A break from the gloom

~ beetleypete

hoe-rough-november
Hoe Rough, in November sunshine.

The past week has been pretty dismal, weather-wise. Dark skies, lights on by midday, and dull dog-walks in constant rain, and slippery mud. By yesterday, I was beginning to feel pretty glum. The ‘winter blues’ had come early, and I was dreading the long months ahead.
This morning didn’t start out much better, but by dog-walking time, the sun was out, and the sky was blue. I was enthused to take my camera, and set out for a longer walk than we have enjoyed recently.
All photos can be clicked on for detail.

Not many trees around here turn into interesting colours during Autumn, but this one added a splash of yellow-gold.
autumn-tree

A small Muntjac deer suddenly appeared on the path, and Ollie gave chase enthusiastically. They were both moving too fast for me to get a photo, so I had to settle for one of a panting Ollie, when he returned from the ‘hunt’.
ollie-hoe-rough

I continued across the road to Hoe Common. This is the entrance gate, with small signs to advise local walkers of routes, and a warning about the poisonous snakes that live there. The long bamboo stick is my dog-walking stick.
hoe-common-gate

In the woods, I came across this example of a Fly Agaric mushroom. Despite having hallucinogenic properties, they are also poisonous, so best avoided. This one had toppled over a little, and I had to use the flash in the dark woodland.
fly-agaric-flash

Sadly, darkening skies heralded a change in the day’s weather, so I decided to head home. Back near the gate, I spotted this leaf-strewn patch, lit by the last few rays of sunshine.
hoe-common-leaves

Sure enough, it was soon raining hard, and the passing cars were using their headlights. By the time we reached home, we had both had a good soaking, and it was back to the gloom that I had tried to escape from. At least we had enjoyed a short break from it.

46 thoughts on “A break from the gloom”

  4. Lovely impressions, Pete! How nice to see Ollie again.
    Which underlines the motto of every photographer; Always be prepared. Never ever ever go without your camera! šŸ™‚
    Love, Dina x

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  8. You were probably counting on me to add something about adders… Or maybe make a reference to subtractorsā€”but what difference would that have made? Instead, I’ll just say that I really loved the photos, especially those of that tasty mushroom and the leaf-strewn patch. Those leaves have fallen on hard times, but at least you’ve memorialized them. I guess the trees are on leaf of absence until spring. That about sums it up.

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  13. It is always wonderful to have a break from the gloom.. we have been fortunate here to have multiple (record breaking) sunny days in a row, after having the rainiest month on record in October… We will take it! Fortunately when I walk here I don’t have to worry about poisonous snakes! Watch your step! šŸ™‚

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    1. The Adder is our only indigenous venomous snake, Susanne. They are rarely about in the cold. Most adults could survive a bite, but Ollie might be a different matter.
      Best wishes, Pete.

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  14. Hello! I came over from Lauren’s blog. Loving your country walk pics – especially the mushroom one, its gorgeous! Ollie is lovely too. šŸ™‚ I have a Border Terrier and she is the biggest diva known to man, although she is partial to chasing foxes and squirrels occasionally. šŸ™‚

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  20. Nice to see Ollie, and also to see the walk you have each day. Here we started off sunny, and I got housework done intending to go out after to do my shot, but by the time I’d finished the chores, well you can guess the rest! šŸŒ§ā˜”ļø

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    1. Indeed, I can guess, FR…
      Most of our walks have been posted with photos by now. It always strikes me how little they change with the seasons. Just taller or shorter nettles!
      https://beetleypete.wordpress.com/2015/08/15/a-mostly-monochrome-walk/
      https://beetleypete.wordpress.com/2016/01/30/a-bright-afternoon-in-beetley/
      https://beetleypete.wordpress.com/2015/10/01/a-walk-to-old-beetley/
      https://beetleypete.wordpress.com/2015/07/16/at-last-some-photos/
      https://beetleypete.wordpress.com/2015/08/09/a-walk-with-the-camera/
      And so on…
      Best wishes, Pete.

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