Heavy rain and violent winds raged throughout the night and until midday, after which the cloud canopy cracked revealing a range of skyscapes such as these over Beaulieu Heath on our forest drive this afternoon.
Before this we dumped the rest of our garden refuse in the Efford Recycling Centre and returned home with
two rusty obelisks which took up rather a lot of room in the car.
Having cleaned ourselves up a bit we continued on up South Sway Lane where, yesterday I had been unable to identify the mare at the far end of the field occupied earlier in the year by the horse we had named Gimlet.
The field had been empty and unkempt since before lockdown, but a new fence had been built around it. The mare and her foal were nearer my vantage point today.
There was no mistaking those gimlet eyes or the rear white socks, although they had been decidedly grey during the muddy season. This was indeed our equine friend
back home with a foal whose eyes left no doubt about its parentage.
Further along the lane I noticed an unusual fungus decorating an oak tree.
We returned home via Rodlease Lane
and East Boldre where a group of ponies seemed to be debating how to spring a cousin enclosed beyond a second gate at the end of a mowed stretch of ground.
One of the East End llamas was trying out a mudpack.
This evening we dined on Hordle Chinese Take Away’s excellent fare with which Jackie drank Hoegaarden and I finished the Shiraz.
The expression on your face! 🤣. The sky and horses are both beautiful. It looks like you had a lovely day, and got home safely for Chinese food.
Thank you very much, Merril 🙂
Moody skies
Thanks a lot, Sheree
Fantastic photos of clouds, Derrick. The expression of pretend angst and astonishment on your face, while encased in whatever that contraption is, does credit to Assistant Photographer.
Thanks very much, Dolly 🙂
My pleasure, Derrick.
Fun photo of you being excoriated. (What a sublime word, huh?) You will never be excoriated for your blog posts, for they are truly sublime. The photos – I could SMELL “your” horse. And I laughed at the “mud” llama.
Thank you so much, Pamela
I like the idea of East End llamas. Do they have family rows and murder each other?
Nice atmospheric pictures at the start.
Thanks very much, Tootlepedal. A nice association – mind you, I have only watched one episode about 20 years ago when my daughter was in Australia and wanted me to record some evil geezer getting blown up in his car.
How lovely to see your equine friend with a foal. I took pleasure in the ones that were over the lane, but they grow so fast and then they’re gone. Enjoy while you can.
Thanks very much, Sue. By the way, I am now using your very effective method of cleaning specs.
Excellent! I’m delighted it works for you.
Thank you for telling me. 🙂
You are hilarious, Derrick! Your expressions are priceless! Always a good way to end the day with Hordle Chinese Take Away. I hope you have lefties!
We do, of course, have lefties for this evening, Jill. Thanks very much. 🙂
Love the sky’s. LOL you look impaled by the obelisk.
Thanks a lot, Sherry 🙂
Unusual fungus? Looks like an alien invasion 🙂
https://youtu.be/TdUsyXQ8Wrs Thanks very much, Donna.
Ohhhh, I’d forgotten Steve McQueen was in that movie! Think I need to watch it again, if not only to see if I can it through it to the end. Be well, Derrick!
🙂
You look caged! Good thing you didn’t have to stop suddenly. Who knows what might have happened.
Thanks a lot, Sue. The cage would have protected me 🙂
I adored your photos and story and Gimlet, Derrick, gave me a morning smile, in among my morning ‘manuscript’ grimaces 😀
🙂 Thanks very much, Ivor.
I love the strange fungus on the tree and the shaggy ponies. Hope you didn’t have far to go with the two obelisks. Had to chuckle at your expression.
Thanks a lot, Joanna. Just a couple of miles 🙂
I enjoyed the sky photos, but was quite taken with that odd fungus. It’s not exactly appetizing — I’d much rather have take-out from Hordles — but they do have a certain visual appeal.
Agreed about the fungus, Linda. Thanks very much.
