Travels with my camera

I tried out a new walk today. All the time I have lived here, and ventured miles to take Emma to interesting places, and this place is almost on my doorstep, only about 6 miles away. I found out about it by chance when I was in a shop the other day, and saw some brochures for local walks. I couldn't believe it when I saw it was a Woodland Trust site - I am a bloody member, and have a tree dedicated to me! When I joined though, I was told it would be in a nearby wood, and it turned out that they gave me one at Laugharne, right down on the south coast, bloody miles away. I was a bit peeved to be honest. But anyhow I digress. I saw this leaflet, and thought I'd take a look. It was lovely, but would be a bugger if it were wet. There's a very steep upward bit, which would be a mudslide if it were a bit moist. The walk itself is 5 miles which would have meant going across stiles, farm fields, through a farm, and a fair bit of road walking to get back to the beginning, so I just went the wood bit which was about a mile and a half I reckon, and then came back. The place was alive with birds, and again, not a human sound anywhere until I got near the end, when I could hear a tractor working down in the valley. I haven't taken many interesting pictures because I did two, and then the bloody batteries went flat on my camera, so the others are done once I got back to the car and changed them.

Smelled my first bluebells of the year too, they are early, don't normally see any for about another week or so here. Saw and/or heard Robins galore, Blackbirds, Blue Tits, Wood Pigeon, Crows, Jackdaws, a pair of Buzzards, and for the first time in a few years, a couple of Tree Creepers, what lovely little birds they are, made me smile to see them scurrying up and down the tree trunks. We used to see them a lot when I lived at Drefach.

Other than that, been quite good today and made the effort to dust and hoover through the place. I daren't mention how long it's been since I last did it, felt really guilty, but I always think, oh well, nobody ever comes here, I'll do it tomorrow. I also moved my rotary clothes line out the back garden because I set up my patio table in front of my wooden bench, so that I can put my cup of coffee down somewhere (and my lunch, which I ate outside again in the sun) This spurred me on to paint the yearly coating of green cuprinol on aforementioned bench. I've lost count how many times I've done it now. When Barry and I split up, I was given custody of the bench. It was about the first thing we bought from an auction when we first moved to Wales. Someone had spent hours making it, and it was white then. The white cracked and flaked, and I spent hours too rubbing it down and repainting. I can't remember when it became green, sometime in the following years. Barry said I ought to have it because I would take better care of it and paint it, when he wouldn't. I make sure I do just that. Two of the timbers are rotting even so though sadly, but I will repair it with replacements when the day comes that I fall through it!

Oh well, time to shut the chickens in now, it's staying light so late now, 9 oclock already!

Start of the walk

Gate into the woodland walk

Information board showing the routes



Emma looking longingly down towards the stream, fence preventing her having another paddle