind had picked up.

I was dithering whether to write (here and on another blog I run) or to go outside. I judged the weather circumstances as not very promising for a good shot as I most likely would have to work with ISO 400 which will create too much 'noise (grain)'. So, I did the very British thing: I had a cup of tea before making a decision!

Alas as I sat at the kitchen table (the kitchen is more or less also my office) and stared at the laptop's screen to view the blog I didn't 'feel' at all like writing. It was clear that I was not supposed to be indoors but outdoors. Well, I wasn't going to argue so I grabbed my camera and a few carrots (I like to nibble carrots - or seeds - throughout the day) and off I went. 

With it being quite breezy the nearby woodland seemed the best bet. 'I wonder if the blue bells have shown their blue/purple heads  yet?' I thought to myself.  

The path that eventually leads into the woodland lead first down a bank and over an old stone bridge. Especially in morning or evening light, the stream with its mossy stones looks magical. One can easily imagine fairies hopping from stone to stone or hovering in mid air, their dainty wings glistening in the sunlight and all accompanied by the warm and mystical sounds of a harp.

View from the bridge ... 

.,,, and the other side

For landscape photographs I use my mobile phone camera as I don't have two cameras to take with me and swapping lenses constantly just invites dust entering the camera. Hence the quite reduced quality of the photographs showing the forest. 

Regardless of the quality, they photographs hopefully still give you an idea of its beauty. The woodland is barely maintained and therefore wild and natural, covered in mosses and lichen and home to all kind of wildflowers. The wood anemones (see by earlier blog entries when I visited this same woodland) have now welted away, all that is left is their stems with the little heads hanging with browned and crinkled petals.

It hasn't been very warm and the blue bells are only reluctantly making an appearance. Their little bell shaped heads look a little deformed, I wonder if that improves as the days go on and they come into full 'swing'. 

The first blue bells making an appearance

Such is nature, one things dies to make room for another ... and as the wood anemones are returning to earth, another even more delicate wildflower shows:  the Wood Sorrel with its bright green trefoil leaves that close at night and open in the sunshine.

As it was so chilly, many of the leaves stayed closed even at lunch time. I was surprised to see that the 'Lesser Celandine' too had in many places not opened their little heads even though we had progressed through half of the day.

Little patches of wood sorrel

Not only is it chilly, it also had been raining during the night. Wood sorrel - oxalis acetosella

On my route deeper into the woodland I see many patches of blue bells 'to be'. A few days of warm(er) sunshine would help these little beauties along nicely. 

Meanwhile I am trying to remember the path to my 'secret' spot. It is off the path, or more it is a path but not created by human feet but seemingly the route of some larger wild animal. The path leads up to a stunning hidden 'world', the centre of which is a small stream that origins from the grazing fields higher up, it just suddenly appears.

More patches of blue bells.

 Each time it takes me a while to remember where it is ... but eventually I find it again. It's my favourite place in that woodland and its very hidden from anyone.

A happily bubbling brook offers life to many living beings; plants, mosses, insects and mammals. Just like the blood in our veins, these little streams support the woodland's life. At last the sun breaks through the clouds and it's beams spot highlight the grounds. Time has no meaning here; it is one of the spots where I just sit and be.

The only sounds are the buzzing and humming of insects as they come and go. Accompanied by the shrieking and creaking of the tree branches as the wind passes through while in the background the constant bubbling and gurgling of the brook almost puts one to sleep.

Happily babbling brook, a vein full of life

The stones in and along the stream are covered with 'Euphorbia'.

The 'Euphorbia' pollen appears to be especially delicious and is in high demand among the wood ants ...

... most of which show no interest in the lens being close up.

Every now and then a wood ant comes to examine me and the camera.

The wet and quite dark environment encourages all kinds of mosses and lichen to grown on stones.

Having spent some time just quietly sitting with the ants I decided to venture further up the narrow and now hardly visible path. I just have no words really to describe my amazement each time I spend time outdoors. So many wondrous and wonderful discoveries, big or small.

Left to its own devices ... looking magical and a place without time.

As always; nature will find a way, it just is and does, no matter what it takes.

I don't know how many hours I spent in this woodland (again) but by the position of the sun I feel as it is time to go and visit my trusty speed once again.

On they way back to base I did spend a little more time to watch the ants climb up and down the trees in the busy and purposeful manner. By now the temperatues have risen a little and the little fellows are moving at greater speed - they move very slowly when it is cold - and there wasn't much point in trying to capture them on camera due to light conditions (lack of sunlight). However, I was leaning against a tree while observing the ants when I saw this fly posing ... I thought the set up would probably look quite good on camera ... and it turned out to show the fly from its 'best' side. ;)

 And with this I shall leave you, dear reader, until next time.

Thank you for taking the time to stop by. Comments are of course welcome.