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This morning I made a birthday card for Orlaith, using this photograph taken by Holly a few days after her daughter’s birth.
Jackie drove me to New Milton to post it this afternoon, and on afterwards for a forest trip via Holmsley Passage.
Beside the passage this pony
caught my attention
as it appeared
to be scratching
the bracken. Actually it was stamping it down so it could get at the grass. Too much bracken is harmful to horses.
Birch trees
stood out on the moorland,
and holly berries brightened the woodland opposite.
As we continued along the road,
we noticed a strange tree in the distance.
This was the Burley mobile telephone mast in disguise.
At the end of the Passage, according to this milestone just one mile from Burley,
we turned off right along a cul -de-sac on which we discovered a pool
reflecting
the surrounding trees.
Fungi sprang from fallen logs;
a dead branch dangled.
An enclosure beyond the far side looked rather like a Drift pen.
The road led to the enticing woodland
and undulating landscape of Clay Hill.
The mist rising above Bashley on our return had a distinct aroma of woodsmoke.
We diverted to Keyhaven where the clouds looming overhead
were reflected in the waterlogged tarmac,
and a menacing hoodie lurked on Hurst Spit.
This evening we dined at Mansoori Heights, a recently opened Indian restaurant in Milford on Sea. It was very good. Jackie’s main meal was paneer shashlick; mine was prawn vindaloo; we shared a starter platter, egg rice, and a methi paratha, and both drank Kingfisher.
Thanks for this particularly beautiful and non-menacing post, Derrick.
Thank you very much, Ann
Breathtaking adventure.
Thanks very much, Rekha
Such beautiful photos, especially of the little one.
Many thanks, Maria
Definitely heading towards winter now Derrick…. love the misty photo, can almost smell the wood smoke!
Thanks veery much, Pauline
Wow! As I scrolled through the pictures, each one was more beautiful. I love the mist shot as well as the second photo. Of course the first, is in a class of its own.
Very many thanks, Jill. 🙂
I agree with everything Jill said. Stunning photos, Derrick.
But I’m imaging some Hoodie Ghost now that roams the area. 🙂
I only wish she had appeared a week ago. 🙂 Thanks very much, Merril
🙂
*imagining 🙂
I bet you both are very excited about the fireplace this year. I know I would be looking forward to lighting it. I always learn something from your blog and this time it is what holly looks like in nature. No wonder there are so many songs and tales including holly at Christmas. It is so beautiful!
Many thanks, Ginene. Golly, don’t you have holly? It will soon be time to satisfy our excitement 🙂
We have trees like that here too. 🙂 … cellphone towers in drag. 😀
Quite barmy 🙂 Thanks a lot, Widders
very nice picture of you and the little one.
Many thanks, Byung. I hope that, at 5, she will think so, too 🙂
I’m sure she will think so.
🙂
Stuck in blackwaters, my internet is a trickle. The images take eons to appear on the screen. Everything is still, like those reflections in water. ‘Beautiful, beautiful!’ I tell myself, bitten by the tranquility and timelessness of the forest, moors and undulating vistas in the ‘rising mist’ with ‘a distinct aroma of woodsmoke’. You are extracting the maximum out of each hour of the day, and possibly a little more than is possible. Great work, as usual, Derrick!
Very many thanks, Uma. That it is so difficult for you to view my offerings makes your observations all the more precious and much appreciated.
Thought came to me looking at all your photographs; lucky you can get all these on a disk thing, and not have to keep putting new rolls of films in the camera, then popping along to the local Kodak shop, handing over the exposed rolls, and then waiting a few days to get the prints, don’t you think? 😀
Would cost you a fortune the old way,
Thanks a lot, Brian. It was blogging that turned me to digital. I’d always used film before.
That hoodie reminded me of the move “Don’t Look Now” – gave me nightmares.
It was a woman walking her dog. In that light no editing was required. 🙂 Many thanks, Mary.
What a wonderful drive down Holmsley Passage you both enjoyed. The photos of forest scenery were lovely, ..
Very many thanks, Ivor
I love seeing the changing seasons in your post. Lovely landscapes done justice by your great pics!
Very many thanks, Mek
You’re most welcome Derrick 😊
Thanks for taking me along for the drive. Clay Hill and the looming rain and mist photos were great for me.
Thanks very much, Cindy
I think these are my favorite photos yet! The light and the time of day make everything golden. Its amazing how animals are so smart, that pony digging or stomping is so cute.
Thanks very much, Lynn. I guess food brings out the best in ponies, too. 🙂
Haha true
Fantastic pictures, especially the last one.
Many thanks, Laurie (for commenting both on WP and on FB
love your forest trips and you do find, and capture, the most magical places! Thank you for sharing! Now, I’m going to spend some more time with your pics…
🙂 Man thanks, Rob
Curvy country roads, beautiful (and smart) horses, and an abundance of misty autumn scenes…great pictures, Derrick!
Very many thanks, Diane
I do hope they hang Christmas lights on the Burley mobile telephone tree!
To paraphrase Ogden Nash:
I think that I shall never see
A telephone pole as lovely as a tree.
Do you know, if I were rather younger, I might just do that 🙂 Many thanks, Bruce
Lovely autumn colours.
Many thanks, Rupali
I’m not sure, but I don’t know if I breathed or not as I went from pic to pic. I was absolutely stunned with this pectoral essay. How wonderful. Thank you for this.
That’s lovely, Paul. Many thanks
Your world is so beautiful, particularly through your lens. And that is the first real holly I’ve ever seen. When I was a kid, we had plastic holly for Christmas decorations, but never the real thing.
Thanks, Luanne. Ginene hadn’t seen one either. I was so surprised at that.
They are a dream from my childhood, really.
Drawn into the post by the handsome man holding the newborn, I stayed for the ponies and was rewarded with mist. Your photography never fails to please, Derrick.
Very many thanks, Susanne
Orlaith is a beautiful little one!
I thoroughly enjoyed these autumn scenes from your area. Autumn is my favorite time of year.
Very many thanks, Lavinia. Mine, too
Beautiful autumnal scenes – I especially like the misty one!
Thanks very much Clare. Jackie stopped the car for that one 🙂
Aww, the baby! What a lovely picture of you holding her. The others a nice too!
Thanks very much, Persia
The mist was particularly special, Derrick. I liked the pony stamping down the weeds and bracken.
The pool you discovered is quite beautiful with reflections of trees.
Of course, the details like fungi and the holly branch make me smile. Maybe the teacher in me notices the small things which mean a lot to show not grandeur; but beauty in simple natural wonders. Happy to have read this!
Happy belated birthday to Orlaith.
Very many thanks, Robin, for your usual thoughtful comments
Lovely autumn photos. You are lucky that the trees still outnumber the telephone masts. We have cell phone towers over here and they are proliferating.
Many thanks, LL/PS