A stroll through the woodland and country park

Last weekend we took a stroll through our local country park which we frequent quite often.  The weather was sunny but very cold so we donned boots and thick coats and spent a pleasant afternoon taking in the nature around us.

The walk took us through this wooded copse and out onto the open woodland and Hadleigh Castle that overlooks the River Thames.

I wonder if anyone's at home?

It didn't take long before a light mist started enveloping the surrounding 

hills and the sun was beginning to lose its strength, so no river view today

We are so fortunate to live where we do. Ten minutes away from the coast and downs, and yet only about 15 minutes from open countryside. Plus the added bonus of only being a 45 minute drive into London.

This pond was completely frozen over

As we came away the sun was just going down

So homeward bound for a well deserved hot cuppa.

Hope you all have a great weekend. P x

The clearing in the woods

What started out to be what we thought a pleasant stroll admiring the changing colours of the trees turned out to be a nightmare

Have you ever gone for a stroll through the woods, taken a wrong turn and spent what seems like hours trying to get back on track - or the very least find a clearing ahead and a road back to civilisation?  This happened to us yesterday. 

What would normally be a twenty minute stroll, lasted 1.5 hours!!  The trees were getting thicker and darker, not a bit of sky to be seen and at one point Mr M said lets go back to where we think we went wrong. Definitely a no no. I just wanted to be out. A jogger who obviously knew the woods well, did not even know the name of the road where we'd left our car but insisted that there was a road ahead if we just kept going! Ahead seemed to go on forever and getting very damp and muddy.

At last I could start to see daylight and yes - a clearing in the woods. Yay! However, it was nowhere near where we'd begun our walk and so had to put the sat nav on the phone to see where we were - a mile away - and so our walk, instead of being perhaps a mile  in length max, turned out to be 3.5 miles (as tracked on my phone app Map my Walk).

Foraging was the name of the game and after I'd scraped the mud off my boots and had a well earned cuppa finally managed to put this together for my dining table.

Moral of the story? Stick to the path - even better, buy the darned thing!!

Thankyou for all your lovely comments dear friends.  See you again soon.

A walk on Thundersley Common

Just a quick post that I thought I'd share with you. I've just come back from a very impromptu but thoroughly enjoyable walk, leaving him-indoors doing the things that him-indoors wanted to do. It was such a gloriously mild afternoon it just had to be done. After the dull rainy days we've had recently it was a real pleasure to get out - plus I'm on a mission to get fit and what better way to go about it. Watch this space.

I lost count of all the birds I could hear singing. 

The fallen leaves were in abundance 

and very damp, but everything

 smelled of that lovely woody, autumnal mustiness

Several dog-walkers bid me good afternoon and I enjoyed taking in the fresh air.

 this cheeky little chappy followed me for some time and 

actually stood on my toes for his picture to be taken - so tame.

On my way back through the village I spotted this - a mini pop-up library for villagers to make use of - how cool is that.

Bye for now, see you soon x

The tide's out

Making the most of some late summer sun we recently took an early evening stroll to our local fishing village at Leigh on Sea which takes on a whole different look when the tide's out.

Where fishing boats patiently await the return of the next tide to 

bring home another fine catch

and where the crunchy cockleshell beach is left in the tide's wake

Meanwhile, the fishing nets are hung out to dry 

plenty of rust and rope lying around the various nooks and crannies

 The many cobbled streets

take you to little alleyways which overlook the harbour

and the shore beyond

On dry land an abundance of fish and seafood stalls welcome visitors
where locally caught cockles, mussels, winkles and crab can be eaten



and where plenty of old fishermen's cottages line the streets





Sadly it's time to say goodnight to Punch and Judy




before lighting up time

and of course we couldn't miss some early evening sustenance 

before making our way home

Back again soon

x

The Gym? ...or not the Gym?

I've been toying with the idea recently of joining a Gym simply because I feel the need to get fit, having lost a fair few pounds over the past six months. I need toning up and think swimming might be just the job. So I've made enquiries at our local Gym (a well-known nationwide consortium). They quoted me £44 per month off peak (9am to 3pm) which would include the swims. I decided to mull it over.

Yesterday, once I'd dropped the boys off at school I took myself off for a walk around one of our local commons.

It was so peaceful, you could hear a pin drop. I walked for about 45 minutes, listening to the birds, watching the squirrels burying their acorns, said lots of 'good mornings' to the plethora of dog walkers, taking in the flora around me and generally enjoyed the fresh air.

This made me realise how lucky I am to have so many lovely walking places all within a stone's throw of home.

Several commons

Various woodlands

Several Country Parks

Many marshlands

An abundance of riverside walks

plenty of beaches

and in all directions

You know where I'm coming from don't you!

All this for FREE on my doorstep as against £528 per year at the Gym where I'd struggle to get there twice a week in the permitted times, the car park is always full to capacity, the exercise equipment chock-a-block, classes invariably need to be booked at least seven days in advance and you have to pick the right time for a swim to avoid the aquarobic classes. Now I'm not knocking it - each to their own, but I know what I prefer.

So - onwards and upwards. Cold weather doesn't bother me - wet weather might, but at least I can pick my times to suit my fancy.

Have a great weekend 

x