Don’t Frighten The Humans

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Today was largely overcast, but it brightened up a little in Brockenhurst.

We spent the morning mostly tidying and composting the Oval and Elizabeth’s Beds. Jackie continued with this work after we went for a drive this afternoon. I can report that there has been no evidence of Big Beast activity for 48 hours.

Many of the verges in Sandy Down seem to have been tended by the residents. Particularly attractive was that outside Cranford Cottage, where cultivated rhododendrons grow alongside gorse.

Cattle were out in force on the verges and in the woods of Brockenhurst. The mottled black group, perhaps jealous of the attention given to the Highland creatures, wandered into the road to claim their own share.

I became a bovine expert when I explained to a number of visitors that these were Highland Cattle rather a long way from their natural environment.

Stream

Venturing into the woodland in order to photograph one particular grazer, I discovered an inviting fern-bound stream, alongside which

my quarry chomped on grass and other undergrowth.

Further along the road a pair of ponies performed their own interpretation of Oscar Wilde’s aphorism. What they were doing was acceptable as long as they didn’t frighten the humans.

This evening we dined on chicken casserole, sage and onion stuffing, roast potatoes, Yorkshire pudding, carrots, Brussels sprouts, and runner beans. I drank more of the shiraz.

29 comments

    1. Magical indeed.

      Our large road visitors, are deer, moose, and bears. 😀 The moose & deer will have direct encounters with vehicles. The moose may not survive the encounters, but then neither do the vehicles. I would imagine the same result with the cattle, though such encounters are far less likely. 🙂

  1. I can only suspect about the particular aphorism of Wilde you have on your mind, but I can tell you this: on the stage that New Forest is, the play is splendidly cast. I see the Big Beast is lurking at the back of the minds of the Gardener-in-Chief and the Chronicler, including this little serf peeping in your arbour.

  2. Splendid photos of the animals in your area of the world. It’s rather amazing and wonderful to me to see them (in your photos) just wandering about. We see farms with dairy cows and horses around here, but not wandering about. There are deer, though they too often end up being hit by cars.
    The fern-bound stream is magical. I like how you caught the glimmering reflections in the water.

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