Woodland

Vertigo Strikes Again

~ beetleypete ~ 84 Comments

As anyone who suffers from Vertigo will tell you, there are good days and bad days. I have had more good ones for a long time now, as long as I remember to not lie flat on my back in bed, or in the bath. Also to avoid ladders, and anything else that requires looking up for some time, like clearing gutters, or cutting hedges.

Whilst out walking with Ollie earlier, I felt really good. The sun was out, and a cool breeze made walking very pleasant. I decided to finish the walk by going through the woodland, and Ollie was trotting on ahead of me. Something caught my dog-walking stick, and it slipped from my hand into a pile of leaves behind a fallen tree. It seemed simple enough to just lean over the tree and pick it up.

But the next thing I knew, the leaves were in my face, and it felt as if the sky was below me, not above me. I managed to get up, grabbed the stick, and continued rather shakily. It was a classic ‘Vertigo moment’, and left me feeling rather old and silly. Fortunately, nobody else was in the woodland to see me stumble and fall.

As the old saying goes, “It’s not much fun getting old”.

Video Clips: A Very Snowy Dog Walk

~ beetleypete ~ 75 Comments

When I took Ollie out today, I also took my phone, attached to the grip/holder I bought to try to keep it steady.

Ollie in the snow, avoiding the camera. And the deserted playground on Beetley Meadows.

Boots in the snow, and more views of the Meadows.

Riverside area, and boots in slush.

The River Whitewater, back to normal levels.

No picnics on these benches today, and Ollie refusing to move in shot.

My next door neighbour, and her lively dog, Henry.
Ollie was refusing to play, as usual.
(You can hear me asking him to)

In the woodland area, Ollie liked the smells.
It did look quite pretty in there, with no wind to disturb the snow.
Just after putting my phone away, I had a heavy fall, tripping on a tree root covered by the snow. I managed to bend back two fingers on my right hand, and they still hurt!

If I get the chance tomorrow, and the snow is still around, I will show you what it looks like over on Hoe Rough.

The Beetley Bunker

~ beetleypete ~ 29 Comments

I sometimes break the monotony of Ollie’s daily walk by taking him across to the Recreation Ground, in High House Road. This is the home of the local cricket and football teams, and is fringed by some dense woodland, intersected by paths. There are so many trees inside, that even on a bright day it can feel gloomy and dark in there. Ollie always enjoys the excursion, as the woods are also home to substantial populations of rabbits and squirrels, so he spends much of his time chasing them around.

Today was no exception, and he flushed out many irritated squirrels, watching them scamper easily out of his reach, into the branches of the tall trees above. On one edge of the woodland, is a large, overgrown construction, similar to an early style of log cabin, or military bunker of some kind. It appears to have been constructed from fallen logs and branches, then dug out inside, to provide an earth floor. Some care has been taken to build it solidly, and I would guess that it has stood there for a while, as plants have grown on the roof.

I doubt that it has any military or similar uses though. For one thing, it faces into the woods, not across the open areas beyond, and it is not deep enough inside to make it comfortable to move around in. I suspect it was made as a den, somewhere for local children to play, or for teenagers to hang around in. It shows little or no sign of being used these days, so maybe the builders have since left the area. Luckily, I had my camera with me today, and got these shots of it.

From the front, you can see how well made it is.

DSCF0144

The side view shows how the entrance was created.

DSCF0145

I am surprised that more youngsters don’t play here. If I was a child in Beetley, I would be there all the time.

Ollie and Strudel

~ beetleypete ~ 10 Comments

On Friday, Ollie had a visit to the dog groomer. He emerged looking in tip-top shape; with a shiny coat, a sweet smell, and nicely clipped nails. The marks we called crop circles are beginning to fill in with fur that is re-growing, so his appearance is the best it has been for some weeks. As we have a lot of visitors on Monday, and at other times over the Christmas period, we decided to try to keep him nice and clean, at least for the next few days. It is an effort to keep him looking so good once he is out and about in the mud and water, so I decided on a change of venue today, a place with no stream or large puddles.

He has been to the recreation ground near the village hall many times before, though not recently. The playing fields are deserted at this time of year, and the nearby woodland is ideal for his preferred antics of sniffing a lot, and chasing rabbits. The absence of standing water doesn’t guarantee to keep him completely clean, but at least he is unable to jump in and get soaked. On the downside, he is unlikely to encounter any of his gang of dog pals, so I have to try to keep him amused by spotting imaginary squirrels and rabbits, sending him off in pursuit of the non-existent.

There were some workmen over there today, cutting up and chipping a fallen tree, so he was none too happy with the noise that made. Nonetheless he persisted, scrabbling around the carpet of dry leaves covering the ground, and rushing towards any sound. Those sounds were mainly made by male pheasants, who flapped off angrily as he disturbed them, squawking in alarm. He investigated the main pathways, and some of the unbeaten tracks too, until we arrived at the large open space, where the football and cricket pitches proved to be devoid of players, as expected. He scanned the area intently, hoping to find other dogs, but to no avail. In the absence of partners in crime, he began to rush around madly, as if playing a game that existed only in his dog brain.

I sat on a swing for a moment, noticing that it was getting dark quite rapidly. I decided to make tracks for home, a walk of almost twenty minutes. As we neared the path again, a black Labrador appeared, running at speed towards Ollie. It was Strudel, an occasional playmate. Strudel’s owner is a leading theatrical agent in London, and only returns to Norfolk, her husband and her dog, at weekends. We chatted about Christmas plans, colds and coughs, and parties in London, as the dogs took off in a frenzied chase. They were obviously pleased to see each other, and continued the game for some time, each taking the lead to be chased and caught. After some ten minutes of this they looked pretty tired, and I said my farewells, continuing on my journey home.

When we got back, Ollie was soon dozing in the warm. I was thankful that Strudel had turned up.

Nature 1, Man 0

~ beetleypete ~ Leave a comment

The last two days have been bright, with no rain. Weather conducive to dog-walking, and enjoying the countryside.  Yesterday, I accompanied a dog-walking friend, and her black Labrador, and we took a longer walk through some local forested areas. Perhaps I should call them woodland areas, to be more accurate. Forest implies something vast, somewhere that you could get lost, and this is not the case with the local woods.

Ollie was on good form, as he enjoys the company of another dog, and he had somewhere new to sniff around. At one stage, he even discovered the carcass of a dead baby deer, something he was very excited about. I was able to chat to my friend, and to thank her for showing me this place, which was previously unknown to me, and well worth a return visit. We both remarked at the brightness of the low winter sun (see previous post) , and how it made it difficult to see, when walking towards the late afternoon sunset.

I later discovered, that it had made me fail to see clouds of gnats and midges, enjoying the damp conditions under the trees, as well as an unexpected feast on my head. The effect of countless, tiny bites on my scalp, resulted in the impression that bubble wrap had been implanted under the skin overnight. If this joins up with the spots that have appeared on my face (see previous post), I fear that I may appear to have Leprosy, and will have to don a muslin hood, and wear a loud bell around my neck.

Isn’t nature wonderful?