Another Briantspuddle walk

[puddleshark]

Took the bridleway from Cull-pepper's Dish across the heath, and through the woods, down to Briantspuddle again. I can report that the fields in the Piddle Valley are very, very wet...





4 degrees C first thing. A cold blue sky. A very sharp wind, and in the wrong direction (as sometimes it is), carrying the noise from the traffic on the Puddletown bypass, so that the woods were not peaceful.


The woods still dark and wintry, and the paths damp, all mud and puddles. But here and there, on the beeches, bright green leaves are appearing.



Through Briantspuddle early, before the village was awake. A very pretty village Briantspuddle, full of thatched Arts & Craft cottages, but I didn't stop to take many photos this time.



Re-thatching in progress. (Once again I fail to see the thatchers in action.)



From Briantspuddle, along the quiet lane to Throop. The verges green with new growth of goosegrass and nettles, feathery shoots of Cow Parsley. Great-tits singing squeaky songs in the hedges. No butterflies yet. I've seen a few battered out-of-hibernation Red Admirals in gardens, but none of the new season Brimstones or Speckled Woods.


The River Piddle at Throop. After a very wet March, and April arriving in the blustery company of gales and showers, the river and all the streams that feed into it running very high: but not up over the paths. Not quite.


The footpath from Throop, running alongside withy beds, and the withy beds full of birdsong: wrens, chiffchaffs, thrushes, reed buntings. And the warblers with the more complicated songs - the ones I can never identify - are starting to sing now. No Willow Warblers yet, though.













The footpath leading off towards Bere Regis.


The bridleway leading back towards Briantspuddle.


Back through the fields.


Over a footbridge.


The footpath through the fields back to Briantspuddle. Sometimes crossing riverside fields, you can pick a way mostly dry-shod, from tussock to tussock. But the fields were too wet today, and - being too lazy to turn back and retrace my steps - I found myself wading through ankle-deep water.

Back in Briantspuddle village, sat on the bench outside the village hall in the sunshine to wring out my socks and empty the water from my walking boots.


Yes, I know. Wellingtons would have been a better idea.

Then it was back through the woods...


Everywhere I went, there were arrows. Someone had been out marking a course. Looks like one of those Sunday morning runs people do with their dogs.


Coming back across the heath, the sun suddenly warm. Paused now and then because I was hot and climbing back uphill to inspect fallen logs in case there were any sand lizards out basking.

Comments

[heleninwales]

For some strange reason, about the only Swedish I picked up on our holiday there some years ago was "sand ödla", which is "sand lizard". We'd been watching a wildlife program and for some reason that stuck.

I assume that this walk was today (Saturday). We've had a lovely day here too and did a walk up through the woods past a goldmine and then back to the car via a rather easier path.

[puddleshark]

Heh!

Possibly not the most useful Swedish phrase in everyday conversation...

Yes, yesterday was glorious. Sunshine all the way. Quite warm sunshine by the time I came back. Unlike today.