Watch out, Derrick!
🙂 Thanks very much, Laurie
looking forward to seeing the “objects with out the person caged” – I guess in the garden!
They are destined for the Rose Garden, Cedar. Thanks very much. 🙂
the look of your face! and how did you manage to drive back home! dramatic skies and delightful pictures of ponies as always! 🙂
Thank you very much, Lola. Fortunately I wasn’t driving 🙂
Rodlease Lane shot is special.
I’m pleased you think so. Rupali. Thanks very much.
Great photos, all of them! BUT, I gotta’ say the bestest ones are the ones of The GP that The AP took! You will never know how much joy your expressions brought to me! HA! I snort-laughed! Tell Jackie thank you for me…and throw in a (((HUG))). 🙂
Gosh, that white llama looks so relaxed and down right cool! 😎 Cool, as in hip, fly, fresh…HA! 😀
HUGS!!!
PS…that fungi freaks me out a bit…the tree needs to see a dermatologist! 😉
Thanks very much, Carolyn. I passed your message on to Jackie who got another good laugh herself. X
Alexandre Dumas springs to mind – The Man in the Iron Mask!
🙂 Nice one, Andrew. Thanks very much
Trapped in the frame, you do look like the hero captured after a turbulent night.
Your favourite pony is indeed a beauty! Llamas and alpacas never fail to intrigue me. I wonder if they have some prehistoric affinity to camels?
That is just what Jackie said about llamas and alpacas, Uma. Thanks very much.
😆
Roadlease lane, I 😍.
What a fabulous trip. Lucky both of you.
Thank you very much, Kavitha. We are
You will need to start carrying an apple with you on your journeys again for the mare and maybe a carrot for the foal.
🙂 Thanks very much, GP
Oh, how funny. Derrick caged in!
Thanks very much, Bridget
Your Face is priceless Derrick…. 🙂 love that photo of you in car…. Glad you are gradually getting your garden rubbish sorted.. And same here grey skies…. Love the horse photos as always… Enjoy your weekend Derrick 🙂
Thank you very much, Sue. And the same to you.
🙂
I enjoyed all the photos from your day, Derrick and Jackie! I remember Gimlet with her one blue eye (called a “watch eye” here). She loved the carrots you gave her, didn’t she? Her foal is very sweet.
The blue eye has been passed on. I didn’t know about “watch eye” – so thank you for that as well as your usual regular support.
Love the photis derrick. Hope you have a great weekend
You, too, More. Thank you very much.
You’re welcome
Nothing like a good storm to proffer dramatic cloud formations. Great!
Llamas and alpacas are camelids. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camelidae
I looked at your expression and the obelisk and was immediately filled with a desire to write a comment that is probably inappropriate for a family blog. Then the word gibbet came to mind. I looked up New Forest and Gibbet and found several references, including one where your face was prominent in the comments section. How uncanny…
https://gordonlepard.com/2018/03/02/the-village-snowbound-the-marlpit-oak-gibbet/
Thank you very much for all this, Quercus, which I have just fished out of Spam. The camelid link makes sense, and amazing to be reminded of a comment of mine. 🙂
🙂 It’s strange how things link up on the internet.
The photo of you in the car with the two rusty obelisks looks like a death trap. Glad you made it home safely. The fungus on the tree trunk looks like an alien species.
Thank you very much, Rosaliene. https://youtu.be/TdUsyXQ8Wrs
I was too young to watch The Blob movie 🙂 Later, as a teenager, I became a Steve McQueen fan.
At 16 I was tall enough to get in to the cinema. 🙂 I can understand the attraction of Steve McQueen, Rosaliene. Thanks very much.
Oh, you’ve outdone yourself with skyscapes! They’re magnificent.
Thank you so much, Liz. Not something one could ever see in London.
I’m sure those two rusty obelisks will find their place in your gorgeous garden 😉🌸
They will – in the Rose Garden, Ribana. Thanks very much.