Scozmo's Photery

I’ve become a bit of a walk addict I think, I start to fret if I can’t get out there but sometimes make do with a treadmill walk / run, my fast walk is considered a run by some apps 🙂

Today, however, was a sod it, I’m going day! It’s been pouring, sleeting, blowing a gale, sunshining (new word) and calmly serene so I grabbed a calm break, got well wrapped up and headed out.

I’m going to use phone pics throughout today, I had a longish lens on the camera so getting these wider shots had to be phone. I could carry a second camera but, way too much hassle 🙂

I got as far as the patio outside the living room doors for that one!

As far as the end of the fence for that one ….. I do love a weathering sky! Those where you can see the variations of colour and light and the movement of the rain, in this case. For the most part, I got lucky today, the weather mostly stayed up there over the glens ….. mostly.

When I walked out into the field, beyond the farm sheds, I felt the full force of the wind and it was COLD! I almost turned back but didn’t and pressed on into the teeth of the wind. Sounds romantic huh? 🙂

The view was constantly changing, well, the light was and I ended up taking a few as i walked along the top of the fields.

I follow those tractor tracks on most walks, all the way along the top of that field but, today I felt a bit rebellious and headed onto the old green lane instead.

The shots above are all three-shot stitches so maybe 100 degrees? This next one was a four-shot 180°, you can see the track I am on at both ends.

Just look at that sky! I absolutely love it, especially as it wasn’t happening on me 🙂

I walked to the end of the lane and decided to head back into the top the field and use the Gorse hedge as a shelter. It was like a different walk, no wind at all so it allowed me to take off my hat, warm up and relax a bit.

I walked down the hedge line to the bottom of the field, watching a wet looking squall moving my way so, I stayed within the shelter of a few Oaks, noting that one had been blown over at some point recently!

You may just hear me trying to commentate on the weather 🙂 After the squall passed by, I headed along the field to the cam site, see what there is to see 🙂

I’ve used that tree-line a few times but I really liked the sky beyond in this case.

I crossed the reed beds in the foreground of that shot and walked along the hedge line where it was again a wee bit sheltered, until I spotted a Lapwing diving down into the stubble of the field so, I started to cross that too.

All change! The squall passed over and headed East (right) and the Sun came out! I was now roasting in thermals, fleece, jacket, hat and gloves!

I love our weather, most of the time 🙂

I carried on up to the feeding post where I stopped to feed and watch the birds zipping in and out before heading down the lane to the mailbox. It’s a one mile walk to the mailbox and I decided to head back up via the ponds.

The path along the field follows a wee burn and passes three ponds where I’ll spend more time later as the Dragonflies start to appear.

I was intending to stop at the Beaver bench then head up through the woods to the top of the hill again, to the right of those trees on the horizon.

Typically, as I headed along that path, the wind got up again and it was freezing with little drops of sleet in it but once in the far corner I was more sheltered and the Sun kept popping through.

You can see the variation in the light and the sky in these shots, I had just come along by those trees in the centre and had the last and biggest pond behind me.

I crossed the wee wooden bridge over the burn towards the last pond and the Beaver bench.

The wee burn is fought over by the landowner and the Beavers, they’re devastating a grove of young planted trees to the right in the second shot and the wood stacks are the remains of their dam building attempts on the burn 🙂

And there’s the Beaver bench, so-called because the Beaver felled that Birch which now gives us the perfect picnic bench 🙂 Isn’t nature wonderful?

If you look at the first of those shots above, you will see that those trees stretch away beyond the ben ch and up the hill and that’s the route I took, steep but in the woods and sheltered 🙂

It’s very peaceful in there and there are often Roe deer lying dozing or grazing, not today though.

The track leads up a steep incline here, worthy of a couple of breather stops!

I absolutely love that this is right on our doorstep and there’s (usually) no-one else around, a few dog walkers have found the area.

I slowly wandered along the top path which leads back to the old Oak feeding post.

Beech leaves are one of natures best colourations! The view looks back down to the ponds, right down there, see, a decent climb 🙂

The final leg in the woods, leads back to the main lane and the feeding post.

See all the Beech leaves?

And so, back onto the lane and on the homeward leg.

A couple of shots of the old Oak and the feeding posts, sans Pheasant!

On down the lane, looking all around, see what I might see; the Honey bees seem to have abandoned their tree nest, maybe too small?

I stopped for this shot which looks back at my starting loop, the squall clip was just left of centre at the bottom of that ploughed field and I had walked along the hedge line in front, towards us, before turning up the field. I see the weather is changing …… again.

And a final look back down the lane, the sky darkening once again, just one of those changeable Scottish days. As Billy Connolly once said, “there’s no such thing as bad weather, just the wrong clothes. If you don’t like the weather, wait ten minutes” 🙂

I had a really good walk, cold, wet, windy and sometimes hot, a 3.6 miler. Let’s see what tomorrow brings?

Stay safe and well.

patch photos