Walk in the Park

It is such a beautiful day today.  I had planned on going up to see my DIL and doing a canal walk, but she was feeling tired after working 10 days in a row, so I went to Trent Park for a walk instead.

It was 1 degree Celsius when I started, but it warmed up with the sun shining and I actually had to unzip my jacket and take my scarf off...although I did keep my hat on! 

The park is quite bare at this time of year.  I used to go for almost daily walks in this park a few years ago with Percy, but that kind of drifted off and now with his various health issues he currently doesn't have the ability or stamina to do such a walk which is a real shame as I used to really enjoy our walks together.  

I spy some gorse - the curse of the New Zealand farmer, but not such a problem over here.

A bit of yellow amongst the browns and greys.

Some blossom.

Green moss on fallen logs

A squirrel amongst the shooting daffodils.

More blossom.

The lake looked lovely with the sun shining on it.

Not a huge amount of bird life on the water today.

You can always rely on a Robin.

An inquisitive crow.

Some pretty hellebores.

At last I spied some snow drops!

Soon time to go home...I could have stayed out much longer than I did, but I had to get back as hubby needed the car.

Getting out in the fresh air on a crisp day with a beautiful blue sky always makes me feel so much better.  I can almost forget about the pain - although there are constant twinges, burning and reminders that it is there.  

Canal Walk

One of the things I am hoping to do this year is go on a long walk at least once a week.  My DIL is a willing partner and we actually did our first week New Year's Eve.  The first walk of this year was yesterday and we walked over 13 km!  I have to admit to my feet being in agony at the end of it, but certainly didn't let her know.  This is something I am determined to do despite the continual pain issues I am having.  The day was perfect for a walk, a stunning blue sky and actually not too cold.  It was around 6 degrees.  It is colder today by about 4 degrees, and you can certainly feel the difference, so I think we picked a really good day.  This week we walked in the opposite direction along the canal and went further than when I walked that way when staying up there in October.

The canal was full of bird life and it was a delight to see them.

Such rich colours for this time of year

There were a lot of bird watchers out, and I must take my bigger camera next time as I just had my pocket camera with me as it is lighter.  Will also take my binoculars.

This tree looked amazing against the blue sky, it had such an array of colours in it that couldn't be captured on film.  The top looked a pink colour and it gradually changed to a green and yellow at the bottom.

Lastly I couldn't resist taking a few photos of the beloved robin.

A very enjoyable few hours indeed.  Looking forward to our walk next week.

A Canal Walk

Tuesday 9th October was the most glorious day so I set off for a walk along the canal near where I am house sitting.

The day was beautiful and the blues of the sky and the river looked so lovely

Although there was unfortunately some road noise, louder in parts along the canal than others, the beauty shone through.

Birds could be heard in the trees and fields.  

Canal boats were moored along the canal. These looked like they had their own personal mooring and land.

A swan was busy looking for food.

The cows were grazing in the fields.

Walking back it was still beautiful

Just loved the reflection and colours here.

A really nice day and I was very proud of myself for having walked so far. I actually walked 11.5 km!!   It was no mean feat and although I was really sore afterwards being able to soak in a warm bath later in the evening seemed to really help.  I am trying to beat the pain myself - trying hard to ignore it - and to some extent this day I achieved my goal.  I didn't think I would be able to walk as far as I did, and although I almost had to crawl through the front door when I got home it was worth it.